David also defeated the Moabites. He made them lie down on the ground and measured them off with a length of cord. Every two lengths of them were put to death, and the third length was allowed to live. So the Moabites became subject to David and brought tribute. – 2 Samuel 8:2

Today’s Scripture Reading (January 10, 2013): 2 Samuel 8

There is part of me that has always wanted to be more like the Vulcan Spock of the Star Ship Enterprise. As I look back at my own life, it seems that most of the mistakes that I have made have been, at least in part, because of my emotional state. And so I wonder if maybe some of the mistakes could be eliminated if only my emotions could be controlled. However, I also have to admit that I enjoy my emotions – and I would mourn their loss. But that is all part of the premise of Gene Roddenberry’s vision in Star Trek. In Spock we find both the idea that there is something desirable about a lack of emotion, but at the same time there is also a loss of something important that needs to be mourned.

There is a violence in this passage that sometimes disturbs us. It is actually a violence that was quite common in the ancient world, but not in Israel. The common way of handling prisoners of war was actually by the use of casting a lot – often a measuring line – to decide which of the prisoners should be spared and which should be killed. But even though this was a common response in the ancient Middle East, it was not the common response of the people of Israel. So the question that needs to be asked is why does David use it here?

According to Jewish writers, the situation here was that David had entrusted his parents and family to the king of Moab while David was in exile. But instead of protection, Moab had either massacred his family or allowed them to be massacred. And so David responded much as Moab would have responded if the tables were reversed – he exercised the ancient tradition of mercy and Made slaves of some of the prisoners, but death for most. But we need to recognize that in this case it was an emotional response.

Maybe the real lesson of the story is not the one that Spock would have us learn – that a life without emotion is desirable, even though sometimes I think that we believe that it is. The real lesson is to understand that emotion exists – and has an effect on our behavior. And once we really understand that, maybe we can 

make sure that the effect that emotion has on our behavior is one that we really desire.   

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Psalm 60