New Testament Passages on Lethal Force and Self-defense
At this point, you may be thinking this is all relegated to Old Testament principles and thinking. Let's turn to some passages in the New Testament dealing with lethal force and self-defense.
Buying and carrying a sword
Luke 22:35-39
And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?" So they said, "Nothing." [SUP]36[/SUP] Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one. [SUP]37[/SUP] "For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me: 'And He was numbered with the transgressors.' For the things concerning Me have an end." [SUP]38[/SUP] So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords." And He said to them, "It is enough." [SUP]39[/SUP] Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him.
Here's the context. Picture this. Jesus and his disciples have just had communion. They are about to go to a time of prayer in the garden. Jesus says these words to His disciples, and it's as if they are saying, "Look what we have with us, Lord. Two guns!" Jesus responds, "It is enough."
If you read commentaries on this passage, there are a number of questions which are not clearly answered. There are questions about the applicability of this passage, of the intent of Jesus, of the meaning of His response.
Whatever your interpretation of this passage, there are a few broad-stroke observations we can make about this passage.
Jesus expected them to have swords and anticipated a time when those without swords would need to acquire them.
Among eleven disciples, they did have two swords--in almost a 1:5 ratio.
Jesus expected them to carry the swords on their person as they traveled from the city to the garden prayer meeting.
It is difficult to make absolute claims beyond these observations, but the observations themselves have significance. Namely, among those closest to Jesus, some carried personal weapons in His presence with His consent to communion and to prayer meetings. We cannot make absolute claims as to the reasons, right or, wrong, for the carriage of these weapons. Perhaps it was in anticipation of trouble from the Jewish leadership. Perhaps it was protection against mere robbers. Paul in 2 Cor. 11:26 cites the "perils of robbers". Though there are questions we can't answer, we do know they possessed these weapons, that they carried these weapons, and that Jesus knew and consented. Furthermore, Jesus spoke of some time, present or future, when disciples would need to acquire personal weapons, even more urgently than garments.
The Garden of Gethsemene
Now, the next passage we come to follows these events. Jesus and the disciples are in the garden, and the men come to arrest Jesus. At least two of the disciples are armed, with the knowledge and consent of Jesus. Here is the question: Will they use the sword against the armed multitude which has come against Him? Let's look at the three passages which recount this event.
Luke 22:49-53 (NAS)
[SUP]49[/SUP] And when those who were around Him saw what was going to happen, they said, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?" [SUP]50[/SUP] And a certain one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear. [SUP]51[/SUP] But Jesus answered and said, "Stop! No more of this." And He touched his ear and healed him. [SUP]52[/SUP] And Jesus said to the chief priests and officers of the temple and elders who had come against Him, "Have you come out with swords and clubs as against a robber? [SUP]53[/SUP] "While I was with you daily in the temple, you did not lay hands on Me; but this hour and the power of darkness are yours."
Matthew 26:51-56
[SUP]51 And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear. 52 But Jesus said to him, "Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. 53 "Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels? 54 "How then could the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?" 55 In that hour Jesus said to the multitudes, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me? I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you did not seize Me. 56 "But all this was done that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled."[/SUP]
John 18:10-11
[SUP]10 Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant's name was Malchus. 11 So Jesus said to Peter, "Put your sword into the sheath. Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given Me?"[/SUP]
In these three passages, you get a sense that Jesus is saying, "Though we have a right to employ our swords in defense of this unrighteous arrest, we are intentionally putting aside our lawful right, and I am allowing myself to be taken without resistance." See how this is expressed: "Lord shall we strike with the sword?" "No more of this." "This is your hour, and the power of darkness." "Put up your sword... or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father... all this was done that the Scriptures...might be fulfilled." "Put your sword into the sheath. Shall I not drink the cup...?"
Why Christ tells Peter to put up the sword:
Christ is willingly laying down His life, though He has the right to use sword and angelic legions to deliver Himself from this unjust arrest (Luke 22:51, John 18:11).
Those who are quick to resort to violence will die by violence (Matt 26:52). The Lord hates the one who "loves violence" (Psalm 11:5).
The sword is not always the appropriate response, especially in persecution for Christ.
There is greater protection than swords.
Possession of weapons and skills with weapons a good and useful thing
Having looked at a number of passages that deal with weapons and self-defense, let's spend a little time discussing Scripture's view of owning weapons and being skilled in their use. The imagery of weapon use and skill at weapons use is often employed in Scripture, and it is often portrayed as a positive or desirable thing. The Lord's might is something good, and it is often depicted using martial terms (Zec. 9:14, Psa. 7:13, 18:14, 21:12, 64:7, Hab. 3:11, Deu 32:42, 2 Sam 22:15). The Scriptures are a sword (Eph. 6:17; Heb 4:12). A sword comes out of the mouth of Christ (Rev. 1:16, 2:16, 19:15).
Possession of weapons is never discouraged in Scripture. In fact, in 1Sam 13:19ff, it is negatively reported that no spears or swords were found in Israel because of the Philistines:
1 Samuel 13:19-22
[SUP]9 Now there was no blacksmith to be found throughout all the land of Israel, for the Philistines said, "Lest the Hebrews make swords or spears."... 22 So it came about, on the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people who were with Saul and Jonathan. But they were found with Saul and Jonathan his son. [/SUP]
Let's look at two verses from the Psalms:
Psalm 144:1
Blessed be the LORD my strength, which teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight:
Psalm 18:34
He teaches my hands to make war, So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze
Skill and ability to use weapons here, whether literal and/or metaphorical, is positively portrayed in these verses.
Further, we have accounts of David, not a soldier, not a law enforcement officer, but a youth, employing ranged weapons skillfully (with God's help) against bears and lions. This is domestic use of lethal weaponry, non-military use, with non-military training. The weapons used by young David are not "kiddie" slingshots. They are powerful enough to kill a bear and lion--in today's market, we're talking about a .44 magnum, not a .22, in the hands of someone too young to be in the army.
We might be tempted to think that was just for dealing with animals that could threaten sheep. But aren't humans worth even more protection than sheep?
We understand that according to Scripture, in matters not of worship or church government, whatever is not forbidden is permitted. I'm not making a claim that ownership of weaponry for the purpose of self-defense is required of the believer. It is not required, but it is permitted by Scripture.
Warnings
Now, let's conclude with some warnings.
Trusting in the sword
First of all, it would be a mistake to leave this class trusting in the sword. Guns, knives, weapons... these are mere tools, and none of these things can guarantee protection, any more than owning a fire extinguisher guarantees that your house won't burn down.
Psalm 44:6-7 For I will not trust in my bow, Nor shall my sword save me. 7 But You have saved us from our enemies, And have put to shame those who hated us.
We see in Nehemiah 4:14 that the people were armed and willing to use their weapons, but they were also trusting in the Lord:
"Do not be afraid of them; remember the Lord who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses.... [SUP]20[/SUP] "At whatever place you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us."
Do not put your trust in weapons. They are tools that are useful, but they are only dead, inanimate tools, at the end of the day.
"...the LORD does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the LORD's." (1Sa 17:47 NAS)[/QUOTE]
i wanted to wait and let the many of you post your thoughts on this matter,,,,in the part of your post "in the garden/Gethsemane" these 3 quotes are very important(tho overlooked),,,,another preacher a few years ago and i speaking,,,pointed out to me something(overlooked here)
that is in both Matthew and Luke,,,the one who drew his sword and cut off the ear was "one of those who was with Jesus",,and "one who was with them",,,,,,,"that is they all were there and knew peter was who did it" ,,,,but in johns book he names the one who did it as "simon peter" this seems to make no difference at first.
now as we were researching the dates of the writing of the Gospels,letters ect. there are certain "earmarks of writing style",,each person has their own and "time has a bearing on the matter",,,"that is if we notice,Matthew nor Luke give peters name",,,,,why?,,peter is still alive and what he did was a crime punishable by death",,,,"so they did not tell on peter" now by the time john wrote the same "peter was already martyred" so it made no difference if he stated his name.
so here is a "pattern to look for",,,that is,,if some of them would have gotten arrested "if mentioned by name",,,their name was not given. but after they died they were always mentioned "by name",,,now this is a very hard thing for even me to look into,,,that is "they knew peter had committed a crime,punishable by death and protected him by hiding his identity",,,that is until after his death.
so they knew they only had "two swords",,,fact one
and we know they knew who cut off the servents ear,(jesus admonished him in front of them),,,fact two
we know they wernt carring them to avoid the law(they were in the temple daily and were not arrested)so they were not defending themselves against any government,rome or jewish.,,fact three
we know from matthew and luke not mentioning peters name(while still alive),,,that they hid his identaty,,fact four
we know john knew the whole time who did it,,becouse he states his name twice in his gosphul,fact five
and we could go on and on with this,,,,but,,mabe it's not good if we do.
1christianwarrior316,,,i only chose to post quoting you becouse you listed the three scriptures in your post,,,,i am quite glad you saw them pertaing to this matter.,,,,but i do not want you to think i am singling your post out "negative",,,that is these three scriptures are "very important in understanding self defence according to christianity",,,,that is why were they carring the swords?,,,that is they had them on their person at the arrest of christ,,,,snakes?,,robbers?,,,,lions?,,,,defence.
but the thing he had himself armed with became a weapon of defence in affect by chance against men instead by circomstance. now we know this becouse the best attempt that peter could muster up against the slave in the act of defence was,,,,after swinging a leathel blow,,it only cut off his ear.(so makes you consider,,,take the sword from peter he's no good with it),,,
well now i saved this part till last,,,,,that is all scripture is "given by the holy spirit,,through ect,ect,",,,,and we believe the gosphul of matthew and of luke are inspired by the holy spirit.,,,,that is matthew nor luke decided to not give the name of peter,god did.,,,,,,and after peter was dead john did not decide to tell you it was peter,,,god did.
now i am a believer in that no government or king will rise without the aproval of god. and that we are to submit to the athority set above us. romans 13,,book of barach,,,ect. and also whosoever rule over you today,will be subject to you tommarrow. i give you the same defence as peter,sumit,be crucafied upside down. and the same defence as paul,submit,let them cut off your head. that is whosoever you are in subjection to today,will be subject to you the marrow.
as christ was led to the cross as an lamb,go also,here is the witness of two swords. one man say's pull them from the sheath and conquor!,,,the other set them back in the sheath. one is the victor over the carcas of the lamb,that is,"the witness of two swords is true",,return them to the sheath.,,,the witness of one sword is not true. whosoever you are brought into subjection to,,will be made subject to you.
the lord did not dodge the spit,he did not fight to free himself,,as they dragged him,he yealded. ten thousand angels were standing there with swords,yet they stayed them in their sheaths on his command,,,and two others,peter and supposadly you.,,,,,,,here are all the swords accounted for,ten thousand,peters,and yours,ten thousand and two swords,they are enough.