A couple of posts raise the issue of interpreting OT passages on holy
war, imprecations, etc.
The question of unfolding understanding has been brought up in two
ways in recent posts. On the one hand, there is the suggestion that
such morally difficult OT passages represent partially erroneous
understandings of God; on the other hand, there is the suggestion
that Genesis 1 contains things hidden until modern science came along
to interpret it. Matthew 19:8 shows that the OT law contains
accommodation to the state of the people, but I would describe this
as God's progressive revelation, not as erroneous ideas from the
earlier writers. Likewise, hearing the Word often does not yield
understanding, and much is clearer in hindsight (especially Messianic
prophecy) than at the time of writing. Nevertheless, I find the idea
of knowledge concealed in Genesis 1 regarding the means of creation
to be unlikely, as it is superfluous. What we need to know about the
means of creation can be determined by science; the basic purpose of
Genesis 1 is to tell Who and why.
>I can't square the slaughter of children with the Sermon on the Mount.<
It seems relatively easy to reconcile it with "Do not think that I
came to abolish the Law or the Prophets", "And if your right eye
makes you stumble, tear it out, and throw it from you; for it is
better that one of the parts of your body perish, than for your whole
body to be thrown into hell", and "Every tree that does not bear good
fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire", all from Matthew's
version of the Sermon on the Mount, or with the woes of Luke's
version of the beatitudes. Certainly we ar not called to engage in
warfare against people but against spiritual powers, and in this
sense the holy wars of the OT reflect an earlier stage of revelation
and understanding. However, these things also "happened as an
example for us" (I Cor. 10:6). The Caananites demonstrate the
seriousness and infectiousness of sin and the need for holiness.
Despite having a few centuries in which to shape up (between the time
of the patriarchs and the Exodus) and a final opportunity to!
surrender and join God's people (taken by Rahab and the Gibeonites),
they chose to fight. The failure of the Israelites to eliminate all
pagan influences led to their own destruction. Another important
aspect of holy war in the OT, in contrast to later ideas of jihads or
crusades, is that it does not imply nor convey any merit for those
carrying it out (as shown by the failures of Achan and Saul and by
the use of pagan nations by God to accomplish similar judgements-see
the discussion in Habakkuk). The laws on executing apostate Hebrews
were no less severe than those dealing with the foreign tribes put
under the ban. Today, we have the hope of salvation for our human
enemies, yet at some point we are to cease offering pearls to swine
and shake off the dust instead.
Imprecation, as in several psalms and other prayers, again shows
justice and the severity of sin. It also shows an honest expression
of feeling before God and hands vengeance over to Him. Matthew Henry
suggests a component of predictive prophecy as well; certainly the
behaviors that brought about the imprecation do not provide optimism
about the ultimate fate of those typified by such behavior. Again,
in the NT we see the better way of forgiveness, yet justice will come
to the unrepentant.
>the "commands from God" to kill all the members, including women,
>children and infants, of a Caananite tribe, including the specific
>"commands from God" giving directions on how to rape a young virgin
>from that tribe after properly running a spear through her parents<
Actually, the regulations in question (Dt. 21:10-14) deal with the
possibility of marrying a prisoner of war from the surrounding
regions. If they were acting properly, they would have run a spear
through the young Caananite virgin, too, not just her parents. The
legislation regarding marrying a POW seems to me to place
restrictions on existing practice, rather than to institute a bad
idea. A waiting period is imposed, and she is to receive full rights
as a wife. Likewise, holy war was standard for the surrounding
nations, and the regulations in the Law regarding war seem to provide
a higher standard than was practiced around them (Amos 1-2). The
laws about marrying the POW also illustrate the holiness and
distinctiveness of God's people, as the waiting period also provided
time for her to put off of old things (cf. Ps. 45:10, often taken as
an image of the church as Christ's bride).
>If God did not somehow limit his omnipotence, there would be no free will. <
Free will must be defined. The Calvinist view is that we are free to
do as we will, but our will is to do wrong. Unless God changes us,
we will persist in seeking evil.
Dr. David Campbell
Old Seashells
University of Alabama
Biodiversity & Systematics
Dept. Biological Sciences
Box 870345
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487 USA
bivalve@mail.davidson.alumlink.com
That is Uncle Joe, taken in the masonic regalia of a Grand Exalted
Periwinkle of the Mystic Order of Whelks-P.G. Wodehouse, Romance at
Droitgate Spa
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