166. BUY A SWORD | AdventAI

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Dec 10, 1894

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 20, No. 57.

166. BUY A SWORD.

WHAT did Christ mean when he said: "He that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one. . . . And they said, Lord, behold, here are two swords. And he said unto them, It is enough." Luke 22:36-38.

The direction which our Saviour gives concerning the sword, seems to have direct reference to what follows in the latter part of the verse. In the 37th verse, Revised Version, in the margin, the 36th and 37th verses are translated thus: "And he said unto them, But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise a wallet; and he that hath no sword, let him sell his cloak and buy one. For I say unto you, that this which is written must be fulfilled in me, And he was reckoned with transgressors." It seemed necessary that the disciples of our Lord should have a sword among them, not that they were to use it, but that there might be some pretense on the part of his enemies in accusing him and arresting him, "for he was reckoned among the transgressors." And yet he was not a transgressor, and when his bold disciple Peter drew the sword in defiance of his Master, Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Put up thy sword;" "all they that take the sword shall perish by the sword." In permitting them to carry swords at that time it seems to us that a twofold object was gained: (1) It gave the Jews an additional pretext for their unreasonable charge that he was a transgressor, and (2) it gave our Saviour an opportunity of inculcating a lesson that would be for all time, that whenever his disciples were arrested or persecuted for the truth's sake, they should not defend themselves with weapons that are carnal.

The expression, "It is enough," at the close of the 38th verse, is understood by many as having reference to what the disciples themselves said. It is just as though Jesus replied to them, "Enough has been said about the matter; say no more." Whatever things he might have said to them in regard to the use of the sword, they would not have understood any more than they understood his teachings in regard to his death, burial, and resurrection. They must pass through the actual experience before they could understand the Master's teachings. That he permitted them to do, rebuking Peter for the use of his sword, and healing the wound which he made. The passage at the best is a difficult one, but it certainly does not teach, in connection with what our Saviour himself said on that very occasion (see Matt. 26:52, 53), that the use of the sword is justifiable in connection with the work of God in the earth. "The weapons of our warfare are not carnal." 2 Cor. 10:4.