MONTHLY REFLECTION – Nov / Dec 2023 – Revd David Jebb ‘A PSALM OF WAR AND PEACE’
MONTHLY REFLECTION – Nov / Dec 2023 – Revd David Jebb
‘A PSALM OF WAR AND PEACE’
I grew up hearing sermons and devotional reflections on this verse. I saw it on everything from T-shirts to bumper stickers to throw pillows. I received it as a word of comfort in various trials, and often used it in this way, offering it to others as encouragement as they faced situations requiring divine intervention. It seemed like the perfect response to our constant striving for control. It was a word that so many of us need to hear to remind us of God’s sovereignty and our limitations.
Yet even as I’ve grounded my commitment to nonviolence in scripture for years, it never occurred to me that this verse is one of the Bible’s most powerful words in support of peace. Recently I found myself mesmerized by the preceding verse: “He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire.” God makes wars cease to the ends of the earth! He breaks the weapons of war! What an incredible promise of peace! No wonder Jesus blessed the peacemakers as children of God (Matt. 5:9); in making peace they are behaving like their heavenly Father.
Yet I still failed to see the connection to the following verse of the Psalm. I kept reading “be still” out of context as an invitation to passive trust, rather than a call to active peace-making. More recently I was studying the Hebrew text and discovered that the phrase translated “be still” conveys the image of loosening one’s grip. In this context, writer Robert Alter says, it can be read here as “an injunction to cease and desist from armed struggle, to unclench the warrior’s fist.” So here “be still” could be translated: “Drop your weapons in recognition of God’s victory!” Interestingly, the command applies to both God’s people and their opponents. The enemies are told to surrender; God’s people are told to trust. Both are commanded to stop making war by the God who makes all wars cease.
The command to stop making war is best understood in the broader context of the psalm in which it is found, which Bible scholar Gerald H. Wilson calls “a psalm of radical trust in the face of overwhelming threat.” The poem looks to God as deliverer from both natural disasters and military foes. It demonstrates a trust in God in the face of both societal and personal calamity.
The Israelites looked to God as Creator, but chaos and conflict threatened their very existence. In the face of these threats, “the psalmist claims a confident trust in Yahweh that allows contemplation of the ultimate destruction of creation without fear.” We may look into the face of the worst imaginable disaster without fear but with quiet confidence in God, our refuge and strength.
War is a state of armed conflict between different countries or different groups within a country. To cease means to come or bring to an end. The theme could be rephrased as conflicts coming to an end. Generally, the Psalmist in Psalm 46 describes God’s presence among His people. God is the fortress of His people and in Him, they have confidence and power. The focus of our reflection is on the role of God in ensuring that wars cease. “He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire.” (Psalms 46:9)
Many countries or interest groups engage in war for several reasons. Some engage in wars to protect their sovereignty and territorial integrity. Others engage in war for economic reasons and some go to war simply because of their allegiance to one of the warring factions. No matter the justification for starting a war or engaging in war, it has devastating effects or impacts on human life, the environment and state resources. In every war, women, children, the aged and the poor in society are the most affected. Some countries in Africa, the Middle East and recently, Russia and Ukraine, Israel and Gaza are vivid examples of the negative effects of wars. Economic activities are brought to a halt and people’s years of investment and hopes are shuttered. War is certainly retrogressive and causes the warring nation or faction great economic distress and wanton destruction of lives and properties. Ultimately, war robs a nation of its peace and development. It is therefore refreshing and encouraging that the Psalmist identifies God’s role in making wars cease.
If God “makes wars cease to the end of the earth” (Psalms 46:9), it means God desires peace for the world, therefore, in our current dispensation, Christians are to represent God on earth and ensure that peace and tranquillity prevail wherever we find ourselves. Jesus assures us that “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” (Matthew 5:9). It is a great and unfortunate anomaly to find Christians championing conflicts or becoming warmongers for whatever reason. We have been admonished by Paul that “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” (Romans 12:18). No matter the situation we must follow the perfect image of Christ by being peacemakers even if it means sacrificing our time, resources and lives to achieve peace or cause wars to cease. Wars can cease if we remain neutral and champion reconciliation as peacemakers or God’s ambassadors of peace on earth. We must start from our homes, churches and societies. May the Lord continue to use us to cause wars to cease in every corner of the earth.
