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NASB | Isaiah 9:6 For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Isaiah 9:6 For to us a Child shall be born, to us a Son shall be given; And the government shall be upon His shoulder, And His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. [Is 25:1; 40:9-11; Matt 28:18; Luke 2:11] |
Bible Question:
In Isaiah's prophecy, Jesus is called the Prince of Peace. Christians refer to his as the Gospel of Peace, and indeed, Christ's sermon on the mount promotes meekness and patient suffering in the face of threats to one's own personal security. As followers of Jesus, I would think that we would find Christians more often than liberal ideologues protesting war in the streets. Why does it seem that Christians are the most supportive of the United States' preemptive war? |
Bible Answer: Hi, proffitt 79! We must remember that Jesus is talking about a different peace (my peace I give you, not the peace of this world: John 14:27). Though He lived under Roman occupation, Jesus did not involved Himself in any power struggle (John 18:36). And He was very aware of the disciples and their environment (John 12:8 and John 17:9, 15). In Matthew 5:9 He talks about those who work for peace... how they will be called sons of God. But the closest Jesus got to speaking about war was during the night of His arrest when He told Peter to put the knife away--he who lives by the sword... (John 18:10). Jesus did concern Himself with justice: Matthew 5:20. As Christians we should seek to be at peace with the world (Romans 12:18). But we cannot just separate ourselves from the World. Remember the story about the Maccabees, how they had to take arms on the Sabbath because their enemies by mounting massive assaults on the day of rest were obliterating the people of God? I do not presume to know everything about the war against Iraq--but remember this: a) When Saddam destroyed whole towns (including animals) were there any protesters against genocide? Where were the "just" terrorist--why did they not attack his regime for the sake of their arab brothers and sisters? b) When the airbus was hit by ground-to-air by the militia, why did the reporters that got the instant shots did not reveal their possition to the world just like they do when the US Military is involved? c) Why were there poor (below poverty level) people in Iraq--women and children gathering wood to burn as cooking and heating fuel in one of the wealthiest oil-producing nations in the world? And why were the hospitals barren (medical supplies, equiptment, personnel) years before the US/Britan assault? d) What would have made this a "just war"? God Bless |