Subject: You shall not Murder, then told too?? |
Bible Note: First of all, I don't believe that a lack of faith entirely means that one isn't a believer. In Luke 8:25, Jesus asks his disciples, "Where is your faith?" Apparantly His own disciples lacked faith at that point, yet they were believers. Secondly, even if he were talking to an unbeliever, Jesus would certainly not instruct or give approval to anyone to take by force what is not rightfully theirs. I can not see how your interpretation of this passage is as you say. If you find your commentary reference, let me know, and I'll try to look it up and read their comments in context. Here is a take on it from the Matthew Henry commentary: "They must now expect that their enemies would be more fierce than they had been, and they would need weapons. At the time the apostles understood Christ to mean real weapons, but he spake only of the weapons of the spiritual warfare. The sword of the Spirit is the sword with which the disciples of Christ must furnish themselves." I could buy the argument of the spiritual weapons (2 Cor. 10:4), but that still doesn't explain Jesus' response when shown the two physical swords. |