51 And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear. 52 But Jesus said to him, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. 53 Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels? 54 How then could the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?” 55 In that hour Jesus said to the multitudes, “Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me? I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you did not seize Me. 56 But all this was done that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled.
26:51
And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.
In a vain attempt to defend Jesus, Peter cut off Malchus’ ear with a sword (Jn 18:10). Malchus ducked when Peter aimed for his head cutting off his ear.
26:52
But Jesus said to him, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.
Jesus gave two reasons why believers are not to fight by human weapons:
1. Those who fight with the sword will die by the sword; that is, human authorities will deal with them by capital punishment.
Vigilante action is not Jesus’ way of dealing with problems. No Christian is justified in taking justice into his own hands.
26:53
Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions [a Roman legion was 6,000 soldiers] of angels?
2. Jesus could short-circuit His enemies by appealing to the Father to send 12 legions of angels to defend Him; He could draw on divine power.
Twelve legions of angels would be 72,000 angels. That would be quite a defense if Jesus’ needed it.
26:54
How then could the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?”
Jesus’ betrayal and death was in God’s eternal plan; it was no accident.
26:55
In that hour Jesus said to the multitudes, “Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs to take Me? I sat daily with you, teaching in the temple, and you did not seize Me.
The goon-squad came in the dark of night to seize Jesus. He asked them why they did not take Him in the light of day. Evil men do not consider justice when they are bent on their destructive ways.
26:56
But all this was done that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled.
God had His plan even in the face of an enemy plot against Jesus. God will fulfill His infallible Word no matter what machinations of man might hold. The disciples did not grasp this because they fled, leaving Jesus with the goon-squad.
PRINCIPLE:
The Lord’s battle is won by His power alone.
APPLICATION:
Christians do not need to draw a weapon for spiritual warfare. Our weapons are “not of the flesh” (2 Co 10:4). A holy war is outside God’s system of addressing issues in the world.
Christians at times are more interested in political (albeit conservative) issues relating to Christianity than in God’s way of dealing with the world. Jesus’ kingdom is “not of this world” (Jn 18:36). The ultimate answer for this world’s woes is not political victory but personal redemption. It is amazing how many Christians in short order shift their hope from what God can do to what politicians can do.
With reference to the sword ….
Luke 22
36 Then said he unto them, But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one.
Jesus was aware of the dangers of the road and the need for defense.
Defense and taking justice into your own hands are two distinctly different things.
Steven, agreed, but that is not the point of the Matthew passage.