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2 1 . G O D A N D W A R Before turning to prophecy in the Mosaic tradition (Hosea and Jeremiah), a major theme of the Deuteronomistic history demands attention: God's involve­ ment in war. The book of Joshua begins by assuring the new leader that Yahweh has given the people the land of Canaan and that, if he is obedient to "this book of the law" (Deuteronomy), no one will be able to stand against the invaders. Yahweh is quoted as saying: I hereby command you: Be strong and courageous,- do not be frightened or dis­ mayed, for the LORD [Yahweh] your God is with you wherever you go. —Josh. 1:9 In previous ages, God's participation in war was not as problematic as it has come to be in our time. In the seventeenth century, for instance, Oliver Cromwell's soldiers went into battle singing psalms (though the same songs could have been sung on the other side). The problem of God and war has assumed gigantic pro­ portions in the twentieth century, which has witnessed two world wars and numer­ ous, relatively smaller conflagrations. The United States entered the First World War with the religious passion of "making the world safe for democracy." The Second World War was more problematic, though theologians like Reinhold Niebuhr helped many people to see that an all-out fight against the evil Nazi regime was justifiable. As late as the Gulf War (1992) there were attempts to revive the ancient notion of the "just war." Most people hate war, especially when it is forced on them, and cannot under­ stand why in Scripture God is portrayed as speaking and acting in militaristic ways. Many are tempted to ignore or, like Marcion, to discard the Old Testament because the wrathful God of ancient Israel, in alleged contrast to the New Testament God of love, is celebrated as "the Lord of hosts" (or "armies"): The LORD [Yahweh], strong and mighty, The LORD [Yahweh], mighty in battle. —Ps. 24:8 With a mixture of laughter and seriousness modern readers say, quoting the Sunday School teacher trying to interpret to the class the book of Joshua, "That was before God became a Christian." The problem is hardly solved by playing the New Testament against the Old. The church, in its wiser moments, has rightly insisted that the Old Testament is an essential part of the canon. Nevertheless, the church cannot have the Old Testament without facing the problem of its military language. In an earlier dis­ cussion, when considering the scriptural use of patriarchal language and imagery, I observed that God "condescends" to speak to us in human language, with its sociological limitations. If this is true of the use of "patriarchal" speech, it is also true in regard to "military" language. God speaks to us, as it were, at our human 171 172 Contours oj Old Testament Theology level, though this divine accommodation does not provide a theological justifica­ tion for either patriarchal society or the practice of war.1 The Lord oj Hosts (Armies] The proper place to begin reflection on this subject is with the recognition that war was taken for granted in the ancient world, especially in Canaan, which was a land bridge between Mesopotamia and Egypt, across which armies marched again and again. War was so much a part of ordinary life that biblical writers take note of exceptions, when "the land enjoyed rest" for a brief time (e.g., Judg. 3:11). For people living in the storm center of international politics, war was necessary for survival. In Israel's case it was natural to assume that the people's enemies were also Yahweh's enemies (Judg. 5:31) and that God was fighting actively for his people. "The Book of the Wars of Yahweh," an early poetic collection that has not survived (see Num. 21:14-15), seems to have celebrated the military victories of Israel dur­ ing the occupation of Canaan. Interestingly, the Israelite story, found in the prefatory ancestral history (Genesis 12-50), is not told in military terms. The narrators portray the people of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob moving peacefully on the fringes of Canaanite society, negotiating with the native inhabitants on friendly terms. To be sure, the promises to Abraham include the assurance of possession of the land of Canaan (Gen. 15:18-19), but in the ancestral period, according to the book of Genesis, there are no military engagements with...

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