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27 chapTer 3 The pervasive presence of “Virtuous” Violence in the old Testament There exists within the Bible a degree of violence and praise of violence that is surpassed by no other ancient book. —Michael Prior1 Violence appears early and often in the Old Testament. Stories of killing and kidnapping, rape and murder, war and genocide line its pages. Virtually every book of the Old Testament contains some mention of violence, and violence features very prominently in several of them. It is an integral part of many of the most well-known and beloved Bible stories: Noah and the ark, Joshua and the Battle of Jericho, David and Goliath, Daniel and the lions’ den—to name just a few! In his book The Blood of Abel, Mark McEntire contends that “the plot of the Hebrew Bible pivots on acts of violence,” something he believes “illustrates that violence is a central, if not the central, issue for the entire text.”2 Whether it is a battle report, a story describing an individual’s violent behavior, or a prophetic speech pronouncing impending divine judgment, violent words, themes, and images run throughout much of the Old Testament. According to Raymund Schwager, “over six hundred passages” in the Old Testament “explicitly talk about nations, kings, or individuals attacking, destroying, and killing others.”3 He claims that “no other human activity or experience is mentioned as often.”4 In Schwager’s estimation, the prevalence of human violence is eclipsed only by references to divine violence in the Old Testament. 28 The Violence of Scripture The theme of God’s bloody vengeance occurs in the Old Testament even more frequently than the problem of human violence. Approximately one thousand passages speak of Yahweh’s blazing anger, of his punishments by death and destruction, and how like a consuming fire he passes judgment, takes revenge, and threatens annihilation. . . . No other topic is as often mentioned as God’s bloody works.5 Although one does not find blood dripping from every page, the pervasiveness of violence in the Old Testament is undeniable. In the words of Athalya Brenner: “The legacy of violence . . . permeates the whole of the Hebrew Bible.”6 The old Testament’s appraisal of Violence At the risk of grossly oversimplifying the complex representation of violence in the Old Testament, and with full acknowledgment that language is ambiguous, texts are indeterminate, and authorial intent is often difficult to discern, I want to suggest that the vast amount of violence in the Old Testament is portrayed in one of two ways: positively or negatively. I will refer to violence that is portrayed positively and approved of in some way as “virtuous” violence.7 This violence is portrayed as being appropriate, justified, and perhaps even praiseworthy. It is sanctioned and sometimes celebrated in the text. Those who engage in acts of “virtuous” violence enjoy God’s blessing and are understood to be acting in ways that are congruent with God’s intentions. “Wrongful” violence, on the other hand, is violence that is portrayed negatively and disapproved of in the text. Wrongful violence includes violent acts the text portrays as being inappropriate, unjustified, and condemnable. It is unsanctioned and unacceptable, and those who engage in such behavior do so without divine approval. A cursory look at violent texts in the Old Testament reveals that the difference between wrongful and “virtuous” violence is not simply based on the kind of violence being done. For example, while taking another person’s life is sometimes strongly condemned, as in the case of Cain killing Abel (Genesis 4), other times it is highly praised, as we see when Jael kills Sisera (Judges 4–5). Similarly, while Israel’s participation in war is often regarded as an act of faithful obedience (Josh. 11:21-23; 2 Sam. 5:25), this is not always the case (Num. 14:36-45). Thus, what renders an act of violence as good or bad in the Old Testament often has less to do with the kind of violence involved and more to do with who does it, to whom, and why. Obviously, some violent Old Testament texts do not fall neatly into one category or the other. In these instances, it becomes difficult, if not impossible, to determine how ancient readers were expected to view the violence in question. Still, the fact remains that a considerable amount of violence in the Old Testament is portrayed as either good or bad, right or wrong, acceptable or unacceptable. [3.140...

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