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When Sihon and all his army came out to meet us in battle at Jahaz, the Lord our God delivered him over to us and we struck him down, together with his sons and his whole army. At that time, we took all his towns and completely destroyed them\u2014men, women and children. We left no survivors \xa0(Deuteronomy 2:32-34).

The Old Testament is often difficult to read. Many of us fret over the violence authored by God himself. How can we reconcile this account of complete destruction with Isaiah\u2019s description of the coming Saviour, \u201cHe was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth\u201d (53:7)?

Many have addressed this concern without full success. It is one of those aspects of the Bible that we must wrestle with, even if, in the end, we cannot satisfy our reservations and even revulsion of such stories. Yet, let us attempt to understand what happened.

As I mentioned in my sermon on Saul this past Sunday, God enters the human realm using the cultural elements at hand. The greatest example of this is Jesus\u2019 incarnation; he became a Jewish baby, incubating for nine months in Mary\u2019s womb. This has always been God\u2019s manner, coming to us in ways that we can understand. Theologians have often argued that the Bible itself is like this. In it, God condescends to use human language to give us a picture of himself. Yet, God is greater and more dynamic than mere human words can express. God uses our language even though it is inadequate.

And so, as Israel took possession of the promised land, she used methods that she understood and that were practiced by the other nations. But compete destruction? This is a technical term which the NIV footnote defines as \u201cthe irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them\u201d. There are very few examples of this happening.

There are two criteria offered in scripture for the destruction of the nations. One, those who directly opposed God\u2019s purposes and promises to Israel, as in Sihon and Og, in these early chapters of Deuteronomy. God wanted Israel to travel through their territory, on the way to the promised land. Instead of giving permission, these two kings marshalled their armies to destroy Israel, essentially saying, \u201cover my dead body\u201d. So that is what happened.

Two, those who posed in a unique way the problem of religious contamination and syncretism, as in the Canaanites and Amorites. The reason for such strong measures is that these nations will turn Israel and her children away from worshipping the Lord her God.

The command for total destruction is rooted in the concern that Israel will be easily swayed to abandon God. That she will quickly ignore God\u2019s first command, \u201cNo other gods, only me\u201d (Deut. 5:7, The Message). This appears to be Moses\u2019 main concern in this entire book. As he says in chapter 6, \u201cAttention, Israel! God, our God! God the one and only! Love God, your God, with your whole heart: love him with all that\u2019s in you, love him with all you\u2019ve got!\u201d (4,5).

Israel\u2019s subsequent history proved this to be a valid concern. Here we do well to ponder her history. Do we love the Lord any better than Israel did? Aren\u2019t we too, easily swayed to add other gods to our religion?

This was a particular time and place in history. These stories do not give us permission to use such tactics today. There is too much in scripture about the humane treatment of other persons, about special regard for the weak and powerless; and about a very different way of dealing with enemies, with the power of love, rather than hatred, belligerence, or destruction.

When Jesus was asked about the centre of the Law, he quoted Moses\u2019 words in 6:4,5 followed by Leviticus 19:18, \u201cLove others as well as you love yourself\u201d. These are the heart of the law. Paul expands on this by quoting from Proverbs: \u201cIf your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head\u201d (25:21,22; cf. Romans 12:20).

This is the culture of the church established by the Lamb who was silent before his executioners. We can be grateful that God calls us to a different way of life then Old Testament Israel. Yet, we must ask again, \u201cAre we different then they were?\u201d We may not strike with swords, but what about with words? How have you blessed your enemies this week?