Slideshow image

God shall judge between the nations
   and shall arbitrate for many peoples;
they shall beat their swords into plowshares
    and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation;
    neither shall they learn war any more. (Isaiah 2:4)

Isaiah frequently calls for "justice" and "righteousness" throughout his writings because he believed that "being God's people involved not only worship of Jerusalem's God but also behavior consistent with God's plans".* God's care wasn't just for those in the center, but extended to everyone--and those in the center were expected to ensure that it reached everyone. Spoiler alert: they didn't obey God, or listen to Isaiah, and they were eventually conquered by the Assyrians, then the Babylonians, and finally the Persians.

This passage from Isaiah 2 often comes up when discussing war and events about war. With Memorial Day on May 25, God's promise of peace once again weighs heavily on my mind. As I think about all those who have given their lives for the freedom and security of the United States, and the loved ones who grieve them, I pray for God's promise to be fulfilled.

It is an incredible vision of God's promised future. Other than early in creation, has there ever been a time when we didn't learn the ways of war?

It also feels impossible, and even naive, to believe that we could ever exist in a world like that. We are currently in an unofficial war in Iran that has claimed 13 service members' lives, and thousands of civilian deaths due to the violence shared between the US, Israel, Iran, and others.** Just this week two white supremacists shot and killed three members of the Islamic Center in San Diego.^ 

So this Memorial Day we remember with deep gratitude those who have given their lives for our country, and we also continue to pray and work for the world God created us to be in. A world where our weapons are turned into instruments for nourishment, and where we no longer learn--or teach--the ways of war. 

God has promised to make this a reality for us, and so we hope, we pray, and we keep working towards that vision. 

May it be so, Lord. May it be so.

Image:  "Guns into Plowshares", sculpture by Esther Augsburger & Michael Augsburger

* "Introduction to Isaiah", Common English Study Bible with Apocrypha, general editor Joel B. Green, pg1091-1092.

** Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/3/1/us-israel-attacks-on-iran-death-toll-and-injuries-live-tracker (scroll down to see an up-to-date tracker of injuries, deaths, and who caused them)

^ Source: https://apnews.com/article/islamic-center-san-diego-shooting-mosque-hate-d81d87793aa3eea836d45a9d5b1f297b