What that book says about how to govern

It felt like a cheap stunt to me. And it definitely got under my skin.

When the soldiers shuffled to within inches, I heard the protestors say, “I can’t breathe.” “Hands up. Don’t shoot.”

But they carried out the clear orders they were given to “Dominate the streets”. And the result is that Mr. Trump is already facing consequences for his unconscionable, unconstitutional show of force.

A photographer was permanently blinded. Over 140 journalists were injured. And all of us experienced the public scuttling of our constitutional right to speak up and assemble peaceably. The United States is no longer a country that enjoys freedom of the press.

And so I have been profoundly sad that our President allowed his canny instincts for controlling the news cycle inspire him to hold up the Word of God as an act of political theater.

Then it hit me — as Chekov reminds us, when a weapon enters a theatrical scene it’s got to be used against someone in the drama.

So since he brandished the Bible in such a dramatic way, we get to ask, who will it hurt?

PART 1 — Justice and the “fear of God”

He that rules over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God. — King David’s last words, as recorded in 2nd Samuel 23:3–4

The book Mr. Trump held up mentions David by name over 1100 times — more, in fact, than Jesus. So David’s last words are the perfect place to start.

What must a ruler be? “Just.”

How must a leader govern? “in the fear of God.”

I can see why Mr. Trump’s supporters might think that’s exactly what the President is doing. Just a few minutes before, Mr. Trump declared himself “the law and order President”. He spoke of the importance of “dominating the streets”.

Hogan Gidley, deputy press secretary, said “It’s always humbling, reassuring and such a proud moment, when the President of the United States stands up for the American people and pledges the full weight of the federal government will be there to protect you.”

Franklin Graham, son of Billy and of course one of our most influential Evangelical leaders, wrote that President Trump …

“…made a statement by walking through Lafayette Park to St. John’s Episcopal Church that had been vandalized and partially burned Sunday night. He surprised those following him by holding up a Bible in front of the church. Thank you, President Trump. God and His Word are the only hope for our nation.”

To those supporters of Mr. Trump, apparently being “just” and “ruling in the fear of God” feels consistent with his actions. But Rev. Graham quoted a scripture that cuts two ways:

“[The Bible] is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword … and reveals the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” — Hebrews 4:12

Let’s look more closely to see which way that sword cuts.

Rule in the fear of God

You shall not oppress your neighbor, neither rob him: the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with you all night until the morning. You shall not curse the deaf, nor put a stumbling block before the blind, but shall fear your God: I am the LORD. — Leviticus 19:13,14

If your brother becomes impoverished … he must be with you as a hired worker, as a resident foreigner; he must serve with you until the year of jubilee, but then he may go free, he and his children with him, and may return to his family and to the property of his ancestors. Since they are my servants whom I brought out from the land of Egypt, they must not be sold in a slave sale. You must not rule over him harshly, [oppress] but you must fear your God. Leviticus 25:39–43

In these verses from Moses’ law, the “fear of God” is linked, not to religious beliefs or future punishment, but to how we treat our fellow man.

• The “fear of God” thus means common decency, such as not stumbling the blind.
• It also means being fair in economic dealings. Paying laborers their full wage, promptly.
• And topping the list of behaviors that point to LACK of the “fear of God”, is oppression.

What does the Bible mean by “oppress”?

The word is עָשַׁק, ‘ashaq. Professor Strong defines it: “to press upon.”

Hmm. Immediately my mind races to a white man taking a knee on the neck of a black man. Oppression.

Going back to Dr. Strong’s definition: “to press upon, i.e. oppress, defraud, violate, overflow.”

Those of us who have been watching Mr. Trump for awhile, find these words especially troubling:

• Before becoming President, Mr. Trump increased his wealth by oppressing the poor.
• Now that he is President he consistently gives perks to the rich — which cause many Americans to lose health benefits. The result has been that poor Americans were more vulnerable when the pandemic hit.

Here’s what Solomon, David’s son, said about justice and the fear of God:

The one who oppresses the poor insults his Creator, but whoever shows favor to the needy honors him. — Proverbs 14:31

One who oppresses the poor to increase his wealth and one who gives gifts to the rich — both come to poverty. Proverbs 22:16

Mr. Trump gave a speech to the Governors last week. I heard him say: “Dominate the streets….You’ve got to arrest people, you have to track people, you have to put them in jail for 10 years and you’ll never see this stuff again…. We’re doing it in Washington, D.C. We’re going to do something that people haven’t seen before.”

But the writer of Leviticus had a different definition of law and order:

Ye shall not therefore oppress one another; but thou shalt fear your God: for I am the LORD your God. — Leviticus 25:17

“No one is to oppress his fellow citizen, but you must fear your God….” That’s how the NET Bible translates it. Matthew Henry put it this way: “The fear of God reigning in the heart, would restrain from doing wrong [oppressing, aw-shaq in Hebrew] to our neighbor in word or deed.” (emphasis mine.)

If I could ask Mr. Trump a question, it would be: “Is anything restraining you?”

Slavery: America’s original sin

Slavery was our original sin — and because the Biblical law code was written immediately after the nation of Israel escaped slavery in Egypt, it contains a remarkable anti-slavery message.

Now that we can compare Moses’ law to that of Hammurabi, Rome, Greece, and other ancient near-eastern civilizations, we can see many special protections of slaves in the Old Testament code.

In all the other nations, slaves were property, and there was no time limit on the bondage. But in ancient Israel, the code demanded that slaves be released after only 6 years.

In all other nations, masters could injure or even kill their slaves. But in the Hebrew law, if a slave was injured he would be set free, and if a master killed a slave, the master would forfeit his life, according to the Talmud.

In all other ancient nations, fugitive slaves were hunted and returned. But in Israel, fugitive slaves were given sanctuary.

In every case the humane treatment of the unfortunate of society, and even of guest workers and aliens, fall under laws against “oppression”, and are linked to the notion of ruling “in the fear of God.”

All of these Biblical laws made Israel more progressive than all the other nations of the world. These protections for the underprivileged were highlighted in the first stanzas of the law of Moses upon their national delivery from slavery.

The U.S., also, has laws that in places reflect the tawdry customs that existed at our founding. But like Israel, the arc of our history has the opportunity to bend toward justice.

We still have much to learn, and much more we could show the world, about political freedom for all our people, equal protection under the law, teaching law enforcement how to seek the consent of the governed. We still can learn how to fulfill the goal of economic freedom from corporate domination, which actuated our founders but was never fully realized.

Just as ancient Israel wrote laws it failed to keep (especially the Jubilee debt relief and property equity law), the U.S. could aspire to do a better job of living up to all our aspirational American ideals.

Solomon summarizes the ideals in the Bible this way:

The one who lives with integrity will be helped, but one who distorts right and wrong will suddenly fall. — Proverbs 28:18

“A leader who lacks judgment is also a great oppressor, but he who hates dishonest profit will prolong his days.” — Proverbs 28:26

David said “you Must be Just”

David’s death-bed description of a good ruler listed fear of God and justice as the two cardinal requirements. We’ve already covered “fear of God”, and connected it to oppression. But what is justice?

צַדִּיק tsaddîyq, is transliterated into English as tsad-deek’, and it means “just” according to Dr. Strong. He notes that in the King James translation it is always translated “just”, “lawful” or “righteous.”

It is one of the most commonly used Hebrew words for describing the goodness and character of God himself. The deity fulfills his promises, we are told, because he is tsaddîyq — just.

Anyone who with great ceremony holds up a Bible in front of a church, should understand he is making a commitment to take only just and lawful action.

• Abraham’s trust in God is what made him just. (Genesis 15:6)
• Noah was a just man. That’s what trying times demand. (Genesis 6:9)
• Just balances, weights, and liquid measures imply a finely tuned sense of judgment, based on evidence. It implies impartiality. (see Leviticus 19:36)
• Every judge and officer, from gatekeepers to the supreme court, must be appointed for “just judgment” — and expected to uphold that principle. (Deuteronomy 16:18)
• No one likes to be laughed at, but Job found that sometimes that is exactly what happens to just men. (Job 12:4)

Lack of justice is what leads to oppression — which I’m sure is why David put both requirements together in his “last words” to anyone who wants to be a leader. Here’s what a whistleblower named Ezekiel, protesting the leaders of ancient Israel, had to say:

You have not strengthened the weak, healed the sick, bound up the injured, brought back the strays, or searched for the lost. Instead, you have ruled them with violence and cruelty. Ezekiel 34:4

James, the brother of Jesus, penned a similar warning to “the Rich” (and he warned Christians not to be partial toward them) in the New Testament:

“You refused to pay the people who worked in your fields, and now their unpaid wages are shouting out against you. The Lord All-Powerful has surely heard the cries of the workers who harvested your crops”. James 5:4

“If indeed you keep the royal law according to the Scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself,’ you are doing well.” James 2:8

Yes, any leader who takes justice seriously will notice a dramatic change in the policies he/she proposes. The rich will not be favored, and the poor will be comforted. Immigrants, agricultural workers and refugees will be treated with justice and honor.

Uphold the Bible, Mr. President

The United States is not, and should not, be a theocracy. And as upsetting as this may sound to my fellow-Christians, America is a pluralistic, multicultural nation that must function for the benefit of all of its citizens. Nowhere does Jesus command his followers to pursue political power, or to attack those who do not share their faith. And nowhere does he recognize any government aside from the one he promises to head at some future time.

If and when that time comes, everyone will know it, not by the doomsday vision of many Christians, but by the description of events that David soliloquized in his last words:

“It will be like the light of the morning,
when the sun rises, A morning without clouds;
When through clear shining after rain,
The tender grass springs out of the earth.’

In the meantime, it is no dishonor to hold up a Bible, per se. President Lincoln pored over that book constantly, and often meditated alone in that very St. John’s church. The King James phraseology enriches every important speech Lincoln ever gave, and guided his actions when he prosecuted a war he did not want, pursued peace, endured opposition with grace, comforted grieving widows and orphans, and ultimately preserved the union and emancipated all of our slaves.

But it is a dishonor to hold up a Bible, if you cannot or will not uphold it.

Oppressing people who are peaceably assembled … unjustly removing them from a public park for political theater … and roughing up journalists who are there to shed light upon your official actions … that is NOT upholding the Bible, or showing respect for your supporters who endeavor to obey it.