Scripture: “I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for striking me. If Cain is avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy-sevenfold.” (Genesis 4:23b-24)
Last night were the Michigan presidential primaries, and the two front-runners, Joe Biden and Donald Trump, easily won the state. However, there was a sizable “uncommitted” vote in the Democratic primary, mostly because of anger over President Biden’s support for Israel in Gaza conflict. While Biden “hopes” there will be a ceasefire by this weekend, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to invade Rafah, one of the last Gazan cities to which refugees have fled, and to achieve total victory no matter what.
I have neither the space nor the expertise to spell out all the issues in play in this terrible conflict, but Netanyahu’s comments reminded me of the story of Lamech from the Book of Genesis. Lamech was a direct descendant of Cain, who famously killed his brother Abel. When God punished Cain by forcing him to wander the earth, Cain feared retribution, so God put a mark on Cain so that no one would kill him. God said, “Whoever kills Cain will suffer a sevenfold vengeance.” God demonstrated from the very beginning that killing a murderer only leads to more murder.
But Lamech did not live according to this principle. One day, Lamech says to his wives, “I have killed a man for wounding me, a young man for striking me. If Cain is avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy-sevenfold.” In other words, someone struck Lamech and in retaliation, Lamech killed him. Lamech escalated the situation by bringing more violence.
Back in college, whenever our rival fraternity would play a prank on us, we would vow “instant and exponential retaliation.” It was basically a joke; we never followed through on this beyond another harmless prank. But in real life, this kind of retaliation can be horrible. When Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1200 and taking hostages, the world rushed to support Israel. However, as a quest for justice became a quest for revenge and then conquest, leading to some accusations of genocide. One estimate of the death toll is 29,900. That is a twenty-five-fold escalation. And while Hamas stubbornly refuses to release their hospitals and vows to destroy Israel, in some ways they have won by turning so many against Israel for their increasingly brutal war crimes. They fell into the snare of Lamech, letting their need for revenge outstrip their faith in God’s loving kindness.
In Exodus, the law states that retribution should be returned in kind, the so-called “lex talionis” of “an eye for an eye.” But in Genesis, God teaches us that escalation is never the answer. Jesus teaches that we should turn the other cheek, love our enemies, and not to offer gifts at the altar until we are reconciled with those which whom we are angry.
You may not have control over what happens in other countries, but you do have control over the choices you make. No matter how angry you are or how much someone has hurt you, do not act like Lamech. You are entitled to your feelings and should seek safety from your abusers, but revenge and escalation only make the world a worse place. Do not make your life worse by compounding the injuries you have received. Creating a world of peace and reconciliation begins with you.
Prayer: God, help me to forgive those who have harmed me. If I cannot forget or forgive, let me seek reconciliation and peace with all, so I may model your love to us all. Amen.
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