The right to defend in the Bible

There are several places in Scripture that advocate defense with deadly force.

Just this past week, Jews celebrated the holiday of Purim, commemorating the events of the Book of Esther. There, an evil advisor named Haman plotted to slay all the Jews in the known world, and take their possessions for spoil (Esther 3:9,10,13). The rescue came when, after the Jews’ repentance and prayer (4:3), G.d induced the king to first kill Haman (7:10) and then (8:11) “to grant the Jews who are in every city [the right] to assemble and to protect their lives, to destroy… [all] who oppress them.” Thus it came about:

And the Jews smote all their enemies with the stroke of the sword and with slaying and destruction, and they did to their enemies as they wished.
~ Esther 9:5

Over 75,000 people who would have killed the Jews were instead killed themselves throughout the empire (9:16), and a new holiday was born to celebrate the survival of the Jewish people (9:31).

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“The right to defend in the Bible”

“The Bible” sadly does not mean the same thing to everyone

Does your scripture stop in Esther at verse 3 in chapter 10?

Or continue?

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Well if your following the bible, then you get ONE sword, not a box full of them. Like the rest of us have.

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In the Jewish Scriptures (Tanach), Esther ends with 10:3. The Men of the Great Assembly (among whom was Mordecai, a major figure in Esther) did not include the apocryphal additions.

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I’ll assume the additions to Daniel are not accepted by Jews as well?

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These are not accepted as part of the Jewish canon. Some apocryphal books are considered heretical, others of potential historical value, though not holy.

https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/3671027/jewish/What-Is-the-Jewish-Approach-to-the-Apocrypha.htm

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