Mightier than the Sword
Jeremiah 36:1-8, 21-23, 27-31

“The pen is mightier than the sword.” This wise saying originated in 1839. It was written by British novelist and playwright Edward Bulwer-Lytton. Bulwer-Lytton is also the originator of the opening line, “It was a dark and stormy night,” and the phrase “the great unwashed” to describe ordinary people. “The pen is mightier than the sword” emphasizes that thinking and writing have more influence on people and events than the use of force or violence.

In our country and in Europe, the saying is closely associated with the freedom of the press. A good example from our national history is the Watergate Scandal. The Nixon administration tried to cover up its involvement in the break-in to the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington, D.C., located at the Watergate Building. Journalists Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein’s investigative reporting ultimately led to the truth about the matter and eventuated in the resignation of President Nixon.

Or you may recall the terrorist attack against the French cartoonist agency, Charlie Hebdo. They published unflattering cartoons about the Prophet Mohammed that were considered blasphemous to Muslims. In retaliation, Islamic extremists attacked the agency’s office building and killed a number of artists, writers, and staff. In the protests and vigils that followed the atrocity, demonstrators and mourners held up pencils affirming that a free press is stronger than violence.

“The pen is mightier than the sword.” Although this wise saying is counterintuitive (after all, weapons are far more dangerous than writing implements), it is true that writing and thinking are more powerful than violence, at least in the long term.

This morning’s reading from Jeremiah is a classic biblical illustration of this great truth. The background of the story is important for understanding the events recorded in Jeremiah 36. Jehoiakim was the king of Judah. He was a weak ruler. Pharaoh Neco, the king of Egypt, installed Jehoiakim as king and forced him to pay tribute to Egypt. When Babylon became the dominant power in the region, Jehoiakim was forced to serve the Babylonians. For unclear reasons, Jehoiakim decided to rebel against King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. Jeremiah, for his part, had been prophesying for about twenty-five years at this point.

Jeremiah repeatedly delivered a destabilizing message to the leaders and citizens of Judah. He called the inhabitants of Judah and her rulers to abandon idolatry and to worship the Lord alone. Jeremiah called Judah to forsake immorality and to follow the law of the Lord. He called them to love the good and to turn from evil. Jeremiah warned the citizens and leaders of Judah. If they refused to heed the word of the Lord, God would raise up an enemy from the North (Babylon) to end the Davidic dynasty and destroy the temple.

This morning’s reading from Jeremiah 36 recounts yet another instance of Jeremiah’s destabilizing words and Judah’s stubborn refusal to heed the word of the Lord. The Lord told Jeremiah to make a written record of his prophecies. Jeremiah enlisted the help of a scribe named Baruch. By this time, Jeremiah was a persona non grata in Jerusalem. He had been banned from the temple and its precincts. Jeremiah dictated the prophecies; Baruch recorded them. Then Jeremiah sent Baruch to read the scroll in the hearing of the temple worshippers. Baruch’s was not an envious job! In an unexpected turn of events, Baruch was given an audience to read the scroll to officials from Jehoiakim’s court. After the court officials heard the prophecies, they commanded Baruch saying, “Go and hide, you and Jeremiah, and let no one know where you are” (Jer. 36:19).

Eventually, the scroll containing the prophecies was read to King Jehoiakim, but he was unmoved by their pleas and warnings. As the scroll was read, Jehoiakim took a penknife, cut off the read portion of the scroll, and burned it in a brazier. The message Jehoiakim was sending by his actions was that the sword was mightier than the pen. Jehoiakim personifies the world’s rejection of God’s existence and God’s claims upon his creatures. The world says No! to God’s direction. It prefers the way of man more than the way of God.

Tragically, Jehoiakim was wrong about God and the scroll. Jerusalem had become divided in its political loyalties. Some people recognized the truth of what Jeremiah was saying, and they succeeded in hiding Jeremiah and Baruch from the king and his loyalists. These sympathizers recognized that the king was gambling with his kingdom in a vain attempt to oppose the king of Babylon. Jehoiakim was placing his subjects in grave danger. He had little or no regard for the welfare of his people. Jeremiah’s destabilizing word was having its intended effect.

Not surprisingly, Jehoiakim also had his supporters. Imagine if someone said the kinds of things about our country and president that Jeremiah repeatedly declared about Jehoiakim and Judah. “China will certainly come and destroy the United States of America and will cut off from it human beings and animals. The dead body of the President of the United States will be cast out to the heat by day and the frost by night.” Can you imagine the outrage? Such a prophet would have few sympathizers and supporters. Most people would deem such words unpatriotic, seditious, dangerous, or just plain crazy. The prophet might even be arrested for inciting violence.

Of course, the crucial thing to note is that Jeremiah was not just an astute political observer with strong subjective opinions like the talking heads we see on cable news. Jeremiah was actually speaking for God.

While the adage “The pen is mightier than the sword” is generally true, it is especially true when the pen is in the hand of God! The word of God declared and written is a powerful force to be reckoned with. Jeremiah was instructed to make a new copy of the scroll containing the prophecies. The book of Jeremiah is the final form of that scroll. Long after Jehoiakim’s demise and Judah’s defeat and destruction, we are still reading the words of the prophecies and pondering their meaning. It has been said that Christians are a “people of the book.” The holy scriptures are an indispensable aid to us as we walk by faith and not by sight. The world disregards the Word of God Written, but the truthfulness of the testimony of God is unaffected by human neglect.

The Bible itself testifies to its abiding power. As the epistle to the Hebrews says, “The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb. 4:12). Indeed, the word of God is the sword of the Spirit (Eph. 6:7). The scriptures are the perfect law of liberty (James 1:25, 2:12). Jesus himself testified to the power and permanence of God’s word. “Truly I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one iota, not one stroke of a letter, will pass from the law until all is accomplished” (Matthew 5:18).

The gift of the Word of God Written is an anchor to our souls, and it has always been so for the people of God. It was the Word of God Written that gave Martin Luther, the father of the Protestant Reformation, the courage to stand before the Diet of Worms. He was charged as a notorious heretic and was in danger of the death penalty. Despite all this, Luther could declare, “I cannot and will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor sage. Here I stand, I can do no other, so help me God.” Like Jeremiah and Baruch, Luther was forced to go into hiding, but while he was sequestered, Luther translated the New Testament into German. It was subsequently published and widely disseminated, greatly increasing the spread of the Protestant Reformation. Indeed, the word of God is mightier than the sword!

The scriptures teach us how we should live and what we should believe. They show us how far short we fall from God’s standards. They promise forgiveness to repentant and trusting sinners. They speak of resurrection and everlasting life in the kingdom of God. The world, like Jehoiakim, disdains such faith and instruction, but the world does not have the power to negate the power of the word.

But there is an even greater force than the Word of God Written: the word made flesh in Jesus Christ. The word was made flesh and dwelt among us full of grace and truth. Jesus is not merely the instrument of God’s communication to us; he is not the words that flow from the pen. He is the pen itself. He is the very word of God who was with God from the beginning. When he comes again and speaks, every knee shall bow and every tongue confess. Until that day the world may cast God’s word behind its back, but the word of God written and incarnate stands undeterred by human foolishness and wickedness.

Brothers and sisters, friends, the pen is mightier than the sword. Thinking and writing have more influence on people and events than the use of force or violence in the long term.

It strikes me that writing and delivering sermons to you each week is an awesome privilege and a terrible responsibility. As our confessional standards declare, “The preaching of the word of God is the word of God.” (Second Helvetic Confession). If human words have such power, how much more powerful is the Word of God Written and made flesh in Jesus Christ. The sword, or in Jehoiakim’s case the penknife, may prevail for a time, but it cannot stand against the truth, especially God’s truth in Jesus Christ.

Let us not yield to the wisdom of this world. Let us not disregard God’s prophecies of judgment and salvation. Instead, let us heed the word of the Lord, forsake evil and idolatry in all their forms, and cleave to Jesus Christ.

Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Alleluia! Amen.