Politics And Personal Relations Become One Essay

, Research Paper

The Lust For Power: How Politics and Personal Relations Become One

WILLIAM YAO

The stories of the Bible reveal a pattern of .ups and downs. for the

nation of Israel. A period of prosperity, faithfulness and fearing God would

almost always be followed by a period of destitution, lawlessness and idolatry.

This recurring cycle can be linked to political authority, and the level of

separation of political authority from other influences. The successful

struggle for liberation under the leadership of Moses and the glorious conquest

of Canaan under Joshua instilled a fresh breeze of hope and a renewed faith in

God in the nation of Israel. Guided by God, the nation of Israel met with

unprecedented success as they journeyed to the promised land. During this time,

political authority among the Israelites rested in the hands of patriarchs, or

prominent members within the tribes. These men were righteous figures of

authority, chosen by God, to lead His people and to teach His ways. The success

that swept over the Israelites was short-lived, however, and for the next two

hundred years the people of Israel struggled against neighboring tribes. The

new generation of Israelites .knew neither the Lord nor what he did for Israel.

(Judges 2:10). They began to .do evil in the eyes of the Lord. by worshipping

other gods and engaging in various sexual activities. To save His people from

their enemies and from their .evil ways,. God .raised up. judges to rescue them

(Judges 2:16). These so-called judges had the political authority vested in

them to lead the people of Israel and to save them from their sins. They

mobilized the people of Israel against invasions of the tribes all around them.

At this time, the nation of Israel was nothing more than a loose confederation

of twelve tribes. Israel had no central authority, which meant no unity, no

organization and no power. During the period of the judges, there was no need

for a central government, because the people of Israel were able to defend their

tribal territories effectively against adjoining peoples. Whenever there was a

threat from a neighboring tribe, God sent a judge to lead the Israelites against

their enemies. As this era came to an end, however, the Israelites were faced

with a much larger problem – the Philistines’ military threat. As the

Israelites were eliminating all the small powers around them, the Philistines,

with their iron implements and organization, were becoming an emergent threat.

In order to protect themselves from the looming danger of the Philistine army,

the Israelites asked for a king to furnish unification, organization and power

for the nation of Israel. God granted their request, and Samuel reluctantly

appointed Saul in God’s name. The king’s function was to provide leadership and

to unify the people against their enemies. However, the responsibilities,

powers and privileges that came with kingship overwhelmingly went beyond the

scope of politics. The personal relationships between the king and his people

became increasingly involved with government. With the rise of the monarchy

came a definite change in political authority. As Israel changed from the

period of judges to the period of the monarchy, politics and political authority

became increasingly associated with personal relationships. In the period of

the monarchs, the separation between politics and personal matters was no longer

delineated as it was before, and politics and personal relations became

interrelated.

“Whenever the Lord raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and

saved them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived” (Judges

2:18). God sent judges to lead the Israelites in the process of consolidating

tribal areas and defense against organized enemies. The judges led the

Israelites into battle and also served as reminders to the people to obey the

word of God. It is needless to say then, that the judges were leaders of the

Israelites during desperate times. The main reason why a clear distinction

between personal relations and political authority during the period of the

judges was possible , was that there was no succession of judges. God chose

judges to lead Israel against its enemies only when they were in need of

leadership and guidance, and in doing so, there was no power struggle or .fight

for the crown.. There was no specific person .next in line. to lead the

Israelites, because the only thing important to them at that time was defending

themselves against neighboring powers. It was of no concern to the Israelites

who the leader was, as long as the leader was competent and effective. Another

characteristic of the judges’ rule that compensated for the separation of

politics and personal matters was the brevity of their leadership. Whereas a

monarch would remain ruler of the la

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