Scripture Daily

Context No. 2218 of 4322 · 1 Maccabees

Context · Reflection

1 Maccabees 8:23-32: in context

23“Good success be to the Romans, and to the nation of the Jews, by sea and by land forever. May the sword and the enemy be far from them. 24But if war arises for Rome first, or any of their allies in all their dominion, 25the nation of the Jews shall help them as allies, as the occasion shall indicate to them, with all their heart. 26To those who make war upon them, they shall not give supplies, food, weapons, money, or ships, as it has seemed good to Rome, and they shall keep their ordinances without taking anything in return. 27In the same way, moreover, if war comes first upon the nation of the Jews, the Romans shall willingly help them as allies, as the occasion shall indicate to them; 28and to those who are fighting with them, there shall not be given food, weapons, money, or ships, as it has seemed good to Rome. They shall keep these ordinances, and that without deceit. 29According to these terms, the Romans made a treaty with the Jewish people. 30But if hereafter the one party and the other shall determine to add or diminish anything, they shall do it at their pleasure, and whatever they add or take away shall be ratified. 31Concerning the evils which King Demetrius is doing to them, we have written to him, saying, ‘Why have you made your yoke heavy on our friends and allies the Jews? 32If therefore they plead any more against you, we will do them justice, and fight with you on sea and on land.’”

The record of the treaty between Rome and the Jewish people lays out its terms: mutual defense, no aid to each other's enemies, faithful support in war. And within the terms comes a phrase that governs how the agreement is to be kept: they shall keep these ordinances, and that without deceit. The treaty was to be honored faithfully, in good faith, without trickery or evasion. Its value lay not merely in the words agreed but in the commitment to keep them honestly, without deceit.

The phrase without deceit points to what makes a commitment worth anything: the intention to keep it honestly. An agreement is only as good as the faithfulness of those who make it. Terms can be written and promises made, but if they are kept only when convenient, evaded when costly, honored in word but not in deed, the commitment is worthless. What gives a commitment its worth is the resolve to keep it faithfully, in good faith, without deceit, even when keeping it becomes costly or inconvenient. The treaty was to be kept without deceit; its value lay in that faithful keeping. This holds a principle about our own commitments and word. We make agreements, promises, commitments, to God, to others, in our work and relationships. And the question is whether we keep them faithfully, without deceit, or only when convenient, evading them when they become costly. To be people of integrity is to keep our commitments honestly, in good faith, even when keeping them hurts, rather than honoring them only in word or when it suits us. The one who dwells with God, the psalmist says, keeps an oath even when it hurts, and does not change. Faithfulness to our word, even at cost, is the mark of integrity. This searches the reliability of our own commitments. Do we keep our word faithfully, without deceit, honoring our commitments even when they become costly or inconvenient? Or do we keep them only when it suits us, evading them when the cost rises, honoring them in word but not in deed? Let your yes be yes, Jesus says, and your no be no. To be people whose commitments can be relied on, whose word is kept in good faith, whose agreements are honored without deceit, is the integrity to which we are called. This calls us to keep our commitments faithfully and without deceit. The treaty was to be kept in good faith, honestly, even at cost; and our own commitments, to God and to others, are to be kept the same way, honored faithfully rather than evaded when costly, our word reliable, our agreements kept without deceit. Faithfulness to our commitments, even when keeping them hurts, is the integrity that makes us people whose word can be trusted, honoring what we have agreed as the treaty was to be honored, without deceit.

Do I keep my commitments and my word faithfully, without deceit, honoring them even when they become costly or inconvenient, or do I keep them only when it suits me, evading them when the cost rises and honoring them in word but not in deed, and can the treaty that was to be kept without deceit move me to be a person of integrity whose commitments can be relied on, keeping my word in good faith even when it hurts, and honoring my agreements faithfully as I would be honored?

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