1 Maccabees 10:74-81: a reflection

74Now when Jonathan heard the words of Apollonius, he was moved in his mind, and he chose ten thousand men, and went out from Jerusalem; and Simon his brother met him to help him. 75Then he encamped against Joppa. The people of the city shut him out, because Apollonius had a garrison in Joppa. 76So they fought against it. The people of the city were afraid, and opened to him; and Jonathan became master of Joppa. 77Apollonius heard about that, and he gathered an army of three thousand cavalry, and a great army, and went to Azotus as though he were on a journey, and at the same time advanced onward into the plain, because he had a multitude of cavalry which he trusted. 78He pursued him to Azotus, and the armies joined battle. 79Apollonius had secretly left a thousand cavalry behind them. 80Jonathan learned that there was an ambush behind him. They surrounded his army, and shot their arrows at the people, from morning until evening; 81but the people stood fast, as Jonathan commanded them; and the enemy’s horses grew tired.

Jonathan and his men find themselves in a hard spot: ambushed, surrounded, the enemy shooting arrows at them from morning until evening, a long and wearing assault. But the men stood fast, as Jonathan commanded them; and at last the enemy's horses grew tired. They did not break under the sustained attack; they held their ground through the long, wearing assault, until it exhausted itself. Their endurance outlasted the enemy's onslaught.

Notice how Jonathan's men prevailed: they stood fast through a long, wearing assault, until it spent itself. The attack was sustained, all day, wearing; the natural response might have been to break, to give way under the relentless pressure. But they held their ground, standing fast, enduring the onslaught until the enemy's horses tired and the assault exhausted itself. Their victory was not in a quick strike, but in enduring, standing fast until the wearing attack spent its force.

That is worth taking to heart, for we too can face sustained, wearing assaults, pressures that come at us relentlessly, wearing us down. There are trials and pressures that do not strike once and pass, but come sustained, all day as it were, wearing us down over time, tempting us to break. In such assaults, the way through is often to stand fast, to endure, to hold our ground until the wearing pressure spends itself, as Jonathan's men stood fast until the enemy's horses tired. When you face a sustained, wearing assault, a pressure that comes relentlessly and would wear you down, do not break; stand fast, endure, hold your ground, until the wearing pressure exhausts itself. The victory is often not in a quick escape, but in enduring, standing fast through the long assault. Hold your ground under sustained pressure, as Jonathan's men held theirs, enduring until the wearing attack spends its force, rather than breaking under the relentless pressure that will, if endured, exhaust itself in time.

Lord, Jonathan and his men found themselves ambushed and surrounded, the enemy shooting arrows at them from morning until evening, a long and wearing assault; but they stood fast, as Jonathan commanded, and at last the enemy's horses grew tired. Their endurance outlasted the onslaught. Show me how they prevailed: they stood fast through a long, wearing assault, until it spent itself. The natural response might have been to break under the relentless pressure; but they held their ground, enduring until the assault exhausted itself. Their victory was in enduring, standing fast until the wearing attack spent its force. Take that to my heart, for I too can face sustained, wearing assaults, pressures that come at me relentlessly, wearing me down. There are trials that do not strike once and pass, but come sustained, wearing me down over time, tempting me to break. In such assaults, the way through is often to stand fast, to endure, to hold my ground until the wearing pressure spends itself. When I face a sustained, wearing assault, a pressure that comes relentlessly and would wear me down, keep me from breaking; help me stand fast, endure, hold my ground, until the wearing pressure exhausts itself. The victory is often not in a quick escape, but in enduring, standing fast through the long assault. Help me hold my ground under sustained pressure, Lord, as Jonathan's men held theirs, enduring until the wearing attack spends its force. Help me stand fast and endure.