2 Maccabees 1:7-17: a reflection

7In the reign of Demetrius, in the one hundred sixty-ninth year, we the Jews have already written to you in the suffering and in the distress that has come upon us in these years, from the time that Jason and his company revolted from the holy land and the kingdom, 8and set the gate on fire, and shed innocent blood. We prayed to the Lord, and were heard. We offered sacrifices and meal offerings. We lit the lamps. We set out the show bread. 9Now see that you keep the days of the feast of tabernacles in the month Chislev in the one hundred eighty-eighth year. 10The people of Jerusalem and those who are in Judea, with the senate and Judas, to Aristobulus, King Ptolemy’s teacher, who is also of the stock of the anointed priests, and to the Jews who are in Egypt, we send greetings and health. 11Having been saved by God out of great perils, as men arrayed against a king, we thank him greatly. 12For he threw out into Persia those who fought against us in the holy city. 13For when the prince had come there, with an army that seemed irresistible, they were cut to pieces in the temple of Nanaea by the treachery of Nanaea’s priests. 14For Antiochus, on the pretense that he would marry her, came into the place, he and his friends who were with him, that they might take a large part of the treasures as a dowry. 15And when the priests of Nanaea’s temple had set the treasures out, and he had come there with a small company within the wall of the sacred precinct, they locked the temple when Antiochus had come in. 16Opening the secret door of the paneled ceiling, they threw stones and struck down the prince. They cut him and his company in pieces, and cut off their heads, and threw them to the people who were outside. 17Blessed be our God in all things, who handed over those who had committed impiety.

In a letter recalling how God delivered his people from grave peril, the writers give thanks, tracing their rescue not to their own strength but to God, and blessing him for it. Having been saved by God out of great perils, they write, we thank him greatly. And they conclude, blessed be our God in all things. Looking back on a time of grave danger from which they had been delivered, the writers do not credit their survival to luck or their own resources; they see God's hand in their deliverance and give him thanks, blessing him for saving them out of great perils. This shows the fittingness of thanking God for deliverance from peril. Thank God for deliverance from peril, tracing your rescue to him. God delivered them from great perils; they thanked him. Trace your deliverance to God, and give him thanks. Blessing God for deliverance is a fitting response.

Notice the response of thanksgiving to God for deliverance. The writers had passed through great perils, grave dangers that threatened them; and they had been delivered, saved out of those perils. And their response is to give thanks: having been saved by God out of great perils, we thank him greatly. They trace their deliverance not to chance, not to their own strength or cleverness, but to God, who saved them; and they respond with grateful thanks and blessing. This models a fitting response to God's deliverances in our own lives. We too pass through perils and dangers, times of grave threat, and we are often delivered, brought safely through. And when we are, we can respond as these writers did: by tracing our deliverance to God, recognizing his hand in our rescue, and giving him thanks and blessing. We can be tempted to credit our deliverances to luck, or to our own resources, or to simply move on without a thought of gratitude. But it is fitting to see God's hand in the perils we have been brought through, and to thank him for delivering us. When God delivers us from peril, danger, or trouble, we do well to give him thanks, tracing our rescue to him and blessing him. Give God thanks when he delivers you from peril. Trace your deliverances to God, not to luck or your own resources. Blessing God for deliverance is a fitting response. Do not move on without gratitude when God brings you through.

That is worth taking to heart, for it is fitting to thank God for deliverance from peril, tracing our rescue to him, as these writers thanked God for saving them out of great perils. We can credit our deliverances to luck or our own resources, or move on without gratitude; but these writers, having been saved out of great perils, traced their rescue to God and gave him thanks, blessing him. God's hand is in our deliverances. When God brings you safely through peril or trouble, do not move on without gratitude; trace your rescue to God, and thank him. Thank God for deliverance from peril, tracing your rescue to him rather than to luck or your own resources, as the writers of this letter, recalling how God had delivered them from grave dangers, gave thanks, saying, having been saved by God out of great perils, we thank him greatly, and concluding, blessed be our God in all things; for they did not credit their survival to chance or to their own strength and cleverness but saw God's hand in their deliverance and responded with grateful thanks and blessing, which models a fitting response to God's deliverances in our own lives, since we too pass through perils and dangers and are often delivered and brought safely through, and when we are, we can respond as they did, tracing our deliverance to God, recognizing his hand in our rescue, and giving him thanks, rather than crediting our deliverances to luck or our own resources or moving on without a thought of gratitude, so that when God delivers us from peril, danger, or trouble, we do well to see his hand in it and thank him.

Lord, in a letter recalling how you delivered your people from grave peril, the writers give thanks, tracing their rescue not to their own strength but to you, and blessing you for it. Having been saved by God out of great perils, they write, we thank him greatly. And they conclude, blessed be our God in all things. Looking back on a time of grave danger from which they had been delivered, the writers do not credit their survival to luck or their own resources; they see your hand in their deliverance and give you thanks, blessing you for saving them out of great perils. This shows the fittingness of thanking you for deliverance from peril. Show me the response of thanksgiving to you for deliverance. The writers had passed through great perils, grave dangers that threatened them; and they had been delivered. And their response is to give thanks. They trace their deliverance not to chance, not to their own strength or cleverness, but to you, who saved them; and they respond with grateful thanks and blessing. This models a fitting response to your deliverances in my own life. I too pass through perils and dangers, times of grave threat, and I am often delivered, brought safely through. And when I am, I can respond as these writers did: by tracing my deliverance to you, recognizing your hand in my rescue, and giving you thanks. I can be tempted to credit my deliverances to luck, or to my own resources, or to simply move on without a thought of gratitude. But it is fitting to see your hand in the perils I have been brought through. Take that to my heart, for it is fitting to thank you for deliverance from peril, tracing my rescue to you. When you bring me safely through peril or trouble, keep me from moving on without gratitude; help me trace my rescue to you, Lord, and thank and bless you for delivering me, seeing your hand in what I have been brought through.