Praise the Lord and Fire Away | Sojourners

Praise the Lord and Fire Away

What does holy scripture have to do with weapons of war? Not much.

The U.S. military has 300,000 Advanced Combat Optical Gunsights (ACOG), with more on the way, and—as you may have heard—every one of them manufactured before this February had “JN8:12” inscribed at the end of the serial number. The markings, which were put there by the manufacturer, Michigan-based Trijicon Inc., refer to the Bible verse in which Jesus says, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

According to the Trijicon Web site, the ACOG is made “for use in low light or at night.” The technology includes crosshairs or other aiming grids “using fiber optics which collect ambient light”—thus the scripture references to light. Other Trijicon gunsight models featured references to 2 Corinthians 4:6 (in which God makes “light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God”); Matthew 5:16 (in which Jesus urges all to “let your light shine before people, that they may see your good deeds and praise God in heaven”); and Revelation 21:23 (in which the New Jerusalem “does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp”).
In the Bible, the “light of life” refers to creation and to eternal life. In Genesis, its creation is what brings order from pre-existing chaos. Light also signals an end to oppression; Isaiah 9:2 says, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who live in a land of deep darkness, on them light has shined.”

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Sojourners Magazine May 2010
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