Faithful Steward Ministries and FSM Women's Outreach

Peace as the Absence of Hostility

At times, “peace” indicates the absence of hostilities. In texts where the term “peace” contrasts with warfare, it likely communicates a mere cessation of warfare instead of friendship (Deut 20:10; Judg 4:17; 21:13; 1 Sam 7:14; 1 Kgs 2:5; 5:12; Jer 25:37; Ezek 7:25; Mic 3:5). Ecclesiastes 3:8 places peace and warfare in direct contrast: “There is a time for war, and there is a time for peace.” Those responsible for procuring peace treaties that brought an end to warfare were called “messengers of peace” (Josh 9:15; 10:4; 11:19; 2 Sam 10:19; 1 Kgs 22:44; Isa 33:7).

The biblical authors depict the absence of hostilities as fundamentally a good thing (compare Deut 20:10–15). For example, David was not allowed to build the temple because he engaged in frequent warfare, but his son Solomon (whose name derives from the term for peace, שָׁלוֹם, shalom) was able to build the temple because God had granted him peace from his enemies (2 Chr 22:9; compare 1 Kgs 5:3–4).

Isaiah predicted that when the Messiah arrived, He would be called the “Prince of Peace”—presumably because He would achieve lasting peace over His enemies (Isa 9:6; compare Mic 5:5). At this point, God would destroy weapons in the world as the people “beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks” (Isa 2:4 ESV; Mic 4:3 ESV; compare Wolff, “Swords into Plowshares,” 211–28).

Joshua M. Greever, “Peace,” ed. John D. Barry et al., The Lexham Bible Dictionary (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2016).

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Every {sane} soldier prays in their own way for peace. No one wants battles, conflicts, and war. Yet since the beginnings of man, (Gen 4:8) we have been at war with each other and God. Man has always thought he had the answer to peace yet the Bible clearly shows us that man apart from being redeemed by God can have no real or true peace.

Peace is something everyone wants, yet few seem to find it. What is peace? It can be defined as “tranquility, harmony, or security.” Depending on the situation, it could mean “prosperity” or “well-being.” Various forms of the word peace are found 429 times in the King James Version of the Bible. There are different types of peace, including false peace, inner peace, peace with God, and peace with man...God commands us to seek peace (Psalm 34:14; Matthew 5:9). We should “make every effort to do what leads to peace” (Romans 14:19). Of course, there will be some people who do not desire peace, but we are still to do our utmost to be at peace with them (Romans 12:18). ¹

Read A Commentary on John 16:33 below:

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1. What does the Bible say about peace? – Got Questions Ministries ↩︎