What does the Bible say about the right to bear arms?

Growing up a Christian we often here verses in church such as,

Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.

–Leviticus 19:18

and

“Do to others as you would have them do to you.”

– Luke 6:31

Both very important passages which are paramount in living a faith-based life under God. Even many of those who aren’t believers have heard versions of the verse,

But I say to you, do not resist an evil person; but whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.”

– Matthew 5:39

The anti-gun community likes to use an oversimplification of this verse by oftentimes saying only, “The Bible says you are to turn your other cheek.” to back up their arguments against Christians standing for self-defense or the second amendment.

While researching this article, we stumbled upon an in-depth piece on What Does the Bible Say about the Right to Bear Arms posted by Learn Religions. After reading this article and giving it a lot of thought, we have decided to instead share this piece for you to explore. The writer goes directly into the very details we were looking to examine. The writer doesn’t take sides, but rather investigates what the Bible has to say in regards to self-defense and the use of force to protect one’s life, family and community.

Our goal is to show how the right to arms was built into our faith as much as it was our founding constitutional documents. In particular, the second amendment in the Bill of Rights,

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed”

 We believe the writer does an excellent job going into the details so many Christians seem to struggle with reconciling! We encourage you to take the time to give it a full read at the site below.

Enjoy!!

Fairchild, Mary. “What Does the Bible Say About the Right to Bear Arms?” Learn Religions, Sep. 3, 2021, https://www.learnreligions.com/the-bible-on-the-right-to-bear-arms-701963