Reading 69 | The Bible in 100 Passages

Friday, November 21, 2025  

Today's Scripture
Micah 4:1–5

In days to come the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be raised up above the hills. Peoples shall stream to it, and many nations shall come and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between many peoples, and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more; but they shall all sit under their own vines and under their own fig trees, and no one shall make them afraid; for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken. For all the peoples walk, each in the name of its god, but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever. (NRSV)

Reflection

On my desk at home I have several reminders to turn swords into plowshares: a tiny bell, crafted from shell casings from a faraway war; a mini cross, hammered out of decommissioned guns. These are small but tangible reminders of Micah’s prophecy, in which God is hard at work, converting weapons of war into implements of peace.

These words have always inspired our country. In 1790, George Washington wrote to a Jewish congregation in Rhode Island, sharing his hope that “every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree.” Many Jewish families had left Newport during the British occupation, and Washington wrote to reassure the remaining community that they were safe, celebrating a “new government which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance.”

It can be disheartening to sit here, all these years later, and look for signs that Micah’s vision has come to fruition: we’re not there, are we? I hope and pray that, on the morning you read this, we will be in a better place, with Americans receiving the health care and nutrition they need, and Chicago’s streets once again teeming with carefree children on their way to school. But in my Chicago neighborhood, we are scared: colleagues and neighbors teargassed… right now, helicopters overhead… just yesterday, a phalanx of unmarked SUVs streaming through red lights as pedestrians dashed out of the way. This is just daily life in Chicago now, and it is not a path to peace and security — for anyone.

And yet there is hope. At two recent rallies, it was Christian pastors and Jewish rabbis who took the microphone and offered a better way! I stood alongside other members of Fourth Church as we were reminded of Jesus’ commandment to love our neighbors and the prophets’ vision of biblical justice. These words set the tone for the elected officials who followed, and the entire community was reminded that we are each other’s keepers! While I dream of the days to come, in which I may find myself on God’s holy mountain, I am grateful that Micah’s words ground me right where I am, empowered to work for peace here and now.

Prayer

God of peace and justice, we stream to your holy mountain, eager to learn your ways and walk in your paths. Teach us. Guide us. Give us courage to turn the implements of war into tools of peace. Amen.  

Written by Amy Pagliarella, Parish Associate

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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