'The Arrest of Christ', oil on panel painting by the Master of the Evora Altarpiece, c

"Live by the sword, die by the sword" is a

proverb A proverb (from la, proverbium) is a simple and insightful, traditional saying that expresses a perceived truth based on common sense or experience. Proverbs are often metaphorical and use formulaic language. A proverbial phrase or a proverbia ...

in the form of a parallel phrase, derived from the

Gospel of Matthew The Gospel of Matthew), or simply Matthew. It is most commonly abbreviated as "Matt." is the first book of the New Testament of the Bible and one of the three synoptic Gospels. It tells how Israel's Messiah, Jesus, comes to his people and form ...

(

Matthew 26 Matthew 26 is the 26th chapter of the Gospel of Matthew, part of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. This chapter covers the beginning of the Passion of Jesus narrative, which continues to Matthew 28; it contains the narratives of the Jewi ...

, ): "Then said Jesus unto him, Put up again thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword."

Original Biblical quotation

The phrase comes from Matthew , in which one of

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...

's disciples is described as having struck the servant of the High Priest of Israel and cut off his ear. Jesus is described as having rebuked him, saying: The saying "all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword" is only found in the Gospel of Matthew and not in any of the other gospels. The Latin version refers to the weapon as a ''

gladius ''Gladius'' () is a Latin word meaning "sword" (of any type), but in its narrow sense it refers to the sword of ancient Roman foot soldiers. Early ancient Roman swords were similar to those of the Greeks, called '' xiphe'' (plural; singular ''xi ...

'', while the Greek version refers to it as a ''

makhaira The makhaira is a type of Ancient Greek bladed weapon, generally a large knife or sword with a single cutting edge. Terminology The Greek word μάχαιρα (''mákhaira'', plural ''mákhairai''), also transliterated ''machaira'' or ''mac ...

''.

Interpretations

According to

St. John Chrysostom John Chrysostom (; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος; 14 September 407) was an important Early Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of ...

, when Jesus rebuked the unnamed disciple, it was a lesson that "''The disciples might accept meekly whatever befell him when they had learned that this also is occurring according to God’s will".'' Thus, contrary to the common proverbial understanding, St. John Chrysostom explains where there is God's will (not the will of men) there is no need to react in passion. The saying is sometimes interpreted to mean "those who live by violence will die by violence", which some have interpreted as a call for

Christian pacifism Christian pacifism is the theological and ethical position according to which pacifism and non-violence have both a scriptural and rational basis for Christians, and affirms that any form of violence is incompatible with the Christian faith. Chri ...

or even complete nonviolence, including in self-defense. In modern times, the saying may also be applied to those who knowingly engage in dangerous activities as part of their occupations or for entertainment purposes, but accept the risk of serious injury or death from those activities.

History

A very similar line can be found in the ''

Agamemnon In Greek mythology, Agamemnon (; grc-gre, Ἀγαμέμνων ''Agamémnōn'') was a king of Mycenae who commanded the Greeks during the Trojan War. He was the son, or grandson, of King Atreus and Queen Aerope, the brother of Menelaus, the ...

'', the first play of the

Oresteia The ''Oresteia'' ( grc, Ὀρέστεια) is a trilogy of Greek tragedies written by Aeschylus in the 5th century BCE, concerning the murder of Agamemnon by Clytemnestra, the murder of Clytemnestra by Orestes, the trial of Orestes, the end o ...

trilogy by the ancient Greek tragedian and playwright

Aeschylus Aeschylus (, ; grc-gre, Αἰσχύλος ; c. 525/524 – c. 456/455 BC) was an ancient Greek tragedian, and is often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Greek ...

. The line, spoken by Queen

Clytemnestra Clytemnestra (; grc-gre, Κλυταιμνήστρα, ''Klytaimnḗstrā'', ), in Greek mythology, was the wife of Agamemnon, king of Mycenae, and the twin sister of Helen of Troy. In Aeschylus' '' Oresteia'', she murders Agamemnon – said by E ...

Mycenae Mycenae ( ; grc, Μυκῆναι or , ''Mykē̂nai'' or ''Mykḗnē'') is an archaeological site near Mykines in Argolis, north-eastern Peloponnese, Greece. It is located about south-west of Athens; north of Argos; and south of Corinth. ...

after she murders her husband King

in an act of vengeance, is rendered in the original Greek and translated to English (with varying levels of similarity to the original) as: The line differs across translators and is variously understood as "live by the sword, die by the sword" or "an eye for an eye", emphasizing the irony or appropriateness of the means by which he was killed. The play, first performed in 458

BCE Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar (and its predecessor, the Julian calendar), the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the or ...

, predates the similar concept espoused in the Gospel of Matthew, and remains popular to this day with regular performances and readings.

References in popular culture

* The song “Live By The Sword” off of

hyperpop Hyperpop is a loosely-defined music movement and microgenre that predominantly originated in the United Kingdom during the early-to-mid 2010s. It is characterized by a maximalist or exaggerated take on popular music, and artists within the genr ...

artist Dorian Electra’s 2019 studio album, ''

Flamboyant Flamboyant (from ) is a form of late Gothic architecture that developed in Europe in the Late Middle Ages and Renaissance, from around 1375 to the mid-16th century. It is characterized by double curves forming flame-like shapes in the bar-tr ...

'', is both named after the saying, and uses the saying in its hook. * The saying is paraphrased in the slogan "live by the bomb, die by the bomb" used in the

White House Peace Vigil The White House Peace Vigil is an anti-nuclear weapons peace vigil started by William Thomas in 1981. Thomas believed it to be the longest running uninterrupted anti-war protest in U.S. history. After Thomas's death in 2009, it was maintained ...

protest. * In the second verse of Geto Boys' song ''

Mind Playing Tricks on Me "Mind Playing Tricks on Me" is a song by Geto Boys, featured on their 1991 album ''We Can't Be Stopped'' . The lyrics describe the mental anguish and exhaust of life as a gangster, including dealing with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorde ...

'', the idiom is used to describe the violent life the protagonist leads.

References

Bibliography