A Theology of Nations: Political Implications of God's Gift of Nationhood (Gen 10-12)

A Theology of Nations: 

Political Implications of God's Gift of Nationhood (Gen 10-12)

James M. Leonard, PhD

Note the purpose statement of this blog:

This blog attempts to beef up Christians' political perspectives. It is not about defending two or three moral issues, although such issues will not be neglected. What this blog is about is the promotion of a political perspective which is fully integrated with a mature Christian worldview while being entirely relevant to the current American political scene.

One of the key failures of our thinking is that we don’t have a well developed theology of nations. I suspect that books on Christians and politics are a dime a dozen, but books attempting to construct a theology of nations are quite rare (suggestions, anyone?). No doubt, Christians frequently arrive at wrong political conclusions simply because they fail to consider any theologically imposed obligations a country’s leaders might have. A well considered theology of nations would significantly impact a Christian’s political perspective.

Nations exist as a broad extension of the most basic sociological unit, the family. Families network with their neighbors, and neighborhoods develop associations with other neighborhoods, growing into ever larger units, tied together by common bonds such as geography, language, and other cultural considerations. Their mutual cooperation is designed to advance the common good of their constituent families.

This sociological perspective is compatible with a biblical model. Nationhood should not be dismissed as something arbitrarily conceived and thus dispensable; nor should nationhood be minimized as if it were opposed to Christian morality or even inherently evil.

A theology of nations begins at Genesis 10 and 11. Chapter 10’s Table of Nations provides a genealogical outline of postdiluvian civilization, united not only by genetics, but by language, geography, and perhaps even by divinely approbated conquest and intentional national development (see the commendation of Nimrod, vv. 8-12). Chapter 11 provides backgrounding information: nationhood was a consequence of God’s judgment at the Tower of Babel. There, the biblical author asserts that the families of the earth comprised a unity of culture and language in which nationhood was superfluous, at best. The attempt to prevent societal fragmentation and to establish a unified civilization independent of God was met by a divine scattering and the imposition of cooperative barriers inherent in variegated languages.

The two chapters are dischronologized. The nations are listed first in chapter 10, prior to the dispersion of chapter 11. Logically, the curse of chapter 11 had to happen prior to the existence of independent nations in chapter 10. What this dischronologization achieves is to juxtapose the curse of Gen 11 with the call of Abraham. The idea is that the dispersion and differentiation of nations will be remedied eventually by God as he works out the promises to Abraham and his descendents; through Abraham’s descendents (or rather, Descendent; cf. Gal 3:16), all the nations (מִשְׁפָּחָה) of the earth will be blessed (12:3).

Such is the beginning of a biblical theology of nations. It is one that recognizes that the division of society was a divinely imposed curse that will be remedied in the eschaton; thus, in Rev 22:2, the leaves of the tree of life are for the healing of the nations. Still, nationhood is nonetheless a gift; just as God blessed humankind with one day in seven to rest from the curse of work, God gives the blessing of nationhood to promote the general welfare of a people.

Much more needs to be said. The most important element of a theology of nationhood, however, is already evident, and leads to important implications. God’s gift of nationhood imposes certain responsibilities upon a nation’s leaders. From this we should infer that leaders must be just and rule their nations accordingly, assuring that each citizen has the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, with all due recourse to the law. Likewise, we should infer that nations should relate well and cooperate with other nations, as good, reasonable neighbors. The goal, as articulated in 1 Tim 2:2, is that citizens may live peaceful and quiet lives, or, in the words of Micah, “Everyone will sit under their own vine, and under their own fig-tree, and no one will make them afraid.”

The gift of nationhood, then, entails a national defense and a just war policy. Nationhood entails a policy that protects the interests of its citizenry. While individuals are encouraged to divest themselves of self-interest for the sake of others (Phil 2:4), national application of the same ethic at an international level would constitute a dereliction of stewardship, comparable to a father gratuitously giving away all his wealth and possessions, thereby forcing his wife and children into slavery.

To be sure, a nation should make every effort to be a blessing to all the nations of the earth. This desideratum, however, must be implemented with due concern for a nation’s own citizenry.