Shalom [7965]

completeness, soundness, welfare, safety, prosperity, contentment, quiet, friendship with man or God, free of war.

Ge 15:15 Abram was told that he would live long and die in peace. (1st use)
Ex 20:24 Peace offerings were made to God.
Lev 7:13 These were to be sometimes accompanied by a thanks offering,
Lev 7:15 so that it became a thanksgiving peace offering.
Nu 6:26 The blessing - the LORD lift up His countenance on you, and give you peace.
Nu 25:10-12 God made a covenant of peace, a covenant of perpetual priesthood with Phinehas, who was jealous with God's own jealousy.
Jg 6:23-24 God spoke peace to Gideon to calm his fears, for which cause, Gideon built an altar, and named it the LORD is Peace.
1Sa 1:17 Eli blesses Hannah with peace, and seeks answer for her from God.
1Sa 16:4-5 The city of Bethlehem was concerned when Samuel came, until they knew he came in peace.
1Sa 25:35 Abigail's support of David caused him to be at peace with Nabal's household.
2Sa 15:27 David instructed Zadok to take the ark back to the city in peace.
1Ki 2:5-6 David instructed Solomon not to allow Joab to pass in peace, because he had shed the blood of war in peace.
2Ki 9:22 Peace was not possible for Jehu to consider so long as Jezebel remained.
1Ch 22:9 Solomon was declared to be David's successor, God promising him as a man of rest, ruling over a period of peace and quiet in Israel.
Est 9:30 Thanks to Esther's efforts, the king sent letters of peace and truth to the Jews in all the provinces of his kingdom.
Ps 4:8 We lie down and sleep in peace because God causes us to dwell in safety.
Ps 29:11 The LORD blesses His people with strength and peace.
Ps 34:14 We are to do good, seeking and pursuing peace.
Ps 37:37-38 The upright man of peace will have a posterity, but the sinner's line will be cut off.
Ps 72:7 In the day of the righteous King, the righteous will flourish, and peace will continue until the moon ceases to exist.
Ps 119:165 A love of God's Law brings great peace, and keeps one from stumbling.
Pr 3:17 The ways of wisdom are pleasant paths of peace.
Pr 16:7 When a man pleases God, He will make even his enemies be at peace with him.
Ecc 3:8 There is a time for peace, and a time for war.
Song 8:10 Though my defenses had been up, I became as one at peace with Him, dropping all my barricades, and giving Him free entry.
Isa 9:6-7 The kingdom of the Prince of Peace will know no end.
Isa 26:3 Those of steadfast mind, that trust in God, will be kept in perfect peace by Him.
Isa 32:17 The work of righteousness is peace.
Isa 52:7 How wonderful is the One who brings good news of peace and salvation.
Jer 33:6 God will bring health and healing to Jerusalem, and reveal to them an abundance of peace and truth.
Eze 34:25 God will make a covenant of peace with His people.
Mic 5:4-5 The One who arises to shepherd the flock of Israel in God's strength and name will be our peace.
Hag 2:9 The glory of His house will be greater than before, and it shall be the place wherein He gives peace.
Mal 2:5-6 God's covenant with Levi was one of life and peace, because Levi revered Him, and stood in awe of His name. He taught truly, walking with peace and uprightness, causing many to turn from iniquity.

eirene [1515]

exemption from the havoc of war, harmony, concord, safety, prosperity, the way (salvation) that leads to peace, Messiah's peace, the state of a soul assured of its salvation and so fearing nothing from God

Mt 10:13 The disciples were to greet worthy houses with peace, but not unworthy ones. (1st)
Mt 10:34 Christ came to bring the sword on the earth, not peace.
Lk 1:79 Jesus would be a light to we who were in darkness and under death, guiding us into the way of peace.
Lk 7:50 Those He healed, went in peace.
Lk 10:5-6 The blessing of peace will return to its giver should it not find a man of peace to bless.
Lk 19:38 The people declared Christ's arrival in Jerusalem a sign of peace in heaven.
Lk 19:42 But in reality, they did not know what would bring them peace.
Jn 14:27 Jesus gives His peace to us.
Jn 16:33 In Him we have our peace.
Ac 9:31 The church in Israel enjoyed a period of peace, in which it grew.
Ro 2:10 Glory and honor and peace will come to all who do good.
Ro 3:12, 17 But none do good, and so none know the path of peace.
Ro 5:1 Peace with God comes by the justification of faith in Christ.
Ro 8:6 The mind that stays on spiritual things is at peace.
Ro 14:17 The kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy.
Ro 15:13 The God of hope fills us with all joy and peace.
1Co 14:33 God is a god of peace, not confusion.
Gal 5:22 Peace is a fruit of the Spirit.
Eph 2:14-15 He is our peace, who broke down the dividing walls, and making His two peoples into one man to establish peace.
Eph 4:3 We are to be diligent to preserve unity in the bond of peace.
Eph 6:15 The gospel of peace is our footgear.
Php 4:7 God's peace, which exceeds our ability to comprehend, guards our hearts and minds in Christ.
Php 4:9 The God of peace will be with us as we practice righteousness.
Col 1:20 God reconciled us to Himself in Christ, making peace with us through the blood of His cross.
Col 3:15 The peace of Christ is to rule in our hearts.
1Th 5:23 The God of peace sanctifies us entirely.
2Ti 2:22 We are to pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace.
Jas 3:18 The seed of righteousness is sown in peace.
2Pe 3:14 Be diligent to be found in peace by Him, blameless at His return.
Rev 6:4 The rider of the red horse was granted to take peace from the earth.

Summary

I had almost despaired of continuing this look at peace, for nothing noteworthy seemed to be coming out of it. I sought the Lord, as I chased down the verses, and He answered me, almost immediately bringing my attention to things seen in those verses. And so, I persevered, now hopeful as to what I might learn from all this. As I've looked back over these verses, I've collected out the ones that really stood out to me, and tried to put them in some sort of order to better consider them.

One thing that has come clear is that peace creates strong links between the Old and the New Testaments. For instance, Eze 34:25 tells us that God will make a covenant of peace with His people. I see this reflected in the New Testament when Paul tells us that peace with God comes by the justification of faith in Christ (Ro 5:1), that God was reconciling us to Himself in Christ (Col 1:20). God had promised a covenant. The covenant process, as far as I understand it, always required a sacrifice to ratify it. The idea I've always heard associated with that sacrifice was that the action taken upon the animals sacrificed was to be taken also upon the one who broke the covenant. This is a part of what God was doing in the work of the Cross. He was sealing His promised covenant of peace with His people. He declared that that act would stand sufficient for all who would believe upon His Son, and that He would so be reconciled to the believer. "And thus may you do to Me if I break with this covenant" seems to be implied in the process. If it is not so, if faith does not save, then God ceases to be God. That is the strength of the promise. As with all His promises, they cannot but be true, for He is who He is. This strength and security is what gave the Psalmist to recognize that he could sleep in peace in the safety God causes us to dwell in (Ps 4:8), it is the very power of God protecting our hearts and minds as we walk through this life (Php 4:7). All of this because God, in His grace and mercy, leaned down and provided the way of reconciliation to us. Jesus, as the Mediator of that covenant, is Mediator also of that peace. This is why we see the idea of salvation wrapped up in the understanding of peace. He gives His peace to us (Jn 14:27), His healing brings peace (Lk 7:50).

This brings an interesting side thought. More a question, really. The modern church, at least amongst the charismatic end, is deeply concerned with physical healing, and certainly the history of Christ's ministry on the earth indicates that He did such things, and that His disciples were empowered to do likewise in His name. But it strikes me that Christ's healing ministry always had a higher purpose in mind than simple delay of inevitable death. Look at the record. Where He healed, the healed went in peace (Lk 7:50, and others). Why the peace? Because the power of His act on their lives broke through the clouds before their eyes and brought them to belief, to salvation! Consider the point of view Jesus had to address, the idea common in the Jewish mind of that time that physical illness was a sign of God's disfavor. Imagine the impact, then, of a healing so obviously by an act of the very God you had been told was so angry at you! This was the power of Christ's healing ministry, a power unto salvation! Can any of today's healing ministries declare the same? I'm not so sure. They seem to be focused almost exclusively on the believers, and how then can they save the saved? Does healing still occur by God's intervention? You bet. Does it always happen to serve His purposes? You'd better believe it! Does it always happen just because we ask real good? Nope. And my suspicion is that it would happen a whole lot more often if we had the same purpose in mind for it that our Savior does.

Christ Jesus is declared to us as the Prince of Peace, who will rule over God's eternal kingdom (Isa 9:6-7). It is right and fitting that this kingdom be ruled by One whose name is Peace, for we know that kingdom is righteousness, peace, and joy (Ro 14:17). This is the kingdom we have been made citizens of, and as citizens, we are to be involved in the work of that kingdom. If the kingdom be of righteousness, peace, and joy, so our works should be too, and in Isa 32:17, we are told that the work of righteousness is peace. But what is this work we are to do? How do we work peace? God is faithful not to leave us without answer. A love of God's Law brings peace (Ps 119:165), and the ways of wisdom are the paths of peace (Pr 3:17). What is wisdom? It begins with the fear of God (Pr 9:10), it grows in obedience to God. What does God require? That we walk humbly before Him (Mic 6:8), and follow in His ways. How are we to know His ways? By the Law He gave us to guide us. Even in this covenant of grace and faith by which we stand (Ro 5:2)? Even so. For Jesus came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it (Mt 5:17-18), and if we love Him, we will obey His commands (Jn 14:15). The bonds of that peace established by obedience to God work to promote unity in God's people (Eph 4:3), that unity acting as a further witness to the truth of God. Unity is important to our Lord, and it's impossible where pride and rebellion continue. 2Ki 9:22 tells us that Jehu could not be at peace so long as Jezebel remained. Jezebel is the very spirit of prideful rebellion, the same spirit in which Satan rose up in attempt to replace God on His throne, the same spirit he brought to Adam and Eve, telling them they could be like God. It is the spirit that desires to overthrow authority, and be its own boss. Peace cannot reside with such a spirit, for it is hostile to all.

There were two further verses that stood out for me for very different reasons. The first raises a question - but not one I will attempt to answer here. In Dt 23:3-6, God tells His people to accept no Ammonite or Moabite into the LORD's assembly 'even to the tenth generation.' Yet, it appears that only two generations later, Ruth the Moabitess is indeed made part of His people, making their God her God, which would at least seem to imply entering into the LORD's assembly. She was so much a part of God's people that she became part of the chosen lineage leading through David to Christ Jesus. God is not a man, that He should change, nor is He one to reward violators of His decrees, so how is this? Hardly faith-shaking, but it is curious.

Finally, a verse that struck a chord with me, because I'm in the worship ministry inherited from the sons of Levi. Mal 2:5-6 declares God's covenant with Levi - a covenant of life and peace. Why? Because Levi held God in highest reverence and awe. His teaching was true, his walk - his example as lived in his life - was one of peace and uprightness, free of hypocrisy. The witness of his life lived out caused many to turn from their sins, and return to their God. What a testimony to have from our God! Lord, I pray that one day I, too, might hear that testimony from Your lips. As I put out these lessons on the web, may my words be only of Your truth. As I move into this new role of teaching in home groups, I pray that You would inhabit my lessons as You have ever inhabited my praises. As I continue in service of worship, Father, help me to more faithfully keep Your glory before my eyes, help me to remain focused on coming before Your throne, that those I serve might follow me into Your very presence. Oh, God, forgive me for those ways in which I've failed to hold You in proper reverence, teach me Your ways, oh God, and empower me, Holy Spirit, to walk in them, that I might stand as a beacon to the lost, turning the wayward back to Your merciful arms.