JUDO IN THE BIBLE

 

In the martial arts such as judo, it is taught that one can use an opponent's strength against him in order to defeat him. This principle may take various forms in practice, and some of them even appear in the Bible where the people of God, with His help, overcome much stronger earthly opponents. Below are a few possible examples, but I am sure you can find many more. Those in the Old Testament refer to actual armed battles.

Judges 3:15-30 – Ehud and Eglon

A lone Israelite walks right into the heavily defended palace of the Moabite king Eglon in order to present him with tribute money, as the Israelites had been doing for years. The king takes no precautions whatsoever since he relies completely on his superior defensive position and the relative weakness of the Israelites, and he even invites the assassin into his private chamber, where he is promptly killed.

Judges 4-5 – Sisera and Jael

The Israelites miraculously beat the Canaanites who are led by General Sisera, and Sisera flees away from them into the supposed safety of an ally's tent. There Jael treats him kindly and feeds him until he falls asleep exhaustedly. She then picks up a tent peg and drives it into his head. This is not unlike a judo move in which one uses an opponent's momentum toward you to put him down, as opposed to trying to confront him directly.

Judges 7 – Gideon and the Midianites

Here we have the story of yet another judge who uses an unusual ploy to defeat a much superior Midianite army. With but a few men, he hides around the Midianite camp at night. Then, when they are changing the guards, the Israelites begin shouting, breaking pots, and blowing trumpets. Hearing all the noise, the Midianite troops are suddenly roused from their sleep and begin killing off one another in the confusion. This is a very literal example of using an opponent's strength against himself.

I Samuel 17 – David and Goliath

This, of course, is the classic example to quote in this context. The youth David soon realizes that it would be folly to meet the practiced warrior Goliath on his own terms weighed down with a heavy sword and armor. Goliath is so confident of his own superior strength that he doesn't even bother to use his massive shield to protect the only vulnerable part of his body, his forehead. And he is not able to quickly move out of harm's way due to his heavy armor.

II Samuel 5:6-10 – David and the Jebusites

Early unsuccessful attempts had been made by the Israelites to capture the impregnable mountain fortress of Jerusalem. And the city was also somewhat immune from siege warfare since there was a secret conduit of water into the city allowing them to hold out for a long time. But this strength is the very tool by which they are defeated by David's forces when they climb up a water shaft to gain access to the city.

II Samuel 20:4-22 – Joab and Sheba

Joab pursues Sheba, who has taken refuge in the walled city of Abel. Soon after the Israelites prepare to besiege the city, a wise woman who lives there convinces the people of the city to kill Sheba themselves and throw his body over the wall. Thus, as in Judges 4-5, the flight from one danger leads Sheba into even more danger.

II Kings 9:30-37 – Jehu and Jezebel

God's “avenging angel” Jehu marches into Jezebel's palace and spies her in an upper window. He merely summons her own guards and they throw her out to her death. As in judo, he utilizes her own strength against her while conserving his own energy.

Moving on to New Testament examples, one can see more figurative applications of the judo technique, especially illustrated by Jesus' interactions with his opponents.

Luke 20:1-8 – Jesus and the Chief Priests and Scribes

During this hostile encounter, Jesus' opponents demand that he tell them where the authority of his words originated from. He then turns the tables on them by asking them a similar question: “Where did John the Baptist's baptism come from, a heavenly or earthly source? That shuts them up because their main strength was from the great respect they commanded from the people, and they realize that they will lose much of that whichever way they happen to answer. Jesus has utilized his knowledge of that fact to defeat them.

Luke 20:27-39 – Jesus and the Sadducees

Soon after the above event, Jesus meets some Sadducees who try to trap him with a trick question regarding the resurrection, which they do not believe in. Jesus answers them in a rather straightforward manner, appealing to the teachings of the Pentateuch. And he does this in the presence of some scribes, probably Pharisees, who have been listening to the debate. They agree with Jesus, thus driving somewhat of a stake between the united forces of the Pharisees and Sadducees to destroy Him.

Acts 2:30-23:10 – Paul before the Sanhedrin

I mention the previous example, even though it is not the best for illustrating the theme of this short essay, mainly as an introduction to this final NT narrative. Paul has been brought before the combined Sanhedrin in order to condemn him. But taking a cue from his Master's life, Paul begins to proclaim “Brothers, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees, and I am on trial concerning the hope of resurrection of the dead.” At these words, the Pharisees (who believed in the afterlife) and the Sadducees (who didn't) begin arguing against themselves and the council meeting breaks up in chaos. I see here definite echoes of Judges 7 in which Gideon and his troops manage to trick the enemy forces into turning against themselves in a confused manner.

Besides the NT narratives, one could also cite various teachings of Jesus and his followers regarding God choosing the seeming foolish to shame the wise and the weak to shame the strong (I Corinthians 1:18-31), rich men relying on gold and silver that will actually be used against them in the Divine Court to convict them (James 5:1-6), etc. But the prime example of some of the basic principles of judo is when God employed Satan and all of his minions (including Judas, the Sanhedrin, the Roman authorities, and the disillusioned populace) to have Jesus crucified. Paradoxically, by that very act Satan managed to defeat himself instead.