Biblical Nuggets: Shalom
Shalom is defined as not just peace of mind or the state of peaceful time during battle or cease-fire. The English word for the original Hebrew “Shalom” has a lot to do with “universal peace, flourishing, wholeness, and delight – a rich state of affairs in which natural needs are satisfied and natural gifts fruitfully employed, all under the arch of God’s love”[1]. On top of this definition, Shalom is the state of perfect order God has put into. It includes God’s justice, fulfillment and delight. It is a cherished desire of those anointed biblical prophets who hoped to see Israel flourishing. They hoped for universal peace, justice, wholeness, and delight among their people through reconciliation with the Lord. Platinga Jr. writes:
They (biblical prophets) dreamed of a time when people would convert weapons of war into tools for harvest … God would rejoice in his creation all over again. People could work in peace … secure in the knowledge that no one would plunder their houses and vineyards. God’s servants would minister justice in the earth, and all the earth would be full of the knowledge of the Lord” Isa. 32:15; Joel 3:18; Isa. 2:4; 11:6; 65:19-22; 11:9).[2]
Thus, he intertwined the interpersonal relationship between God, human beings, and all his creation.
