1 Maccabees 6: 33-39. A description of the Babylonian troops as they prepare for war against Judah. The young king of Babylon is furious with the Jews for rebuilding and fortifying Jerusalem after routing the forces that his father, the prior king, had sent against them. Early in the morning, the king takes his army "by a forced march" to the place of encampment. There they sound their trumpets and make ready for battle. The description is of a great army - they have 32 elephants who have been aroused for battle. Each elephant has 1,000 foot soldiers in full armor, 500 horsemen, and four armed men and a driver in the wooden towers atop them. There are thousands more men stationed on each side of the two flanks of the army. When the sun rises upon the army, the hills are set ablaze with the gleam from their gold and brass shields and armor, they look like flaming torches.

This is such a detailed description, it is obviously meant to convey how outnumbered and out-armed the Jews were. The image of the gleaming torch-like armor in the morning sun, with 32 elephants of war, 100,000 foot soldiers, and 50,000 horsemen, is certainly enough to impress the reader with the power of this army. The thing that struck me, though, was at the very beginning of the passage: the king "took his army by a forced march." These soldiers and troops are awe-inspiring, but they are fighting for an earthly king who has to force them into battle. While they might win this battle, and many more, ultimately they cannot stand against a people who are not being forced to fight, but who will fight for what they love and believe in.

God wants us to fight for him and for his people sometimes (look at Joan of Arc), but he never forces us. He asks, and we respond out of love and obedience. That is true power.