Jesus taught us not to retaliate when we are treated badly. “Whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek,” He said, ” turn to him the other also” (3 Nephi 12:39, Matthew 5:39, Luke 6:29). His disciples must have remembered that admonition as they saw Him willingly endure humiliation and violence at the end of His life. (See Matthew 26:67, Matthew 27:27-31, Mark 14:65, Mark 15:16-20, Luke 22:63-65, John 18:22-23, John 19:1-5.)
Hundreds of years earlier, Isaiah had prophesied that a servant of God would endure horrific abuse without fighting back or defending himself. This servant would say:
I gave my back to the smiter, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair. I hid not my face from shame and spitting.
For the Lord God will help me, therefore shall I not be confounded. Therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.
2 Nephi 7:6-7, Isaiah 50:6-7
Flint is an exceptionally hard rock, used anciently for tools and weapons as well as for starting fires. When Isaiah says he has set his face like a flint, he means that he is absolutely determined to be steady and strong, not to buckle under intense pressure.
Ezekiel used the same metaphor in his book. God told him that the children of Israel would reject his words, but, He said:
I have made thy face strong against their faces, and thy forehead strong against their foreheads.
As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead: fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.
Ezekiel 3:8-9
Luke tells us that when it was time for Jesus to ascend to heaven, “He steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem” (Luke 9:51, italics added). Did He have to prepare Himself mentally and emotionally for the pain He was about to endure? Of course He did. His inner strength and self-discipline were unmatched, but as the time drew near, He had to prepare Himself to endure it well. He later told the prophet Joseph Smith that He did not want to “shrink” from drinking the bitter cup (Doctrine and Covenants 19:18). So as Isaiah prophesied, He “set [his] face like a flint.”
Today, I will face my challenges with equanimity and with steadiness. I will commit to be strong—strong enough to be gentle, strong enough to be humble, strong enough to not become defensive, strong enough to avoid retaliation or vengeance of any kind.
Defensiveness and retaliation are easy reactions. Humility and gentleness require real strength, like a flint.
Thank you for that concise and eloquent summary of this post! I appreciate the comment!