Hanukkah

One of the messages that is impressed upon us each year as we celebrate Hanukkah is the call to persevere, to not give up when events and circumstances weigh heavy upon us. When we consider how our people must have felt as they suffered at the hands of the foreign governments under which they labored during the Maccabean period, we are strengthen by their courage and perseverance in the face of overwhelming odds. The few stood faithfully against the many, and God gave them the victory.

As I contemplated once again the issue of perseverance, my mind naturally went to John’s words in the book of Revelation and his repeated use of the Greek verb nikavw (nikao, “to overcome or conquer” (used 17 times in Revelation). But coupled with the idea of “overcoming” or “conquering” is John’s use of the verb uJpomevnw (hupomeno, “to persevere, to remain” and its cognate noun uJpomonhv, hupomone, “perseverance, to patiently endure.” To the assembly of Ephesus, for instance, John writes these words of commendation: “you have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary” (Rev 2:3).

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