Here’s an analogy for you Christians out there who don’t get #BlackLivesMatter
If we were to use a different story to explain where we are today…
Israel is enslaved by Egypt for 400 years and have their children murdered by the Egyptian Pharaoh, whose goal is to maintain Egyptian privilege, wealth and power dynamics. In other words, they wanted to maintain the racial hierarchy of their system.
“Look,” he said to his people, “the Israelites have become far too numerous for us. Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country.” So they put slave masters over them to oppress them with forced labor… But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread; so the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites and worked them ruthlessly.” (Exodus 1:9–13 NIV).
Pharaoh even decrees an explicitly racist law to keep the power dynamic in check. He orders the death of every Hebrew boy in the country. And it was legal.
“Then Pharaoh gave this order to all his people: ‘Every Hebrew boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live.’” (Exodus 1:22 NIV)
Egyptians created a political and legal system that kept Israelites enslaved and permitted the death of Hebrew children, and called this fair and just. For 400 years.
During this time, Israelites cry out #HebrewLivesMatter as they cry out to their God for change and justice. They cry because they are scared for their newborn children, and if they’ll be killed by an Egyptian guard at any moment. As more Israelites are killed and become more vocal, Egyptians don’t get this movement and feel disconnected, confused, frustrated and indignant. They’ve enjoyed all the social, political and economic privileges of being Egyptian while suffering, like all humans do. So they respond back that #EgyptianLivesMatter or that #AllLivesMatter, not just the Hebrews that feel like they are being oppressed.
Meanwhile, Moses, an Israelite, kills an Egyptian guard when he sees one of his own people being beaten and oppressed.
Egyptians, unaware of the plight of the Israelites, condemn and cry out this execution. They cry out that the killing needs to stop, that we should all love one another and that this Hebrew man needs to be brought to justice. They complain that the Israelites are politicizing some agenda and say that the law protects all of us. All this comes out with the Egyptian cry again that #EgyptianLivesMatter and that #AllLivesMatter that diminishes the 400 year narrative that the Israelites have experienced.
Where do you think God stood in all of this?
He gave Pharaoh and the Egyptians multiple chances to restore and administer justice. And Pharaoh hardened his heart. Because to him, #EgyptianLivesMatter more than #HebrewLivesMatter.
And God delivers His people out of Egypt, and provides them the economic reparations (Exodus 12:35–36) and political systems to establish themselves (the rest of the Pentateuch).
But He didn’t just deliver the Israelites. He establishes progressive laws for how His people are to provide rights for non-Israelites that are on the Exodus with them (Exodus 22:21). Because to God, addressing #HebrewLivesMatter led to justice for all his people.
In this story, we’re not Israel. Our Black brothers and sisters are Israel. We’re Egypt. We’re Babylon. We’re Canaan. We’re Rome.
