How many times have you heard the saying, “Let’s just bury the hatchet!”? It carries the meaning of resolving conflict in a relationship by forgetting the past.
This figurative language is likely to be originated from American Indian a couple of centuries ago. When making peace agreement between tribes, chiefs would bury a hatchet as a symbolic gesture to show no more hostilities toward one another.
Our custom of shaking right hands when making peace, deal, or settling a dispute may have came from this act of burying a hatchet. The right hand, the hatchet hand, is shook to show that there is no weapon hidden or held.
How wonderful our relationships would be if we “bury” more hatchets! Paul told the church inEphesus(Eph. 4:32) and to thechurchofColossae(3:13) to forgive one another as our Lord forgave us.
I pray that we would bury hatchets this week and extend our “right” hand to those around us… especially as we have moved into this wonderful Christmas season. This season should remind us that God had “buried” the hatched and extend His forgiving hand through His Son, Jesus Christ.