What does Luke 22:38 mean?

According to Jesus, when the disciples travel in the future, they should be well-supplied. They will need money, a knapsack, and a sword. Although the meaning of the terms "moneybag," "knapsack," "sandals," and "cloak" are almost always taken literally, some scholars take the term "sword" as a metaphor. To make their case, they point to this verse as well as passages when the early church withstood persecution without physically defending themselves (Acts 4:25–31; 8:1–3; 9:1–2; 12:1–5). Because Jesus tells Peter to put his sword away (Luke 22:51; John 18:10–11), they suggest that the "sword" merely means the disciples should be ready to face persecution.

Scholars who hold to this interpretation suggest that Jesus is ending the conversation because the disciples, once again, misinterpret what He is saying. The disciples somehow still think Jesus is going to defeat the Romans and take His throne. Jesus is telling them to be ready to die but they think He's telling them to be ready to fight.

Others note that Jesus' explanation of these items seems very literal. He tells Peter to "put away" the sword, not "throw away" the weapon. They also note that there is a difference between submitting to faith-based persecution and random criminal mayhem, such as robbers.

There is yet another option. Jesus mentioned the idea of being considered a lawbreaker (Luke 22:37) using a quote of Isaiah 53:12. Most scholars apply this to the fact Jesus was crucified between two thieves. But the Jewish religious and civil leaders also accused Jesus of sedition against the emperor. In this way, they grouped Him with a long line of Jews who led futile revolutions against the Roman occupation (John 19:12).

When the guards and servants go to arrest Jesus, Peter slices off the servant Malchus's ear (Luke 22:50). Only one sword was needed to give Jesus' enemies room to claim this was a revolt.