I am not a believer in pacifism. I do not read scripture as endorsing pacifism. I wonder if you would expand on your application/interpretation of this verse. I am not being argumentative; to the contrary, I am genuinely interested in your thoughts.
I’m inclined to agree that that saying (Luke 22:36) was intended more metaphorically than literally, AND I also am not a pacifist.
I don't think Christ was a pacifist either.
Our entire judicial system is founded on Biblical precepts of justice and mercy, contrary to the Napoleonic code utilized in many Romanist countries. Our Scripturally-based judicial system assumes all men are equally guilty of sin in the abstract, including the judges and juries. Therefore a specific responsibility for a specific crime must be proven before that man is deemed guilty of that specific crime.
Christ could have been speaking of the "sword of the spirit" which is the word of God when He told his disciples "he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one."
But the context of the verse is that Christ is well aware of the coming conflagration against Himself and all Christians by the Roman authorities. And He's warning them as well as equipping them.
Just like the Scriptures, "the sword of the spirit," protect God's children, so, too, would an iron sword protect the Christian beset by those who want to kill him.
Christ likewise tells Christians to hide, if necessary. He tells His followers not to make themselves vulnerable. He tells them to be cautious and yet fearless.
I lean towards postmillennialism. "Onward Christian soldiers..." resonates. Not that we are called to command armies and invade territories, per se, but we are instructed to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all people," being "wise as serpents and harmless as doves." Christ tells us He has sent us out in the midst of wolves. He has not left us defenseless. Nor suicidal.