1 An initial response to this claim can simply be, "How can the atheist or non-Christian say God is harsh, brutal, and evil when they deny the Bible, the very book that defines harsh, brutal, and evil?" Why is this?You can support the . Other commentators may be able to shed even more light. What Every Christian Ought to Know Day by Day: Essential Truths for Growing Your Faith, The Faith: What Christians Believe, Why They Believe It, and Why It Matters, Christian Beliefs: Twenty Basics Every Christian Should Know, What the Bible Teaches: The Truths of the Bible Made Plain, Simple, and Understandable, The Bible Answer BookReferralsChristian Research Institute, Bring Your Bible to School Day is Oct 7th! Please refresh the page and try again. Unfortunately, there is a wide range of viewpoints about how to deal with sin and evil in this world. The Bible doesnt reveal any, and homosexual behavior was rampant, so there may not have been many, if any, children. 15:3, emphasis added). Thank you for your interest in supporting CARM. . But consider this, judging Scripture by Scripture, it says that no one is truly innocent (Romans 3:23), and all will eventually die anywaya repercussion of our own actions (1 Corinthians 15:22; Romans 6:23). 25:17-19). They even sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons, and shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and their daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan; and the land was polluted with the blood. But if God really doesnt exist and the Bible isnt His Word, then those who attack God and His Word by calling Him harsh and evil shouldnt even care to attack Him. As descendants of Esau, they were likely aware of Gods promises to Jacob, but rather than honor Gods choice of Israel, they instead elected to be their enemy. Yet even in Jericho, there was a means of salvation as Rahab and her family were saved. Scripture implies that young children who die go to be with the Lord (cf. God decides when your last heartbeat will be, and whether it ends through cancer or a bullet . Yet God provided a means of salvation for themthe angels helped them get to safety. The first verse says that we are all sinners. What is sin? The acts that Samson carried out were simply an act of judgment by God upon the people of Ashkelon, and are part of a larger sweeping story of God using Samson (and others) as His weapons of justice against a blasphemous and evil people. This is an interesting point in that Rahab knew of Israels victories and the blessings of God upon the nation. The following is an extensive table comparison of the Father and Jesus, the Son, as found in the Bible. Imagine if a boater came to rescue a woman and her child who were on top of a roof with floodwaters rising. "For a while a question has been on my mind; how come in the Old Testament God seems so mean and brutal?". . Sinful man was unrepentant. But one cant neglect that children sin, too. The God of the Old Testament (or Hebrew Bible) is arguably one of the most fascinating deities in all religious literature: complex and multifaceted; prone to great acts of mercy and kindness, although not above brutal acts of punishment and wrath; consumed with care for the world and its inhabitants; capable of changing direction or mind; inexp. If God would spare Sodom and Gomorrah for only 10 righteous people, then would God have spared the earth if 10 people were righteous before the Flood? They are going to spend eternity in punishment. Further, rather than living up to Dawkins caricature of being a vindictive, impatient, quick-tempered, and bloodthirsty deity, the image of God that instead emerges from the Old Testament after a thorough study is just the opposite; God is portrayed as forgiving, patient, and slow to bring forth judgment. The two words are connected to read ha-satan. In the fist place, he should not have made it. I pray this helps, and for those reading this that are not familiar with the good news of Jesus Christ please take some time to read this short article on the subject. Try downloading another browser like Chrome or Firefox. Why would the Spirit of God come upon Saul in a distressing way? The answer should be obvious. Clearly, God judged that the best way to implement His plan, which leads over time to fulfillment in Jesus Christ, was to form a Chosen People through a long series of actual historical events with very tangible consequencesconsequences which, unlike in other religions, were tied to whether this people acted in good or evil ways. Of course, there may have been others who were righteous too, up until the Flood. Compare the earlier version of the story in 2 Samuel 24 in which YHWH himself is the one who incites David to sin. So with Jesus has come into the world salvation. Are such portrayals of God accurate? The most striking example, of course, is the Song of Songs. Scripture Series: The Old Testament contains several narratives in which spiritual beings are described as performing a negative function at the service of God. It showcases a God who asks us to not criticize Him about His acts of justice, but instead One who kindly encourages us to come alongside Him and grieve over a world that has misused the gift of freedom given it to do wrong instead of right. The peaceful Kingdom of God proclaimed by the prophets of the Old Testament will finally be established on earth. In Genesis 6, Gods judgment upon the world at large is found in these words: The Lord said, I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them, (Gen. 6:7). The Way of the Dream: https://geni.us/B1yCBiVisit Us Online at Enlighten-University: http://enlighten-university.com/Become a Member: https://www.youtube.com. At any rate, lets analyze this and see if God really is harsh/brutal and evil. Mankind sins and gets caught. What is the difference between an internal and external critique? Fortunately, most people do not share that viewpoint. The curse of sin would be erased by the seed of a woman (the result of a virgin birth) sent to save mankind. Was casting out of demons done in the Old Testament by any Prophets or As previously pointed out, today there are kids killing kids, kids thieving, kids raping, and so on. However, biblical authors have no such problem. He also revealed in the book of Revelation that judgment is coming upon this world (Rev. Matt Slick vs Jake Brancatella, Is the Trinity necessary to explain reality?, Table comparison of the Father and Jesus, the Son. It is just here that we must go a little deeper to realize the greater truth that constitutes our third factor. Every intention and thought was evil all the time. Some readers responded by asking whether I could make Gods ways under the Old Covenant easier to understand. 2 Pet. From the above examples, it would seem that those questioning Gods justice, love, and mercy have a fairly solid position in their complaints. Lets find out. He asked the Lord if there were 40 righteous, would the Lord spare it; He said yes. Exodus 17:8). The only recourse that God had was to eliminate them in order to rescue the world. Here is the verse. That is, the Old and New Testaments declare the same message Gods character has not and will not change. Cyrus, who was not yet born at the time of the prophecy, did not know the Lord or even acknowledge His existence, making him an unlikely choice to be . In Genesis 18:2033, the Lord revealed to Abraham that Sodom and Gomorrah had sinned exceedingly. Internet Explorer is no longer supported. This pattern goes all the way back to the ejection of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden (cf. Answer The fact that God commanded the killing of entire nations in the Old Testament has been the subject of harsh criticism from opponents of Christianity for some time. But the LORD of hosts will be exalted in judgment, and the holy God will show Himself holy in righteousness. Yet denouncing hard-hearted Jewish leaders, lamenting those who lead others into sin, rebuking the wealthy, condemning hypocrites, and foretelling disaster for unbelieving communities: These were all part of Our Lords effort to wake us up. Now you get the important information you need regarding the existence of God, global warming and climate change, cloning and stem cells, human and chimp DNA, the importance of Mount St. Helens, and more. That has been the message since Adam was disobedient. Do you have answers to the big questions about the Christian faith, evolution, creation, and the biblical worldview? The New King James Version makes this explicit with the translation, I make peace and create calamity. The same word is used in Lamentations 3:38 (KJV), where the prophet Jeremiah declares that both evil and good proceed out of the mouth of the host High.. Christianity - Satan, Origin, Evil | Britannica If God isn't the source of evil, what can the Bible possibly mean when it tells us that "an evil spirit from God" came upon King Saul (I Samuel 18:10)? The New Atheists, however, think differently. One who does not believe and is unwilling to be obedient or to pursue holiness does not truly know God. 6:1-17), and at the same time He pleads with people to repent of their sins and turn to God (Rev. And doesn't that make Him the ultimate source of evil? All Rights Reserved. 10:9 (NASB), God tells us that He loves us and that we can have eternal life if we will believe that Jesus died for our sins and returned to life. Everyone deserves that punishment, including me, but God has provided a means of salvation just as He did in the Old Testament situations described above. Amazingly, God chose not to destroy the Amalekites until some 400 years had elapsed from their first sinful acts against His people. Samson was also killed in the act, although he himself was saved by God as evidenced by the fact that he is recorded in the heroes of faith section in Hebrews 11 (cf. This is a stark contrast between sinful men who love their sin and a holy God who will not tolerate sin. Lot and his family numbered less than 10 in Sodom and Gomorrah (Lot, his wife, his two daughters, his two sons-in-law, and two angels only made 8, the same as the Flood). After all, the Bible affirms that He also hardened the heart of Pharaoh (Exodus 7:3). God is our Creator, He sustains us in existence at every moment, and everything that happens to us (whether good or bad) is encompassed by His Providence. He was wrestling with the Lord and with his own bitterness and resentment toward David. He asked the Lord if there were 50 righteous, would the Lord spare it; He said yes. To the contrary, we make a strong distinction between Gods permissive will and His active will. But He is not and cannot be the author of rasha. . King Josiah killed the Baal priests and idol worshippers in 2 Kings 22. They wanted a life without God and His goodness . While some may argue that correcting the skeptics faulty view of God is not that important, quite the opposite is true. However, this sacrificial system was only temporary and merely looked forward to the coming of Jesus Christ who would die on the cross to make a complete substitutionary atonement for sin. God doesn't seem like a particularly consistent character in the Old Testament. "Then they will cry out to the LORD, but he will not answer them. and God gave that to them. Heiser claims that since later Jewish writings (that is, after the time of the Old Testament, but before or near the time of the New Testament) portray Satan as a non-human entity opposed to God and God's people, this demonstrates that conceptual development in the direction of viewing Satan as a single God-opposing spiritual being occurred . The LORD said, I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them. But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD. - email Since God made it clear that not even 10 people were righteous in the city, then even the children (if any) were being extremely sinful. Misconception 1: The God of wrath vs. the God of mercy To begin, I should clear away two common misconceptions. God struck the land with many plagues and disasters because Pharaoh continued to sin and the nation of Egypt followed after him in sin. But in the early parts of the Old Testament, at least, the writers attribute everything to Gods will without distinction. In light of everything weve said, we know that when I Samuel 18:10 asserts that an evil spirit from God came upon Saul, it cannot possibly mean that God is the source of wickedness or sin. Listen to Romans 1:32, . Charges of genocide are very common among the critics of God, with Israels charge of what to do with existing people in the promised land being called out as an example: When the Lord your God brings you into the land where you are entering to possess it and clears away many nations before you, the Hittites and the Girgashites and the Amorites and the Canaanites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and stronger than you, and when the Lord your God delivers them before you and you defeat them, then you shall utterly destroy them. Now we will explore the question, Why is there violence in the Bible? Lets start with a non-violent illustration from Genesis 3. And He has provided a means of salvation in Jesus Christ (1 Peter 3:18), as the Ark was with the Flood and the angels were in urging Lot and his family to flee Sodom and Gomorrah. articles What a strong statement! His descendants became an incredibly sinful people who practiced extreme cruelty, incest, idolatry, bestiality, homosexuality, cultic prostitution, and child sacrifice (by throwing their own children into altars of fire). God gives life and he takes life. If God Made Woman for Man, Then What Is Gods Plan for Singleness? Some of the time we are accurate. Thank you for signing up to receive email newsletters from Answers in Genesis. From the perspective of eternity, there was no hope for any child who was left behind. I will reprove you and state the case in order before your eyes. The New Testament refers to the destruction of these cities as an example of judgment yet to come (cf. This view of God is commonly referred to in the secular media, atheistic books, and so on. She can even be found in the lineage of Christ (Matthew 1:5). God doesn't seem like a particularly consistent character in the Old Testament. All of this is encompassed by His infinite Wisdom and Power, without violating anyones free will. It would be nice if people realized that they should hate sin (Romans 12:9) and love God (Deuteronomy 6:5) who acts justly against sin (2 Thessalonians 1:510). Since God made it clear that not even 10 people were righteous in the city, then even the children (if any) were being extremely sinful. . If God would spare Sodom and Gomorrah for only 10 righteous people, then would God have spared the earth if 10 people were righteous before the Flood? 7:4-8; 14:6-7). Thank you for signing up to receive email newsletters from Answers in Genesis. This was happening continually. The God of the Old Testament is the God of the New Testament. Therefore, we know beyond doubt that God desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim 2:4). So God was still patient, allowing time for repentance and change (1 Peter 3:20). Lot and his family, however, are rescued from the coming judgment and escape. So we have a difficult time understanding Him and His motives, except what is revealed in the pages of the Bible. No one can blame God for not providing a merciful alternative or call Him evil for providing justice against sin. What the Bible Says About the Origin of Evil God steps in and offers a means of salvation from the punishment of the crime (which is eternal death), even so far as to die in their place so that they can have eternal life. It should be sharply distinguished from the second word for evil, rasha wickedness or evil in the moral sense. With these misconceptions in mind, we can proceed to three important factors in understanding some of the things that trouble us. Focus on the Family has a staff of pastoral counselors who would love to speak with you over the phone. The early Jews did not come ready-made with lofty spiritual conceptions and a firm knowledge of the after-life. Privacy Policy and And the fact is, all have sinned, all fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). It includes the potential for pain. Next, during the construction of the ark, which lasted at least 100 years, Noah is described as a preacher of righteousness (cf. In both cases, people have/had the opportunity to get back to a right relationship with Him. Any and all innocent adults are given a way of escape with their families; sometimes all are given a way to avoid judgment via repentance or leaving a particular region. The account of Sodom and Gomorrah, which culminates in the encounter involving Lot, the angels, and the men of the city is a vivid description of the type of pervasive evil that causes God to act after He blesses circumstances, rescues from harm, and gives spiritual guidance. If He creates raah, or calamity, it is always for a good and righteous purpose within the all-embracing scheme of His eternal and sovereign plan. Listen to Psalm 50:21, These things you have done and I kept silence; In this instance, God used Moses and Aaron (Exodus 515) to judge the Egyptians for the wickedness they were inflicting on the Israelites through harsh slavery (Exodus 1:814), murdering their children (Exodus 1:22), and so on. Volumes 1 & 2. However, they stubbornly chose to remain and fight against Israel instead. Over time, a deeper and more spiritual approach to such questions develops, which again is fulfilled in Christ. 5:45). ResourcesIf a title is currently unavailable through Focus on the Family, we encourage you to use another retailer. ago In simple terms God created everything including satan thus is Satan's creator thus should be held accountable for all of Satan's crimes. What the Bible Says About the Origin of Evil, 8605 Explorer Drive Colorado Springs, CO 80920-1051, Maintaining Emotional Intimacy in the Empty Nest Years. Yet this was about 120 years (maximum) before the Flood (Genesis 6:3). Did God create evil? The Philistines were notorious for their idol worship of the false gods Dagon, Ashtoreth (the spouse of the false god Baal), and Baalzebub. There is only one God. While the universal flood certainly seems extreme on the surface, there are a number of factors that should be kept in mind. So what does God do when we persist in our sinfulness? . But Melchizedeks ministry surely had an influence on the Canaanites as it took several hundred years before their sin overtook them. The Benjamites asked for it as well (Judges 19:2225, 20:13) and sided with the wicked. It is precisely in this figure, however, that some aspects of the ways God deals . "He shall judge between the nations, and rebuke many people; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore . As we have already discovered, God gives us opportunity to turn from our sin and to turn to Him, pursuing holiness. For a while a question has been on my mind; how come in the Old Testament God seems so mean and brutal? Why was the fruit off limits in the first place? He does not sin. ) | Jul 17, 2017 The Scripture then says this: Before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, surrounded the house, both young and old, all the people from every quarter; and they called to Lot and said to him, Where are the men who came to you tonight? Imagine the murders, rapes, thefts, child sacrifices, cannibalism, and so on. An internal critique examines the merits of an idea based on the internal consistency of that idea. Sacrifices made by the Lord for Adam and Eve to provide them coats of skin (Genesis 3:21). Evidently, the required ten righteous men could not be found and God acted in judgment upon the evil culture. To begin, I should clear away two common misconceptions. God is often attacked for killing all the innocent people and even children in the Flood. There is a common claim that the God of the Old Testament (even in the New Testament) seems very harsh, brutal, and even evil. As your question implies, the real issue is not How could God create evil? Its How could God create another self separate from and independent of His own Self? This is the real miracle of Creation, especially the creation of mankind. But at the time of the Flood, we can surmise there were only 8 (Methuselah and Lamech had died just before the Flood). . The story of Samson ends with him killing thousands of Philistines by causing the building they were in to collapse. and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them. Among the common events in the Bible where Ive heard people say God is harsh, they usually begin in Genesis: the Flood or Sodom and Gomorrah. Otherwise, Hitler and the German army would most likely be controlling the world today. It is easy to fall into the trap of believing that everything recounted in the Old Testament is the will of God. God even called Noah to be a preacher of righteousness (2 Peter 2:5), yet people still refused to listen and continued in their evil ways. Amazingly, instead of immediately destroying the people involved in such things, the actual opposite is found: the Scripture conveys that God had incredible patience and waited until the full measure of their deeds were completed. Can you help? Even so, children are sinners and can also have every evil intentions and thoughts (Romans 3:23). Instead of yielding to the convicting influence of the Spirit, he snapped under the pressure and gave vent to his hatred. Your newsletter signup did not work out. Someone is almost always saved (redeemed) from the evil culture. dneonu50 1 mo. So is the God of the Old Testament a merciless monster? However, He is also revealed to be a holy, just, and righteous God who will bring justice about in His time. Death will have no sting (1 Corinthians 15:5356) for those in Christ. and protest that God was not justified in calling for the taking of their lives. Interestingly enough, people who say God is cruel want justice when they are wronged, e.g., if someone steals from them, attacks them, and so on. When Joshua entered the land of Canaan, the Amorites sin had reached its full measure and it was time for judgment. By Dr. Jeff Mirus ( The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. This view of God is commonly referred to in the secular media. How can Gods view change so much from the Old to the New Testament? So we also die because of sinwe are no different from Adam and Eve. What does evil mean in the Old Testament? - TeachersCollegesj http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/show/25755. Bring them out to us that we may have relations with them, (Gen. 19:4-5, emphasis added). 8 Answers Sorted by: 10 There are no explicit references to exorcism in the OT. The Old Testament itself directly addresses this mystery, especially in the Book of Job. Gen. 6:1-2) and that the evil permeated and filled the earth. It appears that He did. Please refresh the page and try again. The truth is that Jephthah had made a rash (and brutally immoral) vow. We jump to conclusions about what others are thinking and why they do what they are doing. ( Gen. 6:17 ). Consider: Finally, we must not forget the decisive separation of the sheep from the goatsthose who will be sent into eternal fire. He asked the Lord if there were 20 righteous, would the Lord spare it; He said yes. This captures the reality that everything is encompassed in Divine Providence, but it does not concern itself with important distinctions that we can make use of as Christians in trying to understand the ways of God as recounted in the ancient Biblical books. Claiming that God is evil or harsh is an attack on Gods character, and every Christian should be prepared to have an answer for such attacks (1 Peter 3:15). Is the OT God different than the NT God? Only a complete removal would do, with even the animals needing to be killed, likely due to the practice of bestiality. Perhaps all the sins listed in Leviticus 18 were going on there as well! As an aside, the claim of children dying in the Flood has always been of interest, especially when skeptics and atheists bring it up. In this passage we are told that Adam disobeyed God (Gen. 3:6-7). Genesis 6:5 states: Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Moses indicates that some of the sin was sexual in nature (cf. Some individuals think that a nation should never defend itself against another nation. Most people fail to realize, however, that all mankind sinned in Adam as we were in the body of our ancestor when he sinned (Hebrews 7:10). But its equally clear that Saul, like Pharaoh, was responsible and accountable for his reaction to the situation. The writer is careful to note that the evil men were both young and old and came from everywhere. This is our second factor. Rom. Five Truths About the Wrath of God Mark 1:23; 7:25; Acts 5:16 . You thought that I was just like you; This same message is repeated in the New Testament in Hebrews 13:8 using different words. From Cain's jealous slaughter of his brother Abel ( Genesis 4) to a massive flood that wiped out nearly every living thing on the planet ( Genesis 6-7 ), the Bible starts with a violent bang. Gen. 13:13), God still blessed the land in which they were living, illustrating what is sometimes called His common grace where he causes His rain to fall on the just and unjust (cf. The Bible reveals that it is increasing because we are sinners. Home Family QAs Get Help Family Q&A Faith Q&As What the Bible Says About the Origin of Evil. Why did the parents of those children refuse to let them board? Introduction. Why blame God for something when He provided a means of salvation, which the parents refused? The first is that God is a God of wrath in the Old Testament and a God. Does the Old Testament paint a picture of God as nothing more than a cosmic bully with a hair-trigger who is ready to torture or end the lives of anyone who so much as neglects a seemingly small request of Heaven? This was happening continually. 1:28-31 (NASB). That is the consequence of a life of ongoing rejection of a holy God. Second, what brought such a judgment on the people before the Flood? The rituals of Ashtoreth typically included temple prostitution. After 1 year, Ill give you a guaranteed release, and on top of that, Ill buy you a million-dollar home and prepare it for you. It seems strange that people would say that the judge would be harsh and evil for sentencing the thief to a year in jail. When discussing eternal salvation in Christ with non-Christians, they often ask, Do you really believe a loving God would send people to an eternal hell? The response is: only if they sin! This event empowers Christian students to speak Gods truth with their peers. Here are five biblical truths about the wrath of God: 1. Answers in Genesis is an apologetics ministry, dedicated to helping Christians defend their faith and proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ.
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