Questions Skeptics Ask About the God of the Old...

QUESTIONSSKEPTICS ASK ABOUTTHE GOD OF THE OLDTESTAMENT

TTo be skeptical is not wrong. Those who are not may pay dearly

for being overly trusting.People who don’t askquestions are apt to end up kicking themselves forbeing so careless.

It isn’t wrong to beskeptical about the Bible.No one has to accept it onblind faith. If it can’t standup to honest questions, itdoesn’t deserve to be reliedon. The God who said,“Come now, and let usreason together” (Isa. 1:18)invites us to involve ourhearts and minds to

Managing Editor: David Sper Cover Design: Stan MyersScripture quotations are from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by ThomasNelson, Inc. Used by permission.All rights reserved.© 1997, 2003 RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, Michigan Printed in USA

determine whether or notthe Bible is indeed Hisinspired Word.

With this invitation, wecome to the God of the OldTestament. We can admitthat we are bothered by theviolence, anger, anddeception that we findassociated with Him. And wedon’t need to pretend thatwe don’t see the differencesbetween the Old and NewTestaments. Although Jesustold His followers to lovetheir enemies and do good tothose who harmed them, itseems that the God of theOld Testament did just theopposite.

The differences appear tobe real, but are they? Wehope that what you read inthe following pages will helpto answer questions thathave troubled many people.

Herbert Vander LugtRBC Senior Research Editor

© RBC Ministries. All rights reserved.

CAN THOUGHTFULPEOPLE BELIEVEIN THIS GOD?

TToday’s readers of the Bible might haveproblems with the

religious wars of the OldTestament. According tointernational laws of war,civilians and inactivemembers of engaged forceshave a right to protection.Common Article 3 of theGeneva Convention of 1949 says, “Persons taking no active part in the hostilities, includingmembers of the armedforces who have laid downtheir arms and those placed(outside of combat) bysickness, wounds, detention,or any other cause, shall inall circumstances be treatedhumanely.”

Yet the God of the OldTestament seems to livebelow these commonstandards of human

decency. By ordering thearmies of Israel to destroynot only opposing forces but women, children, and

animals, this God appears tobe out of step with some ofthe most basic rules of war.

Thus says the Lord ofhosts: “I will punishAmalek for what he did toIsrael, how he ambushedhim on the way when hecame up from Egypt. Nowgo and attack Amalek,and utterly destroy all thatthey have, and do notspare them. But kill bothman and woman, infantand nursing child, ox andsheep, camel and donkey”(1 Sam. 15:2-3).

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International rules condemn

war crimes against civilians.


QUESTION #1:If the God of the OldTestament is good,how could He requirethe destruction ofwomen, children, andanimals? How does aslaughter of infants andcivilians square with a Lord who later urged Hisfollowers to turn the othercheek, to love their enemies,and to pray for those whohad wronged and spitefullyused them?

While admitting thatsuch facts are troubling, let’s see how the Bible itselfmight answer a questionthat questions the ethics ofthis God.

Toxic Culture.Archaeological discoveries in Palestine, Lebanon, andSyria confirm the Bible’sdescriptions of ancientMideast society. Thecountless gods of the landreflected the dark side ofhuman nature. Fertility cultsinstitutionalized male and

female prostitution. Childsacrifice was used as a wayof pleasing the gods, thechief of which was the sun-god, generally known asBaal or “lord.”

Such idolatrousconditions had persisted forcenturies, even though theGod of Israel had made Hisexistence known through themiracles surrounding theExodus from Egypt. Rahab,the prostitute of Jericho,acknowledged that herpeople had known thereputation of the God ofIsrael when she said:

I know that the Lord hasgiven you the land, thatthe terror of you has fallenon us . . . . For we haveheard how the Lord driedup the water of the RedSea for you when youcame out of Egypt, andwhat you did to the twokings of the Amorites . . . .And as soon as we heardthese things, our heartsmelted; . . . for the Lord

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your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath (Josh. 2:9-11). The Canaanites had

rejected an opportunity formercy. Although they knewthat the God of Israel hadrevealed Himself and hadworked miracles on behalf of His people, they had notembraced Him as the Godof creation.

Conditions OfConquest. Old Testamentrecords show that God didnot, from the beginning,command Israel to kill allthe inhabitants of Palestine.Instead, He promised that ifHis people trusted Him, HeHimself would give theCanaanites reason togradually leave the land.

I will send My fear beforeyou, I will cause confusionamong all the people towhom you come, and willmake all your enemiesturn their backs to you.And I will send hornets

before you, which shalldrive out the Hivite, theCanaanite, and the Hittitefrom before you. I will notdrive them out from beforeyou in one year, lest theland become desolate and the beasts of the fieldbecome too numerous foryou. Little by little I willdrive them out from before you, until you haveincreased, and you inheritthe land (Ex. 23:27-30).As we have already

seen in the quote of Rahab,from the very beginning ofIsrael’s campaign to conquerthe land, God gave theCanaanites reason andopportunity to flee. He madesure they heard about thecoming of the Israelites andfilled them with terror. Eventhough, from God’s point ofview, they had polluted theland and forfeited their rightto live in that region, theLord of the Old Testamentgave them an opportunity toretreat. When they chose to

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resist the God of the armiesof Israel, only then did Goddemand the destruction ofentire communities.

A New Society. HadCanaanite society remainedundisturbed, its idolatrousculture would havecontinued to influence and even shape the region.Yet the God of the OldTestament chose theCanaanite homeland—thecrossroads of the ancientworld—to promote the valuesof a new social order. Thesedescendants of Abraham, towhom God had promised theland 400 years earlier, wouldby their example be “light” tothe surrounding nations (Ex.34:10-17; Dt. 7:1-11; 20:16-18). As no other nation in thehistory of the world, thisland, its people, and its God were to be a source ofblessing for all the nations of the earth.

Shock Value. Themission of destroyingcommunities who resisted

should have instilled in Israela shuddering realization ofthe consequences ofidolatry—especially whenthat idolatry resisted thetruth about God. Fulfillingthe role of executionershould have formed in thema healthy fear of God and ahatred of false religion. Theythemselves would not beexempt from such judgment.They were not “chosen”because God had a favorite family, but to show the whole world the wonderful benefits ofknowing the God of gods andthe terrible consequences ofignoring Him.

The Perspective Of TimeAnd Eternity. Because we’re3,000 years removed, we aretroubled and even offendedat the thought of Jewishsoldiers executing the wivesand children of frightenedand helpless landowners.But the inevitable conditionsof time and eternity havetheir own perspective. If the

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lifeless idols of Canaaniteculture were at war with the living God, if they wererobbing whole communitiesof the knowledge of life andgoodness, then the death of resisters would have senta message. Without thatmessage, Canaanite culturewould have been like anunchecked cancer infectingall who came into contactwith this importantlandbridge to the threecontinents of Africa, Asia,and Europe.

Everyone dies. Somepass suddenly with littlepain, and some graduallywith much pain. Some dieyoung, and some die in old

age. If the Bible’s perspectiveon eternity is true, we canlook upon the death of thechildren of Canaan as betterthan a long life shaped bythe idols of Canaaniteculture. Early death keptthem from adding one dayat a time to the load of guiltfor which they would oneday be judged (Rom. 2:5).

Even after seeing whyGod might have required thedeath of the Canaanites whochose to resist, we may notlike what He did. That’sunderstandable. God isn’tlooking for our fullheartedapproval. He knows wecan’t see the whole of life as He does.

Reasons To Trust.Although God does notdemand our approval, Hedoes call for our trust. Anyhonest reader of the Biblefinds overwhelming evidenceof His trustworthiness. Hekeeps His promises. Hemakes Himself real to thosewho seek Him. He has given

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The prematuredeath of a person

looks differentthrough the window

of eternity.


us reason to believe that in the end He will right the wrongs of the ages and be fair to all—even with His enemies. Hisincomprehensible grace andperfect justice will prevail.

Accepting God’s RightTo Be God. God also calls on us to accept Hisauthority. As the Creator andSustainer of all that exists,He has a right to declare, “I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I willhave compassion on whom I will have compassion” (Ex. 33:19). If He is Lord oflords, then it was His divineright to say to the pharaohwho refused to allow theIsraelites to leave hiscountry, “For this purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power inyou, and that My name maybe declared in all the earth”(Ex. 9:16).

God could have deliveredthe Israelites without beingso severe. But the path He

chose gave merciful and fairwarning to all. In His love,He created an example thatwas designed to alert everygeneration of their ultimateaccountability to Him. Wemay not fully understandjust why He did what Hedid, but we have manyreasons to acknowledge His right to be God.

A Good Question. But isthis also the God of the NewTestament? Doesn’t Jesusreveal a God who is gentlerand kinder? No, the truth isthat Jesus simply gave us aclearer picture of the loveand gentleness that havealways been evident inGod’s dealings with man.

Jesus said, “Come to Me,all you who labor and areheavy laden, and I will giveyou rest. Take My yokeupon you and learn fromMe, for I am gentle andlowly in heart, and you willfind rest for your souls. ForMy yoke is easy and Myburden is light” (Mt. 11:28-

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30). His statement echoedthe same sentiment as theinvitation of the God of theOld Testament who issuedthe plea, “I have no pleasurein the death of the wicked,but that the wicked turnfrom his way and live. Turn,turn from your evil ways!For why should you die?”(Ezek. 33:11).

Yet when the patience ofGod has run its course, andwhen a rebel world showsits determination to liveapart from submission toHis love, the very last bookof the Bible reveals onceagain the judgment of theGod of the Old Testament.In close connection withfrightening judgments thatkill more than two-thirds ofearth’s population is thisawesome endtime scene:

Then the sky receded as ascroll when it is rolled up,and every mountain andisland was moved out of itsplace. And the kings of theearth, the great men, the

rich men, the commanders,the mighty men, everyslave and every free man,hid themselves in the cavesand in the rocks of themountains, and said to themountains and rocks, “Fallon us and hide us from theface of Him who sits on thethrone and from the wrathof the Lamb! For the greatday of His wrath has come,and who is able to stand?”(Rev. 6:14-17).God always was and

always will be a God of bothincomprehensible love andfearsome wrath.

QUESTION #2:How could an all-knowing God expressregret or sorrow oversomething He haddone, as the God ofthe Old Testamentdid? This is an importantquestion. If God is always in complete control and ifHe knows everything inadvance, why did He do

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some things He later feltsorry for or “regretted”?(Gen. 6:6; 1 Sam. 15:35).

The Meaning Of Words.Part of the explanation is in the way the Bible useswords. The Hebrew wordthat is translated “sorry” or “regretted” in these textsdoes not always mean “being sorry for a wrongdone.” The original wordoccurs 108 times in theHebrew text. The King James Version translates it“repent” 41 times, “comfort”57 times, “comforted” 9times, and “ease” once.

This scope of meaningraises a question. How couldthe same word be translated“comfort” in one text, and“repent” in another? Theanswer is that the Hebrewlanguage sometimes operateslike English. Depending oncontext, the same word canhave different meanings. A “sharp” picture meanssomething different from a“sharp” knife. Only with a

closer look do we see thegrammatical link.

In the case of “repent” or “comfort,” the commonfactor is “a change of heart.”Just as grieving emotions can be soothed or comfortedby the silent embrace of afriend, so an opposite changeof heart occurs when Godsees the people He createdfor loving fellowship rebellingagainst Him, making itnecessary for the outpouringof His wrath in judgment.

What is in view here is not that the Lord isadmitting to a sin. He is noteven saying that He madean honest mistake. He issaying that He is finding itnecessary to do somethingthat is causing Him to feelemotional pain.

The Real Emotions Of God. While the Biblepresents God as eternal andall-knowing, it also describesHim as emotionally involvedwith us when what He haseternally foreseen comes

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about in actual time. He is not like the emotionallydetached gods of Greekphilosophy. He loves us sodeeply that He shares oursorrow and joy, our pain andpleasure, our failures andsuccesses. He is a personalGod with an infinite abilityto relate to His creatures.While letting nothing get out of control, He gives usfreedom to make moral andspiritual choices. When wechoose obedience, Herejoices. When we choosethe path of disobedienceand rebellion, He grieves.

Referring to the way thenation of Israel sufferedbecause of their sins, Isaiahwrote, “In all their afflictionHe was afflicted . . . . Butthey rebelled and grieved HisHoly Spirit” (Isa. 63:9-10).

Speaking through Hosea, the Lord revealed His emotional turmoil as Hethought of allowing rebelliousIsrael to be conquered by theAssyrians: “How can I give

you up, Ephraim? . . . My heart churns within Me; My sympathy is stirred” (Hos. 11:8).

When telling Ezekiel towarn the people of Judahabout the judgment thatawaited them, He said, “Sayto them: ‘As I live,’ says theLord God, ‘I have nopleasure in the death of thewicked, but that the wickedturn from his way and live.Turn, turn from your evilways! For why should youdie, O house of Israel?’”(Ezek. 33:11).

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When God repents,it’s not because Hehas been wrong butbecause He is toogood to ignore ourrebellion, and tooloving not to careabout our plight.


In such passages, Godshows that though He cansee what is going to happen,He still feels our pain anddisappointment.

Before He created theworld, God foresaw therebellion that would bemounted by angels and men.He knew what a runawayhuman race would try to doand how far He would let usgo in our rebellion. Yet whenfallen human nature hadbecome more demonic thangodly, God is described asresponding emotionally towhat He was seeing:

Then the Lord saw thatthe wickedness of manwas great in the earth,and that every intent ofthe thoughts of his heartwas only evil continually.And the Lord was sorrythat He had made man on the earth, and He wasgrieved in His heart. Sothe Lord said, “I willdestroy man whom I havecreated from the face of

the earth, both man andbeast, creeping thing andbirds of the air, for I amsorry that I have madethem” (Gen. 6:5-7).For the sake of

generations to come, and because of the violencethat had filled the earth,God had to judge Noah’sgeneration. Yet He wasemotionally moved as Hethought of what He had todo. It was to express thisreluctance in the heart ofGod that Moses, the writerof Genesis, resorted to thevivid imagery of a grievingGod changing His mind andheart by destroying the raceHe had created (Gen. 6:6).

Similarly, God wasdistressed when King Saul’srepeated failures proved himunfit to retain his office.Again, God’s aversion totaking Saul’s position awayfrom him is expressed bypicturing Him as regrettingthat He had selected him forthis honor (1 Sam. 15:11).

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God was not admitting to amistake but to the grief Hefelt in having to move injudgment against the manHe had made king of Israel.

God could not send the destructive flood against Noah’s generationnor take the kingship fromSaul without sorrow andreluctance. And we can be assured that He has thesame feelings today whenHis integrity makes itnecessary for Him to bringjudgment on the disobedientor rebellious.

The real emotions of God show His authenticinvolvement with us.Because of His infiniteability to relate in actualtime with an unlimitednumber of people, Hischanges of heart are notlimited to what we usuallythink of as repentance orregret. That is why the OldTestament also says:

God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son

of man, that He shouldrepent. Has He said, andwill He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?(Num. 23:19).

QUESTION #3:If the God of the OldTestament is good,how could He haveallowed sin to enterthe world in the firstplace? If God is good, theremust be a reason to believethat it was His love thatgave man an opportunity to choose evil. We must beable to believe that it wasbetter for the Lord of theScriptures to let us choosebetween good and evil thanto have given us no choiceat all.

Permitting evil for thesake of good may beinteresting to think about in aclassroom. But in a hospitalroom, the thought of Godallowing those He loves tosuffer so terribly can be a

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difficult test of our faith. Aheartbroken mother may ask,“How can God’s glory andmy good be advancedthrough the birth of myseverely handicapped baby?”A loving and devoteddaughter may ask the samequestion about the prolongedexistence of her mothersuffering from Alzheimer’s.People living in dire povertywith no foreseeable hope for a change may wonderwhy God thinks humandeprivation honors Him orenhances their ultimate good.

The Alternative. Theseare difficult questions, andperhaps the best way toanswer them is to considerthe alternative—a world inwhich no one could evermake a moral or ethicaldecision. Could we behappy? Maybe. Butsomething would be missingin our love. Somethingwould be missing in ourwork. Something would bemissing in our worship. We

might not even understandwhat was missing. Butwords like honor, courage,faithfulness, hope, love, andcharacter would not meanwhat they mean to us now.

The profound value ofchoice is not easily grasped.Yet, the capacity to choosebetween good and evil is the source of immeasurablecharacter and enthusiasmfor life.

Think again about the events of the first three chapters of Genesis.Undoubtedly, we would allhave been spared a greatdeal of suffering and grief ifour first parents had neversinned. And we would allhave somehow shared in the

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Character growsand relationships

deepen in thepresence of real choice.


good choice of Adam andEve if they had refused toeat from the forbidden tree.But we gain nothing byspeculating about whatmight have been. The fact is that a loving and all-wiseGod gave our first parents a“moral option,” even thoughHe knew they would fail andthat through their failure Hecould bring the greatestglory to His name andgreatest good to us.

The Freedom ToChoose. Let’s take a stepback and look at the biggerpicture. In the view of theOld Testament, Satan spokea profound half-truth whenhe told Eve that by eatingthe forbidden fruit she andAdam would be “like God,knowing good and evil”(Gen. 3:5). What does thatmean? How does God, being good, “know” evil?

We must conclude thatGod “knew evil” in that Heforesaw the prehistoric sin ofcertain angels (alluded to in

Isaiah 14:12-15 and Ezekiel28:11-17) and also the sin of the human race. Thisforeknowledge gave Him anexperiential knowledge ofthe difference between goodand evil. Even though Henever sinned, He saw andexperienced in eternity allthat would follow. So beforethe beginning of time, Godknew what it was to beangry, disappointed, andgrieved because creaturesHe loved would choose thepath of rebellion and sin.

What Satan didn’t tell Evewas that man’s knowledge ofgood and evil would play out differently than God’sknowledge. The adversarydidn’t warn our first parentsthat the weight of knowledgethat God could carry bywisdom would become aterrible overburden to thechildren who would have to bear this burden of“knowledge” in foolishness.

Was it moral for God toallow such risk? Was it right

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for Him to let our firstparents be so ignorant about something they neverwould have done if they had known better? What weknow for sure is that He didit to give us the freedom tochoose. And in the process,He used our foolishness to show us somethingwonderful about Himself.

The Provision Of Grace.God used our loss to showus something about Himselfthat is priceless—His mercyand grace. Undoubtedly, He could have shown Hiskindness and love in a worldwithout sin, but not to thedegree that He can in ourfallen world. God took theoccasion of our moralrebellion to show ussomething that can be seen only from the depths of our guilt and need. Whocould appreciate the extentof God’s goodness andcompassion more than thoseof us who know that we havebeen condemned by our own

sin? Who could value theself-sacrifice of God morethan those who realize that if it were not for God’s offerof the cross of Christ wewould have no hope?

If the God of the OldTestament were out of stepwith the God of the New,then certainly the NewTestament writers wouldhave taken issue with a God who would allow suchevil into our world. But theGospels and the Epistles ofthe New Testament raise nodoubts about the goodnessof the God of Moses.Instead, the New Testamentdescribes how God is able to take even what is terribleand turn it around for good:

Therefore, having beenjustified by faith, we havepeace with God throughour Lord Jesus Christ,through whom also wehave access by faith intothis grace in which westand, and rejoice in hopeof the glory of God. And

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not only that, but we also glory in tribulations,knowing that tribulationproduces perseverance; andperseverance, character;and character, hope. Nowhope does not disappoint,because the love of Godhas been poured out in our hearts by the HolySpirit who was given to us (Rom. 5:1-5).Here in one passage, Paul

described a God who is ableto weave the pains of a fallenworld into the fabric of ourlives. He uses pain andsorrow to build moral andspiritual qualities into ourlives that will enrich us for alleternity. And all the while, Heshares in our grief and misery.

QUESTION #4:Doesn’t the OldTestament portray a primitive God whose impatience isinconsistent with theteaching of the NewTestament? Let’s look at

one example. When theGod of Israel snuffed out the life of a man namedAchan, He did somethingthat many would consideruncharacteristic of the Godof the church.

Sudden Death In The Promised Land. Swiftjudgment struck Achanshortly after Israel came into the Promised Land.After 40 years of wanderingin the wilderness, the peopleof God had arrived in theland of milk and honey.

It was following thedramatic conquest ofJericho, the first walled cityin Israel’s path, that Achanbroke God’s rules. He lootedthe city of Jericho and hidthe forbidden valuables inhis tent. The Old Testamentdescribes God as being sodispleased with Achan thatHe allowed 36 Israelitesoldiers to die in an attackon a neighboring town. ThenGod exposed Achan anddemanded that his family

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and animals be stoned todeath (Josh. 7).

Twentieth-century readers might see in thisaccount the kind of fear-inducing God who isbeneath the dignity of theNew Testament God of love.Yet, we need to be carefulthat we don’t jump tooquickly to our conclusions.If you think about it, thedeath of Achan’s familyfinds a noticeable echo inthe early life of the church.

Sudden Death In TheChurch. The birth of thechurch on the Day ofPentecost is recorded in Acts2. Soon after, we read of thetragic end of a husband andwife named Ananias andSapphira. God struck bothof them dead for lying aboutmoney they had concealedfrom the church. The resultwas that great fear spreadamong the newborn church.

A certain man namedAnanias, with Sapphirahis wife, sold a possession.

And he kept back part ofthe proceeds, his wife alsobeing aware of it, andbrought a certain part andlaid it at the apostles’ feet.But Peter said, “Ananias,why has Satan filled yourheart to lie to the HolySpirit and keep back part of the price of theland for yourself? While itremained, was it not yourown? And after it wassold, was it not in yourown control? Why haveyou conceived this thingin your heart? You havenot lied to men but toGod.” Then Ananias,hearing these words, felldown and breathed hislast. So great fear cameupon all those who heardthese things (Acts 5:1-5).The rest of the story is

that 3 hours later Ananias’wife Sapphira came home, was asked the samequestion by Peter, lied in thesame way her husband did,and she too immediately fell

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dead. The result was thesame as when her husbandhad died: “Great fear cameupon all the church andupon all who heard thesethings” (v.11).

There is a lot we don’tknow about both stories, but it seems clear that in the earliest days of thechurch the God of the New Testament took anopportunity to do just as He had done when leadingIsrael into the PromisedLand. In both cases, Godmade an example ofdeceptive individuals toshow that He is a God whodeserves not only to beloved but feared as well.

The clearest evidence ofcontinuity, however, can befound in the last book of theNew Testament. Those whobelieve that the God of theOld Testament is primitive,angry, and violent, and that the God of the NewTestament is mature, loving,and patient have only to

read how the Bible ends. Nobook of the Old Testamentcontains more anger andviolence than the book thatdescribes God’s judgment ofIsrael and the nations of thelast days. The followingexcerpt represents only afew lines from a book thatshudders with the promiseof judgment:

The kings of the earth, thegreat men, the rich men,the commanders, themighty men, every slaveand every free man, hidthemselves in the cavesand in the rocks of themountains, and said tothe mountains and rocks,“Fall on us and hide usfrom the face of Him whosits on the throne andfrom the wrath of theLamb! For the great dayof His wrath has come,and who is able to stand?”(Rev. 6:15-17).We can take issue

with the God of the OldTestament. We can say that

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He was too angry, too violent,and too demanding. But whatwe cannot do is reasonablyargue that the God of Israel is made of different characterthan the God of the church.

In both periods, God chose representativemoments to show His people that He is a God who deserves to be loved,trusted, and feared. In theOld Testament He shows thesame dimensions of characterthat the New Testamentpersonalizes in Christ.

This is the relationshipChrist claimed when Hesaid, “Do not think that Icame to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did notcome to destroy but to fulfill”(Mt. 5:17).

QUESTION #5:If God judged the lies of Achan andAnanias, how could Heencourage Samuel, theprophet and priest ofIsrael, not to tell the

truth? The background for this question is found in1 Samuel 16:2. There Godencouraged His prophetSamuel to give a misleadinganswer so that Saul wouldnot find out that he hadgone to Bethlehem to anointDavid as the next king ofIsrael. How does God’sencouragement to misleadsquare with the passagesthat tell us God hates liesand that He Himself issinless? Isn’t telling someone else to lie as bad as doing it yourself?

Yes, telling someone elseto lie is as bad as doing ityourself. But before weaccuse God, let’s seewhether He actually told Samuel to lie.

A Lie Defined. The ninthcommandment is: “You shallnot bear false witness againstyour neighbor” (Ex. 20:16).This law specifically forbidsfabricating a false report ortelling an untruth that willbring undeserved harm on

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another person. Otherpassages of the OldTestament speak of lies in thesense of dealing in falsehoodor denying the truth. BecauseGod wants His people to beknown by their honesty, wecould conclude that Godasks His people never to hide what is factual.

God, however, does notsay that it is wrong to beshrewd. King David said tothe Lord, “With the pureYou will show Yourself pure;and with the devious Youwill show Yourself shrewd”(2 Sam. 22:27).

When God told Samuelto conceal from Saul theprimary reason for his visitto Bethlehem, He wasteaching Samuel to beshrewd with a crooked king.God did not tell Samuel tolie. He told him to tell half of the truth. In the process,God shows us that though itis wrong to deny the truth, itis not wrong to deceivethose who are evil.

To conceal the truth orcleverly let an enemy drawhis own wrong conclusions isnot necessarily to lie. Samuelhad told the Lord that he was uneasy about going toBethlehem to anoint Israel’s

next king. After all, Saul stillheld this position and wouldbe much offended and veryangry if he heard thatsomeone outside of hisfamily had already beenchosen as his successor. Helikely would have had theprophet-priest executed.

God understood Samuel’spredicament. He therefore

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God’s response toSamuel’s plight

shows that thoughit is wrong to lie, itis not wrong to letan enemy draw

wrong conclusions.


told him to take a heifer with him and order thepeople to prepare themselvesceremonially for a publicsacrifice service. Such aservice was normally theprelude to a feast. It wasprobably during the interval,while the preparations forthe feast were being made,that Samuel met with Jesse’sfamily and anointed David.To all who were present, the anointing signified onlythat David was to be adistinguished servant ofGod. It did not necessarilyimply that he would beIsrael’s next king. This factwas not disclosed at thetime, probably not even to David. Samuel did not lie. With respect to thecommunity, he did indeedcome to offer a sacrifice. DidSamuel intend to conceal thefull truth from Saul? Yes, buthe was under no obligationto tell anyone that he hadcome to anoint David to beIsrael’s next king.

There are situations when we do have a right todeceive. Have you ever left alight on in your house whenyou’re away to make apotential thief think you arehome? Or what about usinga sign that reads BEWAREOF DOG to keep intrudersoff your property? The dogmay bark ferociously whenanyone approaches theyard, but he may be apushover for a kind wordfrom anybody. The signgives a false impression thatan intruder will be attackedby a fierce dog. If you havea dog, you’re not telling alie. You are deceiving anypotential trespasser.However, if you were toplace a sign in your frontwindow that your home was protected by an alarmsystem that you didn’t have,it would be a lie.

To be a lie instead of a justifiable deception, thestatement we make mustdirectly say what is untrue,

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violate a promise we made,or help us escape anobligation we have.

Therefore, God was notinstructing Samuel to lie. Hewas telling him to make anannouncement that wouldconceal the real purpose ofhis visit from people who hadno special right to know it.

QUESTION #6:Why did the God of theOld Testament seem topunish more severelycertain violations ofceremonial law thanHe did serious moralfailures? This question maybe expanded to say, “TheGod of the Old Testamentseemed more upset whenpeople broke Sabbath rulesor ceremonial taboos thanwhen they were guilty ofserious moral transgressions.Why did He permit Lot toget away with incest (Gen.19:30-38) and David tocontinue as king after hisadulterous and murderous

affair (2 Sam. 11), yet orderthe immediate stoning of aman who gathered firewoodon the Sabbath (Num.15:32-36) and strike Uzzahdead on the spot because he touched the ark of thecovenant while it was being transported on a cart? (2 Sam. 6:1-10).

As difficult as thesequestions might seem, there are answers. Let’s think some of them through.For instance, one way ofanswering this series ofquestions about God’s“unevenness” of judgment is that we can make themistake of taking God’simmediate reaction to a sinas an indication of howmuch it offends Him. Or we can make the mistake of thinking that God’simmediate responses are an indication of what He will do later. The writer ofEcclesiastes made thisobservation: “Because thesentence against an evil

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work is not executedspeedily, therefore the heartof the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil” (8:11).We must recognize that inmost instances, God delaysthe consequences of sin. Onother occasions, He usesmoments of quick judgmentto make a point that mightotherwise be missed (such as in ceremonial matters that make a statement about God).

Unseen Consequences.After David committedadultery with Bathsheba, his life seemed outwardly tocontinue with an appearanceof business as usual. Thefew who knew what he haddone may have assumedthat God was not going to doanything about his sin. ButPsalm 32 indicates thatDavid went through a periodof intense mental misery.Second Samuel 12 tells ofhis repentance, and Psalms32 and 51 praise God for His forgiveness.

David went throughmonths of inner turmoil that we would be unawareof were it not for thesepassages. Furthermore, acasual observer would notsee the hand of God inDavid’s life during thefollowing years. A discerningreader of 2 Samuel 13–18,however, would find in thehatred, intrigue, sexual sin,murder, and rebellion thatoccurred in his later yearsan indication that David didnot get away with his sin.

Delayed Reaction.The writer of Psalm 73 wastroubled because it seemedto him that people whotrusted in God had moreproblems than those whomerely trusted in themselves.He was disturbed by the factthat ungodly people oftenprospered all the way to theend of their lives.

The psalmist’s resentmentcontinued until, during areflective moment “in thesanctuary of God,” he

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caught a glimpse of the finalstate of those he had beenenvying. He then wrote:

When I thought how tounderstand this, it was toopainful for me—until Iwent into the sanctuary ofGod; then I understoodtheir end. Surely You setthem in slippery places;You cast them down todestruction. Oh, how theyare brought to desolation,as in a moment! They areutterly consumed withterrors. As a dream whenone awakes, so, Lord,when You awake, Youshall despise their image.Thus my heart wasgrieved, and I was vexedin my mind. I was sofoolish and ignorant; I was like a beast beforeYou. Nevertheless I amcontinually with You; Youhold me by my right hand.You will guide me withYour counsel, andafterward receive me toglory. Whom have I in

heaven but You? And thereis none upon earth that Idesire besides You. Myflesh and my heart fail; but God is the strength ofmy heart and my portionforever (Ps. 73:16-26).When God strikes a man

dead the moment he sins,He startles a watching worldand helps them see Hisattitude toward sin. But asfar as the sinning person isconcerned, the punishmentafter death is far moresignificant. It is because God is all-powerful that Hecan wait until eternity tobring about full justice.

Divine Options.Sometimes the God of theOld Testament patientlyendured His people’sstubborn ways, givingcountless opportunities for a change of heart. On otheroccasions He acted quickly,as in the case of Achan wholooted Jericho, or Uzzah whowas struck dead for reachingout his hand to touch the ark

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of the covenant, which wasnot being transportedaccording to God’s specificinstructions given to Moses(Num. 4:1-20).

In either case, since Heowed no one anything, Godconsistently maintained Hisright to exercise His mercyon His own terms. So toMoses He said, “I will havemercy on whomever I willhave mercy” (Rom. 9:15).God always has the right toshow more patient mercy tosome than to others. He hasthe right to choose betweencontinued mercy orimmediate justice.

Eternal Perspective.If we could see thesestartling deaths from God’sperspective, we would notbe troubled by them. If thetwo men we just mentionedwere genuine Old Testamentbelievers, they are in heaventoday. How and at what agethey died matters little tothem now. If they were notbelievers, their death at that

time kept them from addingto the load of sin for whichthey will be judged (seeRom. 2:5-6), thus makingtheir eternal lot a bit moretolerable. God saw thisclearly when He acted in judgment. From thestandpoint of eternity, thetime and manner of aperson’s death can look very different than it doesfrom where we sit.

QUESTION #7:Didn’t the God of Israelsometimes violate Hisown principle thatchildren were not to bepunished for the sins oftheir parents? Let’s lookat an example. In 2 Samuel21:1-14, David asked Godwhy He had withheld rain for3 years. The Lord told him itwas a punishment on theland because King Saul hadbroken a covenant betweenthe Israelites and theGibeonites (Josh. 9). Godwanted David to make

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restitution by giving theGibeonites what they askedas retribution. TheGibeonites requested andreceived from David two ofSaul’s sons and five of hisgrandsons for execution.Only after Saul’s sons andgrandsons had died did Godsend the needed rain. Manypeople have a problemunderstanding how Godcould accept the death ofchildren for the sins of theirparents.

Righting A NationalWrong. At some unnamedtime under King Saul, theIsraelites had killed anumber of Gibeonites inwhat appears to have beenan unprovoked attack. In so doing, they violated acovenant between Israel andGibeah made while Joshuawas Israel’s leader. Thewrong done to the Gibeoniteshad not been addressed byDavid, and the people ofGibeah undoubtedly felt thathe had been remiss in this

matter. They had a right to receive reparationsacknowledging thewrongness of Israel’s actions.

The offer was a good one.The Gibeonites might haveasked for a financialsettlement. They were,however, a pagan peopleand wanted revenge onSaul’s family—the executionof seven of his descendants.Given the culture of the day,David had little choice inthe matter. He had to honortheir ultimatum. This wastherefore a case of nationalrestitution, not of Godpunishing these seven menfor their ancestor’s sin.

Saul’s children were, ineffect, casualties of war. Theybore not only the burden of aparent’s mistakes but also theweight of a pagan society’sdesire for vengeance.

That God accepted theinjustice as an expression ofIsrael’s reparations is difficultto accept. Yet what we needto keep in mind is that the

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offer of restitution was right,even if the payment was notfair to Saul’s descendants.

God didn’t hold childrenresponsible for a parent’ssin—the Gibeonites did. We can be sure that on thefinal day of judgment thesechildren will answer only fortheir own actions. Saul will

answer for his sin. Yet, as isso often the case, childrenoften bear the burden of aparent’s mistakes. Only inthe final judgment of Godwill all the wrongs of theages be made right.

Protecting AReputation. In the largerpicture, the Lord used afamine to get David to

protect His own reputation.The leaders of Israel hadsworn to the Gibeonites bythe Lord God of Israel thatthey would not kill any ofthem (Josh. 9:18). TheIsraelites had broken asacred covenant made in thename of Jehovah. In doingthis, the nation had profanedthe holy name of Jehovahbefore the pagan world. Thematter could not be ignored.God wanted to show theGibeonites that He did notapprove of what Israel underSaul had done. It was forthis reason that He sent thefamine and led David to askthe Gibeonites what theyrequired as restitution.

This is one of the manyinstances in which Godpermitted something He did not like in order toaccomplish a good end. Heundoubtedly felt sorrow asHe saw these descendantsof Saul executed for a crimein which they had taken nopart.

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Only in God’s finaljudgment will it beclear that a child isnot responsible for

a parent’s sin.


QUESTION #8:Since the God of the Old Testamentadmitted to hatingsome people, howcould He be one andthe same as the Godof the New Testamentwho taught us to loveour enemies? Thisquestion is based in part onthe fact that God speaks inMalachi 1:2-3 of loving onebrother and hating another.

“I have loved you,” saysthe Lord. “Yet you say, ‘Inwhat way have You lovedus?’ Was not Esau Jacob’sbrother?” says the Lord.“Yet Jacob I have loved;but Esau I have hated,and laid waste hismountains and hisheritage for the jackals of the wilderness.”The answer to this

apparent problem revolvesaround the cultural Hebrewmeaning of the word hatedin our English translations.When we speak of hating

someone today, we think ofintense dislike and ill will.But that was not the onlymeaning of the word hate inthe times of the Bible.

The Old TestamentMeaning. To be hated inOld Testament times mightmean only that someoneelse was loved more thanyou or was chosen over you for a special role. Forexample, the Hebrew wordthat is translated “hated” inthe King James Version ofGenesis 29:31,33 describesthe fact that Leah, Jacob’sfirst wife, was loved lessthan her sister Rachel.Genesis 29:30 reads, “Then Jacob also went in toRachel, and he also lovedRachel more than Leah.” Heloved both Leah and Rachel,but he loved Rachel more.His attitude to Leah was notthat of dislike. In fact, whenJacob knew he was about todie, he asked to be buried inthe family grave, saying,“And there I buried Leah”

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(Gen. 49:31). It is obviousthat he held Leah in highesteem even though he hada special love for Rachel. Tobe chosen for special honorwas to be loved. To be givena place of less importance or honor, no matter howdesirable, was to be hated.

The New TestamentConfirmation. The NewTestament confirms that thiswas the meaning of the termhated throughout Jewishhistory. Jesus said, “If anyonecomes to Me and does nothate his father and mother,wife and children, brothersand sisters, yes, and his ownlife also, he cannot be Mydisciple” (Lk. 14:26). Clearly,Jesus was not telling us todislike our relatives or harborill will toward them. On thecontrary, He told us to loveone another with self-sacrificing love: “A newcommandment I give to you,that you love one another; asI have loved you, that youalso love one another” (Jn.

13:34). It’s obvious, therefore,that Jesus’ statement that weare to hate our family andfriends is a command to giveHim first place in our loveand loyalty—so much so thatby comparison it is as if wefeel “contempt” for all othercompetitors.

God loved both Esau andJacob, but He chose to giveJacob a chosen-people status.For His own purposes, Godgave special privileges toJacob, and also more burdenof responsibility.

Question #9:Why did the God ofthe Old Testamentshow preference tomen over women? It’strue that the Old Testamentdid not give women equalsocial status with men. Aman could divorce his wife,but a woman could notdivorce her husband.Women were given aseparate place in tabernacleand tent worship. Even in

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the ceremonial law, thewomen had to go throughpurification ceremoniesevery month and after thebirth of a baby. Moreover, a woman was ceremoniallyunclean twice as long afterthe birth of a baby girl thanafter the birth of a boy.

All of this is true, eventhough Genesis tenderlydescribes God as creatingwoman from the rib of Adamand as a helper to him, anhonorable word sometimesused of God Himself.Women did not hold anequal place in Jewishsociety, even though thereare noted exceptions andheroes as in the case ofDeborah, Esther, and thevirtuous woman describedin Proverbs 31.

Some of woman’s burden, like polygamy, must be considered as asocial concession, toleratedby God in light of the times.A woman in Israel wasbetter off than a woman

in other cultures. Onescholar notes: “Under theHebrew system, the positionof women was in markedcontrast with her status insurrounding heathennations. Her liberties weregreater, her employmentsmore varied and important,her social standing morerespectful and commanding”(International Standard BibleEncyclopedia, Vol. V,p.3100).

We must also rememberthat we are looking atwomen through the eyes ofour own times when issuesof physical strength areoften offset by technology.Women living in OldTestament culture did nothave such conveniences oradvantages. For the mostpart they lived in nomadicor agricultural society, wherethe physical advantage of aman gave him an edge inleadership.

Allowing for normaldifferences in body strength,

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there were, however,spiritual factors that alsohad a bearing on a Jewishwoman’s status. Even in theNew Testament we arereminded that the womanhad a role with Adam in theentrance of sin into the race.The apostle Paul said thatmen and women aremutually dependent on oneanother (1 Cor. 11:11-12)and that husbands andwives have sharedresponsibility to respect one another and submit toone another’s needs (Eph.5:21-25). But Paul alsodescribed an issue ofspiritual headship and order that he linked cross-culturally to creation, the fall(1 Tim. 2:12-15), and evento relationships within theGodhead (1 Cor. 11:3).

The issue of women’sstatus, therefore, cannot be seen as an Old Testament issue that is unrelated to NewTestament considerations.

What must be kept inview is that the flow ofrevelation begun in the OldTestament and brought tofulfillment in the exampleand spirituality of Christsees a woman as beingdifferent in God’s eyes thanin that of temporary social

order and culture. When itcomes to the real issues ofeternal acceptance withGod, the apostle Paul wroteto those who had acceptedJesus as Messiah:

There is neither Jew norGreek, there is neitherslave nor free, there isneither male nor female;for you are all one inChrist Jesus (Gal. 3:28).

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There are inequitiesin our culture andin society that willonly be resolved in

heaven.


HONESTY WITH GOD

IIn a baccalaureatesermon, Dr. William H.Willimon, professor of

Christian ministry at DukeUniversity, used Numbers13–14 and began with theexpected encouragement.But soon he began zeroingin on the God who becameangry with the Israelitesbecause of their unbelief,threatened to destroy them,then who changed His mindafter listening to an appealfor mercy from Moses. Theprofessor said, “Suddenly, I no longer wanted to preachmy little, conventionalPower of Positive Thinkingsermonette on success. Iwanted to preach about aGod who was large, prickly,anthropomorphic—a lot likeus. I wanted to be in thepresence of a God whoneeded mortals like Mosesto go up and reason withHim in prayer to hold Him

accountable to Hispromises. A God who hadfeelings and was capable ofbeing hurt by the people Heloved” (Christianity Today,p.28, Oct. 28, 1996).

The professor made animportant discovery. The Godof the Old Testament wantsto engage our minds andemotions. He wants us to feelour fear and sense of alarm.He wants us to feel the heatof our will pressed againstHis. He wants us to sensethat something is wrong,terribly wrong, terminallywrong. And He wants us tokeep asking questions untilwe find out where that wronghas taken root.

Much of what this Goddoes is to shock us to oursenses. The candor of Hisactions is designed to leadus to an awareness thatmakes us contrite andhumble before Him. That’swhere mercy is found. Notby being nice, but by beinghonest with God.

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Questions Skeptics Ask About the God of the Old...

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