Harmony #102: An Emmaus Road Reading of the Old Testament

“And he said to them, "O foolish men, and slow of heart (and mind) to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into the ‘weight’ of his glory?" And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24)

 We mentioned last week that Jesus was prophesied, foreshadowed and revealed (#Godcreed) all along in the Old Testament, with a focus on how the God Creed described the character and nature of God over and over

Then Jesus arrived, and he perfectly embodied what God is like. To see Jesus is to see God; to know God is to know Jesus and vice versa, because they are one in Trinitarian essence. And since there is no shadow of turning in God (James 1), who is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13), we know that God has always been just like Jesus.

So, let’s try the approach of going back into the Old Testament to find God revealed this way in the Old Testament as we study the printed word through the lenses of the Living Word. I want to stress: this is a way to read the Old Testament. I just want to add a tool to our Bible study toolbox.

I am going to focus on Genesis today. Think of Genesis (“Beginnings”) as the prologue to the Bible. It’s going to tell hugely important stories about what God is like that set the stage for the rest of the Old Testament. Then, think of Genesis 1-11 as the prologue with stories that are going to be really, really important, because they are the foundation of the foundation that gives us the tools to understand what follows. They are going to clarify what God is like on the way to the full revelation of God in the person of Jesus Christ.

When we read the Old Testament, it’s important to remember that every one of the five main stories in Genesis 1-11 - Creation, the Fall, Cain and Abel, the Flood, and Babel - have ancient Near Eastern (ANE) parallels in the stories and literature. Some people describe this as “historical cultural memory” of things that happened. This just means that history unfolded, and different cultures recorded it through their national and spiritual framework.

Others talk about how writers often told ‘archetypal” stories, which just means that the inspired biblical writers are going to tell real stories in a way that takes history and points to something bigger — like patterns or lessons about God, people, and the world.

So while Genesis 1-11 has ‘literary cousins’ all around, the writer of Genesis always reframes and redirects them to introduce the character and nature of Yahweh, the true God. And (hint) what they learn about what God is really like is going to point toward Jesus. We will take our time on these 5 stories because it will establish the pattern throughout the Old Testament.

Does anyone remember overhead projectors? You could put down layers of overheads if you wanted to and make very colorful pictures on the screen. Think of the biblical writers as sharing the first slide of “historical cultural memory” with their neighbors: creation, a Fall of some sort, increasing violence, Flood sent by God (the gods), a pride-filled Tower-building endeavor. On that foundation, the writers of the Old Testament are going to build a view of Yahweh that a) differentiates Yahweh from all the other gods, and b) reveals the God Creed, and c) points toward Jesus with those points of difference.

Creation: Genesis 1-2

·    Mesopotamian gods create through violence and struggle; Yahweh creates peacefully, orderly and purposefully by speaking.

·    Mesopotamian gods are part of nature and bound by it; Yahweh is outside of and sovereign over time and space.

·    Mesopotamian gods made human slaves as an afterthought; in Genesis, humans are the living image of God, the apex of his creation, sharing His role in ruling and stewarding creation.

·    Unlike gods who selfishly exploited their creation, Yahweh creates a world to be stewarded for humanity’s flourishing (Genesis 1–2).

So, how does this point toward Jesus?

·    His words calmed the stormy waters (much like Genesis 1);

·    He walks on water: he controls nature and is not bound by it.

·    God not only has living image bearers; He shows their value by becoming one of them.

·    Jesus does not exploit humanity; he provides for it. He gives not just a little, but the most one can give.

That‘s how an Emmaus Road reading works. We are looking very narrowly at how the inspired biblical writers a) differentiated Yahweh from all the other gods, and b) pointed toward a God who is just like Jesus with those points of difference.

Genesis 3: The Fall

ANE myths: Humans were once offered eternal life but lost it due to disobedience or deception. The gods are unforgiving and even more distant as a result. Humanity becomes increasingly troublesome and annoying to the gods.

Genesis: God is grieved at what happens, not annoyed. God seeks Adam and Eve out with a sad question, not angry one: “Where are you? Why aren’t you where you are supposed to be?” While there are consequences, Yahweh covers their shame (3:1) and protects the way to the tree of life (3:24).[1]

So, how does this point toward Jesus?

·    Jesus was grieved at sin (weeping over Jerusalem; woes to Pharisees)

·    Jesus seeks the lost (until he finds that last lost sheep!)

·    Jesus covers the shame of our sin with His blood

·    Jesus retains relationship (“He loved [even Judas] until the end…”)

·    God himself in the person of Jesus will reopen the gate to Eden on the Cross, (Luke 23:43; Revelation 22) for all of humanity.

Genesis 4: Cain and Abel

In the ANE, sacrificial rituals and sibling rivalries appear often, mostly involving earning and/or fighting for divine favor – which was often encouraged by the gods. The chaos that followed just made the gods push these pesky humans further away yet again.

In Genesis, God favors friendship, noting that Cain is not a rival with Abel: “If you do what is right, will it not be accepted?” People aren’t competing for the limited provision and attention of God.

God warns Cain before the murder: “Sin is crouching at your door… but you must master it.” Cain can resist, and God will help him. God is relational. Still caring…

After the murder, God doesn’t strike Cain down. Instead, God protects him with a mark so he won’t be killed as Cain experiences the fallout from his sin. The mark of Cain is not a curse but a mercy, a grace to restrain the vengeance of others.

How does this point toward Jesus?

·    People aren’t competing for the limited provision and attention of Jesus. He rebukes rivalry among the disciples and instead encourages loving friendship.

·    Jesus warns sinners repeatedly about the wages of sin out of care for them.

·    Jesus demonstrates mercy repeatedly, offering grace instead of vengeance.

Genesis 6–9: The Flood

First, in the earliest Mesopotamian version the gods flood the earth because the annoying humans are just too much. Meanwhile, Genesis says God’s heart was deeply grieved (as with Cain) by all the violence on the earth. It must be dealt with. God’s love is just.

Second, the ANE gods flooded the earth out of irritation and frustration; Yahweh deals with human evil purposely, with a redemptive intent for creation as a whole.[2]

Third, God Himself helps to bring provision; he basically gives Noah detailed blueprints and plenty of ‘heads up.’  In contrast, the Sumerian version of Noah had to trick the gods to get them to help.

Fourth, God makes a relational covenant afterward and hangs up his “bow” (a symbol of war) in the sky pointing upward and vows to never repeat the flood (9:13–17). It’s a commitment to mercy. At the start of Gensis 6, “God regretted making humanity because every inclination of the human heart was evil all the time.” By the end, God says, “Even though every inclination of the human heart is evil, I will not destroy the earth.” 

Finally, ANE gods regret human survival, fearing that humans will multiply again and become disruptive. But Yahweh blesses Noah, encouraging fruitfulness so humanity multiplies (Genesis 9:1). It turns out God likes people 

How does this point toward Jesus?

·      Jesus is grieved at sin and its consequences.

·      Jesus brings practical and spiritual provision.

·      Jesus initiates a new covenant from his own blood, a covenant of salvation and mercy for all.

·      Jesus clearly loves human beings. He blesses children; he shows hospitality to insiders and outsiders; he offers visions of the Kingdom as a huge feast to which all are invited.

Genesis 11: Tower of Babel

Temples (ziggurats) were like small pyramids built to connect heaven and earth by kings who wanted “to make a name for themselves” by their own apparently god-like strength. The response of Yahweh, will set him apart once again.

First, Marty Solomon notes that this scattering of people and fragmenting of languages is for their benefit. When God notes they can do anything they put their mind to, He is not surprised. He gave them their ability. They just lack patience, temperance, humility, and wisdom. How will God bring this about? Brilliantly.

“You cannot learn the language of another culture or a people without learning something about their perspective. Learning the diversity of perspectives always provides one with a sense of pause and consideration. It requires a sense of learning how to control one’s desires in order to reach a common goal together. In the confusion of Babel, God has not so much slapped our hands as He has given us a new redemptive project that will cause us to be the people that grow into the humanity that bears His image.” (Marty Solomon)

While ANE gods often acted to suppress human ambition out of fear of humanity’s strength, Yahweh is a God that doesn’t crush humanities God-given gifts and talents but redirects it with grace. He is there to fix a problem, not just punish them. This follows the story arc. God had just pointed the bow toward himself and not humanity, and established a covenant with them.

How does this point toward Jesus?

·    Jesus, God in the flesh, comes down to prideful people to intervene in such a way as to prevent further ruin and avoid the fallout of sin.

·    Jesus doesn’t crush humanity’s God-given gifts and talents but redirects it with grace. “Matthew, you’re a tax collector with a mind for money and budgets? Why don’t you join my group of disciples. The Kingdom needs that. Peter, you are full of zealous fire? Why not use that fire to spread the gospel? You guys know how to fish? Let’s fish for people.”
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So, that’s our intro to an Emmaus Road reading of the Bible. We see God separated from the other pretenders to the throne, but we also see God beginning the revelatory process to point toward Jesus.

        God’s Character Revealed

Creation   Orderly, good, calm

 The Fall relational, grieved, merciful

 Cain & Abel  just, involved, protective

 The Flood  covenantal, redemptive

 Babel   guides and directs

We will continue to see Yahweh being defined and differentiated from the gods of the ANE. Let’s do a more condensed flyover of the rest of Genesis. Once again, we are looking for specific ways in which Yahweh is being introduced to His people by highlighting what (to them) was new information about God.

The Call of and Covenant with Abraham (Genesis 12). God plans to bless the entire world and will use people to do it. Once again, he loves his image bearers and wants them to be fruitful and multiply.

Hagar and Ishmael (Genesis 16:7–13; 21:14–20). God cares for the marginalized and discarded with love and faithfulness. He does not simply care for the powerful and privileged. He offers provision to all.

Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19) In the ANE stories, the gods destroyed cities because they were annoyed.There reasons were often petty and unpredictable with no compassion, and they seem eager to punish.

The outcry against Sodom (Gen. 18:20) indicates that God’s action is a response to injustice, not random irritation. Then God listens to the intercession of Abraham and is abounding in mercy (for even 10 out of approximately 10,000? For just .01% righteous?).[3]

In ANE myths, when cities are destroyed, everyone—good or bad—perishes without distinction. God’s angelic messengers actively rescue Lot and his family (Gen. 19:15-16), emphasizing God’s commitment to the righteous even within a corrupt city.

The Test With Isaac (Genesis 22-23)

In the ANE, child sacrifice was common. The gods often demanded harsh, sacrificial offerings to appease their wrath or secure favor. When Abraham is asked to offer Isaac, this seems consistent with ANE expectations. However, God ultimately provides a ram instead (Gen. 22:13). This is radical new territory: God’s provision replaces human sacrifice.

Unlike distant ANE deities, God calls Abraham by name (Gen. 22:1), engages in dialogue (relationship), and then reaffirms His covenant.

Jacob Wrestles With God (Genesis 32)

In many ANE myths, wrestling with gods often resulted in death or punishment, as humans were seen as lesser beings unworthy of direct contact with the divine. Instead of smiting Jacob for challenge, God engages him.

Jacob does not receive wrath but a new name (Israel) and a blessing (Gen. 32:28-29). This encounter is transformative rather than destructive. God invites struggle rather than demanding blind submission, highlighting a relational rather than domineering nature.

Joseph (Genesis 32-47)

In ANE stories, the gods often favored powerful kings and rulers, not slaves or prisoners. Divine favor was associated with strength and dominance. Treachery and power plays were common if not expected.

God’s presence is evident with Joseph, even when he is a slave and a Joseph’s brothers sell him into slavery,

Joseph rises to power not treachery or power plays but through God’s guidance and blessing. His integrity and faithfulness—traits valued by God.

Once again, we see God separated from the other pretenders to the heavenly throne, but we also see God beginning the revelatory process to point toward Jesus.

Abraham God loves His image bearers

Hagar  God cares for those others despise

Sodom God does justice, and loves mercy

Isaac’s Test  “I will provide the sacrifice”

Jacob God blesses, not punishes, the wrestler

Joseph          God stays with the lowly, blesses integrity, not treachery

 Sound like Jesus? Of course, because God is the same yesterday, today and forever. There is no shadow of turning. God is like Jesus. God has always been just like Jesus. The Emmaus companions of Jesus just didn’t always know that – and then they did. And now we do too. 

Jesus revealed that the story of the Bible—from Genesis to the prophets, from creation to the cross—is the story of a God who is compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in love. This is the God Creed, and it finds its fullest expression in Jesus, the one who took the wages of our sin upon Himself and offers us the gift of eternal life.

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[1] “Cherubs appear just twice in the entire Five Books of Moses. The only other time we find them is when their likeness adorns the top of the Holy Ark in the Tabernacle, where they guard the Tablets of the Law. Aptly, the Book of Proverbs describes these tablets, or the Torah they represent, as another Tree of Life, “a tree of life to all who grab hold of it” (Prov. 3:18). Evidently, the same cherubs who keep us away from one Tree of Life grant us access to another one. In a sense, the Torah may be seen as a replacement Tree of Life.” (The Beast That Crouches At The Door: Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, And Beyond. By Rabbi David Fohrman)

[2] It’s a re-creation story: waters of chaos, land emerges, etc.

[3] Ezekiel’s declared restoration of Sodom (Ezekiel 16:53–55) and Isaiah’s universal vision (Isaiah 19:24–25) reveal a broader plan, where judgment serves restoration, not annihilation.

The Old Testament: Building Foundations (2 Timothy 3:15-17)

2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Here’s where the fun begins. What scriptures is he talking about here? The Gospels? Revelation? We can look at the prior verse to get an idea.

15 and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

There’s a case to be made that early books of the NT were already being considered scripture; however, the only scripture available at the birth of Timothy is the Old Testament.

Why The Old Testament?

The OT gets a bad rap. It’s in the name “old”. It makes it sound like it’s out of date. However, I’m a huge fan of the OT. For one I love history, and the OT is filled with it. I’m that annoying guy who when people say, “This is the worst thing any American politician has ever done!” points out something like, “Aaron Burr was tried for treason for trying to start his own nation while the VP.”

It has all the action. Paul has his letters, but the OT has Samson slaying Philistines, The Flood, The Plagues. People being turned to salt. If the New Testament is Interstellar, then the OT is End Game. But most importantly the OT is foundation that Christianity is built on!

The Gospel

Let’s talk about one of the most foundational things in all of Christianity: the Gospel. If I were to ask the average person, “What is the Gospel?” I would probably get one of a couple answers like, “John 3:16,” or “the good news.” Let’s look at Paul’s description of the Gospel:

3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance[a]: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,

Twice Paul mentions the scriptures. Jesus died and rose again for our sins and was raised again according the scriptures. The Gospel is sowed all throughout the OT let’s look at perhaps the 1st example

14 So the LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, “Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life.15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring[a] and hers; he will crush[b] your head, and you will strike his heel.”

Take a look what God is saying to the serpent. He’s telling the serpent that woman will have offspring and that offspring is going to crush the serpent’s head. Let’s look at one more out of Isaiah 53:

Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? 2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.3 He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. 4 Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. 6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

I would argue that there’s not a better description of Jesus than this.

Now, about sins… How do even know what sins are? In general, we would look at them as breaking a commandment. Again, those are from the OT.

The Old Testament Answers Some Big Questions

Do you ever wonder why God just doesn’t declare himself from the mountain tops? Why not make some grand gesture and remove all doubt? The OT has the answer.

• After the plagues in Egypt and the crossing the Red Sea, the Israelites sing a song of praise. Yet 3 days later, the people are complaining about the lack of water. 11 days later they complain about a lack of food. 3 months later they make a new God who they claim brought them out of Egypt It seems that having wonders and miracles is enough to get a pig headed people across a dessert, but not enough to build the kind of faith God wants.

• Job deals with the big question of why do bad things happen to good people

• Ecclesiastes deals with leaning on wisdom

• Song of Songs deals with love or women with goats teeth, that one I’m not completely clear on.

In Conclusion

Normally I would close with something for you think about. I’m a big fan of “how is it with you?”

This time I don’t have a big call. Rather, I would like it if you were to give the OT another try.

Open it up, maybe read Exodus as family. I think if you give a try with Jesus in mind, you might be surprised at the nuggets you will find

PRAYER TIME

The Old Testament also speaks of repentance, which is our theme this month. Let’s spend some time in prayer before we close with a few songs.

Psalm 32

1 Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.2 Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit.

Take a moment to thank God for his faithful forgiveness. If you can name the sin, even better.

3 When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. 4 For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. 5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.” And you forgave the guilt of my sin.

Take a moment to acknowledge and uncover your sin, and pray for the faithful forgiveness of Christ. Be as specific as possible.

6 Therefore let all the faithful pray to you while you may be found; surely the rising of the mighty waters will not reach them. 7 You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you. 9 Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you.

Take a moment to pray that God helps you to kneel before the cross willingly and not stubbornly, remembering that you alone offer the true song of deliverance.

10 Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the one who trusts in him. 11 Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!

Thank God for his unfailing love: you are righteous only because He has the power to declare repentant sinners righteous. He has the power to take the fallen wicked heart and turn it into an upright heart. Rejoice at not only the forgiveness of God, but on the life, hope and joy on the other side of repentance.

GCengage: Is God A Monster?

Richard Dawkins famously wrote: “The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.”

That kind of accusation makes sense coming from someone who wants to discredit Gd and the Bible. However, it's not just the atheists who struggle with the Old Testament. I was raised in a pacifist Mennonite community, and there were just large sections of the Old Testament that nobody talked about in polite company. We read the story about David and Goliath with as much detachment and inner condemnation as we could. We wondered how much we should cheer for David’s mighty men, who were the elite forces of their day. We cheered when Sampson brought the temple down, but with some guilt.  So what do you think we did with all the God-ordained wars in the Old Testament?

Nothing.

We loved Jesus when he said “love your enemy” and “turn the other cheek,” but God? God in the Old Testament was sometimes treated like the crazy uncle who shows up at family reunions. Nobody really knows how to interact with him or explain him to others.

From a Christian apologetics standpoint, this issue is important. I think many Christians remain as confused as I was. But this is an crucial topic to address because those outside the faith aren’t letting this one slide – and rightly so. How could God be “good” if he commanded so much evil? This is the question we must be prepared to answer.

So how do we understand a sometimes confusing Old Testament God, and how do we respond to critics such as Dawkins? Let's tackle this issue by looking closely at this critique of God. In the process, we will see that the God of the Old Testament is not a God for which we need to apologize, but is rather a God who loves the world.

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The accusation: "God’s actions as seen in the Bible are incompatible with his character as described in the Bible (with genocidal wars, etc). Either he doesn’t exist, the Bible is hopelessly muddled, or God is a monster.”

First Response: “Is it possible that God knows things and/or has reasons that our beyond our ability to understand, but would make sense if we knew them?”

Sometimes we read stories about alleged police brutality or wartime atrocities, then find out later that the police were justified in what they did. We didn’t have the whole story. Of course, we get in trouble in a lot of situations precisely because we are not God – we don’t have perfect knowledge, and justice, and mercy, etc. But if God has all these things (which is the Christian claim), isn’t it possible that if we knew what God knew, we would understand? This is a modest point, but an important one.

Second Response: “Let’s clarify what we are talking about before we go any further. What do you mean by good and evil?”

The most popular atheist writers today are very outspoken about things they think are wrong, while at the same time claiming there either is no such thing, or that morality is just a personal or cultural preference.

• “Morality is a collective illusion of humankind put in place by our genes in order to make us good cooperators.” – Michael Ruse

• “The universe we observe has precisely the properties we should expect of there is, at bottom, no design, no purpose, no evil and no good, nothing but blind, pitiless indifference.”  - Richard Dawkins

• In an interview with Skeptic, Frank Miele asked Mr. Dawkins,“How do you determine whether something is good or not, other than by just your personal choice?” Dawkins responded, “I don’t even try.”

In other words, atheists are criticizing God for being evil when compared to some sort of universal standard - which they don’t believe in. I point this out not to belittle the people holding this position, but to highlight the problem with the criticism. Not liking what God does is very different from God being evil.

Third Answer: "When the Old Testament is read properly, it becomes clear that God in not a monster at all."

Paul Copan has written a book called Is God A Moral Monster? In it, he notes some key things to remember as we think of God in the Old Testament, specifically when it comes to the issue of war. I have written on this in detail at TC Apologetics, but I will summarize here:

•  There were justifiable reasons for cultures to be judged.

• God waited and warned the people involved (for example, the high priest Mechizadech lived in Canaan in the city of Salem).

• The Jewish nation exercised lex talionis (a principle which says that punishment cannot exceed the crime). What other nations had done to others was now being done to them.

• Biblical “war texts” record a dispossession of people and destruction of worldview centers. God was destroying sinful cultural strongholds and their perpetrators (priests and military) while dispersing the population.

• God commanded the Israelites to accept immigrants from these nations, clearly showing God was not interested in genocide.

• We continue to see favorable references to people from all nations living in Israel after the wars.

This is not a history of genocide, but of the salvation of an area of the world from specific cultures that were some of the most brutal on record in human history. In an interview with Lee Strobel, Paul Copan quoted Miroslav Volf, a Croatian who lived through unspeakable violence during ethnic strife in the former Yugoslavia. I think his perspective contains great insight into the nature of God:

“I used to think that wrath was unworthy of God. Isn’t God love? Shouldn’t divine love be beyond wrath? God is love, and God loves every person and every creature. That’s exactly why God is wrathful against some of them. My last resistance to the idea of God’s wrath was a casualty of the war in the former Yugoslavia, the region from which I come. According to some estimates, 200,000 people were killed and over 3,000,000 were displaced. My villages and cities were destroyed, my people shelled day in and day out, some of them brutalized beyond imagination, and I could not imagine God not being angry. Or think of Rwanda in the last decade of the past century, where 800,000 people were hacked to death in one hundred days!

How did God react to the carnage? By doting on the perpetrators in a grandfatherly fashion? By refusing to condemn the bloodbath but instead affirming the perpetrators’ basic goodness? Wasn’t God fiercely angry with them? Though I used to complain about the indecency of the idea of God’s wrath, I came to think that I would have to rebel against a God who wasn’t wrathful at the sight of the world’s evil. God isn’t wrathful in spite of being love. God is wrathful because God is love.”

This is one of the messages of the anger of God in the Old Testament: God is not indifferent with respect to those who suffer human cruelty. Is it possible to conceive of a being who embodies love but does not become outraged at injustice? And while not every injustice in this life is addressed immediately, God’s plan offers at least a hope that justice will have its day, if not in this life then the life to come.

“Human anger at injustice will carry less weight and seriousness if divine anger at injustice in the service of life is not given its proper place. If our God is not angry, why should we be? That God would stoop to become involved in such human cruelties as violence is…. not a matter for despair, but of hope. God does not simply give people up to experience violence. God chooses to become involved…so that evil will not have the last word.” – Terence Fretheim

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Recommended Resources

Tactics, Greg Koukl

Is God A Moral Monster? Paul Copan

“How Could God Command Genocide in the Old Testament?” Justin Taylor, at the Gospel Coalition

“Killing The Canaanites,” Clay Jones

TC Apologetics: God of War Series (tcapologetics.org)

TC Apologetics: The Shape of Reality (Identifying Evil)