Question 37 – Why is there so much violence in the Bible?
When you read the Old Testament, you cannot help but notice the abundance of evil, death, and suffering depicted throughout its pages. Isn't God love? Shouldn't it contain more "sweet" words, more romantic, loving and divine expressions?
Unfortunately, that is not the case. With some irony, we might describe the Old Testament as a general chronicle of the ancient world, capturing the truth of human rebellion against God with all its consequences in its stark reality. Thus, it can be stated that the violence described in the Bible is simply a record of what occurred.
The universal rebellion against God has its age-old consequences, which include every human depravity, from the lust for power and domination, through pride and selfishness, to a penchant for destruction and killing. This is the reality of humanity – not only in ancient history. Just look around and see it in every century, including our own. People are wicked, depraved, they murder each other, they hate one another, they rape, deceive, rob, and try to annihilate each other. This is reality, whether we like it or not. We cannot blame a Holocaust survivor for mentioning too much evil and violence in their memoirs. Nor does it mean we must reject the author and label them as evil. It is the same with the biblical record.
In it, God documented His will for and His dealings with the nation of Israel in the midst of all the evil, corruption, and violence around them and even among them. Thus, the depiction is often hard to read and filled with evil and battles.
It is, however, crucial to realize that not everything written in the Bible represents God's will! Often, it merely records events that occurred or even false statements made by others.
"The word of God is an accurate depiction of people and events as they are, not as they should be. Yet, one might wish that attention was focused on their better side." [20]
Therefore, God candidly presents both the personal downfalls of the greatest biblical heroes and the wars and horrendous acts at tribal and national levels. Thus, we read of Abraham's deceit, David's murder and adultery, Peter's cowardice, and other deeds we ourselves condemn. God does not condone these actions; on the contrary, He shows how destructive they are.
Let us look at the entire issue from another perspective. What is needed to illustrate light? How do you accentuate white or the beauty of diamond jewelry displayed in a jeweler's window? To capture absolute beauty, goodness, and light, contrast is essential. To best depict light, it must be set against darkness. To make white stand out, it should be highlighted with black. If we aim to effectively present jewelry, we usually display them on a black background so they can shine most brilliantly. Why do I mention all this? The message of the Bible is primarily about Jesus Christ, who embodies the loving and forgiving God. Jesus is the absolute light, beauty, love, and goodness. Viewing matters from this perspective, we find hope in the middle of despair, forgiveness in the middle of hatred, mercy in the middle of violence, and assurance for the human soul that is lost. Remember that God even allowed Jesus to experience all this evil. He takes it very seriously, and it is not to be overlooked. Thus, all the suffering and negativity in the Bible can be seen as the dark backdrop against which a precious gem – the living God, Jesus Christ – shines.
Summation
The Old Testament encompasses a substantial amount of evil, wars, and human suffering. Essentially, one can say that God reveals His will and Himself precisely in the context of human depravity, which was extreme in those ancient times. He takes our rebellion with all its consequences very seriously and depicts it without reservation. Yet, He continually emphasizes that all is not lost and there is hope – salvation in His Son, Jesus Christ.