(remember, these are unedited/draft show notes, not a transcript — listening is always better…and if you listen AND follow along below, you’ll see how)
Focus Question:
Is the God of the OT “mean?”
Intro:
As we kick off Isaiah today (and spend a good bit of time there in the coming days), we’re going to hear plenty more oracles of judgment. Indeed, the OT in general has plenty of war and ugliness and, yes, prophets calling the people out. The NT, of course, is really clear about the gravity and consequence of sin, but if you or someone you know has wondered if the God of the OT is just a mean old dude, you’re not alone. Today’s focus question — Is the God of the OT mean? — is another where we’ll help you answer that question for yourself and others.
New Testament segment:
Passage: Matthew 17
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses: 27
Words: ~571
Let’s roll right into the passage in Isaiah, and we’ll talk about the focus question afterwards. We’ll talk more about Isaiah in the days to come, but for now, remember that Isaiah is announcing…
…God’s surprising plan of grace and glory for his rebellious people and, indeed, for the world… (and) is a vision of hope for sinners through the coming Messiah, promising for the “ransomed” people of God a new world where sin and sorrow will be forever forgotten (35:10; 51:11).(1)
Old Testament segment:
Passage: Isaiah 1-4:1
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses: 79
Words: ~2155
Wisdom segment:
Passage:
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses:
Words: ~
The bottom line:
Is the God of the OT “mean?” To answer this for someone, we need to respond with two questions (maybe not at the same time):
What is God’s nature? Can we always know why He does what He does at any given point in time?
Nature: Eternal, can’t change, so “perfectly good and perfectly just” has to be “perfectly good and perfectly just” in the OT and NT both. And today, too! We know that he wouldn’t be perfectly loving if he wasn’t also perfectly fair – and this means he’ll have to give out perfect reward for our actions including sin.
Timing: What we don’t know is about His timing…why sometimes that judgment may come at some point in salvation history that we observe. Like judging people for sin at times like using Noah’s flood or having the evil Canaanites or Amalekites toasted. What we just read in Isaiah one was expecting that judgment
9 If the Lord of Armies
had not left us a few survivors,
we would be like Sodom,
we would resemble Gomorrah. (Is 1:9, CSB)
So the question…”Is God mean in the OT? Should really be “Is God mean all the time?” The short answer is “No, we just don’t know from our limited perspectives about his timing.”
Love you!
Roger
ForTheHope is a daily audio Bible + apologetics podcast and blog. We’ve got a passion for just keepin’ it real, having conversations like normal people, and living out the love of Jesus better every single day.
Roger Courville, CSP is a globally-recognized expert in digitally-extended communication and connection, an award-winning speaker, award-winning author, and a passionately bad guitarist. Follow him on Twitter -- @RogerCourville and @JoinForTheHope – or his blog: www.forthehope.org.
Sources and resources:
(1) Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 1235.