Historically there are several
other approaches in explaining God's Wrath. None have ever
adequately answered my questions about some of God's activities;
there have been too many "holes" in the reasoning and logic. This
study attempts to demonstrate from the Bible that Gods Wrath can be
rationally understood and that it is not some kind of human-like
anger. We encourage you to review our philosophy of Bible study in:
BIBLE STUDY METHODOLOGY
Lets start by looking at a couple of verses, which may be very
familiar to some.
Mark 16:15 (Matt. 28:19 and Col. 1:23) (NASB)
And He said unto them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel
to all creation."
We have struggled with this command ever since. So, what IS the
gospel?
Revelation 14:6-12 (NASB)
And I saw another angel flying in mid-heaven, having an eternal
gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every
nation and tribe and tongue and people; and he said with a loud
voice, "Fear God and give glory, because the hour of HIS judgment
has come; and worship HIM who has made the heaven and the earth and
the sea and springs of water."
And another angel, a second one, followed, saying, "Fallen, fallen
is Babylon the great, she who made all the nations drink of the
wine of the passion of her immorality."
And another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud
voice, "If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a
mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink of the wine
of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of
His anger: and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the
presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And
the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; and they have
no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image,
and whoever receives the mark of his name." Here is the
perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and
their faith in Jesus.
Fearing God, judgment, torment, fire and brimstone are Good
News?
The first angel has an eternal Gospel and the next two angels
messages seem to compliment, or expand the first angels message by
their inclusion in this passage. So how can we make sense of this?
Is it merely mental gymnastics, or is there a rational explanation?
If our commission is to give the Gospel, how do we share the Good
News (which is what Gospel means) and reconcile it with the picture
we are given in Revelation 14 -- what the Gospel ultimately
results in? How is this Good News?
So here is an outline of where we are going in this study:
• Why it is important to understand Gods wrath
• The Biblical definition of Gods Wrath
• The Changelessness of God
• Gods Character as revealed in Scripture
• A historical look at Gods use of Power
• Gods Anger and Wrath
• Gods final exhibition of Wrath
• The final destruction of the wicked
• The Biblical definition of Gods Wrath
• Conclusions
WHY IT IS IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND WRATH:
I believe that our understanding of God's wrath determines how we
relate to Him, and provides the basis or the Motive for our
behavior; are we obedient because we are afraid of what will happen
to us if we aren't, or, because He has demonstrated that He has our
best interests at heart we are obedient because we love Him. In
other words, is the motivation for our actions from
“fear” or “love?”
I believe that God is primarily interested in our integrity and our
relationship with Him. Our beliefs about wrath affect our
understanding of why Jesus had to die and how He died. In addition
we treat people, "sinners", the way we think God would treat them
(in His wrath).
It may surprise some to discover that there are TWO kinds of wrath:
God's wrath and Satan's wrath. These are often contrasted in the
same section of verse. The problem we have with this is that we
have been conditioned NOT to look for a contrast and attribute to
God the same kind of wrath that we do to Satan and man.
That is why it is important to understand wrath. God's wrath is as
opposite Satan's wrath as Light is from Darkness.
BIBLICAL DEFINITION OF GOD'S WRATH:
The classic statement in the Bible, of God's wrath is found in
Paul's letter to the Romans. As Paul starts his message in 1:16 he
states that he is "not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of
God for salvation, for IN IT God's righteousness is revealed."
Immediately Paul says that the wrath of God is also revealed
against ungodliness and unrighteousness. Remember in Job, Genesis,
and later in Revelation, Satan accused God of being untrustworthy,
unrighteous, and unjust. What Paul is saying here is that the
Gospel of God reveals His righteousness and His wrath; God's wrath
is part of this revelation of His righteousness. So, God's wrath is
part of God's righteousness, it is not something apart from it. It
is also part of the gospel. Now, in the following discussion the
ONLY thing God is actually described as DOING to the sinner is in
verses 24, 26, and 28. "Therefore God gave them over" to that which
they had chosen to do. If you read all around those verses you'll
find out why!
Now, we can test this idea. Since we say that Christ died the
"sinners" death, we can look at how Christ died. This would have us
go to the Cross and watch what happens. We should really go a
little earlier and watch what happens in Gethsemane.
It is important to ask the “right” questions: Did God
kill Christ on the Cross?
What did He do?
Let's look at Romans 4:25. There Paul describes Christ as "He who
was delivered up because of our transgressions."
The Greek word here is "paradidomi" [par-ad-id-o-mee]. The exact
same word used in Romans 1:24, 26, & 28.
In Romans 8:31 & 32 where Paul is talking about our victory in
Christ; he says, "What then shall we say to these things? If God is
for us, who can be against us? He who delivered Him up for us all,
how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?"
And again in Ephesians 5:1 & 2
"Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved
children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you, and gave
Himself up for us, as an offering and a sacrifice to God as a
fragrant aroma."
There are at least six other places where Paul explains what
happened to Christ and what happens to the sinner for their sins,
using the exact same word.
"Wrath," is God finally giving people up to have their own way. It
is in recognition that there is nothing more that He can do for the
one who chooses to remain a rebel. This is unlike the God we have
seen throughout history. He has always dealt in love and mercy,
even when He has punished, He has not completely given anyone up,
except His Son. This, I believe, is what John is driving at as "His
strange act" in Revelation.
As we study the use of “wrath” and “give up” in
the Bible we find more than 200 times where these phrases are used
together. Even in the Old Testament Gods wrath is equated with His
giving them over to the control of their enemies, or in the
Wilderness travels His wrath is shown to be that He allows the
serpents to attack the people, as one example.
As we study the significance of free will, or freedom of choice, we
find that if an individual refuses to have any relationship with
the Holy Spirit, there comes a point, in recognition of that free
choice, that God lets the people have their own way and in the end
He must say; "Let him alone; he that is, let him be."
God's wrath is not some kind of human-like anger where he has to
superimpose some kind of suffering or retribution; it is God
removing His presence (protection) and the person suffers the
consequences.
THE CHANGELESSNESS OF GOD:
Malachi 3:6(NASB)
"For I, the Lord, do not change...”
Hebrews 13:8 (NASB)
"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, yes and
forever."
CHARACTER OF GOD:
There is no lack for verses in the Bible that tell us what God is
like; however what we often overlook is that most of the definitive
information is gained from a demonstration of what God is like and
not from claims that God makes. He does make statements as to His
own righteousness, but then He demonstrates it, or defines it, at
the same time. This is very, very important and the most dramatic
and important demonstration was in the life, teachings, and death
of Christ.
Titus 1:2 (NASB)
"God, who cannot lie."
Psalms 18:30 (NASB)
"As for God, His way is perfect."
Psalms 145:17 (NASB)
"The Lord is righteous in all His ways."
Psalms 103:8 (NASB)
"The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in
mercy."
John 10:30 (NASB)
"I and My Father are One."
1 John 4:8 (NASB)
"God is love."
When God gives a rule or a command, it is not because God wants
some arbitrary form of behavior, it is because mankind has
forgotten that this is a part of God's character and we needed to
be reminded. Likewise, in 1 Corinthians 13, the stipulations about
how LOVE behaves, also apply to God; they are a reflection of the
way God loves.
An interesting attribute of Love in 1 Corinthians 13 is that, "Love
never insist on having its' own way."
As a matter of opinion, based on what is written here, God does not
abridge freedom, even in the destruction at the end of time, by
insisting on having His own way!
GOD'S USE OF POWER AND WRATH:
Revelation 3:19 & 20 (NASB)
"As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten."
Proverbs 3:12 (NASB)
"For whom the Lord loves He reproves."
Jeremiah 25:31(NASB)
"The Lord hath a controversy with the nations; He will give them
that are wicked to the sword."
Zechariah 14:12 & 13 (NASB)
"And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the
people that have fought against Jerusalem; ... And it shall come to
pass in that day, that a great tumult from the Lord shall be upon
them; and they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his
neighbor, and his hand shall rise up against the hand of his
neighbor."
Here we see that the sword is actually in the hand of the
"neighbor". It might be useful here to read the stories of Gideon
and Jonathan.
Hosea 4:6 (NASB)
"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge, because thou hast
rejected knowledge, I will reject thee: ... seeing thou hast
forgotten the law of thy God."
Hosea 4:17 (NASB)
"Ephraim is joined to idols: let him alone."
Hosea 6:4 (NASB)
"O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee?
O Judah, what shall I do unto thee?
For your goodness is as a morning cloud,
And as the early dew it goeth away."
Proverbs 11:5 (NASB)
"The wicked shall fall by his own wickedness."
There are at least 43 verses that declare that the wicked shall
be destroyed; But only a few of those tell HOW! In many of those it
says, "Fire shall come down from Heaven and utterly consume them."
But that does not say HOW; it says WHAT happens. It doesn't say
that it is something that God does, something that is not of a
"natural occurrence". If we do not understand God's Wrath and what
the natural consequences of sin are, then we do not understand how
this can be a "natural consequence"!
We are going to try and explain this, as it is our understanding at
the moment.
Anything that is not in harmony with God will be consumed, not
because God does something extraordinary, but because God removes
the veil hiding His glory and that, which is "stubble"; that which
is impure, is consumed.
2 Thessalonians 2:8-12 (NASB)
"They shall be destroyed by the brightness of His coming."
Exodus 33:20, 23 (NIV)
“But, he said, ‘you cannot see my face, for no one may
see me and live’ Then I will remove my hand and you will see
my back; but my face must not be seen.”
Deuteronomy 4:32 (NIV)
“Has any other people heard the voice of God speaking out of
fire, as you have, and lived?”
There is an interesting contrast offered in the Bible about the
relationship of people to God. Those who are seeking God want to
see His face and are saddened when God seems to hide His face.
Those who we would term, “the wicked” do not want to have
a relationship with God and disdain any contact. One seeks Gods
face, the other hides from His face. When the first group sees Gods
face they are happy the other group is destroyed. It is the same
face in either instance.
Psalm 119:56
“I have sought your face with all my heart; be gracious to me
according to your promise.”
Psalm 143:7
“Answer me quickly, O LORD ; spirit fails. Do not hide your
from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit.”
The seeming change in Gods attitude and actions toward the
sinner:
Revelation 14:9, 10 (NASB)
"If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark
in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine
of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the
cup of His indignation."
The symbol of “receiving his mark in his forehead,”
indicates that the person has knowingly made a firm choice. Until
the seven last plagues, God always holds back from allowing the
full consequences of sin (rebellion) taking place. Or in other
words; allowing "sin" to be in control. Prior to this time is
when/where God's wrath is mixed with mercy.
To get an understanding of how God feels about His creation, even
the sinner, we ask this question: How did Jesus say He felt about
even the impenitent?
Matthew 23:37 (NASB)
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and
stonest them which are sent unto thee? How often would I have
gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her
chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is
left unto you desolate!."
This is an echo from Hosea where God asks the question; "How can
I give you up?"
Ezekiel 33:11 (NASB)
"As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of
the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn
ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die?"
Luke 9:54, 56 (NASB)
"Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and
consume them, even as Elias did? But He turned and rebuked them,
and said, "You do not know what spirit you are of; for the Son of
man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them."
Hosea 3:9, 14:1 (NASB)
"O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself ..."
"For thou hast fallen by thine iniquity."
GOD'S ANGER AND WRATH (W/MERCY):
Let us look at a few of the places where Paul got some of his
evidence for Romans 1, 4, 8, and Ephesians 2. We must also ask the
question; “How did God summon the nations to fight against
Israel?”
We must not forget the work of the adversary in this drama.
Hosea 7:13 -15 (Phillips)
"Woe betide them for straying away from Me!
Death to them for rebelling against Me!
Why should I redeem them
When they tell lies about Me?
They have never called for Me from their hearts.
They howl by their altars for food and wine.
They gash themselves like pagans and rebel against Me.
Although it was I who trained them to be strong.
While they made evil plans against Me."
Hosea 10:9, 10 (Phillips)
"Your sins, Israel, all began at Gibeah
And there you remain defiant still.
Why should not war overtake them, there in Gibeah?
In My wrath I will punish them.
I will gather nations against them.
To chastise them for their double sin."
"You have ploughed evil
And you have reaped disaster:
You have had to eat the harvest of your lying.
Because you have trusted in your chariots,
And in the number of your armed men,
The din of war will arise among your people ...
This will be your fate at My hands, Israel,
Because of the grossness of your evil."
Hosea 11:1-9 (Phillips)
"When Israel was young I came to love him.
And I called him out of Egypt to be My son.
But the more I called them
The further they went from Me.
They made sacrifices to the Baals
And burnt incense to idols.
Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
Picking them up in My arms."
"Yet they never knew it was I
who healed their bruises.
I led them with gentle encouragement.
Their harness was a harness of love.
I treated them like the man
Who eases the yoke to free the jaws -
Yes, I bent down to them and gave them food."
"They must return to the land of Egypt
Or Assyria must be their king.
Because they have refused to turn to Me.
The sword" shall swirl around their cities,
Break the defense of their gates,
And destroy them within their fortresses.
My people are bent on turning away from Me;
The yoke is all they are good for -
I can love them no more."
BUT,
"How, oh how, can I give you up, Ephraim?
How, oh how, can I hand you over, Israel?
How can I turn you into a Sodom?
How can I treat you like a Gomorrah?
My heart recoils within Me.
All My compassion is kindled.
I will not give vent to My fierce anger -
I will not destroy Ephraim again.
For I am God and not man,
I am the Holy One in your midst
And I have not come to destroy!"
Hosea 12:10-14 (Phillips)
"It was I who spoke through the prophets.
It was I who gave vision after vision.
And through the prophets gave you parables.
If there is evil in Gilgal
They shall surely be destroyed.
If they sacrifice oxen there,
Their altars shall become like heaps of stones
In the furrows of the field."
It was by a prophet that the Lord
Brought Israel up from Egypt.
And by a prophet, was he kept safe.
Ephraim has given bitter provocation.
And so the Lord will leave him alone with his guilt
And fling his reproaches back at him."
Listen to the awfulness of the language. How can that come from a
loving God? Yet all along the way God also seems to be saying to
Himself, to Israel of old, and to us today; How, O how can I do
this? How can I say this? How can I even think this? God is trying
to impress them with the terrible consequences of their rebellion.
What good parent doesn't correct the erring child, especially if
they are about to get hurt? However, God is limited in what He can
do because He will not abridge man's freedom to get His way. How can
we not trust a person with that kind of integrity? How can the
Universe not trust a Ruler who treats His subjects in this
manner?
There is always a danger when studying any subject to stop reading
when the point you want to make is made. So how did the Psalmists
understand the issues?
Psalms 44:9-11, 23, 24(NASB)
"... Thou hast rejected us and brought us to dishonor, and
dost not go out with our armies. Thou dost cause us to
turn back from the adversary; and those who hate us have
taken spoil for themselves. Thou dost give us as sheep
to be eaten, and hast scattered us among the nations."
"Arouse thyself; why dost Thou sleep, O Lord? Awake,
do not reject us forever. Why dost Thou hide Thy face,
and forget our affliction and our oppression?"
Psalms 78:21-29 (NASB)
"Therefore the Lord heard and was full of wrath, and
a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger also
mounted against Israel; because they did not believe
in God and did not trust in His salvation. Yet He
commanded the clouds above and opened the doors of
Heaven; and He rained down manna upon them to eat,
and gave them food from heaven. ... Then He let
them fall in the midst of their camp, round about
their dwellings. So they ate and were filled; and
their desire He gave to them."
Psalms78:46-50; 56-62 (NASB)
"He gave also their crops to the grasshopper.
... He gave over their cattle also to the hailstones.
... He sent upon them His burning anger, fury, and indignation, and
trouble, a band of destroying angels."
We might assume who these angels are, but it doesn't say they
are God's angels!
"Yet they tempted and rebelled against the Most
High God,
and did not keep His testimonies, but turned back and acted
treacherously like their fathers; they turned aside like a
treacherous bow. For they provoked Him with their high places,
and aroused His jealousy with their graven images. When God heard,
He was filled with wrath, and greatly abhorred Israel; So that He
abandoned the dwelling place at Shiloh, the tent which He had
pitched among men, and gave up His strength to captivity, and His
glory into the hand of the adversary. He also delivered His people
to the sword, and was filled with wrath at His inheritance."
Psalms 79:5, 6 (NASB)
"How long, O Lord? Wilt Thou be angry forever? Will
Thy jealousy burn like fire? Pour out Thy wrath upon
the nations, which do not know Thee."
Psalms 81:11-14 (NASB)
"But My people did not listen to My voice; and Israel did
not obey Me. So I gave them over to the stubbornness of
their heart, to walk in their own devices. Oh that My
people would listen to Me, that Israel would walk in My
ways! I would quickly subdue their enemies, and turn
My hand against their adversaries."
Psalms 106:13-15, 40 (NASB)
"They quickly forgot His works; they did not wait for
His counsel, but craved intensely in the wilderness, and
tempted God in the desert. So He gave them their request,
but sent a wasting disease among them."
"Therefore the anger of the Lord was kindled against
His people, and He abhorred His inheritance. Then He
gave them into the hand of the nations."
Ezra 5:12 (NIV)
“But because our fathers provoked the God of heaven to wrath,
He gave them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the
Chaldean, who destroyed this temple and carried the people away to
Babylon.”
If, in the destruction at the flood; Sodom and Gomorrah; the tenth
Plague in Egypt; Hophnie and Phinehaus; Korah, Dathum, and Abiram;
David's numbering of Israel; the 185,000 Assyrians; Ananias and
Saphphira; and possibly a hundred other places in both the old and
new testaments and in history since, we look beyond the surface and
examine the circumstances and the alternative consequences of God
not taking such drastic actions we have to come up with a different
answer than God is just "angry" in a human fashion.
Without such drastic actions taken by God, out of love and
compassion for His children, those children would have been led
into even greater sin and caused even greater damage, and even more
of His children would have been lost.
The question is; "How can a loving God justify doing such awful
things to people?"
I am convinced, as I look at this problem, that we do not realize
how BAD sin is or understand the full resultant consequences of
sin, even in nature; how about earthquakes, volcanoes, hurricanes?
Might sin even have an effect on nature?
The answer to the question is in the demonstration of Christ's life
and death. I submit that God did no more to His rebellious
children, throughout history, than He did to His Son on the
cross.
GOD'S FINAL EXHIBITION OF WRATH:
As Christians I have found that we are really not clear when God's
final exhibition of wrath is given. So, I would like to offer a
scenario. In Revelation, the last time that the wrath of God is
mentioned is in connection with the Seven Last Plagues:
Revelation 15:1 (NASB)
"And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous,
seven angels who had seven plagues, which are the last,
because in them the wrath of God is finished."
Revelation 16:19 (NASB)
"... Babylon the great city was remembered before God, to
give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath."
This is the last time that wrath is mentioned. As we study those
Seven Plagues, or Judgments, we discover that the destruction is
done through the agency of evil angels, demons, or men operating
under their influence. When we come to the final destruction of the
wicked and Satan in Revelation 20, wrath isn't mentioned. If God
were angry at the rebels, wouldn't the Bible have something to say
about it in this Judgment, such as; “In His wrath He cast them
in the Lake of Fire!”?
FINAL DESTRUCTION OF THE WICKED:
Revelation 20:9, 10 (NASB)
"And they came up on the broad plain of the earth
and surrounded the camp of the saints and the
beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and
devoured them. And the devil who deceived them
was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone,
where the beast and the false prophet are also;
and they will be tormented day and night forever."
Revelation 20:14 (NASB)
"And death and Hades were thrown into the lake of
fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.
And if anyone's name was not found written in the
book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire."
And that is it! No wrath. The wicked do die, they and rebellion are
destroyed forever and ever, but my understanding is that it is
clearly not something that God does in anger. It might be said that
the deaths of these beings is that are consumed by the natural
brightness of Gods glory, unveiled. The Righteous sons and
daughters of God dwell in that Glory, in fact it gives them life;
to the wicked it causes their eternal deaths.
BIBLICAL MEANING OF GOD'S WRATH:
Again I would like us to return to Romans 1:24, 26, 28. God's wrath
is what happens to the sinner when he finally rejects God and
places himself outside of the protection that God offers us from
the adversary, Satan. This is what Peter is saying, that the devil;
“ goes about roaring like a Lion, seeking whom he may devour."
(1 Peter 5:8)
It is only as God protects His people that Satan cannot destroy
them.
CONCLUSION:
There is nothing that can be added to sin to make it worse; all God
has to do is let it go to seed, let it be seen for what it is. The
worst thing that God could do is to step aside, and no longer
restrain the wicked in their wickedness and let sin go to seed;
"let them alone," He says. And in the last fires of cleansing, all
those who are not able to stand in God's presence will be consumed.
Again, how terrible that is was demonstrated on the cross.
References for The Wrath of God study:
"Give ... up":
Deuteronomy 23:14; 31:5
1 Kings 14:16
Hosea 11:8
Micah 5:3
Gave ... up/over":
Joshua 24:8
Judges 6:9
1 Kings 14:8
2 Chronicles 30:7; 36:17
Psalms 81:12; 78:48
Ezra 5:12
Ezekiel 39:23
Daniel 1:2; 5:19
Acts 7:42
Romans 1:24, 26, 28
"Gave and/or Give":
Judges 7:2
2 Samuel 12:11
1 Kings 8:39
1Chronicles 16:18; 29:19
Nehemiah 4:4; 9:8
Psalms 2:8
Isaiah 19:4; 45:3; 48:11; 62:8
Jeremiah 20:4, 5; 22:25; 24:7,8; 25:31; 26:24; 29:11; 32:2
Ezekiel 16:38, 39, 61; 17:15; 33:27; 39:4
Micah 5:3; 6:14
Mark 12:9
Luke 1:32, 77, 79; 12:32
John 1:12; 3:16; 6:51
Acts 7:42
Romans 1:24, 26, 28
Galatians 1:4; 2:20
Ephesians 5:25
1 Timothy 2:6, 14
1 John 5:10
In some translations “handed over” is used instead of
“given over.”
"Heart":
1 Samuel 13:14; 17:32; 21:12; 25:31
1 Kings 3:6, 9, 12,; 4:29; 11:4,9; 14:8
"Anger":
Genesis 49:6, 7
Exodus 4:14; 32:19, 22
Numbers 11:1, 10; 12:9; 22:22, 27
