Expert: Edward Bode - 2/10/2011

Question
Throughout the bible we hear of God killing off groups of people because they didn't follow his commandments. If he is such a loving and merciful God, why does he tolerate such atrocities? How can I defend that God is a loving and merciful God?

Answer
Two thoughts are relevant:
1 -- New Testament brought to a conclusion the gradual revelation of God.  There is His mercy and love and forgiveness manifested through the work of Jesus for all humanity.
2 -- Old Testament also speaks of God as merciful and forgiving, especially for those who seek Him.  For example,Exodus 34:6f, Psalm 51:3, 107:1.

So, one has to look at the whole picture, context, of divine revelation.

Further, in the OT, God is usually described in human terms [anthropomorphism] -- We use human words to describe the divine. That type of verbage does fall short of the divine reality of what God is.
Also, people of the ancient Near East tended to skip over worldly causes and ascribed things directly to God or gods.  So, when an army was successful, its gods were credited with the victory; for example, when Babylon conquered Juda, the conquerors credited Marduk.

I hope these thoughts are of some help.  If you would like more or have some particular verses in mind, please feel free to write again.