If/when you read the bible, doesn't God seem like an angry g?

Question

I'm 34, and I've struggled with that since I was a kid. The God of the bible seems really difficult to admire.

Answer 1

...more like a psycho ex-girlfriend

Answer 2

Its a tough one.

I used to struggle with that one all time, because I actually read the bible through a couple of times.

All the verses I were taught were about love and kindness (John 3:16). But when you actually sit down and start reading it front to back, you get a better picture of the God you are worshiping.

He is a bit of a wrathful guy.

Answer 3

It can sometimes seem like there is two Gods...or at least two very separate attitudes. An angry God, and a Merciful God. God created the flood, but he also warned Noah. God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, but he also warned them about it. Or if you want to play devil's advocate, One God caused the flood, the other warned Noah about it and gave him a way to survive. One God was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, and the other tried to warn them.

I don't believe there were two separate Gods, but I won't deny the possibility. In the end, I don't think anyone can know for sure why God seems both angry and merciful.

Answer 4

Only if you approach it with a pre-bent disposition to find fault.

If you take into account what God said about Himself, then interpret the Bible based on these things, then you get a much clearer slant.

But, as long as you continue to read the Bible with mocking-colored or scoffing-colored "glasses" on, you will find skepticism throughout. (If you put on green sunglasses, everything will look green.)

First, God shows Himself HOLY. That means He has zero tolerance for sin. Sin can NOT go unpunished. (Sin is anything that violates the very nature and character of God. For instance, God is Truth, so telling lies is a sin, et cetera).

Second, God is RIGHTEOUS. This means that He has never violated His holiness.

Third, God is LOVE. (Love is not the antonym of HATE, but rather the opposite of "Selfishness" - "Universal, Unconcerned Benevolence.)

So, when you read the Bible, and you read about God's judgements, remember that you don't have any kind of perspective to understand what's going on. The neutrino that flies out of the nucleus of an atom in my left shoulder and only exists for a fraction of a second, has no way, nor right, to make declarations about me!

God is holy, so if judgement comes, trust me, it is well deserved, and you can NOT look into the hearts of the people being judged.

God is righteous, so if judgement comes, trust me, it does NOT violate God's basic nature and character.

God is LOVE, so if judgement comes, trust me, it is for the highest good for the most people, and not done lightly.

God even says that He takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but He is morally obligated to judge!

Now, do you still judge God? Do you sit on the edge of eternity and view the universe as though it were a ball in the palm of your hand, and yet see every detail? Have you lived a few billion years? Have you visited even the rest of this solar system, much less the rest of this galaxy? Just how many galaxies HAVE you visited? For you, a mere neutrino in comparison, to judge God, is the ultimate in arrogance!

Were you there when God created the stars, or laid the galaxies out, or called the stars by name? No. I don't think you're in any position to judge God! And the judgements you DO hand out are so extremely bogus, it's not even funny. Does an ant challenge a steam roller to a duel? And yet the ant and steam roller are closer in size than you are to God!!!

Go back and re-read the Bible, but first remove the cynicism-colored glasses!

Answer 5

Is that the Same God that loves us so much and freed the slaves from Egypt, or Got Noah and all the animals on the ARK, Is this the Same God that hears our prayers, and brings us out of our addictions when we truly ask for help, Is this the same God that provides shelter for us, Grass on the ground, tree's and plants to provide us air to breathe, food to eat, water to drink, Is this the same God that gives us little babies to care for, and family, all the good things, It has to be there is only One Creator, One God!!
It is satan that has caused Gods wrath, and the people that follow, but God gives us a choice we don't have to follow satan, we can believe in The gift God gave us through Jesus Christ, WE Can HAVE HEAVEN AS OUR HOME IN THE HOLY KINGDOM, THE LORD HATH PREPARED A PLACE FOR US.

Answer 6

As Dawkins quite poetically puts it:

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 blood-thirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist; infanticidal, genocidal, fillicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent, bully.

Answer 7

It does seem that way. But I mean I think he is just angry with what the world has become. When a parent gets mad with a child one might threaten a child with a woopin' sort of speak. Same thing with God. He is our father. He chastens us when we get out of line. But in reality most parents love their children and they do it for the best. Not to destroy them or abuse them. But like any parent you can not force your child to obey you.

Answer 8

The OT God, yes. The NT shows the kinder, gentler version...God 2.0 (or GodLite?)

Answer 9

Primitive people need a primitive God - as humans get more sophisticated so does their understanding of the Spiritual World. We should all try not to be anchored to the past!

Answer 10

I used to when I was under condemnation, but now I see and know His goodness

Answer 11

if you werent afraid of him, why would you bother with the whole thing.

it is a device and the current adminstration knows about it too. keeping people frozen in a state of fear.