Throughout my life as a pastor I’ve been asked some hard questions. One of the most common questions people ask when reading the Bible is, “Why does God seem so violent in the Old Testament?” We read stories of wars, judgment, and entire nations being destroyed. At first glance, it seems difficult to reconcile these accounts with Jesus who taught us to love our enemies and laid down His own life for the world.
The Bible Tells One Continuous Story
The Old Testament isn’t separate from the New Testament, and it isn’t about a different God. It’s the unfolding account of God’s rescue plan for humanity. From the moment sin entered the world in Genesis, God promised that one day a descendant of the woman would crush the serpent’s head (Genesis 3:15). Everything that follows is moving history and humanity toward that promise.
As God’s plan unfolds, He makes a covenant with one man, Abraham, through whom He promises to bless all nations. That promise is broadened to the nation of Israel, then progressively narrows to the tribe of Judah, and finally to the family of King David. This wasn’t because Israel was better than other nations, but because God chose a specific lineage through which the Messiah, Jesus Christ, would be born. If that covenant line were destroyed or absorbed into the surrounding cultures, the promised Saviour would never come.
This is one of the most important lenses through which to understand the Old Testament. God’s actions weren’t simply about preserving one nation for its own sake; they were about preserving His promise to rescue the whole world. Israel was the vehicle through which salvation would come. Protecting Israel meant protecting God’s redemptive plan for every tribe, language, and nation.
The Surrounding Nations
The nations surrounding Israel weren’t just different politically or culturally. They practised things which God condemned: child sacrifice, ritual prostitution, occult worship, and violence that exploited the vulnerable. These weren’t isolated acts but, in many cases, deeply embedded religious systems. God repeatedly warned Israel not to adopt these practices because they would destroy the nation spiritually and lead them away from the covenant He had established with them.
Even then, God’s judgment was rarely immediate. Throughout the Old Testament we see a God who warns before He judges, who calls people to repentance, and who often shows extraordinary patience. The prophets repeatedly appealed to both Israel and surrounding nations to turn from their evil ways. God’s justice was never impulsive; it followed persistent rebellion over long periods of time.
When God Waited
1. Noah and the Flood (Genesis 6–7)
God warned the world through Noah for a long time before the flood.
- Noah was described as a “preacher of righteousness” (2 Peter 2:5)
- He built the ark over many decades while warning people
- Judgment only came after sustained corruption and rejection of warning
Point: God delayed judgment while giving repeated warning and space to respond.
2. The people of Nineveh (Book of Jonah)
This is one of the clearest examples.
- Jonah preached: “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown”
- The king and people repented immediately
- God “relented” and did not bring the disaster He had warned about
Point: When people repent, God responds with mercy instead of judgment.
3. Pharaoh and Egypt (Exodus 7–12)
God gave Pharaoh multiple chances.
- Ten plagues came gradually, not all at once
- Each plague included warnings and opportunity to release Israel
- Pharaoh repeatedly hardened his heart despite the warnings
Point: Judgment was progressive, not instant, with repeated chances to change.
4. The Amorites/Canaanites (Genesis 15:16)
This is a long-term example.
- God told Abram that judgment would not come “yet”
- The reason: “the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure”
- This implies centuries of patience before Israel entered the land
Point: God delayed judgment for generations, not just years.
5. Israel in the wilderness (Exodus–Numbers)
God’s own people received repeated opportunities.
- They complained, rebelled, and worshipped idols (golden calf)
- God repeatedly forgave after Moses interceded
- Judgment only came after persistent rebellion (like the wilderness wandering)
Point: Even covenant failure was met with patience and repeated restoration.
6. Israel and Judah before the exile (2 Kings, Jeremiah, Isaiah and other prophets)
This is one of the strongest patterns in the Old Testament.
- God sent prophets for centuries (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Hosea, etc.)
- They warned about injustice, idolatry, and oppression
- Only after “many warnings” did exile finally happen
Jeremiah 7:13
“I spoke to you again and again, but you did not listen.”
Point: Judgment came after long-term refusal to repent.
7. King David (2 Samuel 11–12)
A personal example.
- After David’s sin with Bathsheba, God sent the prophet Nathan
- David was confronted and given space to repent
- David confessed: “I have sinned against the Lord”
- While consequences remained, his life was spared
Point: Even when judgment is deserved, repentance brings mercy and restoration.
8. A repeated biblical pattern (throughout Scripture)
Across the Bible we see a consistent pattern:
- God warns
- Time is given
- Prophets are sent
- People respond, or refuse
- Judgment comes only after persistent rejection
The Big Picture
The Bible consistently shows that God isn’t quick to judge. In fact, one of His defining attributes is patience:
“The Lord is patient… not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)
Even in the Old Testament, judgment is almost always:
- delayed
- preceded by warnings
- and offered alongside a path of repentance
God Didn’t Show Partiality
Israel itself experienced His judgment when it abandoned Him. The same God who judged Canaan later sent Israel and Judah into exile because they embraced the very sins He had warned them against. This reminds us that God’s holiness applies equally to His own people. His covenant was never a licence for sin.
As followers for Jesus, we need to recognize that many of the Old Testament battles carried a spiritual element. Scripture teaches that behind idolatry were spiritual powers seeking to draw people away from the worship of the true God. The conflict was never just between Israel and other nations; it was ultimately between God’s kingdom and the destructive power of sin and idolatry. God’s desire was always to preserve a people through whom the Light of the world would one day come.
When Jesus arrived, we see the fulfillment. He is the fulfillment towards which the entire Old Testament had been pointing. The sacrificial system, the Passover, the priesthood, the temple, the kings, and the prophets all find their fulfillment in Him. Jesus came not merely to save Israel but to fulfill God’s promise to Abraham that all nations would be blessed through his offspring. The wars that marked Israel’s early history give way to a very different kind of kingdom. Jesus defeats His enemies, not by taking lives but by laying down His own. On the cross He bears the judgment that humanity deserved so that mercy could be extended to everyone who believes.
God in the Old Testament vs. God in the New Testament
Some people conclude that the God of the Old Testament is angry while the God of the New Testament is loving. Jesus teaches otherwise. The God who judged evil in the Old Testament is the same God who, in Christ, willingly absorbed sin’s consequences upon Himself. His justice didn’t disappear; it was satisfied at the cross. His mercy didn’t begin in the New Testament; it had been present all along, patiently delaying judgment, making covenant after covenant, sending prophet after prophet, and ultimately giving His own Son.
That doesn’t remove every difficult question. There are passages that remain emotionally challenging and intellectually complex. Christians have wrestled with them for centuries. But the overarching story is one of redemption. The Old Testament is not primarily the story of a violent God; it is the story of a holy God protecting a promise in a broken world until the day His Son would arrive. Every difficult chapter is part of a much larger narrative that culminates in Jesus Christ, the One through whom God’s justice and mercy meet perfectly.
Perhaps the greatest question isn’t, “Why did God judge?” but, “What was God protecting?” The answer is astonishing. Through centuries of conflict, rebellion, failure, and grace, God was protecting the lineage, the promises, and the people through whom He would send the Saviour of the world. The violence of the Old Testament is never the end of the story. The cross is. There, we see the fullest revelation of God’s heart: holy enough to judge sin, loving enough to bear that judgment Himself, and faithful enough to keep His promise to redeem the world.
If you’ve got a question you’d like us to tackle, please comment below.
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