DEAD SEA FINALLY DRIED UP & NOW THIS HAS EMERGED
Things that God
absolutely hates
7
abominations to the Lord
Proverbs 6:16-19, NIV
There are six things the LORD hates,
seven
that are detestable to him:
haughty eyes,
a lying tongue,
hands that
shed innocent blood,
a heart that
devises wicked schemes,
feet that are
quick to rush into evil,
a false witness who
pours out lies and a
person who
stirs up
conflict in the community
The Dead Sea
Has finally Dried Up
After centuries of being a natural marvel and a
popular tourist destination.
But what initially appeared to be a geological event is now
becoming a nightmare for the area.
Scientists are perplexed
by what is happening because it is terrifying.
Join us as we reveal the startling
Truth
behind the eerie occurrences
that are now endangering the region's safety
and explore the
potential ramifications for the rest of the world.
The Dead Sea, the salty
lake located at
The Lowest Point on Earth,
is gradually getting smaller under the intense
Middle Eastern Sun
For those who live close to
It’s boundaries,
It is a
Slow-Moving Issue,
But it will be difficult to obtain enough
Water
To keep the Sea Alive
When Jesus said,
“I thirst,”
From The Cross,
He was alluding to a prophecy in
Psalm 22:15:
“My mouth is dried up like a
potsherd, And my
Tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth;
You lay me in the Dust of Death.”
A Potsherd is a
Broken Piece of ceramic material,
Especially one FOUND on an archaeological Site
The Bible uses symbolism
To Deepen
The Message God has for His people
One such symbol is that of
Potter and Clay
The most detailed example is found in
Jeremiah 18.
God instructed the prophet Jeremiah to go to
A potter’s house
where God would
Illustrate
His relationship with
Israel
Verses 2–6 say,
“So I went down to the
Potter’s House,
and I saw him working at the wheel
But the Pot
He was shaping from the clay was
marred in his hands;
So the
Potter formed it into another pot,
shaping it as seemed best to him
Then
The Word of the Lord came to me.
He said,
‘Can I not do with YOU,
Israel,
as
This Potter Does?’
declares the Lord.
‘Like clay in the hand of the potter,
so are You in my hand,
Israel.’”
Although God allows
Human Beings
Freedom to make Moral Choices,
He demonstrates often that
He is still
sovereign and in control
of
His universe
He does whatever He wills with
His Creation
(Psalm 135:6; 115:3; Daniel 4:35; Isaiah 46:9–11).
We
Need frequent reminders that God Is
Over All
and
Can do as He Pleases
whether
We understand His actions or not
(Romans 9:20–21)
He owes us nothing
yet chooses to
extend to us the utmost
Patience,
kindness, and compassion
(Jeremiah 9:24; Psalm 36:10; 103:4, 17).
The Potter Working With the Clay
Reminds us that God is
At Work
in us
“For His Good Pleasure”
(Philippians 2:13). Isaiah 45:9 says,
“Woe to those who
quarrel with their Maker,
those who are nothing but
potsherds among the potsherds
on
The Ground. Does the CLAY
Say to the
POTTER
What are YOU making??
Does your work say, ‘
The Potter has No Hands?
God has Created
each of us The Way
He wants us:)
(Psalm 139:13–16; Exodus 4:11)
It is our responsibility
to take
what He has given us and use it
His Glory and Pleasure
In doing so, we FIND
our
Ultimate Fulfillment
Rather than live with disappointment and dissatisfaction
with what God has or has not given us,
we can choose to Thank Him in everything
(Ephesians 5:20; Colossians 3:15)
Just as the Clay finds its
Highest Purpose when it
Remains Pliable
IN THE
HANDS of the POTTER,
So our Lives
Fulfill their Highest Purpose
When We Let Our
Potter
Have His way with us
God is Angry
When we Suppress or Ignore
The Truth
Romans 1:16-20,
For I AM not ashamed of
The Gospel
for it is the
Power of God for Salvation
To everyone who Believes,
to the
Jew first and also to The Greek
For in it the
Righteousness of God is Revealed
from
Faith for Faith,
as it is written, “
The Righteous shall Live
By Faith.”
For the
Wrath of God
is
Revealed from Heaven
Against all
Ungodliness and Unrighteousness
of Men, Who by
their
unrighteousness
suppress
The
Truth
For what can be known about God is plain to them,
because
God has shown it to them
For his
invisible attributes, namely,
his
eternal power and divine nature,
have
been clearly perceived,
ever since the creation of the world,
in the things
that have been made.
So they are without excuse.
Mark 3:5,ESV
He looked around at them in anger and,
deeply distressed
at their stubborn hearts, said to the man,
“Stretch out your hand.”
He stretched it out, and
his hand
was
completely restored.
Hebrews 11:6, KJV
But without faith
it is
impossible to please him:
for he that
cometh to God
must believe that he is,
and that
he is a rewarder
of them that
diligently seek him
God is mad when we
don’t
Honor Him,
when we
Dishonor
Him
Romans 1:21, ESV
For although they knew God,
they did not
honor him as God or give thanks to him,
but they became futile in their thinking,
and their
foolish hearts were darkened.
John 2:14-16, ESV
In The Temple
he found those who were
selling oxen and sheep and pigeons,
and the money-changers sitting
there And making a whip of cords,
He DROVE
Them All Out
of
The Temple
with the
sheep and Oxen
And he poured out the
Coins of the money-changers
and
Overturned their Tables
And he told those who sold the pigeon
Take these things away;
do not make
my Father’s house a house of
Trade
John 11:32-35,
Now when Mary
came to where Jesus was
and saw him,
she fell at his feet, saying to him,
“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled.
And he said,
“Where have you laid him?”
They said to him, “Lord, come and see.”
Jesus wept.
Angry God is angry
when we
GIVE HIS GLORY
away to another
Romans 1:22-23,
Claiming to be wise,
they became fools, and exchanged the
Glory of the immortal God
for images
resembling mortal man
and birds and animals and
creeping things
Jeremiah 9:23-24, NKJV Thus says the LORD:
Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the mighty man glory in his might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
But let him who Glories
Glory in this,
That he
Understands and
Knows Me,
That I AM the LORD,
exercising lovingkindness, judgment,
and righteousness
In the earth.
For in these I delight,”
says the LORD.
God is sad when we don’t repent of sin
Genesis 6:5-6,
The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth,
and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart
was only evil continually.
And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth,
and it grieved him to his heart.
Ezekiel 18:23,
Do I have any pleasure at all that the
wicked should die?
says the Lord GOD, and not that
he should turn from his ways and live?
Ezekiel 18:31-32
Cast away from you all the
transgressions
which you have committed,
and get yourselves
anew heart and anew spirit
For why should you die, O house of Israel?
For I have no pleasure
in the death of one who dies, says the Lord GOD.
Therefore TURN and LIVE!
In Summary
Things that make God sad
are things that show that we’re
Not Living
The Way he desires for us to live.
What makes God cry?
Things that make God cry include
our sin, our hurt, and
our
pain and grief
It is always helpful to remember that
God’s commandments for us are for
our own benefit,
God loves us so much and he always
wants what is best for us.
God wants us
To Glorify Him in
all we do…
We can Trust Him :)!
Jeremiah 29:11-13,
For I know the plans I have for you,
declares the Lord,
Plans to prosper you and
Not to harm you,
Plans to give you Hope and a Future
Then you will call on me
and COME
and pray to me, and I will
listen to you
You will Seek Me And Find Me
When you Seek
Me with All Your Heart
The Wrath of God
is a
Precise and controlled response
to the
Belittling of His Holiness
Everyone who perishes under the wrath of God
in eternity will
Not be because God LOST his temper
with them and mistreated them.
There is no shortage of fire
and brimstone
to be
FOUND in the Bible.
It's clear from the opening pages of Genesis
that God gets angry sometimes, and he's
not afraid to show it.
Believers, doubters, and everyone in between have been
debating what it all means for centuries, but one thing is for certain:
when it comes to wrath, no one does it like God.
Jesus Curses a Fig Tree
Jesus had just arrived at Jerusalem amid
great fanfare and great expectations,
but then proceeds to
cleanse the Temple
and curse the barren
fig tree.
Both had significance
as to
The spiritual condition of Israel
With His cleansing of the Temple and
His criticism of the
worship that was going on there
(Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17),
Jesus was
effectively denouncing
Israel’s
worship of God
With the cursing of the fig tree,
He was symbolically
denouncing Israel as a nation
and, in a sense, even
denouncing unfruitful
“Christians”
That is,
People who Profess
to be
Christian
But have No evidence of
A relationship with
Christ
The Presence
of a
Fruitful Fig Tree
was considered to be a
symbol of
Blessing and Prosperity for the
Nation of Israel.
Likewise, the absence or death of a fig tree
would symbolize
judgment and rejection
Symbolically, the fig tree
represented
the spiritual deadness of Israel,
who while very religious
outwardly
with all the sacrifices and ceremonies, were
spiritually barren because of their
sins
By cleansing
The Temple
and
cursing the fig tree, causing it
to wither and die,
Jesus was pronouncing His coming judgment of Israel
and demonstrating
His Power
To Carry it out
It also teaches the
principle that
religious profession and
observance
are not enough
To guarantee
salvation, unless there is the
FRUIT of genuine salvation
evidenced
in the life of the person.
James would later echo this truth when he wrote that
“faith without works is dead”
(James 2:26).
The lesson of the fig tree is that we should bear spiritual fruit
(Galatians 5:22-23),
not just give an appearance
of religiosity.
God judges fruitlessness,
and expects that those who have a relationship
with Him will
“bear much fruit” (John 15:5-8).
Sodom and Gomorrah
According to the Bible, Sodom and Gomorrah
were two cities situated on the Jordan River that God
destroyed in the Book of Genesis.
After God informs Abraham of his plans, Abraham pleads for the city but is unable to find even 10 righteous men worth sparing. God ultimately destroys the cities with “fire and sulfur,” although he does spare Abraham’s nephew Lot and his family as a courtesy to Abraham
.
However, not even all of Lot’s family
escapes God’s wrath.
As they are preparing the flee the city of Sodom,
An angel of God
instructs them
To not look back
as
they ride away.
Lot’s wife can’t resist
though and does--
at which point she is turned
into a
Pillar of Salt
No one can say for sure why salt,
but it’s clearly
not an ideal situation regardless.
Humans are usually the objects of God’s wrath,
but that’s not always the case. For example, in the
Gospels of Matthew and Mark,
Jesus is hungry and finds a fig tree.
When he sees it has
No Fruit to Give
he curses it by saying,
“May no fruit ever come
from you again!”
This narrative remains a bit enigmatic
10 Plagues of Egypt
In the Book of Exodus,
The Israelites are being held as slaves in
Egypt
God instructs Moses
to tell
Pharaoh to, “Let my people go,”
and when
Pharaoh refuses, he unleashes a torrent of
10 plagues on everything
in Egypt-
-land, livestock, plant life, and
even people.
These plagues include
turning the Nile river to blood,
afflicting humans and animals with boils,
and plunging the
land of Egypt into perpetual darkness.
The story reaches its climax when
God sends an angel of death
to kill the
firstborn son
in every
Egyptian household.
Things did not go so well for God in the years between Adam and Noah.
Adam himself disobeyed God,
and that pretty much opened the disobedience floodgates for every human that came after him. In Genesis chapter 6, God goes as far as to say that he regrets creating humankind and devises a plan to wipe them out with a global flood.
From God’s perspective, this works like a charm--he set out to destroy humanity and accomplished his goal. However, even God’s wrath has its limits, and therefore he spares Noah and his family and establishes a covenant with him that he will never destroy the earth by a flood again.
God Curses Cain
In the Book of Genesis, Cain and Abel are the
first two sons of Adam and Eve.
After offering individual sacrifices to God, Cain is enraged to
learn that God prefers his brother Abel’s sacrifice over his own.
Naturally, the correct response is to murder Abel.
When God finds out what Cain has done,
he springs into wrath mode and
levels a curse at Cain. For his misdeeds, he will be forced to
wander the earth for the rest of his life.
On top of that,
he also places a curse on anyone who attempts to murder
Cain--ensuring that the punishment will last
until his old age.
Look UP toward Whom they have Pierced6/12/2023
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0 CommentsIdentifying The Wraths of God in the Bible6/11/2023
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Leviticus 13:45
“The leprous person who has the disease
shall
wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose,
and he shall cover his upper lip and cry out,
“Unclean, unclean”
Mark 3:28–30:
"Truly I tell you, people will be forgiven for their
sins and whatever blasphemies they utter;
but whoever
blasphemes against
The Holy Spirit
can never have forgiveness, but
is guilty of an
eternal sin—for they had said,
"He has an unclean spirit."
Leviticus 13–14:
Leprosy
Leviticus 13–14 addresses the disease of leprosy
From the descriptions in these chapters, it appears that
leprosy
included several different infectious
skin diseases.
For more information about leprosy, see “leper” and “leprosy”
Leviticus 14
Compare the Cleansing of Leprosy
to the Cleansing of Our Sins
Because leprosy was so visible and involved the
decay or corruption of the body,
it served as an excellent symbol of sinfulness.
Sin corrupts someone spiritually
the way leprosy corrupts someone physically
Leviticus 14 describes what a man must do
to be ceremonially, or religiously, clean
after being healed of leprosy.
We can see parallels between the process of being
cleansed of leprosy
and how we overcome the effects of sin.
(a) cedar wood is known as something that helps preserve
other things from decay and corruption;
(b) the color scarlet is red, reminding us of blood, which is
the symbol of life and the Atonement;
(c) hyssop was used in the Old Testament as a purifying plant; and
(d) blood and water are symbols of birth (see Moses 6:59).
Verse 9. Newborns usually have little or no hair, except for on their heads. What might the message of this verse be?
(see 3 Nephi 11:37)
Verses 10–14. Recall similar symbolism in Exodus 28–29. Verses 15–18.
The olive tree
is an emblem of peace and purity,
and the
olive oil became a symbol of the
Holy Ghost and doing
righteous deeds and acts of service
(see D&C 45:56–57).
How is this part of the process
of
becoming clean from sin?
Ultimately, what makes repentance possible?
Leviticus 14, when an individual
acquired leprosy, he or she was required to
live outside the camp
The same is true of sin.
When we sin, we cut ourselves off from
Full communion
with the
Lord and His Church.
We may not be permitted
to take the sacrament
or
receive a temple recommend
The steps in becoming
ceremonially clean of leprosy
are found in in Leviticus 14
https://living.alot.com/entertainment/30-times-god-unleashed-his-wrath-in-the-bible--17169
Things that God absolutely hates – 7 abominations to the Lord
Proverbs 6:16-19, NIV There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.
God is angry when we suppress or ignore
The Truth
Romans 1:16-20,
For I AM not ashamed of
The Gospel
for it is the
Power of God for Salvation
to everyone who believes,
to the
Jew first and also to The Greek
For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
Mark 3:5,ESV He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored.
Hebrews 11:6, KJV But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
God is mad when we don’t honor him, when we dishonor him
Romans 1:21, ESV For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
John 2:14-16, ESV In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there. And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. And he told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; do not make my Father’s house a house of trade.”
John 11:32-35, ESV Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus wept.
Angry God is angry when we give his glory away to another
Romans 1:22-23, ESV Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
Jeremiah 9:23-24, NKJV Thus says the LORD: Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches; But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,” says the LORD.
God is sad when we don’t repent of sin
Genesis 6:5-6, ESV The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.
Ezekiel 18:23, NKJV Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? says the Lord GOD, and not that he should turn from his ways and live?
Ezekiel 18:31-32, NKJV
Cast away from you all the
transgressions
which you have committed,
and get yourselves
anew heart and anew spirit
For why should you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies, says the Lord GOD. Therefore turn and live!
In Summary
Things that make God sad are things that show that we’re not living the way he desires for us to live. What makes God cry? Things that make God cry include our sin, our hurt, and our pain and grief.
It is always helpful to remember that God’s commandments for us are for our own benefit, God loves us so much and he always wants what is best for us. God wants us to glorify him in all we do… Dear Friends, we can trust him :)!
Jeremiah 29:11-13, NIV For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. Amen.
15 Times God
Unleashed
His Wrath in the Bible
God's wrath is not a reckless rage, an uncontrollable anger,
a senseless fury, or an unjust vengeance.
The wrath of God is a precise and controlled response
to the belittling of his holiness.
Everyone who perishes under the wrath of God
in eternity will not be because God lost his temper
with them and mistreated them.
15 Times God Unleashed His Wrath in the Bible
There is no shortage of fire
and brimstone
to be found in the Bible.
It's clear from the opening pages of Genesis that God gets angry sometimes,
and he's not afraid to show it.
Believers, doubters, and everyone in between have been debating what it all means for centuries, but one thing is for certain:
when it comes to wrath, no one does it like God.
Here are 15 examples
from the Bible of times when God unleashed his wrath.
Jesus Curses a Fig Tree
Jesus had just arrived at Jerusalem amid great fanfare and great expectations, but then proceeds to cleanse the Temple and curse the barren fig tree. Both had significance as to the spiritual condition of Israel.
With His cleansing of the Temple and His criticism of the worship that was going on there (Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17),
Jesus was effectively denouncing
Israel’s worship of God.
With the cursing of the fig tree, He was symbolically denouncing Israel as a nation and, in a sense, even denouncing
unfruitful “Christians”
(that is, people who profess to be Christian but have no evidence of a relationship with Christ).
The presence of a fruitful fig tree
was considered to be a symbol of blessing and prosperity for the nation of Israel. Likewise, the absence or
death of a fig tree would symbolize
judgment and rejection.
Symbolically, the fig tree represented the spiritual deadness of Israel, who while very religious outwardly with all the sacrifices and ceremonies, were spiritually barren because of their sins. By cleansing the Temple and cursing the fig tree, causing it to wither and die, Jesus was pronouncing His coming judgment of Israel and demonstrating His power to carry it out.
It also teaches the principle that religious profession and observance are not enough to guarantee salvation, unless there is the fruit of genuine salvation evidenced in the life of the person.
James would later echo this truth when he wrote that
“faith without works is dead”
(James 2:26).
The lesson of the fig tree is that we should bear spiritual fruit
(Galatians 5:22-23),
not just give an appearance
of religiosity.
God judges fruitlessness,
and expects that those who have a relationship
with Him will
“bear much fruit” (John 15:5-8).
Sodom and Gomorrah
According to the Bible, Sodom and Gomorrah
were two cities situated on the Jordan River that God
destroyed in the Book of Genesis.
After God informs Abraham of his plans, Abraham pleads for the city but is unable to find even 10 righteous men worth sparing. God ultimately destroys the cities with “fire and sulfur,” although he does spare Abraham’s nephew Lot and his family as a courtesy to Abraham
.
However, not even all of Lot’s family escapes God’s wrath. As they are preparing the flee the city of Sodom, an angel of God instructs them to not look back as they ride away.
Lot’s wife can’t resist
though and does--
at which point she is turned into a
pillar of salt.
No one can say for sure why salt, but it’s clearly not an ideal situation regardless.
Humans are usually the objects of God’s wrath, but that’s not always the case. For example, in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark,
Jesus is hungry and finds a fig tree.
When he sees it has no fruit to give, he curses it by saying,
“May no fruit ever come from you again!”
This narrative remains a bit enigmatic to this day, but ultimately
we’re left with a story about a God yelling at a tree.
It’s not the most fantastical display of his wrath,
but it’s definitely the most unusual.
10 Plagues of Egypt
In the Book of Exodus, the Israelites are being held as slaves in Egypt.
God instructs Moses to tell Pharaoh to, “Let my people go,”
and when Pharaoh refuses, he unleashes a torrent of
10 plagues on everything in Egypt-
-land, livestock, plant life, and even people.
These plagues include turning the Nile river to blood, afflicting humans and animals with boils, and plunging the land of Egypt into perpetual darkness.
The story reaches its climax when God sends an angel of death
to kill the
firstborn son
in every Egyptian household.
Things did not go so well for God in the years between Adam and Noah. Adam himself disobeyed God, and that pretty much opened the disobedience floodgates for every human that came after him. In Genesis chapter 6, God goes as far as to say that he regrets creating humankind and devises a plan to wipe them out with a global flood.
From God’s perspective, this works like a charm--he set out to destroy humanity and accomplished his goal. However, even God’s wrath has its limits, and therefore he spares Noah and his family and establishes a covenant with him that he will never destroy the earth by a flood again.
God Curses Cain
In the Book of Genesis, Cain and Abel are the
first two sons of Adam and Eve.
After offering individual sacrifices to God, Cain is enraged to
learn that God prefers his brother Abel’s sacrifice over his own.
Naturally, the correct response is to murder Abel.
When God finds out what Cain has done,
he springs into wrath mode and
levels a curse at Cain. For his misdeeds, he will be forced to
wander the earth for the rest of his life.
On top of that,
he also places a curse on anyone who attempts to murder
Cain--ensuring that the punishment will last
until his old age.
The Seven Bowls of God's Wrath
The Book of Revelation often reads like one big bundle of wrath, but there are some spots that are more wrathful than others. Case in point-
-the seven bowls of God’s wrath found in
Revelation 16 which correspond to
horrific plagues released upon the earth.
At this point in the narrative, we’ve already been through
two other sets of plagues,
but the third and final set found in the
seven bowls really take the cake.
They include
poisoning all bodies of water on earth,
darkness over the kingdom of the antichrist,
and a global earthquake--complete with 100-pound hailstones.
In the Book of Revelation, God’s primary antagonists are the
two beasts--a beast from the sea and a
beast from the Earth.
Since the book was written, Christians have been debating on what these two figures represent, but regardless of who they are, things don’t go well for them.
Near the end of the book, the
two beasts attempt a war with God.
When they inevitably lose,
they are thrown into
“the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.”
The Assyrian Captivity
After God gives the Promised Land to the Israelites in the Old Testament, the unified kingdom of Israel splits into two.
In the northern kingdom,
they have a tendency to worship other gods,
which is obviously a problem for God.
So, he enlists the help of the enemies of the Israelites--the Assyrians.
King Tilgath of Assyria conquers the northern kingdom,
causing its people to go into exile.
God had told the Israelites before that he would
take the land from them if they disobeyed,
and he made good on his promise.
Moses & Others Not Allowed to Enter Canaan
Remember all that wandering in the desert the Israelites did?
That wasn’t a lack of GPS--it was God’s wrath. In the
Book of Numbers, 12
Israelite spies are sent to scope out Canaan, the
land God had promised them.
When their report is all doom and gloom,
the Israelites don’t really want to enter.
God isn’t thrilled,
and so he forces them to wander in the desert for
40 years until
that generation of complainers
had died.
Poor Moses, God’s right-hand man,
gets denied entry
for even pettier reasons.
Once when the Israelites were thirsty, God instructs Moses to
speak to a rock, at which point it would give water.
Instead, Moses in his anger strikes the rock. And for that alone,
he never gets the chance to enter the land that God had promised
him and all the Israelites.
Jesus Cleanses the Temple
For the most part, Jesus is deserving of his “meek and mild” descriptor.
But there are few times in the Gospels when he flips that
(among other things)
on its head.
In all four Gospels, there is an account of
Jesus entering the Temple at Jerusalem, where
he proceeds to
flip tables and shout at the
money changers doing business there.
The specifics of his ire
vary from Gospel to Gospel, but it’s clear
that God was not down with
the commerce going down in the Temple.
The Golden Calf
God may have kept Moses out of the Promised Land,
but for most of his life, the two were on the same page--especially
when it came to the disobedience of the Israelites.
The story of the golden calf in Exodus is the
perfect example.
While Moses was up on Mount Sinai receiving
the 10 Commandments from God, the rest of the Israelites
were growing restless--to the point where they gave
up on this Yahweh character and
decided to construct a
golden calf
to
worship instead
Moses and God are none too pleased.
God suggests
complete annihilation,
but
Moses has a compromise-
-he ground the calf into powder,
put it in water,
and forced the Israelites to drink it.
David & Bathsheba
When David commits adultery with Bathsheba and then
has her husband killed, it’s clear David is going to be punished.
But really, David himself makes out okay--instead,
God punishes him by hurting those around him.
As punishment for adultery, David and Bathsheba’s
unnamed child dies shortly after it is born.
However, God would go on to punish more of David’s children
for the murder he was responsible for.
Ananias & Sapphira
Ananias and Sapphira can be found in the Book of Acts,
and they prove that
you can’t pull a fast one on God.
In the Book of Acts, the early church pooled
their money and resources in common.
Ananias and Sapphira sell a plot of land
and give most
of the proceeds to the church but keep some for themselves.
When Peter calls the two out, they both drop dead on the spot.
Phineas the Priest
God makes it very clear that the
Israelites are supposed
to worship no one but him,
but they just can’t seem to get
the message.
In Numbers 25, it says that
Moabite women
seduced the Israelites
into
worshiping their gods
God sends a plague that kills 24,000,
and it only
ends when Phineas the priest impales an unlucky couple
who happen to show up at the wrong time.
It’s one of the more gruesome accounts in the Bible.
Elisha and the Bears
In the Book of 2 Kings, Elijah is carried up to Heaven
in a chariot of fire,
at which point Elisha takes over as a prophet of Israel.
As he is walking to Bethel, a group of young people tease him,
telling him to
“go up bald-head!”
How does God resolve the issue? Bears, of course.
Just then, two bears emerge from the forest
and maul 42 of the young people.
Baldness is clearly
a serious issue for God.
“God is love. That is His Nature and His love is not provoked,
“God’s anger is different…
The Bible never tells us that God is wrath.
It tells us that He is slow to anger
(Psalm 103:8).”
What Makes God Angry?
1.) Failure to Revere His Holiness
David and all the house of Israel were celebrating before the Lord, with songs and lyres and harps and tambourines and castanets and cymbals. And when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah put out his hand to the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and God struck him down there because of his error, and he died there beside the ark of God. (2 Samuel 6:5-7)
Take this passage one section at a time. First, “all the house of Israel were celebrating before the Lord.” The mood was great, and everyone was happy! Second, Uzzah commits what the Scripture says was an “error,” and touches the ark of God. And third, God strikes Uzzah down.
You might think, What is God doing? The oxen stumbled! It wasn’t really Uzzah’s fault. I have the same thoughts, and I am certainly not an expert on this passage. But I do know this: God is perfect and all His actions are righteous. He makes no mistakes. He never overreacts.
This passage then communicates, as I see it, that God’s holiness is serious business. Any offense, minor or major, unintentional or intentional, made a person liable to death. Fear the Lord, and honor His Holy Name with the utmost reverence.
And this is exactly why we praise Jesus. We are all liable to death, each one of us has fallen short of the glory of God. But God sent His own Son to provide a refuge for us, and Jesus took on the full wrath of God at the cross for the sake of those who believe in Him.
2.) Idolatry
You have done evil above all who were before you
and have gone and made for yourself
other gods and metal images, provoking me to anger.”
(1 Kings 14:9)
Idolatry is not only against the Ten Commandments,
not only bad for our spiritual development,
not only foolish and hopeless but also something that
makes God angry.
Imagine a Christian, married man tempted toward lust. God convicts Him, and the man knows it is against God’s Word. He senses that he’d keep himself back from fruitfulness in the spirit by engaging in the flesh. And he knows it is all fake, false, and foolish. Yet he continues.
He may wake from his stupor in sin when he confesses to his wife, and she rightfully says, “You have hurt me tremendously. And I am angry with you.” There is grace here!
She could respond with indifference, not caring for the marriage or for the state of his soul. But her anger is an act of grace because it is a catalyst bringing the man back into right living.
God’s anger, which we provoke when we trust in
anything other than His name,
aims to bring us back into right relationship with Him.
It is an act of tremendous grace.
3.) Sin, Injustice, and Crime
Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die.” (2 Samuel 12:5)
David had sinned greatly. God described what David did:
You despised the word of the Lord… struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and have taken his wife to be your wife. (2 Samuel 12:9)
Before God said this to David through Nathan the prophet, God first had Nathan
tell David the story of a rich man who stole a poor man’s only lamb.
I once heard someone say that humans have a
stronger judicial sentiment (ability to see wrong in others)
than moral conscience (ability to see wrong in ourselves).
This seems true here with David.
Though he was living in sin,
he could still see and judge sin clearly in someone else.
David reflected the righteous judgment and anger of the Lord in his response to the story.
He was provoked to great anger by the sin, the crime,
the injustice
committed by the rich man.
Don’t provoke your Lord
to anger by sin, injustice, and crime.
Honor the Lord
by hating sin, injustice, and crime—and
trust Him
to be the perfect Judge the world desperately needs
Offer Your Anger to the Lord Jesus says,
For with the judgment you pronounce
you will be judged
(Matthew 7:2).
Is there a better passage to demonstrate this truth than 2 Samuel 12:5?
The man that was the rightful target of David’s righteous anger was himself!
This is why Jesus Christ is the
Judge
Because only He can measure up
to the measure by which He judges
Jesus suffered severely throughout His trials, torture, and crucifixion (Matthew 27; Mark 15; Luke 23; John 19). His suffering was physical: Isaiah 52:14 declares, “There were many who were appalled at Him—His appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any man and his form marred beyond human likeness.” His suffering was emotional: “All the disciples deserted him and fled” (Matthew 26:56). His suffering was spiritual: “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us” (2 Corinthians 5:21). Jesus had the weight of the sins of the entire world on Him (1 John 2:2). It was sin that caused Jesus to cry out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46). Jesus’ brutal physical suffering was augmented by His having to bear the guilt of our sins and die to pay our penalty (Romans 5:8).
Isaiah predicted Jesus’ suffering: “He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:3, 5). This passage specifies the reason for Jesus’ suffering: “for our transgressions,” for our healing, and to bring us peace.
Jesus told His disciples that His suffering was certain: “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life” (Luke 9:22; cf. 17:25). Note the word must—He must suffer, and He must be killed. The suffering of Christ was God’s plan for the salvation of the world.
Psalm 22:14–18 details some of the suffering of the Messiah: “I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart has turned to wax; it has melted away within me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay me in the dust of death. Dogs have surrounded me; a band of evil men has encircled me, they have pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones; people stare and gloat over me. They divide my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing.” In order for this and other prophecies to be fulfilled, Jesus had to suffer.
Why did Jesus have to suffer so badly? The principle of the innocent dying for the guilty was established in the garden of Eden: Adam and Eve received garments of animal skin to cover their shame (Genesis 3:21)—thus, blood was shed in Eden. Later, this principle was set in the Mosaic Law: “It is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life” (Leviticus 17:11; cf. Hebrews 9:22). Jesus had to suffer because suffering is part of sacrifice, and Jesus was “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). Jesus’ physical torture was part of the payment required for our sins. We are redeemed “with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect” (1 Peter 1:19).
Jesus’ suffering on the cross showed the devastating nature of sin, the wrath of God, the cruelty of humanity, and the hatred of Satan. At Calvary, mankind was allowed to do his worst to the Son of Man as He became the Redeemer of mankind. Satan may have thought he had won a great victory, but it was through the cross that the Son of God triumphed over Satan, sin, and death. “Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out” (John 12:31; cf. Colossians 2:15).
Jesus suffered and died in order to secure salvation for all who would believe. The night of His arrest, as Jesus prayed in Gethsemane, He committed His all to the task: “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42). The cup of suffering was not taken from Christ; He drank it all for us. There was no other way for us to be saved.
pot·sherd
noun
- a broken piece of ceramic material, especially one found on an archaeological site.