God said to Noah, “I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them.” –Genesis 6:5-13
That one man, Noah, was described as righteous and blameless (Gen. 6:9). Like his ancestor Enoch (Gen. 5:21-24), Noah was said to walk with God. He and his family would be spared from the rising waters, and mankind through them, because God was yet to fulfill His promise to crush the serpent’s head (Gen. 3:15).
The passage emphasizes the violence of the age by referring twice to both it and the world’s corruption. Unlike the rest of his generation, Noah was not wicked, corrupt, or violent.
This negative attitude toward violence is not atypical for scripture. Yes, God uses violence in judgment–often calling upon the people of Israel to carry it out–but more often it is decried as a human failing.
The word violence appears 80+ times in our English versions of scripture, and it is overwhelmingly spoken of in a negative sense. For instance, these passages associate violence with wickedness, pride, injustice, deception, and other forms of evil:
► Violence is a reason people are judged: Ezekiel 8:17, 12:19; Joel 3:19; Obadiah 1:10; Habakkuk 2:8,17. Violence is also a form of judgment: Revelation 18:21. Those who live by violence very often die by it.
► Violence is often contrasted with godly qualities, such as as justice, righteousness, and gentleness: Prov. 10:6,11; Jer. 22:3; Ezek. 45:9; 1 Timothy 3:2-3. Church leaders should not be prone to violence.
►Violent men are feared by faithful people and not to be emulated or admired by them: Ps. 17:4; Prov. 3:31
► In Ezekiel 28:14-17, the fall of Lucifer is alluded to in the downfall of Tyre’s king. He is described as having been blameless but later corrupt and “internally filled with violence.” In Matthew 8:28, uncontrollable violence is associated with demon-possession.
In short, the willful violence of man displeases God.
The LORD tests the righteous and the wicked, and the one who loves violence His soul hates. –Psalm 11:5
Why is violence so abhorrent to God? Could it be because those who employ it regard too lightly the fact all people are made in God’s image? Violence can stop short of murder, but it nonetheless raises the likelihood of death. Violence is hard to contain and regulate. It opens the door to greater harm. People who engage in violence are being reckless with the life that God has given.
Examples from scripture
► Like Noah, God considered Job blameless and upright (Job 1:6-8). Also like Noah, he was non-violent (Job 16:17).
► David was a man who loved God and was loved by God, but he was prevented from building God’s temple because he'd shed so much blood on the earth (1 Chronicles 22:8).
► Warned by the prophet, Nineveh forsook its wicked and violent ways (Jonah 3:6-10). So did Paul when he came to faith in Christ. He thought he’d been righteously zealous for the truth, but needed to be forgiven those sins (1 Timothy 1:13). Thankfully, violent people are not outside the reach of redemption.
► Of course, our Savior is the greatest example. Although Jesus suffered humiliation, abuse, and murder at the hands of wicked men, He Himself did no violence.
He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. –Isaiah 53:9
The Bible does not negate all uses of violence, but this brief study should make us cautious. While a believer can use force to defend himself, his home, and his family, he doesn't want to take life or be known as a violent person. Historically, believers have more often been victims of violence rather than perpetrators of it. The gospel is not spread, nor the Kingdom advanced, through violence.
Next - Isaac vs. Ishmael: What Hagar needed to know
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Image credit: Illuminated manuscript Bible Pictures by William de Brailes, The Flood of Noah, 13th century. https://manuscripts.thewalters.org/viewer.php?id=W.106#page/18/mode/2up
Nice articulation
ReplyDeleteThank you!
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