Behold the Kindness and Severity of God

SYNOPSIS: Those who think of the Old Testament God as an angry, punishing deity are wrong. There is not one God of justice in the Old and another God of grace in the New; there is only a God who loves his children beyond description, patiently endures their rebellion, punishes the sin when they persist, but looks for ways to restore them to his favor as soon as he can. As the Apostle Paul exclaims, “Behold the kindness and severity of God.”

The Journey // Focus: Deuteronomy 30:1-4

In the future, when you experience all these blessings and curses I have listed for you, and when you are living among the nations to which the Lord your God has exiled you, take to heart all these instructions. If at that time you and your children return to the Lord your God, and if you obey with all your heart and all your soul all the commands I have given you today, then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes. He will have mercy on you and gather you back from all the nations where he has scattered you. Even though you are banished to the ends of the earth, the Lord your God will gather you from there and bring you back again.

I would argue that one of the disservices to the reader of our modern Bible translations is the addition of chapter and verse numbers. Of course, these were added to help us find our way around God’s Word. It would be quite difficult to find Psalm 119:64 when your pastor asks you to turn there during the sermon without a point of reference. So yes, chapter and verse numbers are helpful. I am not voting to get rid of them.

However, they were not there when these letters and books were originally penned. To that point, Moses didn’t divide Deuteronomy into sections: there were no chapters 28, 29 and 30; the blessings and the curses and the restoration from the curses were not seen as separate. It was one seamless sermon. That is critical to understanding God’s loving heart when he is warning the Israelites of the very bad things that will happen to them when they backslide into spiritual rebellion. If all you read about is the dark side of God’s punishment, you will fail to see the loving heart in which it is rooted.

The Apostle Paul’s word in Romans 11:22 perfectly describes the blessings/curses section of Deuteronomy: “Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off.” The kindness and severity of God—that is it. God is both loving and just. He would not be one if he were not the other. If he is not just, then he is not loving. If he is not loving, then he cannot be just.

Furthermore, you cannot truly grasp the severity of God’s justice if you do not understand the longing of his heart to redeem the punished from their punishment. Again, take note of Moses’ seamless proclamation of the blessings and curses—and the restoration of the Israelites when they have been exiled for their persistent rebellion. Even in their punishment, God looks for repentant hearts so he can restore them to the promised blessing:

If at that time you and your children return to the Lord your God, and if you obey with all your heart and all your soul all the commands I have given you today, then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes…. The Lord your God will change your heart and the hearts of all your descendants, so that you will love him with all your heart and soul and so you may live!” (Deuteronomy 30:2-3,6)

Those who think of the Old Testament God as an angry, punishing deity are wrong. There is not one God of justice in the Old and another God of grace in the New; there is only a God who loves his children beyond description, patiently endures their rebellion, punishes their sin when they persist, but looks for ways to restore them to his favor as soon as he can. In an example that falls far short, God is like a loving parent who warns his children about their misbehavior, sends them to time out when they cross the line, but does not leave them there forever. In fact, that parent counts down the time when pardon is possible.

That is the Lord our God—the One who longs to forgive and restore. That is why the prophet Joel offered this plea:

“Turn to me now, while there is time. Give me your hearts. Come with fasting, weeping, and mourning. Don’t tear your clothing in your grief, but tear your hearts instead,” says the Lord. Return to the Lord your God, for he is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. He is eager to relent and not punish. Who knows? Perhaps he will give you a reprieve, sending you a blessing instead of this curse.

An angry God—not in the least!