Violence and Killing in the Bible

We deserve to die because of our sins. We live only because of God’s grace, which He gives and can take away.
 
How God takes life is His call, and He can use humans as His instrument. For example, when sin was rampant in Jericho, God told Joshua to kill everyone there. Today, God gives our governments—not citizens—the authority to kill (Genesis 9:6).
 
So why is there so much killing in the Old Testament (OT) and the New Testament (NT)?
 
The OT focuses on God’s righteousness and holiness. Killings in the OT are God’s just wrath against sin. The NT focuses on God’s mercy in the form of Christ coming to save the world (John 3:17). When Jesus cited Isaiah 61:1-2, He did not include its ending: “the day of vengeance of our God” (Luke 4:16-20).
 
Now is the time of mercy, when sinners are welcomed to repentance. But this period won’t last forever. One day, the window of mercy will end. The NT closes with Revelation, which depicts lots of horrific killing.
 
Violence in the Bible also reflects the world we are in. Some of us live in a soft, easily offended, and emotionally fragile culture. But our history is full of violence and cruelty.
 
When humans betrayed God (Genesis 3), God cursed our bodies and other physical creations (Genesis 3:17-18, Romans 8:20-22). Moral evil is displayed in physical decay, including flood, famine, pandemic, and war. We have caused lots of violence and suffering.
 
Such violence in the world reveals our need for civil authority. The phrase “No kings in Israel” is repeated four times in Judges (18:1, 19:1, 17:6 & 21:25) preceding periods of violence when everyone did as they saw fit, with no restrain (19:1). So, let’s not romanticize our goodness and believe we don’t need police, armies, and laws in our society.
 
Finally, violence in the Bible shows the love of God. Observe the atrocity of Christ’s crucifixion. Such violence was in God’s original plan and is praised in Revelation (Revelation 13:8, 5:9). Our salvation is through the shedding of Christ’s blood. Because the violence He endured, we can be re-united to God.
 
Summarized from three short teachings by John Piper:
 “What Made It Okay for God to Kill Women and Children In the Old Testament?” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taYhbRm6pnU
 Why was God so harsh in the Old Testament but more forgiving in the New? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prlr5qa1UsE
 Why Is the Bible So Violent? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxszErfCwzo
 

 
圣经中的暴力和杀戮
 
人类面临死亡的现实乃是咎由自取。 今天能生存完全是上帝的恩典，祂既可以赐下，也可以收回。。
 
上帝如何收回生命是祂的决定。 祂可以使用人作为祂的工具。 例如当耶利哥的罪恶肆无忌惮时，上帝吩咐约书亚杀死其中的所有人。 今天，上帝赋予政府而不是公民杀戮的权力（创世记 9:6）。
 
既然如此，为何旧约中有那么多的杀戮？
 
旧约和新约聚焦于上帝不同的属性。 旧约中的杀戮显示公义的上帝对罪恶的忿怒。 新约着重于神的怜悯, 基督来为要拯救世人（约翰福音 3:17）， 例如基督引用以赛亚书 61:1-2 时没有包括结尾的部分——我们上帝报仇的日子（路加福音 4:16-20）。
 
现在是怜悯和赦免的时刻，是欢迎罪人的日子。 但有一天怜悯之窗会关闭， 新约以启示录结束，那里描绘了许多恐怖的杀戮。
 
圣经中的暴力也反映了世界上的暴力。 今天的一些人生活在一种软弱、容易被冒犯和情感脆弱的文化中，但真实的历史却充满了暴力和残忍。
 
人的犯罪带来了暴力和痛苦。 当人类背叛上帝时（创世记 3），上帝诅咒我们的身体和其它受造之物 (创世记 3:17-18，罗马书 8:20-22）。 道德败坏的恶果表现为洪水、饥荒、流行病和战争等灾害。
 
此外，圣经中的暴力表明需要民事权柄。 “以色列中没有王”在士师记中重复了四次（18:1、19:1、17:6 和 21:25）。最后两次紧随其后是各人任意而行, 有一次还伴随着暴力的场面（19:1），描述人类肆无忌惮的邪恶肆虐。 因此， 不要把人内心的善良浪漫化，以为不需要民事权柄。
 
最后，暴力显示了上帝的爱。 基督被钉十字架的残暴实际上是在上帝最初的计划中（启示录 13:8），甚至在天上的诗歌中得到赞美（启示录 5:9）。 上帝藉着基督的宝血和施加在祂身上的暴力来拯救世人。