Facing God's Anger

"Behold, the day of the LORD comes, cruel, with wrath and fierce anger, to make the land a desolation and to destroy its sinners from it." - Isaiah 13:9

I know, you've probably been avoiding verses like these, because they're harsh, uncomfortable and hard to make sense of. But don't click away just yet!

Listen to what Paul writes in his second letter to Timothy:

"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." - 2 Timothy 3:16-17

That includes these hard to swallow passages like Isaiah 13. So what do we do with these harsh passages of God's wrath?

Well, first of all, context is always important. For example, Isaiah 13 is a vision God gave Isaiah regarding His judgment on Babylon. But the context of the rest of the book helps us understand it even better.

About the first half of the book of Isaiah is these kinds of prophecies and visions of judgment, but sprinkled throughout is language of hope, peace, and mercy. We can't separate them and only focus on the feel-good sections that prophesy about Jesus and ignore the judgment and wrath in-between.

The second thing we can do with these scriptures is ask God how He wants to reveal Himself in it. Prayerfully wrestle with the parts that are hard to understand and God will make himself known to you.

As I've been wrestling my way through Isaiah lately, I've come to see a lot more of God's mercy and compassion than I expected. Before you write me off as crazy, look at this:

"You will say in that day: I will give thanks to you, O LORD, for though you were angry with me, your anger turned away, that you might comfort me." - Isaiah 12:1

Just one chapter earlier, we get this refreshing passage full of hope and mercy instead of God's anger. Knowing that God intentionally placed these chapters right next to each other, how does that change how you feel about chapter 13?

Now, before we go any further, let me make clear that I claim no level of expertise on the book of Isaiah. In fact, I have far more questions than answers on how to interpret the vast majority of it so far. This post is only about sharing the little nuggets that God has revealed to me.

Okay, moving on!

"Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment." - James 2:12-13

The book of James tells us that mercy triumphs over judgment. This means that God prefers to give mercy over judgment. It does not mean that He won't deal out judgment.

We know our God is a merciful God. We also know our God is a just God. He is righteous, therefore when something is not righteous, He has to set it right. the way I understand it, God typically responds in two ways: extending mercy when given the opportunity, and judgment when there is nobody pleading for mercy.

Throughout the book of Isaiah, I've seen this mix of mercy and judgment and I believe that is God showing us in His character that His righteousness demands righteousness. Yet, because of his love and compassion toward us, He extends mercy. Then, it's in this book that we get some of the most notable prophecies of Jesus: the one who took God's judgment for us.

So what do we do with God's anger? Keep reading for context, prayerfully seek God's character in it. And lastly, I think we should fear it and be humbled.

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding." - Proverbs 9:10

I think of God's wrath similarly to a parent's wrath toward their child. When the child does something wrong, they need to be corrected and disciplined. However, as a parent, I'm sure you'd much rather show them mercy and compassion, right?

Therefore, we should read these passages of wrath as a humble reminder of God's righteousness and all the ways we deserve the full force of His judgment and anger. Yet, Jesus stepped in so that we might receive compassion and mercy instead.

Let this fear of God's wrath keep you from rebelling against Him so you can continue to live and walk in His compassion and mercy. Let it humble you and remind you to be thankful for His mercy when you receive it.