by Archimandrite Vassilios Bakoyiannis
Some non-Christians resort to the Old Testament to prove that the Christian God is harsh. This view, however, is only half the truth. The whole truth is that God was equally merciful in the Old Testament as well. Here is an overview.
God in the Old Testament had to deal with a fallen world unlike any before, a world with its own psychology and nature. Accordingly, it required a special approach, one that aligned with this reality.
Its defining trait was hardness of heart. Parents burned their children alive, offering them as sacrifices to their gods (2 Kings 23:10).
In such a world, murder was an easy matter. With what ease Cain killed Abel; with what ease the meek Moses slew an Egyptian who was mistreating a fellow Israelite (Exodus 2:12).
In order to put an end to this barbaric and dangerous habit, the Lord established “an eye for an eye” (Exodus 21:24). Namely, if someone poked your eye out, you were allowed to poke his eye out—but no more than that; do not kill them. Thus, tension was released and did not escalate to murder.
Within this framework, we must look at the punishments that God sent to the Israelites when they sinned. They were not scandalized when they were punished. They would have been scandalized if they had not been punished; they would begin to doubt whether God is just!
This climate “forced” God to include in the law He gave to Moses (the Mosaic Law) some of the harsh customs of that time, such as the command that fornicators and prostitutes should be stoned to death (Deuteronomy 22:22). Had He annulled it, it would have been as though He was giving a green light to prostitution.
At the same time, He was teaching the Israelites:
“Do not hate your neighbor even in your thoughts” (Leviticus 19:17). In an era when hatred was natural, God demanded internal purity.
Despite the harshness of the times, God taught mercy: “You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge” (Leviticus 19:18). In an era when revenge was natural, God demanded internal purity.
To employers, He commanded justice: “Do not wrong anyone. Pay the worker his wages on the same day, before the sun sets or you will be sinning” (Deuteronomy 24:14-15).
Even slaves were protected: “If you buy a slave, you may keep him for six years. In the seventh year, you must set him free, and not empty-handed, reward him for his labor and send him off with gifts” (Deuteronomy 15:12-13).
God even cared for animals! “Do not yoke an ox and a donkey together to plow your field” (Deuteronomy 22:10), because the ox is stronger and the donkey will suffer. “Do not muzzle the ox while it treads out the grain” (Deuteronomy 25:4) so it can eat freely as it works. Only a merciful God could have said such things at such a time.
The Archimandrite Vassilios Bakoyiannis was born in 1953. He was ordained in 1980 and serves the Holy Metropolis of Patras in Greece.
He is a graduate of the Theological Academy of Athens and of the Theological School of the University of Belgrade. He received his M.A. in The-ology from St. Vladimir’s Seminary and his Ph.D. from the Atlantic International University (U.S.A.). In 1974 he began writing and since then has written over 50 spiritual books. The publication of his books in Greece has been exclusively undertaken by “Thavor” publications, (www.ekdoseisthavor.blogspot.com) which have been exclusively established for this purpose and for which he exclusively writes. Several of his books have been translated from the Greek language into English and published by www.archangelsbooks.com.
