Monster vs. Messiah
Reconciling Old Testament violence with the character of God revealed in Jesus
I used to avoid the violent parts of the Old Testament like potholes.
Anyway, you know the stories… God commanding total annihilation, cities wiped out "by the sword," people celebrating divine vengeance as if it were a national holiday. And for a long time, I just avoided looking too closely. Because honestly, what was I supposed to do with a God who tells us to love our enemies on one page, but seems to slaughter them on another? Eventually, I had to face the question: Which God are we talking about here? The one who says "Thou shalt not kill"? Or the one who says, "Now go kill every man, woman, and child"? The one who tells Peter to put down the sword? Or the one who told Joshua to pick it up? At some point, these questions stopped being just interesting theological questions for me. They became the things that literally kept me awake staring at the ceiling at 3 o'clock in the morning.
Enter Brian Zahnd
It was pastor and author Brian Zahnd who finally helped me find my footing. For years, I'd been caught in this tension between the violent God of conquest and the peaceful Christ of the cross. Then I encountered something Zahnd wrote that cut right to the heart of my struggle:
"God is like Jesus. God has always been like Jesus. There has never been a time when God was not like Jesus. We haven't always known this—but now we do." -Brian Zahnd
That quote cracked something open inside me. Because I realized my real problem wasn't with the Bible…it was with how I was reading it.
Three Ways to Deal with the Disparity
If you're trying to reconcile Old Testament violence with Jesus' teaching about loving your enemies, you'll eventually face three options. Zahnd helped me see all three clearly, and why only one of them actually works.
Option 1: God changed.
Some people try to explain the whole thing by saying "Well, God just changed." They begin to explain that He was violent and wrathful back then but chilled out by the time Jesus showed up (like a dad who mellows after having his first kid). That sounds convenient, but it falls apart pretty quickly. Well, that is if you believe what Scripture keeps insisting, that God is unchanging:
"I the Lord do not change." Malachi 3:6.
"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." Hebrews 13:8.
If God is moody or still maturing, then He's not really trustworthy. Zahnd calls this version of God "a temperamental deity with a bloodlust problem." That kind of God is more like Zeus than Jesus (throwing lightning bolts when he's having a bad day). And I particularly don't find much comfort in knowing that God's character and nature has changed over time. Yikes.
Option 2: God is the same, and Jesus just doesn't show us the full picture.
This is probably the most common evangelical answer. God did command genocide. God did kill. And Jesus is still that same God…He's just not doing that right now. (But watch out, because he might start again later). Here's the problem: I don't think Jesus acts like a temporary spokesperson. He doesn't say "I'm just here to soften things for now" or "I'm only showing you God's gentle side." He says,
"If you've seen me, you've seen the Father" -John 14:9.
Jesus doesn't whisper, "God's actually more complicated than this," he says, "I and the Father are one." Jesus is the full revelation of God. And if that's true, we can't hold Jesus in one hand and holy war in the other. Jesus literally told us to love our enemies. How can we love our enemies and simultaneously want them dead? (I am really passionate about that question)
Option 3: The Old Testament sometimes got it wrong.
This is the option that made everything finally click for me. I know it sounds challenging at first, and I understand if it raises questions about biblical authority. But here's the important nuance: Not that the Old Testament is useless or full of lies, but that it's human…showing a people on a journey of slowly discovering what God is really like.
The Old Testament is the inspired telling of Israel's story of coming to know the living God. It's not a collection of divine dictation…it's a sacred journey.
Ancient Israel believed their victories were holy and their enemies were evil. They believed God was on their side, just like every other tribe in the ancient world. (No seriously, most ancient tribes thought they had God's blessing in their conquests) But Jesus doesn't come to confirm those assumptions, he comes to transform them. He says things like,
"You've heard it said, 'Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.' But I tell you, do not resist an evil person." Matthew 5:38-39.
He's not erasing Scripture; he's correcting our understanding of it. And to be honest I think God got blamed in the Old Testament for a lot of things He didn't want to happen.
So What Do We Do with the Old Testament?
If this interpretation resonates with you, you might be wondering, "So are we just supposed to throw it out?" No. Not at all. Jesus didn't come to erase the Old Testament; he came to fulfill it. Zahnd puts it so beautifully:
"The Old Testament is the inspired telling of the story of Israel's journey toward God. Jesus is the destination." -Brian Zahnd
I love that. Jesus is the destination. Jesus is the interpretive key. He's the light that shines backward through the whole story. When we read the Old Testament through the lens of Jesus, we start to see the scaffolding for what it is…temporary and incomplete. The Old Testament shows us how people gradually came to know God, while Jesus shows us who God really is.
Why It Matters
If we want to know what God is like, we start with Jesus. Because Jesus is not just part of the story, he is THE point of the story. Everything else bends toward Him.
"Jesus is what God has to say." - Brian Zahnd
So, when I read those stories of divine violence now, I don't pretend they don't exist…I read them honestly and wrestle with them. But I interpret them through the lens of the cross. And if I have to choose between a God who slaughters his people and a Savior who dies for them, I choose the crucified one every time.
One Final Thought
This might make you uncomfortable…maybe it rattles some things loose that used to feel settled. That's okay. That's what growth feels like. And to be honest, I am willing to admit that I might be wrong. And that's okay. (I will talk a lot about this in Friday’s Behind Mainline video) You don't have to have it all figured out, but don't walk away from the question. Because I think the God you'll find on the other side of the struggle is more beautiful than you could ever imagine.
And that God looks exactly like Jesus.
P.S. Every Friday, I share a behind-the-scenes video just for paid subscribers called Behind Mainline. If you’ve been tracking with these posts and want more depth, that’s where it’s happening.
Author’s Note:
Much of what I’ve written here was shaped directly or indirectly by the work of Brian Zahnd. His books challenged me, unsettled me, and ultimately helped me fall in love with Jesus all over again. I’m so grateful for his voice, his courage, and his commitment to reading Scripture through the lens of Christ. If anything in this essay resonates with you, I cannot recommend his work enough.
Recommended Reading by Brian Zahnd:
Sinners in the Hands of a Loving God – A compassionate, Christ-centered look at rethinking divine violence and wrath.
When Everything’s on Fire – A bold invitation to reconstruction for those deconstructing their faith.
Beauty Will Save the World – A call to a more beautiful Christianity shaped by the love and peace of Christ.
You can also explore more of his writing and sermons at brianzahnd.com.
"That quote cracked something open inside me." Me too -- thank you, Brian Zahnd! I love how you lay out the choices here, Beau. Option 3 has changed my life... my view of God, people, myself. After years of constriction, I can feel the increasing spaciousness in my soul... does that make sense? The ongoing process, of learning how to apply the Jesus hermeneutic, has been like jumping off a cliff -- and receiving a warm hug -- all at once. I just finished the book "A More Christlike Word" by Brad Jersak, and it was very helpful.
https://substack.com/@orangedogdiary?r=av56d&utm_campaign=profile&utm_medium=profile-page
“Jesus is the destination. Jesus is the interpretive key. He's the light that shines backward through the whole story.” - Love this. Thanks