The Monster's acceptance of moral culpability is a refreshing contrast with Victor's nearly invincible innocence. And if slaves can gain their freedom (1 Corinthians 7:21), Paul encouraged this. Moreover, the attacks on cities were more like “disabling raids,” not acts of utter decimation, as Egyptologist Kenneth Kitchen argues: “these campaigns were essentially disabling raids: they were not territorial conquests with instant Hebrew occupation. Both claims are contrary to reason and evidence, as well as the biblical understanding of God’s nature. One of the most strident charges of the New Atheists is that the depiction of God in the Old Testament makes him out to be an immoral, blood-thirsty, horrible, petty and provincial deity. Yet it is self-confessedly less than ideal. to continue reading. Exodus 34:6) and worldwide salvific purposes. Indeed, God said, “I will completely destroy them and make them an object of horror and scorn, and an everlasting ruin” (Jeremiah 25:9, NASB). 70 %. When God created Adam, he collected dirt from the ground. Moreover, Paul had declared that in Christ there is “neither slave nor free” (Galatians 3:28), and he elsewhere appeals to Christian masters — who have their own heavenly Master — to treat their slaves justly, impartially, and without threatening (Ephesians 6:9; Colossians 4:1). Part 4: Sharpening the Moral Focus is a welcome entry to the literature with twenty short, engaging and informative chapters that provide a first-rate apologetic treatment of a broad range of issues from curious biblical dietary laws to the Israelite relationship to slavery and genocide. Additionally, the increased complexity and stringency of Mosaic regulations is a divine response to Israel’s disobedience. Paul Copan’s Is God a Moral Monster? It is the exact opposite of morality; it's arguing why you don't need to use your own moral compass if God tells you not to, even to the point of murder. 19.      Chapter 8 The Bible’s Ubiquitous Weirdness? All rights reserved. 1. The New Atheists and the Old Testament God. Second, the Mosaic law reveals God’s forbearance because of human hard-heartedness. The forums in the Christian Congregations category are now open only to Christian members. Richard Dawkins, River Out of Eden: A Darwinian View of Life (New York: Basic Books/Harper Collins, 1995), 132-33. Her intention is for readers to focus on the similarities, and at the same time notice the nuances, hinting her moral argument that man cannot exceed his natural boundaries. Even many Christians struggle to understand some of the Old Testament laws, as well as God’s commands to destroy the Canaanites. See ch. Used by permission (www.Lockman.org). of Asia Minor.9 Despite parallels between these and Mosaic law codes and even certain improvements in ANE codes over time, some significant differences also exist. Chapter 2 The New Atheists and the Old Testament God Ezekiel 16 and 23); Israel did so on the “honeymoon” (Exodus 32). 21.      Chapter 19 Morality without a Lawgiving God? Naturalists still lack the proper metaphysical context for affirming such moral dignity and value. Part 3: Life in the Ancient Near East and in Israel Second, despite Dawkins’ moral outrage, his metaphysic disallows it, admitting that a universe full of electrons contains “no evil and no good, nothing but blind pitiless indifference.”21 Indeed, science “has no methods for deciding what is ethical.” Individuals and society decide.22 Naturalism does not have the metaphysical resources to move from valueless matter to value (including rights-bearing human beings and objective morality/moral duties). Christian members please remember to read the Statement of Purpose threads for each forum within Christian Congregations before posting in the forum. To purchase a copy of God Is Great, God Is Good, visit InterVarsity Press or Amazon. This should be set against the background of Yahweh’s enemy-loving character (Matthew 5:43–48; cp. Fifth, we should take seriously the numerous references of “driving out” the Canaanites (e.g., Exodus 23:28; Leviticus 18:24; Numbers 33:52; Deuteronomy 6:19; 7:1; 9:4; 18:12; Joshua 10:28, 30,32,35,37,39; 11:11,14) or “dispossessing” them of their land (Numbers 21:32; Deuteronomy 12:2; 19:1; etc.). Indeed, God threatened to “vomit” out Israel from the land just as he had vomited out the Canaanites (Leviticus 18:25,28; 20:22). Making Sense of the Old Testament God. Copan is a distinguished evangelical apologist who received his PhD from Marquette University. Rules, though a stop-gap measure, are hardly ideal. (II) Making Sense of the Old Testament God . In Hittite law (1650–1500 B.C. These vocal atheists (Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins, and Sam Harris), both in writing and public debate, interpret the biblical God as a promotor of immoral acts, such as genocide, slavery, murder, rape, and …      Chapter 16 Indiscriminate Massacre and Ethnic Cleansing? Were they totally destroyed? Page 3 that we acknowledge God to be God because anything else would be flying in the face of reality. John Goldingay, Theological Diversity, 86. Much has been written in recent years on the moral problems with the depiction of God in the Old Testament. Box 1400, Downers Grove, IL 60515. www.ivpress.com. He does this rather than risk their repudiating a loftier ethic — a moral overhaul — that they cannot even understand and for which they are not culturally or morally prepared. 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