When discussing God’s attributes, it is only natural to focus on the more positive aspects of His character such as His love, mercy, grace, all-sufficient power, and faithfulness. We are drawn to those marvelous attributes because of their attractiveness and the potential benefits they offer us as God’s children. But they lose all their meaning if they are not considered against the backdrop of God’s wrath.
God is not one-dimensional in nature; He is a complex being whose character is comprised of a myriad of seemingly contradictory but perfectly symbiotic attributes. His love and wrath do not stand in opposition; they complement and complete one another. His infinite love becomes meaningless and immeasurable without the knowledge that He is also capable of great anger. God speaks of Himself in terms that convey His well-balanced nature.
“Look now; I myself am he!
There is no other god but me!
I am the one who kills and gives life;
I am the one who wounds and heals;
no one can be rescued from my powerful hand!
Now I raise my hand to heaven
and declare, ‘As surely as I live,
when I sharpen my flashing sword
and begin to carry out justice,
I will take revenge on my enemies
and repay those who reject me.’” – Deuteronomy 32:39-41 NLT
But despite God’s very blunt self-assessment, His wrath seems to be a forbidden topic among many Christians. We’re uncomfortable hearing our loving God openly admit that He kills. Yet when reading the Old Testament, it’s virtually impossible to ignore the truth of His statement. This is the reason many Christians avoid the Old Testament like a plague. In its pages, the wrath of God is on full display, and don’t like what we see.
We treat the wrath of God as if it’s some kind of flaw in God’s character that no one wants to admit or talk about. Like a favorite uncle who struggles with a drinking problem. Everybody knows about it, but it’s just easier to treat it as if it doesn’t exist.
But it’s difficult to ignore the wrath of God. It’s an unpleasant yet unavoidable reality that shows up throughout the Scriptures. And it can’t be relegated to the pages of the Old Testament. Many believe that the God described in the gospels is far more loving, gracious, and kind than the God who commanded Abraham to sacrifice His Son, told the Israelites to massacre entire communities, and decreed the stoning of rebellious sons . Yet, Jesus Himself said, “anyone who believes in God’s Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God’s angry judgment” (John 3:36 NLT).
The apostle John linked the hope of salvation with the reality of God’s wrath.
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. – John 3:36 ESV
Paul warned the believers in Rome that God’s wrath was a very real thing that must
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. – Romans 1:18 ESV
The Old Testament clearly portrays God as capable of wrath and provides numerous examples of its devastating consequences. The prophet Nahum provided a stark warning regarding the pagan people of Nineveh:
The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord is avenging and wrathful; the Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath for his enemies. – Nahum 1:2 ESV
Ezekiel delivered God’s warning regarding the Philistines, the enemies of Israel:
“I will execute great vengeance on them with wrathful rebukes. Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I lay my vengeance upon them.” – Ezekiel 25:17 ESV
Isaiah prophesied of a future day when God’s wrath would come on all mankind:
Look! The Lord is coming from heaven to punish the people of the earth for their sins. – Isaiah 26:21 ESV
But the wrath of God did not dissipate with the coming of Christ. The arrival of His Son in human form did not diminish His anger against mankind’s rebellion against Him; i provided a means by which His divine and just wrath might be satisfied, once and for all. God’s love, manifested in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, must be viewed against the dark reality of His holy and fully justified wrath. Because God is holy and completely righteous, He must punish sin. He can’t ignore it or fail to deal with it justly. To do so would render Him unjust and imperfect.
So, what are we to do with this uncomfortable aspect of God’s nature? Do we simply ignore it, rationalize it away, or reject it out of hand? A. W. Pink provides us with a powerful response to those questions.
“It is sad to find so many professing Christians who appear to regard the wrath of God as something for which they need to make an apology, or at least they wish there were no such thing. While some would not go so far as to openly admit that they consider it a blemish on the Divine character, yet they are far from regarding it with delight; they like not to think about it, and they rarely hear it mentioned without a secret resentment rising up in their hearts against it. Even with those who are more sober in their judgment, not a few seem to imagine that there is a severity about the Divine wrath which is too terrifying to form a theme for profitable contemplation. Others harbor the delusion that God’s wrath is not consistent with His goodness, and so seek to banish it from their thoughts.
“Yes, many there are who turn away from a vision of God’s wrath as though they were called to look upon some blotch in the Divine character, or some blot upon the Divine government. But what saith the Scriptures? As we turn to them we find that God has made no attempt to conceal the fact of His wrath. He is not ashamed to make it known that vengeance and fury belong unto Him.” – A. W. Pink, The Attributes of God
At some point, we have to ask the question: What is the source of God’s anger or wrath? We inherently know that God does not have an “anger problem.” He’s not an angry individual who lacks self-control and is unable to manage His emotions. It is far too easy to view God through a lens that is heavily distorted by our own human flaws and frailties. We struggle with anger, so we assume that God’s anger manifests itself in the same way. In our minds, anger is a liability, not an asset; it is negative, not positive. But because we are talking about the holy, righteous, perfectly sinless God of the universe, we can’t attribute His anger to some flaw in His character. His anger, like every other one of His character qualities, is fully justified and wholly holy.
So, why would anger be an attribute of God? It is because of His holiness. The apostle John wrote, “God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all” (1 John 1:5 NLT). Darkness is a metaphor for evil or wickedness. It stands in stark contrast to the “light” or righteousness of God. That’s why Paul wrote, “…the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth” (Romans 1:18 ESV). What truth? The truth of the existence of God as displayed in the miracle of His creation.
For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. – Romans 1:19-20 ESV
But Paul goes on to point out that, despite God’s revelation of Himself in creation, mankind “became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened” (Romans 1:21 ESV). And “they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator” (Romans 1:25 ESV). As a result, God’s wrath was revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men.
But what is the nature of God’s wrath? Is it some kind of out-of-control, vengeance-laced tirade against those who don’t agree with Him? Is God some petty tyrant who uses His power to punish those who refuse to do what He wants? To understand God’s wrath, we have to see things from His perspective, not ours. Again, A. W. Pink provides some helpful insights into this matter.
“The wrath of God is His eternal detestation of all unrighteousness. It is the displeasure and indignation of Divine equity against evil. It is the holiness of God stirred into activity against sin. It is the moving cause of that just sentence which He passes upon evil-doers. God is angry against sin because it is a rebelling against His authority, a wrong done to His inviolable sovereignty. Insurrectionists against God’s government shall be made to know that God is the Lord. They shall be made to feel how great that Majesty is which they despise, and how dreadful is that threatened wrath which they so little regarded. Not that God’s anger is a malignant and malicious retaliation, inflicting injury for the sake of it, or in return for injury received. No; while God will vindicate His dominion as Governor of the universe, He will not be vindictive.” – A. W. Pink, The Attributes of God
To add further clarity to this topic, J. I. Packer provides a much-needed word study on the meaning behind “wrath” and “anger.”
“‘Wrath’ is an old English word defined in my dictionary as ‘deep, intense anger and indignation.’ ‘Anger’ is defined as ‘stirring of resentful displeasure and strong antagonism, by a sense of injury or insult;’ ‘indignation’ as ‘righteous anger aroused by injustice and baseness.’ Such is wrath. And wrath, the Bible tells us, is an attribute of God.” – J. I. Packer, Knowing God
A sense of injury or insult. About what? Deep, intense anger and indignation. Against what? Against the ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. Or to put it in more simplistic terms, against sin. Sin is an affront to a holy, righteous God. Mankind was created by God and exists only because of His love, mercy, and grace. So, when men reject Him as their God or rebel against His divine sovereignty as their creator, provider, and sustainer, God is rightfully offended.
Robert L. Deffinbaugh describes divine wrath as “God’s righteous anger and punishment, provoked by sin.” It is never arbitrary or unwarranted. God’s wrath is never unjustified or undeserved. The God of the universe is the ultimate master of the domain which He created and over which He rules. And He will vindicate His sovereign rule, but He will never do so vindictively.
One of the things we overlook when discussing the wrath of God is how it demonstrates God’s hatred for sin. As human beings, we tend to tolerate sin and view it as little more than a flaw in our character. But God sees sin as rebellion. It is a rejection of His Word, His ways, and His divine will for mankind. That is why Paul describes it as ungodliness and unrighteousness. Sin is ultimately anti-God and anti-righteousness. It is the antithesis of godliness and stands in direct opposition to the very essence of God.
Paul paints a bleak picture of man’s rebellious condition, revealing that sin has serious consequences.
…since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. – Romans 1:28-32 ESV
Notice those three simple words in the middle of the preceding paragraph: Haters of God. Ultimately, sin is an expression of hate for the Almighty. And that hatred results in godless actions and attitudes, each of which is proof of man’s rejection of God. These outward displays are God-directed but also self-destructive. Sin does irreparable damage to the individual, a family, a community, the nation, and the world. And that is not something a holy God can or will tolerate.
“In order to fully appreciate God’s love and goodness we must examine them against the black backdrop of of His wrath. Only when we understand that He judges sin – all sin, even our own sin – can we appreciate His glorious grace for what it is. The darkness of God’s wrath showcases the flawless gem of His unmerited mercy toward us. But remove the dark background of His wrath, and our appreciation of the brilliance of His amazing love fades.” – Steven J. Lawson, Made In Our Image
English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.