it's usually an atheist's argument, but you'll find that some Christians say the same thing, either openly or implicitly through what else they believe:
that the god of the old testament is not the god of the new.
that the god of Exodus, Deuteronomy, Leviticus, Joshua, Judges etc. is evil, brutal & merciless.
i believe people come to this because they read things like the destruction of Sodom, commands to put people to death under the Law, and commands to the Hebrews to totally destroy cities like Jericho, killing everyone in it, even the livestock, and, implicitly holding all physical human life at the highest value, presume that no good god can ever command the death of anyone. they can't see any good reason for anyone to ever be put to death, so they presume god is wicked.
so i'd like to discuss why God - who is always good - would command a death penalty? why would He destroy a city or a nation or a people?
how is this good ?
Those all relate to the goal that God wants His people who are sojourning/wandering in this earth understand that the salvation is by God’s Grace alone, from
this understanding then surely His people can bring Glory to God.
Isa43:7 Even every one that is called by my name:
for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him
We can see this intend since the beginning, let’s see:
In the Gen 2:3 , God introduced the seventh day/ Sabbath, though in that day Adam and Eve still in a holy / not yet fell , where we know now that the Sabbath day refer to: “men will never be able to achieve their salvation through their own efforts/works , what ever it souds good , likened such who works on Sabbath day he or she surely shall be punished to dead “ .
God also :
Gen11:7 Go to, let us go down,
and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.
11:8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city
What’s for ? -----> just only to make them separate become many tribes , so God could chose one of them finally to be His chosen ( there should be many tribes that not communicate one to the other , so by then there should be only one tribe that has spiritually ears to hear, spiritually eyes to see , and non for the others ) ------>
definitely chosen people.
So this chosen people is utterly different to others in the eyes of God , likened : Jacob from Esau , Abel from Cain , Wheat from tare ,vessel of mercy from vessel of wrath , written in the book of life from not written in the book of life before the creation of the world etc.
So what is the different then ?,--------> His people= the Chosen = born of God = there is spiritual being inside the body that God sent them to sojourn to this perishable earth ( e.g. ; Jacob’s spirit inside literal Jacob ), born of flesh = God did not put a spiritual being inside the literal human when he or she was born = worldly humans ( not different to animals Ecc3:19 pardon me not intend to sarcasm ) .
We can ponder that in: Noah flood surely there were very old men/women outside the ark, there were also mentally ill children outside the ark , there were pregnant women that time out side the ark etc. there were also in Sodom and surely in Joshua’s age.
Let’s see the relation or some things refer from the thousands sacrifices lambs/goats , and also these verses :
Pvb21:18
The wicked shall be a ransom for the righteous,
and the transgressor for the upright
Isa43:3 For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour:
I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee
These such Esau /empty vessels at the beginning one day are possible to be the devil’s camp (tares = devil resides inside them , John8:44 ) by then the devil shall be judged , without them then the devil shall never be able to be judged, there shall never be devil that transforms to be the angels of light, there shall never be antichrist , His churches will never be able to judge the devil ( 1Cor6:3) , this earth will never end .
It is the devil that shall be judged (rev20:12), the born of flesh will surely end by his or her physical dead. .