Did God Really Command Genocide?: Coming To Terms With The Justice Of God

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Reconciling a violent Old Testament God with a loving Jesus

Would a good, kind, and loving deity ever command the wholesale slaughter of nations? We often avoid reading difficult Old Testament passages that make us squeamish and quickly jump to the enemy-loving, forgiving Jesus of the New Testament. And yet, the question remains.

In the tradition of his popular Is God a Moral Monster?, Paul Copan teams up with Matthew Flannagan to tackle some of the most confusing and uncomfortable passages of Scripture. Together they help the Christian and nonbeliever alike understand the biblical, theological, philosophical, and ethical implications of Old Testament warfare passages.

“Copan and Flannagan address the arguments of the atheists who use divine violence in the Bible to undermine belief and confidence in God. Not only are they adept at biblical interpretation and philosophy as they effectively counter this challenge, but they also write in a deeply compelling way.”–Tremper Longman III, Robert H. Gundry Professor of Biblical Studies, Westmont College

“Copan and Flannagan go beyond standard treatments of Old Testament warfare; they incorporate biblical, theological, philosophical, ethical, legal, and historical perspectives on a much-debated but often misunderstood topic.”–William Lane Craig, research professor of philosophy, Talbot School of Theology

“This is a very lucid and helpful discussion of this troubling topic.”–Gordon Wenham, professor of Old Testament, Trinity College, Bristol

“This brave, hard-nosed, and wide-ranging study constitutes a serious attempt at facing all the varied aspects of a question that troubles so many people. Well done!”–John Goldingay, David Allan Hubbard Professor of Old Testament, Fuller Theological Seminary

“The most thorough and comprehensive treatment of the problem of violence in the Old Testament that I have encountered.”–Christopher J. H. Wright, international ministries director, Langham Partnership; author, Old Testament Ethics for the People of God and The God I Don’t Understand

Paul Copan (PhD, Marquette University) is the Pledger Family Chair of Philosophy and Ethics at Palm Beach Atlantic University. He has authored and edited thirty scholarly and popular books, including Is God a Moral Monster?