“And scarce do we guess the things on earth,
and what is within our grasp we find
with difficulty; but when things are in Heaven
who can search
them out?”
–Wisdom 9:13-18
Something that I often struggle with is the idea of the “wrath of God.” And as I read through the book of Jeremiah, it is a phrase that comes up quite a bit. I guess that is true of most of the prophets. Even the tender-hearted Isaiah, with his beloved “suffering servant” imagery, gets worked up with the wrath of God more than a few times. The imagery, the language, the concept even of the “wrath of God” is frightening. The idea of an all-powerful being enraged at something we have done, is pretty fearful. And yet, I keep going back to the ultimate truth about God, that God is Love. And knowing that, makes me wonder… Just what exactly is “the wrath of God?” As the book of Wisdom reminds us, we can barely understand what is within our grasp, but things of Heaven –like the wrath of God—who can search them out?
But we can ponder; what makes sense? What could it all mean? As I pray and contemplate over this troubling image, it occurs to me that the wrath of God may not be some divine emotional state, or state of mind, but could be a poetic way of describing something quite different. What if this language was the human author’s attempt to understand something that was witnessed, an attempt to make sense of it after the fact? The facts were that Israel kept straying from God, the poor were abused, widows and orphans neglected, foreign gods were honored, priests were corrupt, and the king even worse; then suddenly there were the Babylonians knocking at the gate, slaughtering people, dragging others away into captivity. If you are supposed to be God’s chosen beloved people, how do you make sense of that?
What happened? Why didn’t God protect His people, His beloved Jerusalem?
Trying to make sense of it, perhaps the easiest explanation is: God is made at us! His wrath has descended upon us like a hurricane! And that must be what it felt like.
But the thing that is interesting to me is how often God sends a warning, sends a message to Israel to turn back. To change directions. The prophets are the best example of that. They are sent to call God’s people back to the right path. To change their ways, and act with justice and mercy. And –it seems to me—that every time the wrath of God comes, it is because God’s people “have refused to listen” (cf. Jer.29:19). It is the result of the people’s actions, their choices. Their own stubbornness of heart.
And so, perhaps God’s wrath (or anger) is not an emotion that overcomes God, the way we might think of a human emotion; something that flashes up suddenly out of rage or frustration. I wonder if a better way to think of it is as a way of understanding what happens when we turn away from God, from God’s love. Like walking out of the sunlight and into a dark cave. As we walk into the cave, at first there is some light, and we can see the path, the walls, shadows, the edges of rocks. But the further we go into it, the darker it gets. The more confusing it gets. The blinder we become to what is around us… until it is pitch black and we cannot see our way. We cannot find the walls without banging into them. Outside the cave someone stands calling to us: Don’t go in. Turn around. You’ll get lost. That is the voice of the prophets. The darkness within the cave is what we call the wrath of God—but it isn’t a positive thing, an action of God, it is the absence of God. It is what happens to us, in us, when we turn away from God. I guess what I am saying is, in a sense, that sin is its own punishment.
Another aspect that we can't forget is: the story of Job. To Job's friends it looked like Job was suffering from the wrath of God. Retribution or punishment for some sin or some failing. But, in actuality Job was being invited into a deeper relationship with God. What seemed like "wrath" was --in some sense-- an invitation. Gird up your loins, know me better man... to paraphrase the author of Job and the ghost of Christmas present... I read scripture through the lens of love, always looking for the love of God and how it is being revealed. That is my lens, and maybe it is a cloudy one. But it is mine. In case you couldn't tell.
But these are just thoughts about something that truly is too big for me, beyond my grasp. Someone who has a lot more grasp of the Hebrew language and the history of OT scripture is the prophet like scholar Abraham J. Heschel (1907-1972). His book, The Prophets is an inspiring and thought-provoking study of the OT prophets, that explores such questions as the pathos and the wrath of God and what it means to be a prophet. (His take on the wrath of God is different from mine, and probably more on target... But, I had to try.) I highly recommend his book; it is filled with wisdom, insight and an intense sense of the urgency of seeing and bearing witness to the truth.
Lord, open my eyes to Your Word
that I might read it more clearly;
Open my ears to Your Word
that I will hear You more completely,
and open my heart to Your Word
that I will be filled with the Love
that is always found there.
Amen
