Why must God judge evil?
2 Kings 9:1-37
God’s judgment is a great stumbling block for many Westerners, often even for Christians. How can a loving God judge and condemn people to death, even hell? Although the Old Testament is often singled out for criticism in this respect, the New Testament is no less adamant that God will eventually judge all and destroy evil (e.g. Matt 13:41-42, 49-50; 25:31-46; Rev 20:11-15). If anything, the latter’s message is worse because judgment in the New Testament not only involves physical death but also eternal hell. Nevertheless, the Old Testament fares worse in Western estimate for two reasons. First, the violence and cruelty of the ancient world is so distant from the experience of most of us that it carries a higher shock factor. Second, we appreciate much less the sins of those who are judged, so that the punishment feels worse than the crime.
Evil and the possibility of peace
The story of Jehu’s revolt is a case in point. Israel and Judah are fighting a war against Aram in the Transjordan (in Ramoth-Gilead), but the wounded king of Israel needs to be removed from there and Judah’s king joins him (2 Kings 8:28-29). The kings’ absence from the troops gives the prophet the opportunity to anoint Jehu in secret (2 Kings 9:1-3, 6). The prophetic speech highlights the crimes of Ahab’s dynasty, which must be judged, hence the new start with Jehu. God’s prophets and faithful followers were persecuted and slaughtered by Jezebel, Ahab’s wife (2 Kings 9:7) and the reference to Jeroboam (Israel’s first king after it split from Judah) points to the sins of idolatry that continued in Ahab’s dynasty (2 Kings 9:9 cf. 1 Kings 12:28-33). Jehu’s fellow officers want to find out what the madman prophet wanted and ask, ‘Is all well?’ (literally ‘Is it peace?’ or ‘Is there peace?’; 2 Kings 9:11), but the question takes on symbolic significance as it echoes through the story. Can there be peace (wellbeing, flourishing) while God’s followers are persecuted and the king leads the country into the worship of false gods?
The need to call evil to account
Jehu, newly made king by fellow officers, marches on Jezreel to confront the convalescing king (2 Kings 9:13-14). An inquiry after Jehu’s intentions (2 Kings 9:17, 18, 19, 22) repeats the question ‘Is it peace?’ and forces us to ponder again what leads to peace. Jehu’s answer is that there is no peace (vv.18, 19), while the evil of worshipping other gods continues (‘harlotries’ means unfaithfulness to the LORD here; 2 Kings 9:22).[1] Significantly, the encounter between king and usurper takes place in Naboth’s vineyard (2 Kings 9:21) reminding us of the infamous seizing of Naboth’s property using false testimony and murder (1 Kings 21:1-24). No doubt that this was not an isolated incident, just a particularly gruesome example of a ruthless dynasty. The killing of the two kings (Israel’s and Judah’s) is likewise cold-blooded (2 Kings 9:24, 27) but neither is so brutal as Jezebel’s in its utter contempt for human life and dignity (2 Kings 9:33, 35). Yet throughout the story, we are reminded of prophecies that underline God’s determination to call evil to account (2 Kings 9:26, 36-37).
Why God must judge evil
Viewed from our comfortable lives, this story horrifies us (I shall return to evaluating Jehu’s character in my next post), but it is harder for us to feel the same horror over the evil practices of Ahab’s family. Yet these are no less serious than the crimes of today that would most likely evoke anger and outrage: sexual abuse and trafficking, or persecution, torture, humiliation and extermination based on racial prejudices. Judgment should not be about personal revenge but a desire for justice and the protection of the innocent from continued harm. If God never brought justice, it would be like the institutions today that knew of abuse in their midst but turned a blind eye to perpetrators’ evil. Talking of forgiveness in such a context is not appropriate because it merely covers up evil.[2] As our passage emphasises: there can be no ultimate peace and wellbeing until God deals with those who continue in evil and stops their evil forever.
[1] The question ‘Is it peace?’ (NASB ‘Is it well’, 2 Kings 9:31) will be repeated one more time by Jezebel, as she challenges Jehu before her death. Comparing Jehu to ‘Zimri’ expresses her contempt for him, as Zimri was a usurper who killed the previous king but only lasted a week as king himself before committing suicide (1 Kings 16:8-20). It was, in fact, Ahab’s father, Omri who besieged the city where Zimri was and subsequently established his own dynasty (1 Kings 16:17-18, 21-23).
[2] Forgiveness is, of course, important in interpersonal relationships but it should not be used as an excuse to tolerate continued evil. For anyone who has been hurt by another person’s wrong actions, the first step is not to take revenge into one’s own hands but leave room for God’s impartial justice (Rom 12:19). Positively, forgiveness involves not only refraining from repaying others for their evil but actively doing good to them and thereby creating room for the other person to repent, so that genuine reconciliation may occur (Rom 12:20). In a way, God Himself acts like this in the world today giving good things even to rebellious humanity in the hope that His goodness may lead them to repentance. However, forgiveness does not mean denying that the sin committed was wrong, neither should it exclude the possibility of confronting the wrongdoer for what they have done or even seeking to bring them to justice.
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