God tested Abraham, it was a test of faith, Abraham had strong faith...
The moment that Abraham decides the command of God is more important than the life of his child, that is an immoral act. It is no different than a nazi officer who is simply 'following orders'. Oh but Hitler wasn't a diety, I guess that's the difference between Hitler being evil and God being good. If God is real and he is a diety, he is closer to an evil cosmic being of Lovecraft literature than he is to a benevolent loving God. It is a selfish God that tests people in this way, a selfish God that wonders whether or not people on Earth love him more than they love their own children. And to say, "we don't understand his ways", as someone else said, is a cop out. It's a way of basically saying "don't think about it".
Ok next (this is gonna be long lol)
The flood.. You are referring to Genesis Chapter 6. The world was wicked. There were only a few God fearing, praying people in the world, one of which was Noah.
There's that selfish, pouty God again, wanting people to fear him.
Matthew Henry explains this well when he wrote, "God looks down upon those with an eye of favor, who sincerely look up to him with an eye of faith.
Why is it important to God that people have faith in him? Why should he care? He's supposed to be all powerful and yet he's constantly concerned with our opinion of him. And, what a way to try to get that faith back, by wiping out most of the world. Evil, selfish, egotistical God.
It is easy to be religious when religion is in fashion; but it shows strong faith and resolution, to swim against the stream, and to appear for God when no one else appears for him; Noah did so. All kinds of sin were found among men. They corrupted God's worship. Sin fills the earth with violence, and this fully justified God's resolution to destroy the world. The contagion spread. When wickedness is become general, ruin is not far off; while there is a remnant of praying people in a nation, to empty the measure as it fills, judgments may be long kept off; but when all hands are at work to pull down the fences, by sin, and none stand in the gap to make up the breach, what can be expected but a flood of wrath?"
Hope that helps...
There isn't any physical evidence of the global flood, you know. Where did all that water go? The idea that God will decide that enough people aren't worshipping him so he's going to wipe out most of the planet, that bothers me. Why doesn't it bother you? You're placing faith in God at a higher importance than morality.
Next.. The first born of Egypt were killed to those who did not openly display their faith in the Lord.
There it is again. The selfish, egotistical, pouty God who despite being all powerful, he is constantly worried that people aren't worshipping him enough. This is a petty, evil diety you're describing. Something from a Lovecraft novel.
What you have to remember is the old testament.. as much as you read and read always points to Jesus. Chapter 6 in Exodus marks the passover. God didn't just go through and kill ALL of the first born sons. The angel of the Lord, when destroying the first-born of the Egyptians, would pass over the houses marked by the blood of the lamb: hence the name of this holy feast. The passover was kept every year, both as a remembrance of Israel's preservation and deliverance out of Egypt, and as a remarkable type of Christ. Their safety and deliverance were not a reward of their own righteousness, but the gift of mercy. Of this they were reminded, and by this ordinance they were taught, that all blessings came to them through the shedding and sprinkling of blood. Jesus.
This is some nutty superstition going on from the people of Egypt. Making a blood sacrifice of a lamb and splashing that blood around on their homes in the hopes that GOD WON'T KILL THEIR FIRST BORN. And you worship the diety that actually does this and consider that diety to be good?
Next...
Lot.. 2 Peter 2:7 refers to Lot as a righteous man. He lived in a wicked, wicked place though.
He's not in a position to judge, he impregnated his own daughters after getting drunk.
Him offering up his daughters always gets people wound up. History and theologians believe the homosexual act was a form of punishment at that time to unwanted visitors. Lot was probably trying to calm the mob down that wanted to rape the angels that were visiting him. Maybe he was calling their bluff? I don't know. I haven't read Genesis in a while. The incest, though, is a clear example of how drunkenness easily opens the door to sin. His daughters got him drunk and well.. You know the rest.
Yeah it is totally their fault.
Lot is supposed to be the good guy in that story. You can't reconcile that when examining the story with our understanding of morality. It can't be done rationally.
Remember where they lived and really try to picture life there. It is easy to stand tall and proud when you have absolutely nothing to relate to quality of life in Sodom and Gomorrah.
I hope you appreciate the time I am taking to explain this to a total stranger by the way.
It is not a cop out when you truly read, strive, and want to know God through his Word. You asked a lot of questions from the early books in the old testament. Have you read the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John?
God from the old testament is THE SAME God from the new testament.
Thanks for the bible study.
Yeah that's what bothers me. That God did these things and people still consider him to be good.
I'm not trying to attack you or get at you but you have to understand, that it is clear to me that your faith requires you to do mental gymnastics to explain and rationalize immoral and selfish acts of God. You're not worshipping a good God. You mention faith a lot, an awful lot, in your explanations, and my problem with that is you can justify just about anything by saying "you just need to have faith".
God killed the first born of - "just have faith".
God commanded a man to kill - "just have faith".
It's weak morality, is what it is.
