Suffering as Punishment from God

Watch this lesson on YouTube, or listen to it here.

Access the slide deck here. 

1) This is suffering that is sent BY GOD as punishment for sin. “Punishment Theodicy.”

A)   This is different from suffering as a natural consequence of sin, which is the natural outworking of cause and effect within the natural order established by God.

B) Punishment by God is specifically caused by him from either within or outside of the natural order of things. This may be miraculous or providential.

C) In Biblical language, we might call this the wrath of God, or visitation.

2) Why are we devoting an entire class to this subject? Because those who reject God and his word openly make fun of the concept that God directly punishes people.

A)   “But there were slaughters aplenty in the ancient world and wretched suffering of all kinds caused by all manner of circumstances: military defeat, cruelty to POW’s, and torture; drought, famine, pestilence, epidemic; birth defects, infant mortality, infanticide; and on and on. When these things happened, how did ancient authors explain them? One of their most common explanations—it fills many pages of the Hebrew Bible—may seem simplistic, repugnant, backward, or just dead-wrong to many modern people. It is that people suffer because God wants them to suffer. And why does God want them to suffer? Because they have disobeyed him and he is punishing them. The ancient Israelites had a healthy sense of the power of God, and many of them were convinced that nothing happens in this world unless God has done it. If God’s people are suffering, it is because he is angry with them for not behaving in the ways they should. Suffering comes as a punishment for sin.”[1]

B) Rom. 1:22-25 – “Claiming to be wise, they became fools…”

3) Examples

A)   Gen. 3

1) The curses (vv. 14-19)

2) Spiritual death / separation from God (vv. 22-24)

3) God was actively involved and punishment was handed out.

B) The flood (Gen. 6:5-7)

C) Nadab and Abihu (Lev. 10:1-3)

1) Especially note Aaron’s response after two of his four sons were killed by God, “And Aaron held his peace.” He accepted God’s justice and continued working.

D)   Curses (Lev. 26:14-39)

E) Uzzah (2 Sam. 6:1-11 / 1 Chron. 13:5-14)

F) Saul lost his throne (1 Sam. 15:11)

G)   David’s punishment after Bathsheba

1) 2 Sam. 12:7-15 – “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. Nevertheless…”

2) 8 I would add to you as much more

3) 10 the sword shall never depart from your house

4) 11 I will raise up evil against you out of your own house

5) 11  I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun

6) 12 you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun

7) 14  because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord (text note)

8) 14  the child who is born to you shall die

H)   Solomon’s punishment

1) 1 Kgs. 10:14-11:9

2) 1 Kgs. 11:9-11

I)  Captivity and destruction

1) Israel (2 Kgs. 17:6ff.)

2) Judah (2 Chron. 36:15ff.)

J)  After Jesus healed a lame man at the Pool

1) Jn. 5:14 – “Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, ‘See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.’”

K)   Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11)

L) The Lord’s Supper

1) 1 Cor. 11:27-30 – “That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.”

M)  James 5:13-16

4) Final notes

A)   In the same way that not all suffering is a natural consequence of sin, so also not all suffering is direct punishment from God.

1) Gen. 44:16

2) Job again. Job’s friends were wrong that he did something to deserve his suffering, or that he was being punished by God.

B) BUT we should leave the door open to the possibility.

5) Transition: In our next couple of classes, we will talk about the WHY? Why would God either send suffering, or allow it in our lives?

[1] Bart Ehrman, God’s Problem.