What’s “God’s wrath” in John 3.36?

 John 3.36 (TIB; adapted):

Jesus said, “Everyone who believes in the Only Begotten has [the Life of the Ages]. But everyone who rejects the Only Begotten won’t see life, for God’s wrath stays on them.”

 

In the Reformed groups I used to frequent this verse was “proof” of God’s judgment as understood by the “L” of the TULIP (Limited Atonement). That is, God had already chosen to save some people but had condemned the rest of the world’s population throughout all time to eternal, conscious torment. Oh, and this took place before the creation of the cosmos. But that’s not what Jesus was talking about.

 

“God’s wrath” was the then coming war between the Jews and the Roman Army. Rome, like Assyria before them, was God’s “rod of anger” against the rebellious Jews of the first century (see Isaiah 10.5-11). This is further seen in the book of Malachi. While I could quote all of Malachi, I’ve selected a few passages and italicized the crucial bits.

 

Malachi 1.1, 6-8; 2.1-2; 3.1-3a, 5-7; 17-18; 4.1ff (TIB; adapted):

1.1AN ORACLE. THE WORD OF YHWH TO ISRAEL through Malachi … 6Children honor their parents, and laborers their overseer. If I’m a parent, where’s the honor due to me? If I’m an overseer, where’s the respect due to me? says YHWH[2] Omnipotent. Yet you priests despise my Name! “How have we despised your Name?” you ask. 7By offering polluted food on my altar! “How have we polluted it?” you ask. By saying that YHWH’s table isn’t worthy of respect! 8When you offer a blind animal, you say there’s nothing wrong with it, and when you offer an animal that’s lame or diseased, you say there’s nothing wrong with it! If you brought such a gift to your governor, would [the governor] welcome you, or show you favor? says YHWH Omnipotent.

 

2.1And now, you priests, this decree is for you: 2unless you listen to me and take it to heart to give honor to my Name, says YHWH Omnipotent, I’ll lay a curse on you. I’ll turn your blessings into a curse; in fact, I’ve done so already, for you pay no heed.

 

3.1[Pay] attention! I’m sending my Messenger to prepare the way for me; the One you seek will suddenly come to the Temple, the Messenger of the Covenant whom you long for will come, says YHWH Omnipotent. 2But who can endure the day of that Coming? Who can stand firm when that One appears? That day will be like a smelter’s fire, a launderer’s soap. 3The One will preside as refiner and purifier, purifying the Children of Levi, refining them like gold and silver—

 

5I will appear before you in court, to testify against the sorcerers, adulterers, and  perjurers, against those who cheat the hired laborers of their wages, and oppress the widow and the orphan, who rob foreigners of their rights and have no respect for me, says YHWH Omnipotent. 6No — I, YHWH, do not change, and you, children of Jacob, aren’t ruined yet! 7Ever since the days of your ancestors you turned aside from my statutes and didn’t keep them. If you return to me, I’ll turn back to you, says YHWH Omnipotent…

 

17[Those revering God are] mine, says YHWH Omnipotent, my own possession on the day I’m preparing, and I’ll have compassion on them as a parent has compassion on an obedient child. 18Then once again you’ll be able to distinguish the righteous person from the evildoer, the servant of YHWH from the person who doesn’t heed God.

 

4.1The Day’s coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all the evildoers will be stubble; the Day that comes will burn them up, says YHWH Omnipotent, and it will leave them neither root nor branch. 2But for you who revere my Name, the sun will rise, a sun of justice, with healing in its rays. You will go out leaping like calves released from their stall. 3And you’ll trample on those who are corrupt, for they’ll be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the Day when I act, says YHWH Omnipotent. 4Remember the teaching of my servant Moses, the statutes and ordinances that I commanded Moses at Horeb for all Israel. 5Know this: I’ll send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of YHWH comes, to reconcile parents to their children and children to their parents, so that, when I come, I need not strike the land with utter destruction.

 

Again, there is so much in this prophecy that I recommend reading the whole thing (it’s only 4 “chapters”). But when reading it, remember to keep in mind that it’s pertaining to the end of the Old Covenant Age and System (OCAS) and not the end of the world or time or whatever. We know this because, as we see in the first verse, this was an oracle to Israel (1.1). It was a judgment against them and their whole system (notice the priests and sacrifices are specifically mentioned).

 

What makes this book so important is the last chapter. God stated that “Elijah” would be sent before the “great and terrible day” of God. For those of us who may not realize it, Elijah already came.

 

In Luke the first chapter, we read the story about Elizabeth and Zechariah. They were both godly people but were childless. Zechariah was a priest and it was time for his group to have temple duty. While in the holy place, an angel appeared to him —

 

Luke 1.13-17 (TIB; adapted):

The angel said to him, “Don’t be frightened, Zechariah. Your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear a son, whom you’ll name John. 14He will be your joy and delight and many will rejoice at his birth, 15for he’ll be great in the sight of our God. He must never drink wine or liquor, and he’ll be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother’s womb. 16And he’ll bring many of the children of Israel back to their God Most High. 17He’ll go before God as a forerunner, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of parents to their children, and the rebellious to the wisdom of the just — to make ready a people prepared for our God” (emphasis added).

 

Here we see that John the Baptist would “go before God as a forerunner, in the spirit and power of Elijah.” And then the angel quotes from Malachi 4! To sharpen the point, Jesus said —

 

Matthew 11.11-15 (TIB):

“The truth is, history hasn’t known a person born who is greater than John the Baptizer. Yet the least born into the Realm of heaven is greater than he.

 

12“From the time of John the Baptizer until now, the Realm of heaven has been advancing with power, and powerful people take hold of it. 13The Law and the Prophets prophesied until John came. 14And, if you’ll believe me, he is the Elijah who was to return. 15Let those who have ears to hear, hear this!”

 

In another place, the disciples asked Jesus, “Why do the religious scholars claim that Elijah must come first?” To which Jesus replied —

 

Matthew 17.11-13 (TIB):

“Elijah is indeed coming and will restore all things. 12But the truth is, Elijah has already come; they didn’t recognize him, but treated him as they pleased. The Chosen One will suffer at their hands in the same way.” 13Then the disciples realized that Jesus had been speaking to them about John the Baptizer (emphasis added).

 

There really isn’t a question here, John the Baptizer was Elijah. According to Malachi, Elijah was to be God’s forerunner preparing Israel for God’s return before the “great and terrible day.”

 

The judgment against ancient Israel was already sealed. “The Day’s coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all the evildoers will be stubble; the Day that comes will burn them up” (Malachi 4.1). But for those who revere God, that day will bring justice (4.2-4). When God arrives, if the parents have been reconciled to their children and the children reconciled to their parents, God won’t “strike the land with utter destruction” (4.5).

 

God said through Malachi, that the blessing of Israel had already been “turned into a curse” (2.2). There is a condition, though. “‘If you return to me, I’ll turn back to you,’ says YHWH Omnipotent” (3.7).  And later, “Know this: I’ll send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of YHWH comes, to reconcile parents to their children and children to their parents, so that, when I come, I need not strike the land with utter destruction” (4.5). From this we get that the “great and terrible day of YHWH” was already set in stone, if you will. But, if the people turned back to God, the land and those who dwell in it won’t be destroyed when Yahweh returns.

 

This, then, is what Jesus meant. It’s not about the “end of the world” or “eternal damnation.” It’s about the wrath of God coming upon apostate, first century Israel. God sent John the Baptizer (“Elijah”) to first century Israel to call them to change their hearts and minds and turn back to God (Matthew 3.5-12). While some people did just that, most didn’t. At one point, Jesus even exclaimed, “When the Human One comes, will he find faithfulness on earth?” (Luke 18.8; CEB[3]; cf., Matthew 16.27-28). Since most of them rejected Jesus and sided with Rome (John 19.15), God’s wrath came upon that generation, just as Jesus predicted (Matthew 23.33-36; cf., Matthew 24.34).

 

 

 

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In the Love of the Three in One,

 

Br. Jack+, LC

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[1] Unless otherwise stated, all scripture quotations and references — and scripture quotations marked (TIB) — are taken from The Inclusive Bible. Copyright © 2007 by Priests for Equality. Used by permission.

[2] The Inclusive Bible chooses to keep the Tetragrammaton the way it appears in the Jewish Scriptures — יְהוָֹה (YHWH). In some translations, the Tetragrammaton appears as “Yahweh” and in others it’s translated as “the LORD.”

[3] Scripture quotations marked (CEB) are taken from The Common English Bible. Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible. Used by permission.