Is God a Vindictive Bully?, Paul Copan
Is God a Vindictive Bully?, Paul Copan
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Is God a Vindictive Bully?
Reconciling Portrayals of God in the Old and New Testaments

Author: Paul Copan

Narrator: Jim Denison

Unabridged: 13 hr 6 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 11/01/2022

Synopsis

Critics outside the church often accuse the Old Testament God of genocide, racism, ethnic cleansing, and violence. But a rising tide of critics within the church claim that Moses and other "primitive," violence-prone prophets were mistaken about God's commands and character. Both sets of critics dismiss this allegedly harsh, flawed, "textual" Old Testament God in favor of the kind, compassionate, "actual" God revealed by Jesus. Are they right to do so?

Following his popular book Is God a Moral Monster?, noted apologist Paul Copan confronts false, imbalanced teaching that is confusing and misleading many Christians. Copan takes on some of the most difficult Old Testament challenges and places them in their larger historical and theological contexts. He explores the kindness, patience, and compassion of God in the Old Testament and shows how Jesus in the New Testament reveals not only divine kindness but also divine severity. The book is helpful for anyone interested in understanding the flaws in these emerging claims that are creating a destructive gap between the Testaments.

About Paul Copan

Paul Copan (PhD, Marquette University) is the Pledger Family Chair of Philosophy and Ethics at Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, Florida. In addition to authoring many journal articles, he has written or edited over thirty books in philosophy, theology, and apologetics, including Creation Out of Nothing: A Biblical, Philosophical, and Scientific Exploration, and has served as President of the Evangelical Philosophical Society. He and his wife, Jacqueline, have six children and live in West Palm Beach.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Michelle on January 21, 2024

Not exactly a light title lol, but it was a comforting book, recommended by Kevin Twit. It was helpful to take all of my questions about Old Testament laws or practices that cause concern or alarm and come to understand God’s heart more. Being reminded of God’s mercy and justice holding hands is a tr......more

Goodreads review by Geoff on October 17, 2022

Surely the preferred audience of this quality work is those with a degree of learning in the very disciplines of tertiary study. Theology, philosophy, apologetics, ancient history and culture, use of language – and more besides, is enough to confuse the lay reader.. However there were chapters that......more

Goodreads review by Frank on April 19, 2025

This is a book that presents the opposite view (yes, God did choose to get involved in conflict in the Old Testament) from “A More Christlike Word: Reading Scripture the Emmaus Way” (no God is never like this, but rather it was sinful humans thinking incorrectly about God). It was not perfect. Some......more

Goodreads review by Jacob on May 05, 2023

"'Course he isn't safe. But he's good." Somewhere between the cosmic Santa Clause, all-loving, all-winking caricature and the hell-fire, thunderbolt throwing deity is the truth. If you were introduced to the Bible from that first perspective, it can be unsettling to learn of God's wrath. It doesn't h......more

Goodreads review by Clark on February 27, 2025

This is a very solid book about some difficult topics in Scripture. It consists of some very strong arguments, and of some I would consider weak. However, it does open your mind and challenge you to better understand Scripture, why God does some of the things He does, and why the Law is the way it i......more

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