Psalm 135:8-9

Psalm 135:8-9

Who's to blame?

Many people have a real struggle with the kind of God who is described in these verses. What a brutal night it was in Egypt, when the angel of death passed over the land and the firstborn son of every Egyptian family was slaughtered. Young children died, babies died, teenage boys died. How do those of us who believe in the so-called God of justice and mercy explain this? 

I cannot, completely, but what I can say that the Egyptians were warned, nine times they were told to let the Israelites go free. Nine times Pharaoh refused God’s request. He could not therefore argue that he didn’t have an opportunity to stop the slaughter! We also need to remember that God can do as He chooses, we don’t argue with Him, He is God and His actions are always well-reasoned and justified. Why did six million Jews die in the Holocaust? Why have innocent people died in Gaza? Why is it that those who do not believe in God and who rebel against Him will one day be judged and punished for their foolishness? 

It is the morning of Sunday June 22nd, 2025, as I write this. The world is waking up to the news that the Americans have just bombed nuclear facilities in Iran. This is the country that armed Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and conspired with President Assad in Syria and others, to create armies that were meant to drive Israel into the sea. The head of this snake has been snapped off this morning, but many innocent lives have been lost in the Middle East in recent times. Do we blame God, or the unbelief and disobedience of men?

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