Let me do a thread why this is so ridiculous both from a Biblical Studies standpoint and a Theological one as well. https://twitter.com/goodbye_jesus/status/1249639435479777281

First it’s not antisemitic to use the term “Old Testament.” I don’t use it because there is more than one OT: the Protestant version, the Catholic version, and the Orthodox version. They all have different texts that make up their OT. I use the term Tanakh (look it up).

It’s not antisemitic to say the Christian Bible is made up of the New Testament and the Old Testament. What is antisemitic is to use the term OT in contrast to the NT to extend more weight to the NT like dude did in the original tweet…

…”see the NT has a loving God and the OT has a nasty God.” That’s antisemitic and is part of Christian supersessionism: Judaism and the OT are irrelevant because of Jesus.

Of course dude is an ex-minister of the Southern Baptist Convention so that explains a lot. If you’re a white supremacist the SBC is for you.

Ok, so back to the God of the OT. Let’s unpack that fucking nonsense. First Jesus was a Jew. He had no intention of starting a new religion (neither did Paul) so his ethos was rooted in 1st C. Judaism. Being a 1st C Jew going around preaching Jesus relied on…wait for it…

…the Hebrew Scriptures. The very same scriptures that Christianity coopted into…the…Old…Testament. Check out the big brain on Brett. So let’s look at an example of how Jesus, a 1st C. Jew who preached, used his people’s scriptures.

The Greatest Commandment found in Matthew 22:34-40, all can look it up. Pharisee asked JC what’s the greatest commandment and JC answers. But how did Jesus come to his conclusion? Why he drew upon…all should know by now…the Hebrew Scriptures…which became?…the OT.

In fact Jesus draws his answer from Deut 6:4 (beginning of the Shema), Leviticus 19:18, and Micah 6:8. Now a lot of people may know about the first two but let’s see what Micah 6:8 has to say shall we.

Micah 6:8: You have been told, O mortal, what is good, and what the Lord requires of you: Only to do Justice and to love goodness, and to walk humbly with your God.

Man, what a vengeful God indeed.

Now let’s pick up this idea of Justice. Deut 16: 18-22 deals strictly with Justice and 16:20 states: Justice, Justice alone shall you pursue. The Hebrew is Tzedek Tzedek tirdoph: Justice Justice you pursue but it gets cleaned up in the English translation.

The point is Justice is a major them of the Hebrew Scriptures. Just read Amos 5:24: …let Justice surge like waters…

So does God act justly? In some places yes, other places no. Let’s look at a couple of places where God acts justly.

First, the story of Cain and Abel. Cain murders Abel right. What does God do? Does God become vengeful and destroy Cain and his descendants? No, God shows mercy by placing a mark upon him and protecting him.

Second story is when Abraham keeps God from destroying Sodom the first time. God says he is gonna destroy Sodom, Abraham is like what if there is righteous people in the city and God said ok I won’t if there is this many righteous and Abe is like what about this many…

…read the story in Gen 18:22-33. Spoiler alert God doesn’t destroy Sodom…the first time around. Abe convinces God to act Justly. One last story is the the Book of Jonah. Y’all know the story, if you don’t here is the recap…

…God tells Jonah to go minister to the wicked people Nineveh and Jonah is like nah those people are worthless and then God berates Jonah. So if God is so vengeful why does he want to save such a wicked people as that of Nineveh?

Jonah describes God in 4:2 as: I knew you were a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger, abounding in kindness, repenting of punishment.

That’s a weird way to describe a vengeful, wrathful God don’t ya think?

But God does punish in the OT as well. Y’all can look that shit up. But God also punishes in the NT. In Acts 5 God strikes down Ananias and Sapphira because they kept some money from the sale of one of their properties from the early Christian community.

And then there is the whole book of Revelation, which btw, 2/3 of it alludes to the OT. I mean in John’s vision bad shit happens to people who don’t adore JC.

Which leads to my final point about God wanting adoration in the OT. Ok the statement alone is ludicrous. By simply being a god God wants adoration. Come on. What God DIDN’T have a temple built in their name. All God’s want adoration. Come on man…stop with the BS.

First, there is Paul who pretty says you have to worship Jesus if you want to get into Heaven. I mean a whole sacrament is dedicated to eating JC’s flesh and drinking his blood. Come on now. That’s peak adoration.

Also, look at all the Christians complaining they can’t go to church to worship…who?…GOD! I mean Revelation chapter 4 is a whole chapter dedicated to the worship of God.

I mean come on people, I’m an Agnostic, albeit one with an MTS with a specialization in Biblical Studies, reading the Bible and books about the Bible and theology ain’t hard.

So when you say shit like dude said about the OT God then you’re showing your ass to be, in the very least, an antisemitic fool who doesn’t bother to take time out to learn anything about Biblical/Religious studies, Comparative Religion, Judaism, Theology, etc.

Don’t be that fool. #MondayMood