Devotions: Justified Compassion

Behold, I am going to stir up the Medes against them,
Who will not value silver or take pleasure in gold.
And their bows will mow down the young men,
They will not even have compassion on the fruit of the womb,
Nor will their eye pity children.
And Babylon, the beauty of kingdoms, the glory of the Chaldeans’ pride, Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.

Isaiah 13:17-19 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

This is one of the more difficult topics in the Bible; the idea that God not only allowed but commanded mass genocide. It is important to remember that God is holy, and compared to His holiness, we all deserve death. This command is part of God’s wrath and justice on a sinful nation. This was the nation that did the same thing to Israel only a few decades before. God used Babylon to punish Israel for their continued idolatry and rebellion, but He then punished Babylon for their sin as well. God is always perfectly just and righteous in all of His actions. He does not always have mercy, grace or compassion on people, but He is perfectly just not to. This sounds harsh in light of the grace we so regularly experience, but that is partly because we have taken His grace for granted. We expect it, forgetting that we deserve to be punished. We should always remember that God is perfectly holy and just, and that we do not deserve His grace or mercy in any way. It is entirely a gift of His love and compassion. Thank God for the abundant grace He bestows on you, that He never punishes you like you deserve!

To view a video of this devo, visit my facebook page at www.facebook.com/evelynbray15