The God of War

JHWH is a multifaceted god, malleable to the necessities of the people who have worshipped him for millennia. Thus, he is a god of war, of love, of vengeance, of forgiveness, of bigotry, of tolerance, etc.

I am reading a book about this. Will come back when I've read it!

My book was very good.

The theory it suggests is that it was more people's understanding of God that we see changing throughout the Bible. I know He is quoted as saying some pretty angry things, but in those days it was all that would convince people to listen to Him. He got so angry about the worship of other Gods because He wanted His people to understand that there WERE no other Gods, not, as they sometimes supposed, that He was one of many and they should worship Him only in the right place/ about the right subject. He showed His power to one nation in the beginning, but slowly they came to understand that He was for everybody. Many of the prophets are discussed in this book, showing what particular message they brought, until you come to Jesus who finally makes it clear that now everybody must come to kow God's love and forgiveness. So basically, God tried to do it in a way the people wold understand. :wink:

The book was very basic and didn't go in to detail, but it made the idea interesting and more plausible than I've just made it. I will try again some time. In the mean time I'm going to have to ask you to try and make sense of my first attempt.

I see 'god-concepts' as a recurring cycle, developing through trial and error, according to the needs of the believers, and the mortals who lead them. I am very suspect of many religious 'leaders' of the mortal variety who use their power for their own political means. As for a real 'god', I don't believe in one. I only believe that all the 'gods' humans have created are just weak explanations for a universal power we still don't understand.

Hmmm...
Thanks for the comments.

So Jesus is the good cop?

God will come back sometime along with Jesus after most of the planet destroys itself? At that time all the people of other religions will have to accept this god and Jesus as the rulers of the earth or they will be killed and go to Hell?