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John Piper, Osama, And More Bad Theology

MIAMI, FL - MAY 02: Bob Kunst holds a sign th...

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Someone, please, take away his Twitter.

Today, in two separate instances, Piper managed to announce his deficient to the entire world.

In a tweet, Piper said:

God took out Osama bin Ladin. And he will take me out. And you. And everyone else. Only different ways.

Then, in his latest blog, he actually had the temerity to suggest that God was thrilled with the death of Osama, saying:

It is also true that God does delight in the death of the wicked.

It’s in this blog that Piper stretches this eisegesis beyond credulity by reading prophetic passages in Ezekiel and Revelation, along with a passage of warning to Israel in Deuteronomy as proof positive that God delights in the death of the wicked.

It says twice in Ezekiel 18….actually God says twice, that he does not rejoice nor want to see the wicked die.

Sorry John….. the Bible clearly says you’re wrong.

On Edit:

Be sure to check out both Rod‘s and Jim West‘s take on this, too.

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Updated: May 3, 2011 at 7:08 am
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  • Marty

    Doesn’t sound like you’ve read all of Piper’s article. I don’t think that’s what Piper is saying.

    In one sense, human death is not God’s pleasure:
    Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live? . . . For I do not pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; so turn, and live.
    (Ezekiel 18:23, 32)
    .

    In another sense, the death and judgment of the unrepentant is God’s pleasure:
    Thus shall my anger spend itself, and I will vent my fury upon them and satisfy myself.
    (Ezekiel 5:13)

    [Wisdom calls out:] Because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you.
    (Proverbs 1:25–26)

    Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, for God has given judgment for you against her!
    (Revelation 18:20)

    As the Lord took delight in doing you good . . . so the Lord will take delight in bringing ruin upon you and destroying you.
    (Deuteronomy 28:63)

    We should not cancel out any of these passages but think our way through to how they can all be true.

    God is Not Malicious or Bloodthirsty
    My suggestion is that the death and misery of the unrepentant is in and of itself not a pleasure to God. God is not a sadist. He is not malicious or bloodthirsty. The death and suffering considered for itself alone is not his delight.

    Rather, when a rebellious, wicked, unbelieving person is judged, what God has pleasure in is the exaltation of truth and righteousness, and the vindication of his own honor and glory. (For further discussion of God’s heart in judgment see the section in The Pleasures of God called “How Is God Like George Washington?”, pp. 147–149.)

    When Moses warns Israel that the Lord will take pleasure in bringing ruin upon them and destroying them if they do not repent (Deuteronomy 28:63), he means that those who have rebelled against the Lord and moved beyond repentance will not be able to gloat that they have made the Almighty miserable.

    God is not defeated in the triumphs of his righteous judgment. Quite the contrary. Moses says that when they are judged they will unwittingly provide an occasion for God to rejoice in the demonstration of his justice and his power and the infinite worth of his glory (see also Romans 9:22–23).

    • http://homebrewedtheology.com Christian

      I disagree. Piper’s hyper-Calvinism misleads him in the passages he quotes as proof God delights in the death of the wicked. He’s using prophetic passages and warnings of final judgment to justify his view when, in Ezekiel 18, God clearly states not once, but twice, that He does not delight in the death of the wicked.

      Piper’s wrong in this case.

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  • http://scarroll48.tumblr.com/ Sean

    I think you nailed him. He is so out there on this, I think it is arrogant for Americans to claim verses based on Israel’s nation status, especially since we aren’t a Christian nation, and to use Revelation which deals explicitly with the church rejoicing at the binding of Satan.

    God does not rejoice in death, and doesn’t need to throw sinners to hell to make himself glorified. He glorifies himself, and if sinners need to be thrown in to hell, and killed on earth by His hand, why the offer of grace through Christ?

    • http://homebrewedtheology.com Christian

      Sean,

      Thanks. Piper is, well, misguided here, to put it politely. The use of prophetic and warning passages to justify a position that is contrary to scripture is horrific theology.

      Your point on grace is right on target.

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