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Did God Really Command Genocide?: Coming to Terms with the Justice of God. Was the Apostle a Racist, Chauvinist Jerk? Reclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom. Editorial Reviews Review "In many of our African American churches we frequently recite the refrain, 'God is good all the time and all the time God is good. David Lamb gives sound guidance for understanding a difficult topic. Lamb offers an apologetic for not only believing in God but also believing that God is good--even as he is portrayed in the Old Testament.
Professor Lamb's scholarship is sound and his sense of humor had me laughing out loud. Not many theology books can do that! I'm going to use this book in class and enthusiastically recommend it to my congregants! It is striking right at the heart of one of the most pressing questions being asked today and we cannot ignore this. God Behaving Badly is an extremely helpful book in wrestling with these very difficult questions in a winsome, biblical and readable way.
If you are at all missionally living in our culture and aware of the questions being asked and challenges to Christianity, then you really cannot help but read this book! This is especially true for the Bible and the God of the Bible, for God is love and can only be truly known in love. David Lamb has loved his way into understanding Yahweh more fully; subsequently he can lovingly help us to 'see' and experience God in new and revealing ways.
God gets a lot of bad press--it can be a little embarrassing.? So even the title of Dave Lamb's book gave me hope.? Dave gives honest voice and deliberate attention to some of the most troublesome questions humans have ever asked, and brings not only answers but develops our view of God too.?
The most thrilling thing about this book is that I can recommend it to both the faithful and the skittish, to friends and students and people who think about God and aren't sure what to think. I became sensitive to the 'God questions' in the Bible because students asked me questions that came straight from troubled hearts. This book is written for students and speaks with wit and wisdom to the questions they have. The author emphatically states, 'When we approach Scripture, we must take the context seriously. The word context appears 59 times, scattered throughout the book.
Dave's solid contextual analysis of passages--which might appear to say, Yes, Yes, Yes in answer to the question about God's anger, his view of gender and his view of races--was a highlight for me. Dave's unraveling of many problematic texts in terms of contextual analysis is superb. In addition, his many, many masterful word studies shed light on his contextual analyses.
Dave writes with winsome humor. He loves the Old Testament, and you can tell that as you read the popularly written, academically sound, easy-to-read flow of material in each chapter. God gets a lot of bad press--it can be a little embarrassing. So even the title of Dave Lamb's book gave me hope.
Dave gives honest voice and deliberate attention to some of the most troublesome questions humans have ever asked, and brings not only answers but develops our view of God too. Written in a winsome and engaging way, this book is going to help many who wonder if the God of the Old Testament is indeed the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Wood, Enrichment, Spring "Lamb encourages readers to prove disturbing passages with an open mind, read feminist theologians, and engage in prayerful conversation. This book will challenge, comfort, and provoke reflection.
He previously worked in campus ministry with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship and has taught extensively in various crosscultural contexts. Product details File Size: May 28, Sold by: Share your thoughts with other customers. Write a customer review. Read reviews that mention old testament david lamb behaving badly god of the old sexist and racist god behaving new testament angry sexist near eastern bad reputation make sense sunday school angry or loving canaanite conquest wool and linen richard dawkins legalistic or gracious rigid or flexible distant or near ancient near.
Lamb, David T.
Showing of 84 reviews. Top Reviews Most recent Top Reviews. There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later. A good read, answering many criticisms of God from the Old Testament. I enjoyed reading this book, David Lamb includes humor and popular culture as he writes about various problematic passages in the Old Testament, seeking to show that God is loving, merciful and good.
He seems like the kind of guy I would enjoy as a friend and well, as a professor. My favorite chapter was the one concerning God not being sexist, he made a excellent case from the OT that God is very affirming to woman and yeah, i really like it. David's chapter on the OT violence did not really sa I enjoyed reading this book, David Lamb includes humor and popular culture as he writes about various problematic passages in the Old Testament, seeking to show that God is loving, merciful and good.
David's chapter on the OT violence did not really satisfy, but it is clear that cases of violence that God condones are in the context of judgment, which helps, but still for me I am rather disturbed by how bloody God can be, even though its justified, since he is the judge. But yeah, though some parts of the books did not go into much depth, I thought over all it was enjoyable and made some good points.
May 22, Ron rated it really liked it. Lamb's book tries to address the more troubling aspects of God as He appears in the Old Testament: While Lamb doesn't try to excuse everything, when we consider the context of those stories, both in terms of known history and within the story itself, we see a more complex character.
I like the author's attitude in particular. Rather than dismiss critics as misguided or hateful, he's willing to consider what t Lamb's book tries to address the more troubling aspects of God as He appears in the Old Testament: Rather than dismiss critics as misguided or hateful, he's willing to consider what they have to say and see if he can learn something from the process. For example, he opens the last chapter with a quote from one of Phillip Pullman's evil evil atheist recruitment books, namely where Ms.
God behaving badly : is the God of the Old Testament angry, sexist, and racist?
Coulter asks if God's real, then where the hell is he? As tempting as it would be to just shut her out as a blasphemer, Lamb points out that that's also how dozens of the Psalms begin. Lots of people in the Bible have crises of faith. Nov 03, Amanda rated it it was ok Shelves: This book is written for the layman who knows little to nothing of how to interpret the Old Testament's difficult passages or who has read very little of the Bible, making it lean to the boring side for those who are more knowledgeable about the Bible.
If you have read a few apologetic books before, Lamb's book is probably going to be a restatement of what you've already read. Even so, I found this book to be interesting until the chapter on God's immutability, or unchanging-ness. I found his ex This book is written for the layman who knows little to nothing of how to interpret the Old Testament's difficult passages or who has read very little of the Bible, making it lean to the boring side for those who are more knowledgeable about the Bible.
I found his exegesis of the texts to be somewhat lacking, his argument confusing, and his misunderstanding of what it means to be changeable as opposed to simply changing one's mind perplexing. It really ruined the book for me.
Still, an acceptable starter text for people wrestling with the questions addressed in the book. Jul 09, Lars rated it really liked it. David Lamb's discussions on difficult Old Testament passages combined with his persisting assertions that Yahweh and Jesus is one and the same God makes this a brief, yet relevant book for believers and seekers alike. I doubt Dawkins and Hitchens would ever pick up a book like this one, but Lamb does a great job at responding to their criticism of the Old Testament God nonetheless.
In addition, the book is rather funny and also personal, and honest. I'm definitely recommending this one. Jun 08, Kevin rated it really liked it. Great book for those who are interested in learning more on how to reconcile the apparent differences between God as portrayed by the New Testament and the Old Testament.
The author does a good job of overcoming some of the difficulties, while at the same time realizing that somethings just must live in tension. Further, the author also brings out Scriptural evidence that is often overlooked as we deal with the troubling passages. Overall this book is well worth the read. Jul 15, Sarah Frobisher rated it it was ok Shelves: I was disappointed with this book.
I did not feel like the reasoning given was adequate, and there were a few instances of circular logic which was frustrating. I was hoping for a more convincing argument for some of the things presented, and it just wasn't there. Mar 23, David rated it really liked it Shelves: How could God command genocide? Why does God endorse slavery? These are the sorts of questions that frequently come up in discussions about the Bible, whether those discussions are with skeptics or sincere Christians working through the Bible for the first time.
Such questions have always been there, the first Christians had to spend much time, and spilled much ink, seeking to answer them.
God Behaving Badly: Is the God of the Old Testament Angry, Sexist and Racist?
But it seems such questions are becoming continuously louder in our culture How could God command genocide? But it seems such questions are becoming continuously louder in our culture as more people move away from faith. At the most extreme, the fact that God in the Old Testament commands such barbaric actions is proof such God, any God, does not exist. I think this question is much more challenging then issues related to science, for example. But a God who commands the extermination of whole people groups or institutes laws that make women second class citizens?
Such a God as portrayed in the Bible makes us question the validity of the Bible and its God. That said, there are many great books out there that provide answers to these questions. But he goes on to address other issues, such as whether God is near or distant, which are not always addressed.
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- God Behaving Badly: Is the God of the Old Testament Angry, Sexist and Racist? by David T. Lamb.
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There are a lot of books out there on this subject. The only problem I found in the book is when Lamb refers to another scholar, Eric Seibert. Apparently Seibert argued that if the Bible says God committed such atrocities we can simply say God did not do such things for the God revealed in Jesus would not do such things. I have not read Seibert, but his argument reminded me of Peter Enns whose recent book I did read. This does not seem fair of Enns or Seibert for I do not think they would say they are rejecting anything.
Enns emphasizes the human aspect and says that God wants such stories in scripture even if they portray him wrongly. A minor issue to be sure, but it seemed to misrepresent those who hold such positions. May 11, James rated it it was amazing Shelves: This is a good, popular level book which wrestles with the ways the God of the Hebrew bible is maligned in both popular Christianity and by its critics.
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Lamb produces a compelling vision of the God of love, who is not rigid, angry or sexist. He does this by wrestling with difficult texts i. Sometimes he offers alternative readings of texts, more often he places these texts with in a wider and more generous view of the God of the Old Testament, offering a hermenuetic This is a good, popular level book which wrestles with the ways the God of the Hebrew bible is maligned in both popular Christianity and by its critics. Sometimes he offers alternative readings of texts, more often he places these texts with in a wider and more generous view of the God of the Old Testament, offering a hermenuetic for reading difficult passages in the context of the whole.
Much of the information in this book is stuff that I wrestled with in several classes in seminary, but I can't always recommend my seminary texts to 'normal people' because they wouldn't read it or know what it says. This is an accessible and engaging volume which tackles many of the issues and helps ordinary readers regard the Old Testament as scripture.
Nov 14, Eric rated it liked it Shelves: I grew up with the author, David Lamb. I will point out that I co-authored a junior high report on sedimentary rock with David. The influence is clear. OK, David probably doesn't even remember me, but it is fun to read books written by your childhood contemporaries. Dave's casual, relaxed writing style, replete with contemporary and even personal anecd I grew up with the author, David Lamb.
Dave's casual, relaxed writing style, replete with contemporary and even personal anecdotes, made this an easy read. Without minimizing the sometimes harsh realities of the biblical record, Lamb assembles an overall portrait that gives coherence to our understanding of God in both the Old and New Testaments. Commentaries Old Testament New Testament. InterVarsity Press Publication Date: God Behaving Badly Loading sample Product Description Overstock Title: Endorsements for God Behaving Badly.