It’s a losing argument. The God of the OT habitually wreaked havoc and death on many for the crimes of the few. Sodom, Gomorrah, and the Flood to name the best known. If you want to interpret that as just so much poetry, it’s fair to ask how much of the rest is just poetry.
The Old Testament, if written in a modern language and style would be an action packed thriller that would be banned from most countries for being too violent.
The part about all of our sins being forgiven through the sacrifice of Christ? How about spending eternity in Hell for rejecting God’s provision?
The Flood? Only Noah and his family were righteous. Must not have been many people for them to be the majority. S&G? Couldn't find 10 righteous, must have been really small towns for Lot and his family to be the majority. Nice try, as God has always been the same.
This is not the *crimes of a few*.
Genesis 6:5 The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
Genesis 6:11-13 Now the earth was corrupt in God's sight, and the earth was filled with violence. And God saw the earth, and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth. And God said to Noah, "I have determined to make an end of all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth."
Crimes of a few?
Like offering your firstborn to be burned alive as an offering to Molech?
Seems that many who object to God’s dealing with corrupt people who engage in abominations, don’t really understand what those cultures were about.
For one thing, God did not capriciously obliterate them. He ALWAYS gives people opportunity after opportunity to repent and turn to Him. He warns them first, many times.
He does not lightly deal with sinful people but would rather that they turn to Him and be saved. But considering that they are being held accountable for the evil they perpetrate, killing them might actually be an act of mercy to not inflict worse condemnation on their part. He takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked.
He is also the One who actually has the RIGHT to decide when a man should live or die. HE is the creator and to Him belongs every life. Additionally, even when the physical life is ended, that doesn’t mean the life is over. Souls are forever. Only the earthly portion of that person’s life is done.
The Flood was to deal with a THOROUGHLY corrupt, violent earth. There were no innocent or righteous people, except Noah and his family. God did not obliterate Sodom and Gomorrah for the crimes of a *few*. On the contrary, if only 10 righteous people had been found there, He would have spared it. There weren’t that many. ALL the men of that city came out to rape the angels.
When He send Jonah to Ninevah, they repented and He spared them.
God lets people go on in their sin to what I consider astounding degrees because He is not willing that any should perish but all come to repentance. The reason He gives them time is so they turn to Him and avoid condemnation. But the time comes when enough is enough. Even God has His limits.