What is the judgment of God?

Introduction

What we do in life echoes in eternity. — Maximus in the movie Gladiator, quoting Marcus Aurelius

It’s not just death that’s a great mystery.[1] It’s also what happens directly after death — the judgment — that is equally mysterious. The Apostle Paul himself said it at the conclusion of his great treatise in Romans:

Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! — Romans 11:33

Yes, the judgments of God are deep and unfathomable, yet he has revealed much about it in his Word. In this article I’ll explore what is revealed and discover that his judgments start in this life and extend into the next with a grand conclusion at the end. My hope is to encourage your faith in our awesome God. He is just and merciful, both of which will endure forever.

In most of my fifty years as a Christian my own belief in God’s judgment followed the traditional teaching of most evangelical churches. But in the past few years, as I’ve studied the hard doctrines: hell, death, salvation, heaven, my beliefs have changed. I still believe, even more strongly, that Jesus Christ died, was buried and rose again for our salvation. But the thorny doctrine of God’s judgment has shifted.

So based on my study of the Word, the judgment of God is not a simple binary transaction: heaven or hell. Are you a Christian — automatic heaven; not a Christian — automatic hell. A binary transaction requires no judgment, no discernment, no evaluation of the life as it was lived. Yet the Word is clear that the judgment does have a moral foundation. Take these verses for example:

But in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who “will render to each one according to his deeds”: eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality; but to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness—indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek; but glory, honor, and peace to everyone who works what is good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For there is no partiality with God. — Romans 2:5–11

For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation. — John 5:26–29

The Word is clear: Jesus accomplished the salvation of the entire world, all of humanity, for all time. Without his death, burial, resurrection, and ascension, there would be no salvation. The truth is that Jesus, after his resurrection, declared his authority and Lordship over heaven and earth, and we who believe are to announce his lordship and make disciples of Jesus of all ethnicities (ethnos).[2]

So to be clear, this article starts from the premise that all will eventually be saved, even though individuals may require a severe judgment.[3]

Judgment — what is it and why?

First let’s define the word:

judgment — from the Greek verb krino – to separate, distinguish, judge, thus a separating, selection; also a judgment, that is, an opinion or decision given concerning anything especially concerning justice and injustice, right and wrong.

More generally, God’s judgment encompasses all the ways in this life and the next that produce justice and vindication, and reveal what is true and false, what is right and wrong, what is good and evil. Judgment brings into the light the hidden things that have happened in the world.[4]

But let’s look even more generally — why? Why does God need to judge the world? What’s the point of it? First let’s look at the ‘who’ — let’s say there are three types of people groups:[5]

1  Evil people – those who intentionally cause needless suffering.[6]

God will punish evil people, but how? I believe they will reap what they have sown, whether in this life or the next, or both; they will endure the same things which they have inflicted on others. They must experience it. Why? Because it’s the only way for them to learn and be restored themselves. When they reach the point that they want to suffer for their sufferers, this will allow them to gain true empathy.

2  Suffering people – those who receive the untold suffering at the hands of the evil people.

In the judgment I believe God will comfort these people. How? By seeing that God does see and that he cares and makes it right. Their suffering is finally, fully and rightfully avenged; what really happened to them is made known to everyone. All of the hidden details of their suffering are revealed, and everyone acknowledges that it’s true.

3  Good people – those who work to relieve the suffering, who also may suffer because they have taken up the suffering of others.

How does God reward and restore these souls in the judgment? By recognizing and appreciating their sacrifice and allowing others to see what really happened to them. They are vindicated; they are given appropriate acknowledgments and rewards:

responsibilities	powers	awards
access	possessions	voyages
understandings	abilities	gifts
privileges	opportunities	audiences
unimaginable things[7]

The problem is that every one of us, to varying degrees, falls into all three of these categories. We’ve all done evil things, sins, and have hurt others, whether intentionally or unintentionally or somewhere in between. We’ve all suffered in various ways at the hands of these sinful people, sinful systems, and some more than others. And we’ve all to some degree helped people who were suffering. It’s a tangled web that we’ve woven and only God himself can properly untangle it. But untangle it he will!

Why?

Because he’s all about restoration, peace, vindication, recognition, revelation, compassion, renewal and reconciliation. Does he punish evil? Yes, and he punishes deep evil severely, but no evil is beyond his ability to restore. NONE. Why would it be — he’s God! And he has eternity at his fingertips in which to do it. The greater the restoration, the greater the glory that will be given him in the end.

Now let’s divide judgment into three parts, but this time let’s do it chronologically:

• The long road — judgment in this life
• The bridge — judgment that extends into the next life
• The destination — judgment in the end

The long road — judgment in this life

It’s worth repeating: the judgments of God are ultimately redemptive and restorative; they are not purely punitive. God is not absent in this life; he is present; he is aware; he is active in our lives whether we realize it or not. And like a good father who loves his children, he disciplines us for our learning and growth. Hebrews says:

And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons:

“My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord,
Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him;
For whom the Lord loves He chastens,
And scourges every son whom He receives.”

If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten?  . . . Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. — Hebrews 12:5–11

But his judgments also manifest in other ways. You could say they’re built into the fabric of the world he created. They are inescapable; they’re everywhere. Take John’s story of the healing of the blind man.

And Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.”

Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, “Are we blind also?”

Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains. — John 9:39–41

The judgment that Christ executes is based on a person’s heart condition. So it is Christ who oversees the process of consequence: of cause and effect. Here he is describing humility versus pride and its effects. Someone who is proud, who thinks he knows it all, who is arrogant, will be blinded to the revelation that Christ brings. He will be blind to who Jesus really is.

But someone who is humble, who admits they don’t know — like the blind man who said: ‘who is he, Lord, that I may believe in Him?’ — will be receptive to the truth of who Christ is. They will seek him out.

This idea of God’s judgment separating those who understand from those who stubbornly remain obtuse carries over into how Jesus normally spoke publically — in parables. Many assume he did this to relate truths in language the average person could understand. But that is not what he said:

And the disciples came and said to Him, “Why do You speak to them in parables?”

He answered and said to them, “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. — Matthew 13:10–13

So the judgment of God is his oversight over his moral world built on the principles of cause and effect, ‘sowing and reaping.’ If you choose to ignore his Word you will reap the consequences for doing so. His moral principles are unavoidable and are simply how the world works. Whatever you sow, you will reap. It may take awhile and it may be interrupted by his discipline or merciful intervention, but if not interrupted, the plant continues to grow until it bears fruit. So:

• if you steal you will eventually lose everything.
• if you lie you will lose the truth — eventually everyone will not believe you no matter what you say, even if you are speaking the truth. Even you yourself will become unable to distinguish the real from the unreal.
• if you kill you will lose your life — anger and bitterness will alienate you from everyone.
• if you commit adultery you will lose your marriage
• if you covet you will lose your soul — when everything becomes an object to consume, you yourself becomes just another object.

This is his judgment, but notice it is also full of mercy. It’s not strictly transactional or binary.

But it’s not just the negative judgments that are present and active. His judgment also includes positive ‘reaping.’ Jesus began the famous Sermon on the Mount with pronouncements of blessing. We call these the Beatitudes:

Blessed are the poor in spirit,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn,
For they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek,
For they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
For they shall be filled.

Blessed are the merciful,
For they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart,
For they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,
For they shall be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake,
For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. — Matthew 5:3–12

These are the ‘judgments’ or distinguishments that Christ calls out. It’s the way things work in his kingdom, that is, in his world. So for example, the blessing on the merciful is that they will also receive mercy. Mercy is reciprocal and proportional, just as judging is also reciprocal and proportional. Later on in the sermon he speaks of judging:

“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. — Matthew 7:1–2[8]

But there is an even more profound judgment that Christ declared is active now, and into which we are called to actively participate.

Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.” This He said, signifying by what death He would die. — John 12:31–33

Jesus is saying that the cross is the dividing line of history. It is the means by which the world is judged. In this is a great irony. It appears that Jesus is being judged by men, but actually Jesus is judging men, but his way of judging is to separate the light from the darkness, the wheat from the chaff. In other words, there will be those who humbly receive the words of Jesus and see him for who he truly is. They will appear to be blind by those who should know, but it will actually be those who claim to know, who will be blind and be in darkness.

Jesus is the lightening rod of history. When we are confronted by him, we will either love him or hate him — there is no middle ground.

In another passage Jesus moves this work to the Holy Spirit.

And when He [the Comforter] has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: of sin, because they do not believe in Me; of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. — John 16:8

The Holy Spirit, working through his Christ followers, will enable the world to see a clear distinction/separation/judgment between sinfulness and righteousness. It will become increasingly obvious who are the sinners and who are the righteous. A great chasm will open up between these two. But this is actually the mercy of God at work to make it obvious to know where to run.

We, through the Holy Spirit, show the world how to overcome, and that Christ has overcome the world and continues to overcome the world through us following in Christ’s path. It is the way of the cross, the way of love.

In other words, on the surface it appears that sin and evil are dominant, but Christ showed the world that it’s actually love that overcomes evil.[9] His sacrificial love and truth is much greater, so much greater that it conquers the world. Paul knew this and told the Romans:

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written:

“For Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”

Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. — Romans 8:35–39

Jesus allowed himself to be judged by men, by Pilate on his judgment seat, and his judgment was written on a placard and nailed to the cross: Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. Even though it was meant to mock him; nevertheless, God overruled Pilate’s judgment and published the true judgment. Pilate said: ‘what I have written I have written.’ [10]

Finally, Paul’s treatise in Romans chapter one through eleven shows us how God’s judgments are active now. Starting in chapter one Paul begins his argument declaring the universality of sin and judgment, and then concludes it in chapter eleven by declaring the universality of mercy. Here is Paul’s shocking conclusion:

For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all. — Romans 11:32

God ‘committed’ them to disobedience, but the word translated ‘committed’ is much more graphic than the tired old word ‘committed.’[11] It means to ‘shut them up’ or ‘enclose’ or ‘corral’. Why? So that ‘he might have mercy on all.’ Paul himself is apparently shocked and awed at this stunning turn of events because he suddenly leaps into spontaneous worship:

Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!

“For who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has become His counselor?”

“Or who has first given to Him
And it shall be repaid to him?”

For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen. — Romans 11:33–36

Just as Paul marvels at God’s unsearchable judgments and ways now at work in the world, so we should also marvel. I think the implication is that God will be both just and merciful, but we just don’t know HOW he will apply these diametrically opposed attributes. Paul stands in awe of God’s ways and judgments because they are obviously so deep, wide, powerful and unfathomable. We too, should be very careful to claim to have all the answers about the final judgment.

The Bridge — Judgment extends into the next life

As we’ve discovered, God’s judgment does not start after death; it starts now. God is a loving father who faithfully warns and chastises his children now in the hope that they will turn from their ways to see the advantage and good of walking in his ways.

Jesus spoke of this connection in many ways:

But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned. — Matthew 12:36–37

Every idle word.

The judgment will be absolutely comprehensive. Nothing will be left out because everything in life has significance, even the smallest things. Everything. Everything we do or don’t do; say or don’t say; think or don’t think; buy or don’t buy; see or don’t see, etc, etc.

I can hear it now: ‘Can’t God let us have a little down time?’ ‘We can’t possibly be aware of our actions 24/7.’ But that’s not the point here. The point is that God will take the totality of our lives and let our own words and actions tell the story. They will paint a detailed picture. The sum total of our lives will convey a legacy whether we like it or not. So this warning should not cause us to be self-focused — it’s actually the opposite. If we’re living our lives for the Lord (and thus not for ourselves), we will develop the freedom of self-forgetfulness and our lives will be about the Lord and about those we love and those we love enough to tell the truth. Our own words carry a lot of weight in the judgment. They will be the evidence God uses to convict/acquit us. No one else need accuse us; we have already accused ourselves. Our words steer us: ‘yes’ or ‘no’ or ‘wait’ or ‘that’s right’ or ‘that’s wrong’ or ‘that’s true’ or ‘that’s false’ and so on. James says that our tongue is the rudder that directs our way through the sea of life.[12]

Even in the small matters now we find ourselves training for the next life. This comes up in something that Paul writes at the end of the letter to the Romans:

But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written:

“As I live, says the Lord,
Every knee shall bow to Me,
And every tongue shall confess to God.”

So then each of us shall give account of himself to God. Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way. — Romans 14:10–13

So the reasoning is:

• our judgment is redundant/unnecessary. God is going to do it; he’s got it all covered.
• our judgment is incomplete and selfish
• our judgment only divides and discourages

The message is: we need to see that we’re all in the same boat and that no one is above anyone else; we need to encourage and support one another and not let our minor differences cause offense.

It may seem contradictory, but Paul also says that we should judge matters that arise in the church and not resort to hiring those outside the church to be our judges. This kind of judging means to rightly and compassionately hear and decide between disputes and differences in the church. Here are Paul’s words to the Corinthian church:

Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unrighteous, and not before the saints? Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life? If then you have judgments concerning things pertaining to this life, do you appoint those who are least esteemed by the church to judge? — I Corinthians 6:1–4

The statement: ‘the saints will judge the world’ may seem odd on the surface, but on reflection, it makes perfect sense. Why? Because God always wants us to join him in his work and to participate with him. How we will do this is not clear, but he will oversee all judgment as he delegates it to us. God could do it all himself, but then he would be forfeiting the joy that he gets from seeing his children learn and work with him.

Now let’s dive into some of the more ‘scary’ judgment scriptures. One of them is found in Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians:

We are bound to thank God always for you, brethren, as it is fitting, because your faith grows exceedingly, and the love of every one of you all abounds toward each other, so that we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure, which is manifest evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you also suffer; since it is a righteous thing with God to repay with tribulation those who trouble you, and to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe, because our testimony among you was believed. — 2 Thessalonians 1:3–10

The judgment — the righteous judgment of God — begins in this life and extends into the next. The Thessalonians already enjoyed a growing faith, a love of everyone, an abounding patience and faith, all of which are a taste of what they will also enjoy when Christ returns. Likewise, God will ‘repay with tribulation those who trouble’ the Thessalonians. Apparently their trouble in this life will continue with God’s righteous judgment, ‘in flaming fire,’ into then next. Yes, ‘some men’s sins are clearly evident, preceding them to judgment.’[13]

But there’s another major factor that shows up in the midst of this fiery judgment and it’s the antithesis of judgment:

Mercy

Before we go too far let’s define what we mean by mercy.

mercy — from the Greek word eleos meaning: pity, compassion; a readiness to help those in trouble; kindness or good will toward the miserable and afflicted, joined with a desire to relieve them. Mercy is an expression of love to those who do not deserve or expect or demand it. It is love shown to the miserable and defeated, the poor and oppressed, the defenseless and downtrodden.

Jesus spoke a famous parable about this very thing.[14] Many people have used it only to support the doctrine of an endless hell, but Jesus’ purpose for telling it was something different. The key verse is spoken from the mouth of Abraham:

But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. — Luke 16:25

This parable illustrates the sobering truth that the one who shows no mercy will receive no mercy. The contrast Jesus sets up between the rich man and Lazarus couldn’t be more plain. The rich man was: ‘clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day;’ and the beggar Lazarus was: ‘full of sores, who was laid at [the rich man’s] gate, desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table [the least amount of care he could have asked for]. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores [even the dogs show more care than the rich man].’ But the rich man whom Jesus leaves nameless, and who surely was aware of Lazarus laying at his gate, took absolutely no notice. He expressed zero care for Lazarus who was obviously suffering. So in Hades, when the rich man asks for the smallest scrap of mercy — ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame,’ Abraham politely declines.The point of the parable is clearly a warning. It illustrates the ultimate penalty of mercilessness — mercilessness.

Also James speaks of this concept:

So speak and so do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. — James 2:12–13

The context here is an appeal to treat all with honor and grace and not to show partiality to the rich. It’s important to be merciful to whomever you are, rich or poor. We do this in light of the fact that we all ‘will be judged by the law of liberty.’ Then he says something quite significant: ‘For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy.’

This goes back to the point about Lazarus and the rich man. Then this:

Mercy triumphs over judgment.

The word translated ‘triumphs over’ is katakauchatai, meaning to boast down, over-exalting one thing at the expense of another. Gloating. The use of this word appears to be a play on words, that is, James points out how they were ‘dishonoring the poor man’ (2:6) and reminding them how the rich oppress them and drag them into the courts — a direct reference to judgment.

So James turns this upside down. No, MERCY triumphs over judgment. In the end, in God’s kingdom, it is mercy that has the last word.

James is saying that the law is exacting and unforgiving, but there is a higher law — the law of liberty — that trumps the exacting nature of the law. And if we live by the law of liberty we won’t be judged by the exacting law. The law of liberty: mercy, is superior to, higher, nobler, more divine, than the exacting law.

Mercy circumvents the law, even an authorized use of it. Mercy is the cancellation of the law’s requirement — withholding what someone technically deserves because of a higher reason.

When the Pharisees see Jesus’ disciples eating grain from the field on the Sabbath day, they criticize Jesus for not observing the law of the Sabbath. But Jesus reminds them of what David did and who he is:

But He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God and ate the showbread which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests? Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are blameless? Yet I say to you that in this place there is One greater than the temple. But if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice,’[15] you would not have condemned the guiltless. For the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” — Matthew 12:3–8

Jesus plainly says that mercy is a higher principle than a strict application of the law. Admittedly this may be hard to grasp. Why do we always assume the law to be sovereign, the top authority? Yet it is not. There is a higher law. This truth has various facets:

• the golden rule: ‘Do to others what you would have . . .’
• the first and second greatest commandment: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart . . ’
• the law of the Spirit: ‘the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus that has made me free from the law of sin and death.’

It is God’s divine law of love.

‘And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.’[16]

One more illustration of this is worth it because it documents Jesus himself cancelling his own rule because of mercy.

Then Jesus went out from there and departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed.”

But He answered her not a word.

And His disciples came and urged Him, saying, “Send her away, for she cries out after us.”

But He answered and said, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

Then she came and worshiped Him, saying, “Lord, help me!”

But He answered and said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.”

And she said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.”

Then Jesus answered and said to her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour. — Matthew 15:21–28

Jesus responds to the woman from Canaan initially by denying her cry for mercy, but her persistent faith finally won the Lord’s mercy. Her heart of love for her distressed and disturbed daughter won the day so that even Christ’s own rule — ‘it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs,’ — was overcome. Again mercy is that which is given to someone who does NOT deserve it, is not ‘qualified’ for it.

It answers the commonplaces:

• we don’t do that . . . but now we do.
• it’s never been done . . but this time we will.
• these people don’t deserve it . . but they’re going to get it anyway.
• these people aren’t qualified . . but that doesn’t matter now.

The Destination — judgment in the end

The Bible is clear: history culminates in a Day of Judgment, a day when God will bring this age to an end, a day when he will bring justice and peace to the earth. Whether that day is a literal twenty-four hour day is not clear, but it will be a final and unified divine moment that concludes all earthly history with final justice, truth and mercy. Until that Day the whole world groans under the burden of sin and evil.

Therefore we make it our aim, whether present or absent, to be well pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are well known to God, and I also trust are well known in your consciences. — 2 Corinthians 5:9–11

The word translated ‘terror’ is phobos, meaning fear, withdrawal, panic.

Paul acknowledges the fairly obvious truth that, for most people the prospect of the judgment of God is at least sobering, if not absolutely terrifying. Imagine: You, literally being summoned and then escorted into the throne room of God. There he is sitting high above you and as you stand there, he turns and gives you his full attention, looking at you with those eyes which are like flames of fire. Most of us will probably wilt much like the Apostle John did on the island of Patmos:

And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death. — Revelation 1:17–18

I don’t believe that God gets any pleasure in scaring us, though he may not be able to completely prevent it. We may shake at the prospect of seeing him for the first time, but like he did with John, he will be quick to comfort and reassure us.

So I believe our judgment will be the most thorough, the most loving, the most compassionate, the most humbling encounter of our lives. He will explain everything in  our lives, perhaps at one time, perhaps over time as we can endure it. But he will do it, and it will be true and right and just and yet full of mercy.

As with any system of justice, a critical principle is that the judgment must fit the crime. A one-size-fits-all justice system is not justice at all; rather, it is either tyranny or terrorism. A true justice system is measured and graded and proportional. For example, our Indiana State criminal code grades offenses in a system of felonies, misdemeanors and infractions.

We don’t sentence thieves and murderers and traffic violators with the same punishment. Likewise God’s justice ‘system’ is measured and proportional. Jesus makes reference to this in his rebuke on the cities of Chorazin and Bethsaida:

Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent: “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. — Matthew 11:20–22

The fact that Jesus says, ‘it will be more tolerable . . than for you in the day of judgment . . ’ proves that the day of judgment will be proportional: the punishment will fit the crime. This is how any reasonable and righteous justice system works.

As I’ve said before, God’s world of cause and effect reflects the principles of proportionality. Here’s a few examples. This list could get very long but I will spare you.

food	overeating or undereating, a little or a lot
money	going into debt, a little or a lot
sun exposure	sunburn > heat exhaustion > sun poisoning
car accident	10 mph versus 100 mph
words/communication	encouragement versus criticalness

But God’s word is very clear that he reserves the right to severely judge those who led people away from him and who have inflicted the most pain and suffering. I can point to many verses to prove this point, but we have to be careful to understand for whom these words are intended. Three groups consistently deserve the most severe judgment:

• apostates[17]
• false prophets and false teachers[18]
• false gods/systems: sorcerers/ idol pimps/maker/ promoters/ benefactors[19]

The surprise of mercy

No discussion of judgment would be complete without including the concept of mercy. But will God be merciful on the Day of Judgment? Paul answers this question specifically:

This you know, that all those in Asia have turned away from me, among whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes. The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain; but when he arrived in Rome, he sought me out very zealously and found me. The Lord grant to him that he may find mercy from the Lord in that Day—and you know very well how many ways he ministered to me at Ephesus. — I Timothy 1:15–18

And doesn’t it make perfect sense that God would also be merciful in that day? Does he ever stop being merciful? The psalmist in Psalm 136 repeats the statement, for his mercy endures forever, twenty-six times, apparently to illustrate and emphasize this truth:

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever. . . .

Oh, give thanks to the God of heaven!
For His mercy endures forever. — Psalm 136: 1, 26

In Romans Paul emphasizes this point in saying that God has the right to show mercy on whomever he chooses. He claims this absolute right:

What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? Certainly not! For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.” So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy. For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.” Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens. — Romans 9:14–18

I touched on this earlier but it bears repeating: mercy is reciprocal. Mercy begets mercy; ‘blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy.’ And this mercy dynamic includes both human and divine mercy.

I believe God loves mercy. He loves to show mercy and is glad to show it to those who have been merciful in this life. Jesus highlighted this truth in the famous Matthew chapter 25 passage: the Judgment of the Nations.

“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’

“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ — Matthew 25:31–40

Mercy will not be ‘tacked on’ to the judgment. It’s not a way to offer ‘time served,’ or a ‘reduced sentence.’ No, mercy is an integral part of God’s justice. Judgment and mercy are inseparable. But I’m afraid we’ve reduced our doctrine of the judgment of God to a simple binary transaction: heaven or hell.

Most evangelicals believe in this binary; the only variation is in heaven where some will receive greater rewards, but even for those who get no title or reward, it’s still heaven — all who make it there seem to be content with just arriving there no matter the ultimate reward they receive. Yes, they’ve heard of a judgment of works, which seems somehow contradictory to the fact that they were saved by grace, but they’re quickly assured that heaven is not in jeopardy.

But in this binary doctrine there is no variation in hell, no matter how good or evil in this life. So the unbelieving but good-hearted mother, the native of Borneo who’s never heard of Jesus, and Hitler — they all equally burn in hell forever. Does that seem just?[20] I think the answer is obviously no. Yet the fact is that God is just.

I say all this and humbly bow in awe to God’s merciful judgment:

For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all.

Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!

“For who has known the mind of the Lord?
Or who has become His counselor?”

“Or who has first given to Him
And it shall be repaid to him?”

For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen. — Romans 11:32–36

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[1] See my article: What is death?

[2] Matthew 28:18–20

[3] For more on my view of salvation, see my article: LIE:God only grants salvation to those who have faith in Jesus.

[4] I Corinthians 4:5

[5] Obviously I can only speak here in generalities. Precisely how God will carry out these judgments, I can only speculate.

[6] For more on evil, see: LIE: Evil is more powerful than good, and LIE: We should not hate.

[7] See I Corinthians 2:9

[8] See also my article: LIE: I should not judge.

[9] Romans 12:21: ‘Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.’

[10] John 19:22

[11] The word is sunekeisen, which means to shut together, enclose, shut in, make subject to, shut up on all sides. To illustrate its physical meaning the word is used in Luke 5:6: ‘And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking.’

[12] James 3:4

[13] I Timothy 5:24

[14] Luke 16:19–31

[15] From Hosea 6:6

[16] I Corinthians 13:13

[17] See for example Hebrews 10:26–31

[18] See for example James 3:1

[19] See for example Revelation chapters 17–19

[20] See my articles: What is hell? and What is heaven?