Grace Remix (6 page)

them, and reduce the hills to chaff. (Isaiah 41:13–14, 60:1–2, my paraphrase)

Don’t listen to Job’s friends. Listen to Isaiah! It’s not about the mountains we face but whether

we will turn to God who is greater than every peak, every trial, and every hardship that comes

our way.

Here’s a tip every writer should know: you live and die on your headlines. As the copyeditor

says, “Headlines are the most important thing you’ll ever write.”

The article above originally was published with a lousy title and nobody read it. (It also

came out on a New Year’s Eve which didn’t help.) By any measure it was not one of E2R’s

Greatest Hits.

But this is my book and I think it needs to be read, so here it is. Did you like it?

Actually, a lady called Janet did read it and she responded with an absolute gem of a

comment. She wrote, “God cannot give you what he does not have and he doesn’t have sickness

and disease.” Janet must be a copywriter, for she said in sixteen words what I’ve been trying to

say for years.

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7. Does God Scourge Us?

What comes to mind when you think of God? Perhaps you think he is distant, aloof, angry,

even terrifying. Maybe you see him with a whip in his hands:

For whom the Lord loves he chastens, and scourges every son whom he receives. (Hebrews

12:6, NKJV)

Yet your heavenly Father is not like this. He is loving, gracious, and kind. Jesus said he was

about his Father’s business and that business is not the scourging business but the adoption

business. God loves you and wants to spend eternity with you.

So how does scourging fit into this picture? It doesn’t. It sticks out like a cobra in a

kindergarten. It shouldn’t be there. Yet there it is, in black and white in Hebrews 12. So does

God scourge his kids or doesn’t he?

What is scourging?

In our era of first-world problems, you may not be acquainted with the horrors of scourging.

But those who lived in New Testament times knew at least two types of scourging.

First, there was Jewish scourging which involved the application of a leather whip to your

shoulders and chest. This form of scourging was limited by Jewish law to 40 stripes. This is why

the Jews called it the “forty lashes minus one”—they didn’t want to risk breaking the law by

miscounting so they deliberately reduced the maximum number of lashes to 39! The law also

said that the actual number of lashes was supposed to be commensurate with the crime.

However, Paul got the “forty minus one” on at least five occasions even though he broke no law

(2 Corinthians 11:24).

Then there was Roman scourging which was worse. It was typically applied to criminals

before execution and there was no limit to the number of strokes. In fact, if you wanted to kill a

man at the whipping post, you could do it with a vicious tool called the flagellum. Since there

may be children reading this, I won’t describe what the Roman whip could do to a body of flesh

and blood, but if you have seen
The Passion
movie, you will know.

Regardless of whether you got the Jewish whip or the Roman one, scourging was torture.

Today it’s not the sort of thing civilized societies would inflict even on the worst criminals.

Yet apparently God does it to his kids.

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Does God really scourge us?

“The Lord scourges every son he receives.” The original Greek word is the same word that

describes what Pilate had done to Jesus (John 19:1). So if you need a mental picture of God’s

scourging, you’ll be wanting the Roman flagellum with the bits of metal in the thongs and the

little hooks called scorpions at the end.

If this troubles you, I’m glad. It means you have a brain. It means you are struggling to

reconcile a good God with an evil whip. I’m here to tell you that our heavenly Father never,

ever,
ever
scourges his kids. Not ever! But before I give you my reasons, I have to be honest and admit that every single commentator I’ve read says that he does. They all say stuff like this:

Scourging is God-ordained suffering. In response to sin he whips us using trials and

tribulations which he ordains to mortify the flesh and nurture faith. Scourging is not a one-

off event, but something to be expected in the lives of his children.

In other words, God scourges us
repeatedly
. Isn’t that wonderful? Sheesh. No wonder the lost

aren’t running into church when we’re preaching stuff like that.

It’s a misquote

Look in the margin notes of your Bible and you will see that Hebrews 12:6 is quoting Proverbs

3:11–12. It’s a direct quote copied from the Old Testament and pasted into the New. Let’s put

the original Proverb and the Hebrews version side by side and see if you can spot any

differences:

My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord,

Nor detest his correction;

For whom the Lord loves he corrects,

Just as a father the son in whom he delights.

~Original quote from Proverbs 3:11–12 (NKJV)

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

~As reproduced in Hebrews 12:5–6 (NKJV)

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GRACE REMIX

The first three lines of the original Proverb are faithfully reproduced in Hebrews 12. But look at

the last line and you will see that the copy is nothing like the original. The original quote has

been changed. Am I saying the Bible is wrong? Not at all. My best guess is the problem was

introduced during translation. (I’ll share some thoughts about this in my Word After.)

Why you can be sure God does not scourge us

In the Bible, the word for scourge appears in six other places. On each occasion it is associated

with punishment inflicted by the unjust upon the just, such as Jesus or those who follow him.3

Given this context, to say that God scourges his sons is tantamount to saying that a just God acts

unjustly, which he doesn’t.

In Biblical times, scourging was reserved for slaves and criminals, not sons and citizens.

Paul was unjustly scourged yet he never said, “I was scourged for my good.” Instead, he

resisted scourging (see Acts 22:25), as should every free man and woman.

Hebrews 12 says God disciplines or trains us as a father. I don’t know any father, good or

bad, who scourges his kids the way the Romans scourged Jesus. It’s a metaphor that doesn’t

work at any level. God doesn’t train us with whips. He nurtures us (see Ephesians 6:4).

However, there was one father in the Bible who was known for using whips and rods, and

that was Solomon. We know he used the rod of correction because he tells us in Proverbs 13:24.

Solomon evidently had old-school views regarding corporal punishment, yet even he didn’t

whip his sons. He said whips were for horses (Proverbs 26:3).

I’ve heard people say they won’t respond unless God whips them. That’s like saying, “I’m

as dumb as a horse.” Renew your mind. You are not a horse! You are a beloved child of God.

Others say “discipline implies punishment.” Not in the new covenant it doesn’t (see Isaiah

53:5). Discipline implies
discipling
.

Jesus met plenty of people in need of correction and discipline. How many of these people

did he scourge? How many did he afflict with pain, sickness, trials, or suffering? None. If Jesus

was ever going to whip someone, he might’ve whipped the Pharisees, but he didn’t.

The suggestion that God scourges his kids with a flagellum is slanderous, ludicrous, and

inconsistent. I am convinced that the author of Hebrews had a profound revelation of God with-

no-whip. The picture he paints is of a good God sitting on a throne of grace who offers us grace

and mercy in our time of need (Hebrews 4:16). When we go astray God does not come after us

with a whip, but he deals with us gently as a loving father deals with his sons (Hebrews 5:2).

3 If you’re interested, here are the scripture references: Matthew 10:17, 20:19, 23:34, Mark 10:34, Luke 18:32, and John 19:1.

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What is Hebrews really saying?

In my view, the Hebrew author of the epistle to the Hebrews meant to say something like what

we see in the Hebrew proverb, namely:

For whom the Lord loves he
disciples
(he trains, instructs and nurtures), just as a father the

son in whom he delights. (Hebrews 12:6, my paraphrase)

This may be a better translation than the one we have in our English Bible because it satisfies

three tests: (1) It is consistent with the revelation of God the Father given to us through Jesus the

Son, (2) it is consistent with many other scriptures indicating that God delights in his children

and that he cares enough to train and disciple us, and (3) it fits the encouraging context of

Hebrews 12.

A word after

It is cavalier of me to take a scripture I cannot reconcile with the gospel and say, “It was

translated wrong.” Goodness, why don’t I just do that with every tough scripture?

But hand on heart, this is the only time I have done this and I believe I have solid Biblical

grounds for doing so. If Hebrews 10:26 is a quote from the Old Testament, then it’s an

inaccurate one, as anyone can see. That alone should give us pause. We might then ask, “Which

is the best translation of the Bible?” Easy question. Jesus is! The Living Word is the best

translation of the written word.

Can you imagine Jesus scourging those he loves? Can you see him wrapping a flagellum

around the backs of one of his disciples? Of course not. It’s preposterous! Then why do we think

the Father would do it? As a wise person once said, if it’s not true of the Son, it’s not true of the

Father. (See Hebrews 1:3 if that makes no sense.)

“Wait a second, Paul. Didn’t Jesus make a whip of cords and drive the money-changers out

of the temple?” Actually he drove out the
animals
. “He made a whip out of cords, and drove all

from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle” (John 2:15a).

Jesus was very smart. He knew that you don’t need a whip to clear out merchants and

money-changers. A herd of stampeding oxen will do the job nicely.

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Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now

much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling…

(Philippians 2:12)

This is a verse that works preachers love to quote. They use it to say that salvation is something

to work for and that we must tip-toe fearfully through life lest we upset a wrathful God. It

sounds spiritual, but it’s an anti-Christ message that insults the Spirit of grace.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Jesus did it all! His work was perfectly perfect and

completely complete. Because of his sacrifice you have been made perfect forever. As he is, so

are you in this world. Rest in him.

Work out your own salvation…

What does it mean to work out your salvation? Salvation literally means deliverance,

preservation, safety, as well as salvation. It is a picture of a new life where all your needs—your

need for forgiveness, deliverance, healing, provision—are supplied according to his riches in

glory by Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19).

On the cross Jesus provided for your complete salvation, healing, and deliverance. If your

old way of life was characterized by poverty, curses, and never enough, then your new life in

Christ is one of abundance, blessings and more than enough.

“But Paul, I don’t see it. I’m not healthy. I’m not prospering. I’m not overcoming.” Then

work out
in faith the good gift that God has placed within you. In him you lack nothing.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly

realms with
every spiritual blessing
in Christ. (Ephesians 1:3, emphasis added)

God has already blessed us with every blessing in Christ. If you have Christ, you have

everything you’ll ever need. The blessings are spiritual in origin until we work them out. For

instance, his forgiveness is a done deal, but you need to believe it to live free from guilt and

condemnation.

But what about the second part of the verse?

…with fear and trembling

I used to think this phrase was describing our proper state before God, and that we should be

afraid and tremble because even after a lifetime of service God might judge that we haven’t

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done enough for him. Thank God for the cross! God isn’t looking at me and my performance

but Jesus and his. I no longer fear judgment because my sin has been carried away and I am

now clothed with Christ.

In this passage, Paul is not talking about judgment at all, but the outworking of our

salvation. Why is fear and trembling involved? Because sometimes trusting God can be scary!

The other day I saw on YouTube a paralyzed lady get out of a wheelchair and take her first

tentative steps in 23 years. She was trembling when she did it. It happened in a church and we

can only imagine what was going through her mind. What if she fell on her face in front of