The world will be destroyed because of God’s anger, but it will also be destroyed because of this “present evil age” (Galatians 1:4).
God judges
When God created Adam and Eve, He gave them just one command to obey: “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die” (Genesis 2:16-17). In Genesis 3 we then read how Adam and Eve failed to obey God’s law (Genesis 3:1-7). In this same chapter God executed judgment for this sin: God judges the serpent, and Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:14-19). However, God also judges creation. In Genesis 3:17-19, in judging Adam, God says:
“Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.”
God judges the creation in the same way that He judges Adam: the earth is cursed to yield thorns rather than nourishment. Put another way, God judges Adam and Eve by judging creation. This is noted by Paul in Romans 8:20–21: “Because the creation was frustrated—not by its own volition, but by the will of the one who frustrated it—in the hope that it would be freed from the shackles of decay and brought into the glorious freedom of God’s children.”
The Day of the Lord
We see this same principle in the Old Testament book of Joel. A big focus of this book is the “Day of the Lord.” This day is pictured as bringing about the destruction of the land/world. For example Joel 2:1-5 says: “Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy hill. Let all who live in the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming. It is close at hand – a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness. Like dawn spreading across the mountains a large and mighty army comes, such as never was of old nor ever will be in ages to come. Before them fire devours, behind them a flame blazes. Before them the land is like the garden of Eden, behind them, a desert waste – nothing escapes them. They have the appearance of horses; they gallop along like cavalry. With a noise like that of chariots they leap over the mountaintops, like a crackling fire consuming stubble, like a mighty army drawn up for battle.”
A comparable concept can be found in Joel 1:3-6 and 2:10-11. God judges the land and renders it uninhabitable because of His wrath over Israel’s transgressions. And the Israelites are held accountable in part for their lack of hospitality.
The New Testament and wrath
It’s also crucial to remember that in the New Testament, all references to “wrath” are personal, meaning they are directed at those who disobey God. As an illustration:
- According to John 3:36, “Whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.” However, those who believe in the Son have eternal life.
- Romans 2:8 states that there will be anger and fury directed towards people who are self-seeking and who obey unrighteousness rather than the truth.
- Ephesians 2:3 states that “all of us also lived among them at one time, giving in to the lusts and thoughts of our sinful nature.” Like everyone else, we were hated by nature.
Thus, from this angle, it is incorrect to assert that God’s anger will destroy the world; rather, it will destroy humans.
God destroying the world
The Bible does, however, mention God destroying the earth. Take 2 Peter 3:10, for instance. However, the Lord’s day will arrive like a robber. The earth and everything on it will be exposed, the heavens will collapse with a roar, and fire will destroy the elements.
Why, therefore, will God destroy the universe? Peter, however, doesn’t state this clearly in these lines. But based on what we have already seen, it appears that God is punishing the world’s unbelieving inhabitants by destroying it, just as He did with Adam and in the book of Joel. Furthermore, according to Galatians 1:4, the world is a part of “this present evil age,” meaning that creation itself has fallen and is subject to judgment. Thus, according to Revelation 20:11, this current creation is also unsustainable and must be destroyed. Thus, according to Revelation 21:1, God will create new heavens and earth.
