Articles
Where Was God During the Holocaust?
Where was God During the Holocaust? By Derek Long
A common question many have when they witness tragedy strike is “Where is God?” People may become sick with a terrible illness and ask “Where is God?” People may experience some sort of natural disaster and ask “Where is God?” People may see some sort of injustice or mistreatment of innocent individuals and ask “Where is God?” One such tragedy people may think about is the Holocaust. The Holocaust has led some to believe God must not exist or be unconcerned about what takes place in the world today.
The Holocaust was the result of actions taken by wicked men who were violating God’s standard of right and wrong. God is opposed to the taking of innocent human life (Genesis 9:6; Exodus 20:13; Galatians 5:19-21). God is not to be blamed for the Holocaust. People who were rebelling against God’s will carried out the Holocaust. God does not force people to do His will but allows them to choose whether to do good or do evil (Deuteronomy 30:15-20). God permitted the evil which occurred during the Holocaust to take place just as He permits evil (which we might think is less severe but is equally severe to God) to take place every day.
The Holocaust shows what mankind may end up doing when they reject God as their standard of authority. Romans1:18-32 describes what happens when men cease glorifying God as God. They engage in murder (Romans 1:29) and become violent (Romans 1:30). The Holocaust shows us what happens when people forget God or remove God from their knowledge. Today, we live in a time where people want to reject God’s standard for their conduct. When we quit adhering to God’s standard for our conduct, we will end up doing whatever is right in our eyes (Judges 17:6; 21:25). When people do what is right in their own eyes, tragedies and injustices like the Holocaust are liable to happen.
The Holocaust shows God is not going to miraculously intervene to save the Jewish people from suffering in the present age. God had selected the Jewish nation to be His chosen people (Deuteronomy 7:6). God protected them at times miraculously in the pages of Scripture. However, God did not always provide miraculous protection for Israel from their enemies in Scripture. Today, the Jewish nation is no longer God’s special, chosen people. God’s chosen people today are Christians (1 Peter 2:9-10; Galatians 6:16). God is not going to miraculously intervene in the events of the world today to deliver His people. God may deliver people providentially from suffering but the age of miracles has ceased (1 Corinthians 13:8-10).
The Holocaust actually can help people see the need to accept the existence of God. If a person denies the existence of God, there is no longer a universal lawgiver or a universal law all men are accountable to. How is it possible to condemn the actions which were taken during the Holocaust if God does not exist? If God does not exist, morality may be determined by the majority or what those in power say. It was accepted in
Nazi Germany to exterminate Jewish individuals. The problem is morality is not determined by what is acceptable or unacceptable in a particular society. God has already determined what is morally acceptable or unacceptable and all men are accountable to His law (Psalm 119:89; John 12:48). The only reason we can have a reaction which says the Holocaust is a morally reprehensible action is because we accept an absolute standard all men are accountable to. The only place such a standard can come from is God. If we are going to act like God should have done something about the Holocaust because it was so wicked, we must accept God actually does exist and has a standard for all men. As we have noted earlier, God does not always intervene to stop the actions of wicked individuals. God allows mankind to make a choice between good and evil. When people choose to do evil, other innocent people end up suffering as a result of their wicked actions. God still was in control even when the Holocaust was going on. God will ultimately judge those who committed such sins if they did not repent and receive forgiveness of their sins. God’s existence and promises assure us ultimately every injustice which is committed upon the earth will eventually be dealt with (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9; Acts 17:30-31).
Hopefully these thoughts help us understand why God would allow the Holocaust or other injustices to take place in the world around us.
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