A Perfect God, Genesis, and…War?
Bodie Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI
Biblical Authority Ministries, April 7, 2026 (Donate)
The President of Iran, Masoud Pezeshkian, stated in December
27, 2025:
“In my opinion, we are in a
full-fledged war with America, Israel, and Europe; they do not want our country
to stand on its feet.”
But people often ask Christians…why does war exist in God's world? Let’s jump into the early pages of
Scripture to get an idea of the origin of war and why it exists in God's originally
perfect, but now broken, world.
God’s Perfect World
God is perfect, and His works reflect that perfection.
Scripture declares:
“He is the Rock, His work is
perfect; For all His ways are justice, A God of truth and without injustice;
Righteous and upright is He.” (Deuteronomy 32:4, NKJV, emphasis added)
When God finished His creation, it wasn’t flawed or
violent—it was “very good”:
“Then God saw everything that He
had made, and indeed it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31, NKJV)
In that original world, there was no death, no suffering,
and certainly no war. Man lived in harmony with God, with each other, and with
creation. There was no need for conflict because there was no sin.
The Fall: The Root Of Conflict
This peace was shattered in Genesis 3. Adam and Eve (our respective
grandparents) rebelled and sinned against God, committing high treason against our
Creator. As a result, sin entered the world, and with it came death,
corruption, violence, and disorder (Genesis 3).
“Therefore, just as through one man
sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men,
because all sinned.” (Romans 5:12, NKJV)
The curse affected [not only mankind] but all of creation
(Genesis 3:17–19, Romans 8:20-22). Our sin-prone hearts became increasingly
evil, prideful, and sadly, man became all about themselves. When sin
reigns, problems follow. War, therefore, isn’t part of God’s original design—it’s
the natural outworking of fallen man.
War Before The Flood?
While Scripture doesn’t explicitly describe wars before the
Flood, it gives a picture and a hint of the extent of widespread violence:
“Then the Lord saw that the
wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts
of his heart was only evil continually.” (Genesis 6:5, NKJV)
“The earth also was corrupt before
God, and the earth was filled with violence.” (Genesis 6:11, NKJV)
Violence means more than isolated wrongdoing—it means
ongoing conflict, oppression, repeated evil, and bloodshed. Though specific
battles aren’t recorded, it is reasonable to believe that disputes, clashes, skirmishes,
and even proto-warfare occurred in this deeply corrupt world—perhaps even large-scale
wars!
One early example of violence is Cain murdering Abel
(Genesis 4:8). Later, Lamech boasts of killing a man in vengeance (Genesis
4:23–24). These accounts show escalating aggression and retaliation,
which are foundational aspects of warfare.
Ultimately, God Himself brought judgment against this
violent world through the Flood:
“So the Lord said, ‘I will destroy
man whom I have created from the face of the earth…’” (Genesis 6:7, NKJV)
In this sense, the Flood was a holy response or a battle if you will, to unrepentant, violent sin.
War After Babel
After the Flood, man again rebelled at the Tower of Babel.
Instead of spreading across the earth as commanded (Genesis 9:1), they united
in defiance:
“Come, let us build ourselves a
city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for
ourselves…” (Genesis 11:4, NKJV)
God judged this rebellion by confusing their languages and
scattering them:
“Therefore its name is called
Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth…” (Genesis
11:9, NKJV)
This division of languages and scattering of family units had
two major effects. First, it restrained unified rebellion against God.
Second, it caused cultural and linguistic barriers that can lead to
misunderstanding, division, and eventually conflicts—like war.
One of the earliest post-Babel figures associated with
conquest is Nimrod:
“He was a mighty hunter before the
Lord… And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh…
From that land he went to Assyria…” (Genesis 10:9–11, NKJV)
Nimrod’s expansion suggests early imperial aggression—what
we might call the beginnings of organized warfare and territorial conquest. Historically,
Nimrod’s kingdom stretches across many parts of the Middle East. After his
death, his kingdom split apart into many petty kingdoms vying for power.
The first explicitly recorded war in Scripture occurs in
Genesis 14. A coalition of four kings fought against five kings (e.g., some of
these petty kingdoms were still fighting!), and Lot was taken captive. Abram
(Abraham) intervened:
“Now when Abram heard that his
brother was taken captive, he armed his three hundred and eighteen trained
servants… and pursued them…” (Genesis 14:14, NKJV)
Abram defeated the invading kings and rescued Lot. This
means that warfare had become an established reality in the post-Fall,
post-Babel world.
Is Killing In War Murder According To The Bible?
The Bible makes a clear distinction between murder and
killing in other contexts. The commandment states:
“You shall not murder.” (Exodus
20:13, NKJV)
The Hebrew term here refers specifically to unlawful,
intentional killing—murder. It doesn’t apply to all forms of killing (e.g., self-defense).
Scripture recognizes that there are situations where taking
life isn’t classified as murder. For example, governing authorities are given
the responsibility to execute justice (Genesis 9:6):
“For he is God’s minister to you
for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in
vain…” (Romans 13:4, NKJV)
In the Old Testament, God even commanded Israel to engage in
warfare at specific times as an act of judgment against wicked nations (for
example, Deuteronomy 20). These weren’t acts of personal vengeance but judgments
commanded by God. One can’t help but recall David killing Goliath at the onset
of a battle between the Israelites and the Philistines.
Therefore, while all human life is sacred, not all killing
is categorized as murder in Scripture. And think that distinction should be
understood.
Why War Is Bad, Yet Sometimes Necessary
War is inherently tragic because it is a direct result of
sin. It brings death, suffering, and destruction—none of which were part of
God’s original creation. James explains the sinful root cause of
conflict:
“Where do wars and fights come from
among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your
members?” (James 4:1, NKJV)
Wars arise from sinful desires—greed, pride, envy,
and lust for power. Yet in a fallen world, war can sometimes serve as a means
of restraining evil (in WWII, war against Hitler and his cronies with their
racial-based death camps was definitely warranted). Governments are ordained by
God to maintain order and justice (Romans 13:1–4). In certain circumstances,
warfare may be necessary to defend the innocent, uphold justice, or stop
greater wickedness.
Even so, Scripture reminds us that war in our broken world
points forward to a time when war will cease entirely:
“He shall judge between the
nations… They shall beat their swords into plowshares… Nation shall not lift up
sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war anymore.” (Isaiah 2:4, NKJV)
Final Remarks
War isn’t part of God’s perfect design—it is the outcome of
human sin that began in Genesis 3. From the violence before the Flood, to the divisions
and invasions after Babel, to the first recorded battles in Abraham’s day,
Scripture shows a consistent pattern: where sin increases, conflict follows.
Yet the Bible also reveals hope. Jesus Christ entered this
broken world to deal with sin at its root. Through His
death and resurrection, He provides peace with God:
“Therefore, having been justified
by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1,
NKJV)
One day, Christ will return and there will be a new heavens
and new earth, that will be perfect forever (Revelation 21-22). War, violence,
and death will be no more. Until then, believers are called to pursue peace—sadly, sometimes that is through war, uphold justice, and remember that true and
lasting peace is found only in Christ.
Bodie Hodge, Ken
Ham's son in law, has been an apologist defending 6-day creation and opposing
evolution since 1998. He spent 21 years working at Answers in Genesis as
a speaker, writer, and researcher as well as a founding news anchor for Answers
News. He was also head of the Oversight Council.
Bodie
launched Biblical Authority Ministries in 2015 as a personal
website and it was organized officially in 2025 as a 501(c)(3). He has spoken
on multiple continents and hosts of US states in churches, colleges, and
universities. He is married with four children.
Mr. Hodge earned a
Bachelor and Master of Science degrees from Southern Illinois University at
Carbondale (SIUC). Then he taught at SIUC for a couple of years as a
Visiting Instructor teaching all levels of undergraduate engineering and
running a materials lab and a CAD lab. He did research on advanced ceramic
materials to develop a new method of production of titanium diboride with a
grant from Lockheed Martin. He worked as a Test Engineer for Caterpillar,
Inc., prior to entering full-time ministry.
His love of science was coupled with a love of history, philosophy, and theology. For about one year of his life, Bodie was editing and updating a theological, historical, and scientific dictionary/encyclopedia for AI use and training. Mr. Hodge has over 25 years of experience in writing, speaking and researching in these fields.
[1] Gregory Svirnovskiy, Iran at war with the West and Israel, says Iran's president, Politoco, December 27, 2025, https://www.politico.com/news/2025/12/27/iran-war-israel-trump-00706976.
