One of the recurring themes of the Old Testament is “mercy in the midst of judgment.” At the very beginning, when Adam sinned and brought judgment on the whole human race, mercy was promised through the Seed of the woman.
This theme continued during the period of the judges. When God’s people would sin grievously against Him, divine judgment followed at the hands of their heathen neighbors. When the people repented, merciful rescue was sent. The judgment of the Babylonian Captivity was likewise followed by deliverance as the Jews returned to their promised homeland.
But our focus here is “beauty in the midst of judgment.” We know little about the antediluvian earth, except that God created it “very good.” This included fruit that was pleasing to the eye. Even the stars in the sky were a thing of beauty, as Job later observed (Job 38:31).
But then came the judgmental waters of the world-wide Flood, caused by great human wickedness. All land-dwelling creatures were destroyed, except those that found refuge on the ark. The whole face of the earth was changed, and yet God, in His grace and kindness, left us great beauty. From canyons to mountains, from waterfalls to erupting geysers, from rivers to alpine lakes, from coasts to prairies to deserts, God has left us a world that is pleasant to the eye. Yet all that we see today is the result of God’s judgment; all of it the result of uplift and erosion, volcanoes and glaciers, layered deposition and topography-changing plate tectonics. People may differ in what they deem beautiful, but there is something for everyone. If Niagara Falls or the sunflower fields of South Dakota do not impress you, the amazing scenery of the West surely will. God is good. God is kind, and has given us great natural beauty to enjoy. All the result of worldwide judgmental waters.
The greatest judgment of all fell upon one Man—the hellish judgment over mankind’s sin and guilt. Of Jesus’ physical appearance we know little. Was He a cute baby? A handsome teenager? We are not told. But in the midst of judgment, He appeared ugly. Isaiah described the scene at His cross: “He had no form or majesty that we should look at Him, and no beauty that we should desire Him . . . He was despised . . . and as one from whom men hide their faces.” (Isaiah 53: 2-3)
Calvary was an ugly blood bath for our Lord, with gruesome and death-causing wounds from head to foot. The sight must have been terrible to behold. And yet not many hours later, like a worm-to-butterfly emerging from her chrysalis, the Christ appeared alive in all His glory and beauty. Gory wounds were now beautiful, for they testified to what He had accomplished: the payment for all sin. Through God’s grace human minds would be turned to Christ in faith, hands would serve Him, feet would follow Him, and hearts would love Him. Natural-born mockers would now sing “Beautiful Savior,” fairer than all creation.
We all were born haters and enemies of God. Our souls reeked of sin, death, and judgment. But Christ’s atonement for sin brought about our justification, with the Holy Spirit making us spiritually alive in faith. Our Old Man is still ugly in rebellion, but our New Man is a thing of beauty, created after the image of God Himself.
That beautiful transformation will be completed in our own resurrection to eternal glory. There we will live with our Lord in the heavenly Jerusalem, whose streets are paved with gold, its foundation, walls, and gates built of precious gems (Revelation 21:18-21). Beauty in the midst of Final Judgment; beauty everywhere, nothing but everlasting beauty. We long for the sight of it. Come quickly, beautiful Savior!
is a retired pastor. He lives in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.