Why the Rage?

There are a lot of angry people in the world. Some get caught up in a frenzy over things they do not understand. They simply share the rage of their colleagues with the same psychology as a mob. People do things in a mob that they would never do in a one-on-one encounter.

There is much Antisemitism rising to the surface in our country at the present time. This hatred was present before Israel’s military response after the Hamas attack in October 2023, but is more evident now. It is ironic that some of the people and groups in the United States who are pro-Hamas would only survive about five minutes on the streets of Gaza. They are caught up in a frenzy of hatred that defies logic.

But why such vile rage? What line do people cross from being an opponent to a vile enemy? How does an opposing opinion abscess into bloodshed and outright genocide? Hatred multiplies like dangerous bacteria in a petri dish.

Pre-World War II Europe had about 9.5 million Jews. At the end of the war Hitler’s Nazi party and his allies had systematically killed 6 million Jews. Think about that! They killed 63 percent of the European Jews, basically 2 out of 3 Jews in Europe were killed by the evil madness and vile hatred. (Don’t be too quick to compare your opponent to Hitler, there are relatively few in history who deserve that comparison.)

The hatred of the Jews or any group of people is not logical. It is from full-blown evil fervor. There is not an equation that can justify the human destruction of the Holocaust or any other genocide event. It is only ideological madness and evil. Period. Never get swept up into such a passion of hatred that you cannot dilute it with common sense logic.

You may logically say why you dislike someone. They may be annoying, self-seeking, negative, rude, belligerent, etc., but that should not drive you with a desire to eliminate them from the planet. If you have that desire, then you are worse than what you have made them up to be.

Golda Meir, former Israeli prime minister, said, “Peace will come when the Arabs will love their children more than they hate us.”

Love and hate are strong emotions. One cancels out the other: It is difficult to hate when you love, and it is difficult to love when you hate.

The political environment in some circles of the United States has passed from opposition to enmity where foes are no longer opponents but now have evolved into vile enemies that must be eliminated at (almost) any cost by any means. That is how sick it has become!

As a Christian, I can see the sentiment changing toward us as well. To my Christian brothers and sisters, do you realize we as Christians are seen as an extension of Israel (Read the olive tree analogy in Romans chapter 11). In a real spiritual and biblical sense, we are an extension of Israel. The same nasty source of worldly evil that is against the Jews are against Christians. Satan hates both. The same killer who would kill a Jew would relish the thought of killing a Christian.

The Genesis of this hatred is in the dark heart of Satan who is in vile opposition to the plan and purpose of God on the earth. He is the sworn enemy of God and God’s people. Satan is God’s enemy but not God’s rival. The Kingdom of God will eventually crush all opposition. Jesus Christ will rule and reign with no rivals.

Why the rage? It is not a thought-out logic of opposition, but a vile hatred propagated in the heart of Satan and pulsated throughout the world ending in death. Those who hate LIFE, love DEATH. Those who love LIFE, hate DEATH.

Jesus rightly said, “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. / If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you” (John 15:18-19 NKJV).

Psalms 2:1-12 NKJV

(1)  Why do the nations rage, And the people plot a vain thing?
(2)  The kings of the earth set themselves, And the rulers take counsel together, Against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying,
(3)  "Let us break Their bonds in pieces And cast away Their cords from us."
(4)  He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The LORD shall hold them in derision.
(5)  Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, And distress them in His deep displeasure:
(6)  "Yet I have set My King On My holy hill of Zion."
(7)  "I will declare the decree: The LORD has said to Me, 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.
(8)  Ask of Me, and I will give You The nations for Your inheritance, And the ends of the earth for Your possession.
(9)  You shall break them with a rod of iron; You shall dash them to pieces like a potter's vessel.' "
(10)  Now therefore, be wise, O kings; Be instructed, you judges of the earth.
(11)  Serve the LORD with fear, And rejoice with trembling.
(12)  Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, And you perish in the way, When His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.

Yours on the Journey,

Harry L. Whitt