Divine Retribution
Divine retribution or divine punishment is the supernatural punishment of a single person, a group of people, or everyone, by a deity in response to the invocation of their anger. Myths and folklore detailing how a deity imposed punishment on previous inhabitants of a land, causing widespread death and misfortune, can be found across many cultures.
An example of divine retribution is the story, found in many religions, about a great flood that destroys all of humanity, as described in the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Hindu Vedas, or the Hebrew/Christian Book of Genesis (6:9–8:22), but leaves one 'chosen' survivor. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, the survivor is Utnapishtim; in the Hindu Vedas, it is Manu; in the book of Genesis, it is Noah. References in the Hebrew Bible/Christian Old Testament and the Quran to a man named Nuh (Noah), who was commanded by God to build an ark, suggest that one man and his followers were saved in a great flood.
Other examples in biblical history include the dispersion of the builders of the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1–9), the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18:20–21, 19:23–28) (Quran 7:80–84), and the Ten Plagues visited upon the ancient Egyptians for persecuting the Jewish children of Israel, and to get the Egyptians to free their Hebrew slaves (Exodus, Chapters 7–12). The Bible refers to divine retribution as, in most cases, being delayed or "treasured up" to a future time. Sight of God's supernatural works and retribution would militate against faith in God's Word.
In Greek mythology, the goddess Hera often became enraged when her husband, Zeus, would impregnate mortal women, and would exact divine retribution on the children born of such affairs. In some versions of the myth, Medusa was turned into her monstrous form as divine retribution for her vanity; in others it was a punishment from Athena for being raped by Poseidon in Athena's temple, which Athena saw as a violation of her sacred place.
Some religions or philosophical positions have no concept of divine retribution, nor posit a God being capable of (or willing to express) such human sentiments as jealousy, vengeance, or wrath. For example, in Deism and Pandeism, the creator does not intervene in our universe at all; not for good or for bad, and therefore exhibits no such behavior. In Pantheism (as reflected in Pandeism as well), God is the universe and encompasses everything within it, and has no need for retribution, as all things against which retribution might be taken are simply within God. This view is reflected in some pantheistic or pandeistic forms of Hinduism, as well.
Misericordia
- 2018-04-13T00:00:00.000000Z
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