As the father of two young boys, I’ve spent more nights than I can count reading Bible stories at bedtime. We’ve explored Noah’s Ark, Joshua and the battle of Jericho, and Elijah calling down fire from heaven. We’ve also read about Jesus healing the blind, feeding the hungry, and welcoming children into his arms.
Let’s be honest—those stories don’t always feel like they’re coming from the same God.
One moment, God is wiping out entire cities. The next, Jesus is blessing the poor and turning the other cheek. My sons haven’t asked the hard questions yet—but I know they will.
One day, one of them might pause, tilt his head, and ask, “Isn’t God supposed to be loving? Then why did he do that?” When that moment comes, I don’t want to dodge the question or flinch with fear. I want to show them that the God who flooded the earth and the God who hung on the cross are one and the same. And that is very, very good news.
The Bible does not present us with two different deities. It reveals one unchanging God, progressively unveiled throughout redemptive history. As God himself declares in Malachi 3:6, “I the Lord do not change.” Still, for many readers—young and old—his actions in the Old and New Testaments can feel worlds apart.
So what’s going on?
Our Unchanging God
The answer isn’t that God changes. It’s that he reveals different aspects of his character at different moments in his redemptive plan. In the Old Testament, God establishes his holiness and justice through a covenant people. In the New Testament, he fulfills his mercy and redemption through the person of Christ. From Genesis to Revelation, we’re watching one unified story unfold—and through it all, we’re encountering the same God with the same heart.
From the very beginning, God was forming a people to reflect his character in a violent and idolatrous world. Because God is perfectly holy, he did not—and could not—ignore evil. He confronted it with righteous judgment.
That’s why we read of the flood (Gen. 6–9), the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19), and the fall of Jericho (Josh. 6). These aren’t examples of divine mood swings or arbitrary anger. They are expressions of God’s unwavering justice. Far from blemishes on the biblical narrative, they build the tension in a story that’s heading toward redemption. They reveal the devastating cost of sin—and why rescue is so desperately needed.
When we turn to the New Testament, we meet Jesus—God in the flesh (John 1:14). Jesus is full of compassion. He welcomes the outcast, touches the unclean, feeds the hungry, heals the sick, and forgives the guilty. He moves toward sinners—not away from them.
But that’s not the whole picture.
Our Consistent God
This same Jesus also confronts sin. He rebukes the self-righteous (Matt. 23), clears the temple with righteous anger (John 2:13–17), and speaks often and plainly about judgment, hell, and the urgency of repentance (Luke 13:1–5; Matt. 10:28). He weeps over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41) even as he warns of its coming judgment.
Then we come to the cross—the place where God’s justice and mercy collide in breathtaking harmony. At the cross, God does not overlook sin. He deals with it fully. But instead of placing judgment on us, he places it on Christ. Jesus absorbs the wrath we deserve so we can receive the mercy we don’t.
The cross is not divine overreaction. It is the only way a holy God can save sinful people without compromising who he is. It is the climax of the one story Scripture has always been telling.
The God of the Old Testament is the God of the New. He has always been just, and he has always been merciful.
We see his mercy in the ark that spares Noah’s family. In his forgiveness of David after adultery and murder. In his long-suffering patience with Israel’s rebellion. Likewise, we see his justice in the New Testament when Ananias and Sapphira are struck down (Acts 5), when Jesus pronounces woes over unrepentant cities, and when Revelation ends with the final judgment and the renewal of all things.
At every point in Scripture, we’re meeting the same God—uncompromising in holiness, unstoppable in love. The Bible is not the tale of two gods. It is the testimony of one consistent, covenant-keeping God whose justice and mercy are perfectly united in Christ.
Faith Does Not Fear Hard Questions
If your child ever looks up and says, “Why does God seem so different?”—don’t panic. That question is not a threat to their faith. It’s an opportunity to deepen it. There are a few things that you might do to walk with them through it.
First, affirm their curiosity. Say something like, “That’s a really good question.” Don’t brush it off. Encourage their wonder. Show them that faith doesn’t avoid hard questions—it leans into them, trusting that God is big enough for our doubts.
Second, frame the Bible as one story. Help them see that the Bible isn’t a disconnected series of events, but one sweeping narrative of redemption. From Genesis to Revelation, God is unfolding one plan to rescue one people through one Savior. Every hard story points us toward Jesus. Every soft story finds its fulfillment in him.
Lastly, speak of God’s unchanging character. God is not shifting between personalities across the Testaments. He is always holy. Always just. Always merciful. Always good. The difference is not in who God is, but in how clearly we see him—especially in the face of Jesus Christ.
When our children wrestle with questions about God’s justice, wrath, or judgment, we don’t need to water anything down or rush past the uncomfortable parts. We can walk through it with them—Bibles open, hearts steady, eyes fixed on Jesus. Because at every point in Scripture, we are being invited to see more clearly the God who is just—and the God who saves. And that is very, very good news.
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