Divine judgment is not a popular topic, and few Bible teaches discuss it because it disturbs the status quo of what people think about themselves. However, for those who are true followers of YHVH Elohim, who are serious students of the Scriptures, and who are intent on pursuing biblical standards of holiness and righteousness, this subject must not be avoided.

The dictionary definition of judgment: “a decision of a court or judge; a misfortune or calamity viewed as a divine punishment.”

The Bible speaks a lot about judgment. When we read about the subject of judgment in the Bible, it usually pertains to the “other guy”: someone in the past, or someone in the future, or someone that we consider to be more sinful than we are. The problem is that our pride prevents us from thinking that it is something that could happen to us.

Judgment is nothing more than suffering the consequences of our actions. It’s simply a function of the law of cause and effect. If you jump off of a building, you’ll suffer the consequences of your actions when you hit the ground. Similarly, when we break YHVH’s commandments, we will suffer the consequences. It’s a matter of degrees. To the degree that we obey his commandments, we’ll reap the blessings of obedience. Conversely, to the degree we disobey them, we’ll reap the negative consequences (Lev 26:3ff cp. 14ff). For most of us, our actions with regard to obedience to YHVH’s laws are a mixture of both good and evil, so we’re reaping both blessings and curses at the same time.

As a result of coming out of the mainstream church, most of us have been so indoctrinated with the concept of YHVH’s love and grace, that we have a skewed view of his judgments. Few preachers ever talks about divine judgment. Add to this the fable of the pre-tribulation raptures, and the idea of divine judgment is shoved further into the back of many believers’ minds. If a preacher does talk about divine judgment, they’re often accused of being judgmental, and this accusation, whether accurate or not, tends to shut down the conversation on the subject of divine judgment. No one wants to talk about it since it messes with people’s false view of an Elohim that is so loving and gracious that he would never judge anyone for anything. Any discussion of the subject of divine judgment also forces people to face the reality of their own sinfulness and wickedness and the fact that they deserve Elohim’s judgments for their disobedience.

Beyond this, most of us have contrived a our own personal theology whereby we excuse and justify ourselves to maintain the comfort zones of our sin. Our hearts become hardened as we justify our sin, and we often excuse our own sinfulness by comparing ourselves to someone who, in our mind, is a worse sinner than we are, thus making ourselves feel better about ourself. This is a deceptive form of self delusion and is not based on the reality of YHVH’s righteous standards.

The Laodiceans, for example, were followers of Yeshua. They weren’t adulterers, idolators or murderers. They were “good Christians.” What was their sin? Being lukewarm with regard to their faith and having an inflated view of their own righteousness. For this sin of pride, YHVH was willing to reject them! For this, they had to go through fiery judgments. It seems that YHVH’s standards of righteousness are much higher than most of us are willing to admit, and that our standards of righteousness are too low. Between these two standards, there’s a huge gap. To get from our low level of righteousness to YHVH’s high level, one of two things need to occur. We need to wake up to our true spiritual condition and repent, or YHVH will have to use the shock treatment of divine judgment on us to wake us up forcefully. It’s like the rebellious child for whom a verbal correction is insufficient, thus necessitating the parent to bring out the paddle. In reality, for most of us, it’ll probably be a combination of the two to get us where YHVH wants us to be—the rebuke and the paddle. Even then, after we’ve gone through judgment and repented of our sin, we will still need Yeshua’s imputed righteousness to make up the difference for the lack of our own righteousness. That’s how sinful, dark and evil our hearts really are in YHVH’s view! Remember, what the apostle says: The righteous are scarcely saved, and YHVH’s judgments must begin at the house of Elohim, which is the church (1 Pet 4:17–18).

Let us not squander any of the time of grace YHVH has given us to repent before his heavy judgments begin to fall on us in these last days. Remember this:

And the times of this ignorance God winked at [overlooked]; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. (Acts 29:30–31)

The church is being judged (refined) including those who have come out of the traditional, mainstream church system and come into a more Hebraic, pro-Torah view of Scripture and lifestyle. Sadly, many in the so called Hebrew Roots Movement have brought with them the same lukewarm attitudes they had when they were in the mainstream church. YHVH is now separating the wheat and tares—those who true believers versus those who are playing religious mind games.

For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it. For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you. (1 Cor 11:18–19)

Spiritual leaders are especially being judged. Those who are self-appointed, and who are pursuing money and power using corporate American marketing techniques to build their ministries are being judged. Those who are merchandizing YHVH’s people will be judged (2 Pet 2:3; 1 Pet 5:2; Rom 16:18; 1 Tim 3:3, 8; Tit 1:7, 11). YHVH is separating out the hirelings from the true shepherds who mirror his own heart (Ezek 34; John 10:7ff). Leaders of congregations who don’t fit the biblical qualifications for eldership will be exposed and deposed. Those who have major sin skeletons in their closets, who have not repented of sin, and who have failed to make proper restitution for those sins will be exposed. If you’re a leader, beware of YHVH’s judgments. If you have hidden sin, or are self-appointed, or have ulterior motives for being a leader, YHVH will expose your sin. If you’re a sheep, be careful to know those who labor among you (1 Thess 5:12). Only associate with spiritual leaders who meet YHVH’s high standards of righteousness.

When trials (YHVH’s judgment?) come upon us (Jas 1:2) we must seek YHVH’s wisdom (v. 5), so we will understand why these trials have come upon us. This is very difficult to do. Our pride usually causes us to excuse ourselves from any culpability for the trials that come upon us. We often blame others, or attribute the trials that come our way to time and chance. When we’re in the middle of a trial, it’s extremely hard to see the forest for the trees.  Because of the spiritual beam in our own eye, it’s easy to be blind to the hand of YHVH’s chastening judgment on us as he tries to refine out of us the impurities that are preventing us growing spiritually closer to him. On the other hand, with ease we see the splinter in our neighbor’s eye and it’s clear to us what his sins are and why he’s suffering divine judgment. This was the case with Job’s three wicked friends.

In the end times, YHVH is going to turn up the spiritual heat of refining judgment on his people. Those who refuse to repent will get hotter, more intense judgments (qv. Lev 26:14–39). Like a good parent, YHVH endeavors to instruct and correct his children through a light-handed approach at first, but when they refuse to hear him, he is forced to use more intense and painful means to get their attention (Ps 32:8–10).

The four sets of  successively intensifying judgments of Leviticus 26 relate to the judgments in the book of Revelation (the seven seals, trumpets, thunders and bowls). The time is coming when YHVH will judge the whole world—and especially the bride of Yeshua. YHVH wants a holy, spotless and pure bride for himself. The foolish virgins of Matthew 25 lacked the oil of YHVH’s Torah and Spirit. That’s why they were excluded from the wedding supper. Similarly, the Laodiceans Christians were spiritually tepid, naked, impoverished and blind, which is why they had to go through refining fires of YHVH’s judgment. In the book of Revelation, there are the 144, 000 redeemed Israelites, and then there are those who, because of lukewarmness, must go through the refining fires of the great tribulation to get their spiritual robes washed pure. The latter group will be the larger number of believers—a great an innumerable multitude. This doesn’t even include the large numbers of believers who have already fallen away in the great apostasy of the end times (2 Thess 2:1–12).

Remember this one thing: Heartfelt repentance is the key to averting YHVH’s judgments and experiencing his grace (Lev 26:40–41;1 John 1:9).

Please also remember this: It’s the divinely mandated responsibility of the watchman on the wall to warn the city of the judgments he sees coming. He’s likely to be unpopular with the people, who are complacent and apathetic in their status quo—all things continue as they have from the beginning (1 Pet 4:3), they say. But the watchman still has to warn, or the people’s fate will be on his head; their blood will be on his hands.