Abstract

The issue of agreement between the two testaments of the Bible (the OT and the NT) has been a concern for scholars right from the dawn of the Christian era. While Jesus himself affirms that he has not come to abolish the Law and the Prophets, that is, the testament of the Jews, his reinterpretation of the teachings in this testament, has led some to suggest that he has repudiated the very foundation of the teaching of the Jewish testament. Marcion serves as an important historical figure that supports such interpretation. A comparison between the violent nature of the Old Testament God and the non-violent teaching of Jesus seems to give weight to the Marcionic thought. The Sermon on the Mount has always been used to support such a view. This article serves the purpose of looking at the violent parables of Jesus as an aspect of divine judgment that has been neglected. Could they serve the same purpose as the violence of the OT warrior God? The understanding or misunderstanding of the notion of the warrior God and their implications for our modern society will be examined too. We shall approach this paper methodologically by examining the key concepts, the parables, violence in the Qur’anic understanding, and pacifism in Christian religion. An examination will be made of the Qur’anic and Biblical teachings on violence and their challenge in our society. We shall adopt the theology of accommodation theory in drawing our conclusions.