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Ezekiel 18:23

²³Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord GOD, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?

The secular world has put forth the idea that the God of the Old Testament is a mean old man who is looking for someone to clobber. They would have us think that the idea of God evolved into a kinder, more loving God in the New Testament. That is simply an ignorant perspective. He is the same in both the Old and New Testament. He is forever unchanging (Malachi 3:6).

In both testaments God is just and holy. That means He does not tolerate evil. He will judge nations and individuals by how much they know about the truth and what they do with that truth. We see God strike people dead when they know God's will but intentionally rebel and disobey in both testaments (Acts 5:9; Numbers 3:4). He also invites people to turn from their evil ways and return to Him before He must execute His judgments. If God had any other attitude toward evil, He certainly would not be holy.

We also see that both testaments describe God's compassion for the poor and weak. His heart goes out to the downtrodden and blesses those who show His compassion to them. In both testaments we see His love for the world and His desire that none should perish. He is an unchanging God and the revelation of Him in the Bible is consistent throughout, in spite of the fact that it was written over a 1400 year period by 40 different authors whose livelihood varied from kings to fishermen.

Remember: God loves mankind and desires that they turn from evil so that they might live. He takes no pleasure in executing His judgments, but He must, for He is just.