One of the clearest statements of this principle is found in Hosea:

Hosea 13:11 — “I have given you a king in my anger, and have taken him away in my wrath.”

This declaration by God establishes that the appointment of a king can sometimes be an expression of God’s anger rather than His approval.

The following are twelve examples from the Bible, with the historical circumstances and relevant Scriptures.

King Saul: God Gave Israel the King They Demanded

Scriptures: 1 Samuel 8:4–22; 10:17–24; 12:12–19; Hosea 13:11

This is perhaps the clearest example of God giving people the ruler they demanded, despite their rejection of His authority.

Israel’s elders approached Samuel and demanded a king so they could become like the surrounding nations.

1 Samuel 8:5:

“Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.”

God explained the spiritual significance of their demand.

1 Samuel 8:7:

“For they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me as the king over them.”

God warned Israel that its desired king would exercise oppressive authority, taking their sons for military service, their daughters for his household, their possessions, and their wealth.

Nevertheless, the people refused to listen.

1 Samuel 8:19–20:

“But the people refused to listen to Samuel’s voice; and they said, ‘No; but we will have a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles.’”

God permitted their demand.

Saul initially appeared to be an impressive choice, but he subsequently demonstrated disobedience, jealousy, pride, and murderous hostility toward David.

The lesson: God allowed Israel to experience the consequences of demanding human leadership instead of trusting His rule.

Hosea 13:11 later summarized God’s anger in granting and removing kings, although interpreters differ over whether the verse refers specifically to Saul or more broadly to Israel’s monarchy.

Abimelech: A Wicked Ruler Chosen by the People

Scriptures: Judges 9:1–57

Abimelech, the son of Gideon, persuaded the leaders of Shechem to support him as their ruler.

He then murdered seventy of his brothers, except Jotham, who escaped.

Judges 9:6:

“All the men of Shechem assembled themselves together, and all the house of Millo, and went and made Abimelech king.”

The people willingly supported a man who secured power through murder.

For three years, Abimelech ruled over Israel.

Then God brought judgment upon both Abimelech and the people who had supported him.

Judges 9:23:

“Then God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech.”

The chapter concludes by explaining that God repaid Abimelech and the men of Shechem for their wickedness (Judges 9:56–57).

The lesson: Those who knowingly elevate a wicked ruler may eventually suffer under the very leadership they supported.

Rehoboam: God Allowed Harsh Leadership to Divide Israel

Scriptures: 1 Kings 12:1–24; 2 Chronicles 10:1–19

After Solomon died, his son Rehoboam became king.

The people requested relief from the heavy burdens Solomon had imposed.

Instead of listening to the experienced counselors who recommended kindness, Rehoboam followed the advice of younger men who encouraged greater oppression.

1 Kings 12:14:

“My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke. My father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.”

The result was the division of the kingdom.

Most importantly, Scripture explicitly states that God was accomplishing His previously announced judgment upon Solomon’s house.

1 Kings 12:15:

“So the king didn’t listen to the people; for it was a thing brought about by Yahweh, that he might establish his word, which Yahweh spoke by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.”

The lesson: God can use the foolishness and arrogance of political leaders to accomplish judgment upon a nation.

This example is different from Saul because the people did not ask for Rehoboam’s harsh policies. Nevertheless, God used his decisions to fulfill His announced judgment.

Jeroboam: A King Who Led an Entire Nation into Idolatry

Scriptures: 1 Kings 11:29–39; 12:25–33; 14:7–16

God appointed Jeroboam to rule the ten northern tribes following the division of Israel. But Jeroboam feared that the people would return to Jerusalem to worship and eventually abandon him. To preserve his political power, he established alternative worship centers at Bethel and Dan and introduced golden calves.

1 Kings 12:28:

“It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Look, Israel, here are your gods, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”

Jeroboam deliberately corrupted Israel’s worship. God condemned him through the prophet Ahijah.

1 Kings 14:16:

“He will give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, which he has sinned, and with which he has made Israel to sin.”

Jeroboam became the standard against which later wicked kings of northern Israel were judged.

The lesson: A leader may receive legitimate political authority from God and subsequently use that authority to lead a nation into sin. Divine appointment does not imply divine approval of everything that ruler does.

The Kings of Northern Israel: God Condemned Their Unauthorized Rule

Scriptures: Hosea 8:4; 7:3–7; 13:9–11

During Hosea’s ministry, northern Israel experienced political instability, assassinations, idolatry, and repeated changes in leadership.

God declared:

Hosea 8:4:

“They have set up kings, but not by me. They have made princes, and I didn’t approve. Of their silver and their gold they have made themselves idols, that they may be cut off.”

This text is important because it demonstrates that a nation can establish political leaders whom God does not approve.

God’s sovereignty over human government does not mean that He morally approves of every ruler who comes to power. The same prophetic book contains Hosea 13:11, where God speaks of giving a king in anger.

The lesson: Political authority can be established through human ambition and rebellion, while God permits that authority and subsequently judges the nation.

Pharaoh: God Raised Up a Defiant Ruler to Display His Power

Scriptures: Exodus 4:21; 7:3–5; 9:16; Romans 9:17–18

Pharaoh repeatedly resisted God’s command to release Israel.

God declared:

Exodus 9:16:

“But indeed for this cause I have made you stand: to show you my power, and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.”

Paul later cites this text in Romans 9:17. God used Pharaoh’s stubborn resistance to demonstrate His authority over Egypt and its gods. The Exodus narrative describes both Pharaoh hardening his own heart and God hardening Pharaoh’s heart.

The lesson: God can permit a defiant ruler to remain in power and use that ruler’s resistance to accomplish His purposes. Pharaoh was not a leader the Israelites chose. His case illustrates God’s sovereignty over wicked rulers rather than the narrower principle of people receiving the leader they requested.

Nebuchadnezzar: God Gave Judah into the Hands of a Pagan King

Scriptures: Jeremiah 25:8–12; 27:4–8; Daniel 1:1–2; 2 Kings 24–25

Because Judah persistently rejected God’s warnings, He permitted Babylon to conquer Jerusalem.

God identified Nebuchadnezzar as an instrument of judgment.

Jeremiah 25:8–9:

“Therefore Yahweh of Armies says: ‘Because you have not heard my words, behold, I will send and take all the families of the north,’ says Yahweh, ‘and I will send to Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land, and against its inhabitants, and against all these nations around.’”

God called Nebuchadnezzar His servant—not because Nebuchadnezzar was necessarily righteous, but because God was using him to accomplish His purposes. Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem and carried many Jews into exile. Later, God also humbled Nebuchadnezzar for his pride (Daniel 4).

The lesson: God may use an ungodly foreign ruler to discipline a nation that has rejected Him.

Assyria: God Used a Cruel Empire to Judge Israel

Scriptures: Isaiah 10:5–19; 2 Kings 17:6–23

God described Assyria as the instrument of His anger.

Isaiah 10:5:

“Alas Assyrian, the rod of my anger, the staff in whose hand is my indignation!”

Assyria conquered the northern kingdom of Israel in 722-721 BC. Yet Assyria’s leaders did not recognize that they were serving God’s purposes. They acted from pride, ambition, and a desire for conquest. God later declared that He would judge Assyria for its arrogance and cruelty.

Isaiah 10:12:

“Therefore it will happen that, when the Lord has performed his whole work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the willful proud heart of the king of Assyria, and the insolence of his arrogant looks.”

The lesson: God can use wicked rulers as instruments of judgment without approving of their wickedness. Those rulers remain accountable to Him.

The Judges Period: God Gave Israel into the Hands of Oppressive Rulers

Scriptures: Judges 2:11–23; 3:7–14; 4:1–3; 6:1–10

The book of Judges repeatedly describes a pattern: Israel abandoned Yahweh, embraced idolatry, and suffered oppression under foreign rulers.

For example:

Judges 3:8:

“Therefore Yahweh’s anger burned against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Cushan Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia.”

Later, Israel again turned to evil.

Judges 3:12:

“The children of Israel again did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, and Yahweh strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight.”

This is an example: God strengthened an oppressive ruler against His own people because of their sin.

The lesson: When a nation persistently rejects God, He may permit foreign oppression as a form of judgment.

Zedekiah: A Wicked King Who Led Judah Toward Destruction

Scriptures: 2 Kings 24:18–20; Jeremiah 37–39; 2 Chronicles 36:11–16

Zedekiah ruled Judah during its final years before the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem.

Scripture states:

2 Kings 24:19–20:

“He did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. For through Yahweh’s anger, this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, until he had cast them out from his presence.”

Zedekiah rejected Jeremiah’s prophetic counsel and rebelled against Babylon.

Jerusalem was destroyed in 586 BC.

The lesson: A ruler’s persistent disobedience can intensify an already unfolding national judgment.

God Removes Wise Leadership and Gives a Nation Immature Rulers

Scriptures: Isaiah 3:1–12

This text is one of the strongest biblical statements connecting national rebellion with destructive government. God announced that He would remove the capable leaders upon whom Judah depended. These included judges, prophets, elders, military leaders, and counselors.

Then He declared:

Isaiah 3:4:

“I will give boys to be their princes, and children shall rule over them.”

The result would be disorder, oppression, and social instability.

Isaiah 3:12:

“As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. My people, those who lead you cause you to err, and destroy the way of your paths.”

The reference to children emphasizes immature and ineffective leadership. The reference to women reflects the social assumptions and rhetoric of Isaiah’s historical setting; it should not be treated as a universal biblical condemnation of female leadership.

This text identifies the real cause of the judgment.

Isaiah 3:8:

“For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen; because their tongue and their doings are against Yahweh, to provoke the eyes of his glory.”

The lesson: One form of divine judgment is the removal of wise leadership and the resulting domination of a nation by rulers who lead it into further trouble.

God Gives People Over to the Consequences of Their Own Desires

Scriptures: Psalm 81:11–12; Romans 1:18–32

These establish a broader principle that helps explain the other examples.

Psalm 81:11–12:

“But my people didn’t listen to my voice. Israel desired none of me. So I let them go after the stubbornness of their hearts, that they might walk in their own counsels.”

God’s judgment sometimes allows people to pursue what they have stubbornly chosen.

Paul develops a related principle in Romans 1. Three times he describes God giving people over to the consequences of their rebellion:

Romans 1 describes the fact that judgment can be brought to human beings to experience the consequences of their chosen rebellion.

Five Important Scriptures

The following scriptures present an argument that God sometimes permits corrupt government as judgment.

An Important Biblical Distinction

There are three different actions described in these passages.

First, God sometimes gives people what they demand. Israel’s request for Saul is the clearest example. The people rejected God’s kingship, and God permitted them to experience the consequences.

Second, God sometimes raises up or empowers rulers as instruments of judgment. Nebuchadnezzar, Assyria, and Eglon demonstrate this principle. These rulers were not necessarily chosen by the people they oppressed.

Third, God sometimes removes the protection of wise government. Isaiah 3 describes a society in which capable leadership disappears and the resulting government becomes an additional source of suffering.

These distinctions matter because Scripture does not teach that every wicked ruler is necessarily God’s punishment for the people who elected or accepted that ruler. The Bible also records righteous people suffering under wicked governments, including Daniel under Babylonian rule and the early Christians under Roman authority.

The existence of a ruler does not prove that God approves of that ruler’s conduct.

Daniel 2:21 states:

“He changes the times and the seasons. He removes kings and sets up kings. He gives wisdom to the wise, and knowledge to those who have understanding.”

God’s sovereignty over government is absolute, but human rulers remain morally responsible for their decisions.