I'm going to comment on this post by Steven Nemes:
“But salvation is gracious and so not obligatory.” That is right, it’s not obligatory from the perspective of desert; but the claim is not that God’s not saving anyone is incompatible with his commitment to retribution (who would deny that anyway?). Crisp goes wrong when he supposes that goodness is somehow defined by desert. Not at all: goodness is defined by the bringing about of good, regardless of desert. Retribution is one thing, and goodness is another.
Notice that Nemes artificially segregates justice from goodness. But even though divine goodness is broader than divine justice, justice is a necessary component of divine goodness. Likewise, exacting justice is an expression of divine goodness. It is good to be just, and it is good to act justly. Absent a just character, God would not be good. Absent just conduct, God would not be good.
Furthermore, goodness is particularly ascribed to persons who do good to those who are undeserving, so that goodness is especially about going beyond desert in the favor of the undeserving. You’re good if you reward those who deserve it, but you are really good if you are kind to your enemies, if you are willing to listen to someone who is annoying and abrasive, if you show mercy to persons who otherwise have spit upon you and hurt you. In a way goodness is defined against desert and retribution, rather than by them: you’re not all that good if you only give people what they deserve; you’re really good if you do good to those who don’t deserve it.
i) Actually, that confuses goodness with mercy. Although mercy is sometimes good, goodness is broader than mercy. Punishing the wicked is good.
ii) Being kind to my enemies has limits. That doesn't obviate the right of self-defense. It's not my duty to let someone murder me.
iii) In addition, even if it's good for me to be kind to my enemies, that doesn't mean it's good for me to be kind to your enemies. Even if I can afford to put myself at risk, that doesn't automatically mean I have the right to put you at risk.
Put another way, I'm not doing you good by showing kindness to someone who will do you harm. My kindness empowers him to harm you. Showing Ted Bundy mercy rather than justice is merciless to his future victims. Doing good for him is bad for others. Very bad.
In that respect, it is positively evil to show some people mercy. You are merciful to them at the expense of others.
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