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This web page discusses evil in general. It does not discuss the evil of certain individuals, the nature of mankind, or Satan or demons.

Q: Is the God of the Old Testament a different being, and an evil one, compared to the God of the New Testament?
A: This is one of the two or three teachings common to all branches of an ancient heresy called Gnosticism. Some of their arguments were because the New Testament repealed Old Testament dietary laws, the universe had a contrast between the visible and invisible, and the belief that since matter was all evil, only an evil god would create matter.
Outside of the Bible, as early as Clement of Rome (97 A.D. 1 Clement 4) Christians affirmed that the God of the Old Testament was good. He who is a friend of Abel and a friend of Abraham, is a friend of mine.
Theophilus (166-181 A.D.) was one of the earliest Christian writers who mentioned Creation and explicitly said "for nothing evil was made by god."(To Autolycus 2:16).
Tertullian effectively refuted this theory in his work Against Marcion in 207 A.D.. Here is an incomplete condensation of what he wrote.
a. Can you find a church of apostolic origin that denied the Creator? "But if the churches shall prove to have been corrupt from the beginning, where shall the pure ones be found?… Show us, then, one of your churches, tracing its descent from an apostle, and you will have gained the day."
b. Why would the good god rescue man, if he did not create him?
c. Why did the bad god prophecy the coming of Christ in the Old Testament? The New Testament refers to these as prophesying the good Christ.
d. If the bad god prophesied a bad Christ, why did the good god prevent the bad Christ from coming and send the good Christ in his place. The good god should have let the bad Christ come first, instead of misleading people to think the bad god prophesied the good Christ.
e. Why did Jesus quote from the Old Testament as authoritative?
f. Why did Marcion have to reject parts of Luke and other parts of the New Testament to support his view?

Q: In Gen 1, since God created everything, did He create darkness, evil, and holes in the ground? If he created evil, He does not sound like a perfectly good God. If not, then whoever did sounds like they are a creator also.
A: Darkness is not a thing, but an absence or reduction of light. Evil is not a thing, but an absence or twisting of good. Holes, darkness, and evil were not directly created by God, but they came into existence as tautologies, or "existential byproducts" of matter, light and good.

Q: In Gen 1, if God created everything good, why do tornadoes, plagues, and other disasters strike?
A: Everything was originally good. However, Romans 8:20-22 reveals that since the Fall, the earth was "subjected to frustration" too. The whole world is under the dominion of the evil one (1 John 5:19), and the prince of this world is Satan (John 12:31; 14:30)

Q: In Gen 3, was this an unfair test, since Adam and Eve did not yet have the knowledge of good and evil, as an atheist (Capella) says?
A: No. Is it an unfair test to tell somebody not to use illegal drugs, such as cocaine, until they have first had a chance to use it? Of course not. Likewise, it was not unfair for them to receive the prohibition without experiencing evil and guilt. While one could argue that they did not know everything about good and evil at this time, they knew that their Creator commanded them not to eat of that tree, and that knowledge alone was sufficient to make this a fair test.

Q: In Gen 3, what exactly was wrong with eating of the tree?
A: It was not that a particular fruit was evil; perhaps they could have eaten of the tree later. As Theophilus, bishop of Antioch (168-181/188 A.D.) wrote in his letter To Autolychus 2:250 "For it was not the tree, as some think, but the disobedience, which had death in it." Ante-Nicene Fathers 2 p.104. Some also see in the phrase "like God, knowing good and evil", as them wanting to appropriate to themselves God’s prerogative of defining good and evil.

Q: In Gen 3, was this test sort of like parents putting a 40,000 volt battery in the living room and telling their baby not to touch it?
A: No, for at least three reasons.
1. Adam and Eve were not babies. They could reason as adults can, they were fully conscious of what they were doing and what God said the consequences would be.
2. Unlike a dangerous battery, it was not the tree that was deadly. It was the disobedience to God that was deadly, and caused them to die spiritually that day, and physically later. It was even possible that at a later time God might have allowed them to touch the tree.
3. Adam and Eve had all their needs met, and they had no way to disobey God except by eating of the tree. Whether we like it or not, God gives people choices to serve Him or not. Some might feel, "God should not have done that, God should have made us all robots incapable of disobeying." Regardless of how people feel, God can do as He wishes, and God chose to give everyone the free will to disobey Him, and to live with the consequences of their obedience or disobedience.

Q: In Gen 3:6, if getting wisdom is good, why was Eve punished for seeking wisdom from eating the fruit?
A: Seeking wisdom is not good in and of itself. Seeking wisdom from God is good, but wisdom through disobedience is not good. Christians generally have not learned and experienced all the different varieties of evil, nor do they want to do so.
As Theophilus, bishop of Antioch (168-181/188 A.D.) wrote in his letter To Autolychus 2:250 "For it was not the tree, as some think, but the disobedience, which had death in it. For there was nothing else in the fruit than only knowledge; but knowledge is good when one uses it discreetly. But Adam, being yet an infant in age, was on this account as yet unable to receive knowledge worthily." Ante-Nicene Fathers 2 p.104.

Q: In Gen 45:8, 50:19, does God enslave godly people? Did God or Joseph’s brothers enslave Joseph?
A: This is an example of the theological concept called concurrence. God not only knew the evil they would freely and voluntarily decide to do if in that situation, God enabled them to be in that situation and carry out their heart’s intent. Furthermore, God planned for and used their evil to bring about good. As Romans 8:28 says, "...in all things God works together for good...". All things include even evil things.

Q: In Gen 50:19-20, how can we make our own choices, if God "intends" that we make the choices we make?
A: Three simple points.
1. Scripture never says God coerced them to sin or made them choose this evil. God does not tempt anyone, according to James 1:13
2. God knew what choices they would make and allowed them to make those choices. Charles Hodge refers to this concept as "permissive decrees".
3. Knowing what they would choose, God used their evil choice as a part of His plan. Indeed, everything is included in God’s plan, according to Ephesians 1:11 and Proverbs 16:4. Louis Berkhof coined the term "concurrence" for this concept.
See Hard Sayings of the Bible p.135-136 for more info.

Q: In Ex 9:16; Ex 11:9, did God raise up Pharaoh just to punish him?
A: No, scripture does not say this. It says God raised up Pharaoh, with his stubborn wickedness, to demonstrate God’s ability to bring the Israelites out of bondage. In addition to using evil to demonstrate to others His power and judgment, God also allows evil the power to advance, for a time, and God judges the fruit that is produced.

Q: In Ex 17:2 and Dt 6:16, how can people tempt God if God cannot be tempted by evil in James 1:13?
A: A better translation than "tempt God" is "put the Lord to the test." God cannot really be tempted by evil, but people can still try. This is an expression of the sin of people who tell God "work this way and perform this miracle, or else."

Q: In Ex 32:12 why did Moses ask God to "repent of this evil against thy people"?
A: The word "evil" here can also mean disaster. Moses asked God to relent from bringing the threatened disaster, because Deuteronomy 9:8 said God’s wrath was aroused enough to destroy the people.

Q: In Lev 4:13, how can a just God hold people guilty of unintentional sin?
A: Scripture gives us three points about unintentional sin.
1. When somebody commits a sin unintentionally, that does not mean he or she was innocent, either. It could be that when a person found out they sinned, he or she was glad they did it. To show that is not the case, the person offered a sacrifice. (Deuteronomy 21:1-9)
2. Both the Bible and modern law recognize that some unintentional is still criminal. Manslaughter, and risking the lives of others recklessly deserve punishment, even if the murderer did not desire the death of the victim. (Numbers 35:22-28). The penalty for manslaughter was being forced to stay in a city of refuge until the current high priest died.
3. Regardless of whether the action was intentional or not, if the person committing the sin had no opportunity to know it was evil, Romans 4:15 and 5:13 say that unintentional sin is still sin, but sin is not counted where there is no law.

Q: In Dt 12:3, why were they to burn down the sacred groves of trees? I thought trees were good.
A: Trees are neither good or bad, in and of themselves. However, when trees are used in idolatrous worship, then the trees are for an evil use for those people.

Q: In 1 Sam 16:14,23, and 1 Sam 18:10, how did an evil spirit from God come on Saul?
A: In Hebrew, "evil" has two meanings: 1) moral evil and 2) something that is hurtful or harmful. The second meaning is intended here. Whether God sent an angel to punish Saul, or whether God allowed a demon to torment Saul, either way, this was expressly permitted by God.
Muslims should not be surprised that the term "evil" can mean harm, and not just moral evil. The term is used in this way in their own writings, in the Bukhari Hadith volume 3 no.56.
See When Critics Ask p.165-166, Difficulties in the Bible p.109-110, Hard Sayings of the Bible p.211-212, and Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties p.178-180 for more info.

Q: In 2 Sam 24:1, did God move David to number Israel, or did Satan move David as 1 Chr 21:1 says?
A: The Hebrew word for "move" in both verses is the same. God and Satan were working in concert here. In order to understand this, one must understand the doctrine of concurrency. First we will discuss the doctrine in general, and then how it applies in this case.

Five Points of the Doctrine of Concurrency
1. God weaves all things together as a part of His plan (Ephesians 1:11; Proverbs 16:4)
2. Some things, such as sinful things, God does not desire. (Jeremiah 7:31; 19:5; Matthew 23:37).
3. Even the evil men plan and do, God often not only allows, but even intends to be used for good (Genesis 50:18-20; Romans 8:28), and for His glory (Romans 9:17-18).
4. What’s more, God even has an active role in enabling men to do the evil they would like to do. For example, when someone deliberately disobeys God and hardens their heart, sometimes God further hardens their heart, as He did to Pharaoh (Exodus 7:13; 8:19; 9:7, 9:34-35; 10:20,27; 14:8)
5. God never does evil or tempts people (James 1:13), but God uses various tools, even Satan himself, to accomplish His ends. (2 Chronicles 18:18-22).
In 2 Samuel 24:1 and 1 Chronicles 21:1, God decided to have David and the Israelites reveal their pride so that God would deal with it. God was ultimately responsible for "moving" David to number Israel, by delegating to Satan the immediate responsibility to move David. Since God works all things according to His plan, as one Christian quipped, ultimately Satan is only the unwilling servant of the Most High God.
Finally, if you do not like the fact that God uses all means, not just good means, to accomplish His ends, you can take that up with God. The point of this discussion is not to say how God "ought to behave" in our own minds. Rather, it is to briefly lay out what God has chosen to show us about Himself in His word.
See Today’s Handbook for Solving Bible Difficulties p.390-391, the Complete Book of Bible Answers p.53, When Critics Ask p.177, and Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties p.186-188 for more info.

Q: In 2 Sam 24:1, why did God move David to number Israel?
A: Scripture does not say, but two ostensible reasons David wanted to do this are pride in his own kingdom, and to find the number of men for military service. It would be easy for the Israelites, as well as David, to be proud of their own strength instead of relying on God. So, God allowed things to come to a head by having Satan tempt David to take a census of Israel.

Q: In Jb, why do bad things happen to godly people?
A: Sometimes we can see reasons for calamities happening to Christians. Paul first preached to the Galatians because of illness in Galatians 4:13. Paul was given some sort of thorn in 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 to keep him from being conceited. Christians who took the Lord’s cup lightly were disciplined with sickness and death in 1 Corinthians 11:29-32.Christians such as Paul (2 Timothy 3:10-12) and John (Revelation 1:9) suffered persecution for the Gospel’s sake.
Yet most of the time, we cannot see the reasons for trials for the godly. We must be content to wait until Heaven to know the reasons for many things. We can say in general though, that trials develop perseverance (James 1:2-4). All things, even evil things, work together for good for those who love Him (Romans 8:28).
The book of Job explores this question. Skipping over the many subtle truths in Job, we can say:
1. While the suffering was instigated by Satan, God permitted it and used it for His glory.
2. After this was over, a secondary result was that Job knew God in a much more personal and intimate way.
3. During the whole trial, Job had no idea why this was happening. In a way, this too was part of the trial.
4. Job’s three friends had all the answers for Job; unfortunately, they were the wrong answer.
In summary, God can allows whatever He wants. Today there are many things that are not right, and a time is coming, Judgment Day, when all will be set right. See the discussion on Galations 4:13 for more info on suffering due to sickness.

Q: In Ecc 8:2-5, should we always obey kings, regardless of whether they command good or evil?
A: No. An analogy might help here. Regardless of whether a governor likes all the laws of a country, patriotic citizens should obey the laws of the province, except where the laws of the province conflict with the laws of the country. Regardless of whether the premier like God’s Laws or not, all citizens should obey the laws of the country, except where the laws conflict with God’s law.

Q: In Isa 45:7, how did a good God "make peace and create evil"?
A: Now That’s A Good Question p.267-268 points out that there are seven Hebrew words that are often translated into the English word "evil" in the King James Version. This word for evil often means physical catastrophe.

Q: In Jer 4:6, how does God bring evil?
A: God causes evil in the sense of "physical evil" of catastrophes, but He does not do moral evil. However, this does not completely answer all the issues this verse raises.
Even knowing how evil the Babylonians were, God deliberately planned that they would come to power and conquer Judah. The Bible shows both that God never does evil Himself, but God even uses evil people and demons as He wishes as a part of His ultimate plan.

Q: In Jer 21:10, how does God set His face against a city for evil?
A: This interesting phrase means God is planning disaster for a city. God did so as punishment for their sins.

Q: In Jer 36:19, did Baruch and Jeremiah go and hide themselves, or did the Lord hide them as Jer 36:26 says?
A: Both. This is a simple example of the theological concept of concurrence. Baruch and Jeremiah freely chose to hide, and performed that action. Concurrently, God unsured they would not be found.
Other, more comples examples of concurrence are Jeremiah 38:18-23, Joseph and his brothres in Genesis 50, and God hardening Pharaoh’s heart in Exodus.

Q: In Jer 38:18-23, was it really all up to King Zedekiah whether or not Jerusalem would be burned?
A: This question deals with a doctrine called concurrency.
On one hand, the wicked King Zedekiah had the free choice to surrender to the Babylonians. There still would have been an exile, but it might have been less severe and Jerusalem would not have been destroyed.
On the other hand, God foreknew what Zedekiah would choose, and that Jerusalem would be burned.

Q: In Jer 44:22, when can God bear to see evil, and when can God no longer bear to see it?
A: Two perspectives on the answer.
In Heaven, God does not tolerate any evil. That is why Satan and his angels were cast down from Heaven.
On earth, God is very patient with evil, but God’s patience has its limits. (God is patient, but within limits. (1 Thessalonians 2:16; Genesis 15:16; Revelation 10:6; Psalm 2:5,12; Romans 2:5) The Bible does not specify all the factors that enter into the limits of God’s patience.

Q: In Lam 3:38, how does both good and evil come from the mouth of God?
A: Lamentations 3:39, as well as Jeremiah 18:11, shows that "evil" meaning physical harm, is intended here, not moral evil. The entire book of Lamentations makes the point that God is not evil or unjust to bring on these punishments, but this was justly deserved, and warned about in Deuteronomy 28.
See Hard Sayings of the Bible p.312-313 and Bible Difficulties and Seeming Contradictions p.219-220 for more extensive discussions of essentially the same answer.

Q: In Ezek 5:17, what are the "evil beasts" here?
A: While some might consider lions and bears "evil", because of the harm they can do to people, that is not what this verse is speaking about. These are truly evil beasts in a moral sense. They are probably the locusts from the Abyss mentioned in Revelation 9:3-11.

Q: In Ezek 6:1 and Ezek 36:1, why was God speaking to the inanimate mountains of Israel?
A: The mountains were not evil of themselves. One might mistakenly think so, since much of the Canaanite religion centered on mountain shrines. However, God promises that Israelites will return and dwell on the mountains. See 735 Baffling Bible Questions Answered p.183 for more info.

Q: In Ezek 6:10, does God do evil here?
A: Evil can mean physical harm, and it can also mean moral evil. God does do physical harm many times, but God does not do moral evil.

Q: In Ezek 38:4 did God lead Gog and Magog to invade Israel, or did Satan lead them in Rev 20:7-8? (Asimov’s Guide to the Bible p.594 thought this was a contradiction)
A: Three points to consider in the answer.
1. From Ezekiel 38:10-11, Gog and Magog would devise an evil plan, prepare, and apparently believe it was only they themselves that had decided this. Actually, they were summoned to do this (Ezekiel 38:8),
2. It specifically says that God will turn them from their home in the north to come against Israel. Then God will destroy them. (Ezekiel 38:4; 39:2-3)
3. God Himself does not tempt people (James 1:13). Rather, the means God will use is to have Satan deceive Gog and Magog, according to Revelation 20:7-8.
4. This concept, of God using the evil of men and Satan to accomplish things that are a part of His plan, is called the doctrine of "concurrency" by theologians. Probably the clearest example of this truth is Genesis 50:20, when Joseph spoke to his brothers about their enslaving him. Joseph said, "Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good,…" (NRSV). Another example of concurrency is Judas betraying Jesus was a part of God’s definite plan and foreknowledge (Acts 2:23), and God using Satan to incite David pridefully to number Israel in 2 Samuel 24:1 and 1 Chronicles 21:1.

Q: In Am 3:6, does God cause evil?
A: The word "evil" has two meanings:
Calamity / disaster / harmful things: Yes, God does cause these sometimes.
Moral evil: No, God does not directly cause moral evil. However, God does allow it to occur, and God even "channels" to His ends, and He uses it, weaving it in as a part of His plan.
Muslims should not be surprised that the term "evil" can mean harm, and not just moral evil. The term is used in this way in their own writings, in the Bukhari Hadith volume 3 no.56.
See Bible Difficulties and Seeming Contradictions p.219-220 for a more extensive answer.

Q: In Am 9:3, does God cause physical evil?
A: There are two kinds of things denoted by the Hebrew (as well as English) words for evil.
Moral evil is wickedness, and while God allows that, God does not directly cause that.
Physical evil is harm or death, and sometimes God does directly cause that.
Muslims should not be surprised that the term "evil" can mean harm, and not just moral evil. The term is used in this way in their own writings, in the Bukhari Hadith volume 3 no.56.

Q: In Jon 3:10, how did God repent of the evil he said he would do?
A: Two points to consider in the answer.
1. Evil in Hebrew has two meanings: moral evil, and physical harm and pain.
2. While God does not change His mind (Numbers 23:19 and 1 Samuel 15:24), God’s revealed will towards a people changes when their attitude changes. See the discussion on Jonah 3-4 for more examples of this.
Muslims should not be surprised that the term "evil" can mean harm, and not just moral evil. The term is used in this way in their own writings, in the Bukhari Hadith volume 3 no.56.
See Hard Sayings of the Bible p.333-334 for more info.

Q: In Mic 1:7, does God ever honor offerings given to Him of money gained by evil means?
A: God is free to do as He wishes with money gained by evil means. However, as to whether God honors offerings from ill-gotten money, that would negate the concept of obediently offering something to God. In 2 Samuel 24:24, David refused to make a sacrifice to God that cost him nothing. In Mark 12:41-44, Jesus commended the generosity of the widow who sacrificially gave.

Q: In Mic 2:1, what is significant about plotting evil on their beds?
A: Not only did people do evil when they were tempted in a situation, and not only did they do premeditated evil, but they even laid awake in their beds at night plotting how to do evil. Perhaps this is why Psalm 4:4 instructs people "when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent." (NIV)

Q: In Mic 2:3 (KJV), how can a time period be evil?
A: When evil flourishes and is not held in check, that period of time can be dreadful and dangerous.

Q: In Hab 1:6-10, how can God use the unholy Chaldeans, since God is too pure to look upon evil (Hab 1:13)?
A: See the discussion on Habakkuk 2:8.

Q: In Hab 1:13, what exactly is moral evil?
A: Scripture does not give a concise definition, but gives many descriptions. Here are some analogies.
Evil is like a deceitful weight
Weights were important in the ancient world for measuring out grain, salt, and other items of trade. Deuteronomy 25:15 and Leviticus 19:36 allude to this when they mention a perfect and just weight. Proverbs 11:1 and Proverbs 16:11 say a just weight is the Lord’s delight. Proverbs 20:10,23 and Micah 6:11 condemn people who use diverse and deceitful weights.
So to understand evil, we have to understand that God is good, in the sense that He, as a Holy Creator, has set the standard for measuring goodness.
Evil is like a hole in the field of goodness
People can have illusions about evil, but evil is not illusion. People can have illusions about anything, but illusion does not remove the reality. Evil is like a hole in a farmer’s field of goodness. A hole is not a "thing" but an absence of a thing. It is not an illusion though, for people can step in hole they do not see and twist their ankles. If all goodness comes from God, a "hole of evil" is a "thing" that does not.
So to understand evil, we have to understand that God is good, in the sense that nothing is totally good except God alone. God provides goodness, and evil is a deficiency of goodness.
Evil is like a shadow
God created everything, right? If so, then did God create the shadows, too? If a shadow is where light is blocked or reduced by an object, did the light or the object create the shadow? ¾ No object, no shadow. Yet, no light no shadow, either. You might confuse a shadow with an illusion, but illusions do not affect you, except by your believing in them. Plants that need the sun die in the shadows ¾ regardless of what a person believes.
Shadows really exist, but shadows do not have an existence independent of the light source and the object blocking the light. Evil really exists, but evil does not have an existence independent of God who is light and the source of all goodness, and beings who have the free agency to shadow God’s goodness.
Nobody, including God, directly created evil, just as on earth nobody directly creates shadows. God did indirectly create evil, just as on earth a light indirectly creates shadows.
So to understand evil, we have to understand that God is good, in the sense that He is the source of all goodness.

Q: In Hab 1:13, why are various modern definitions of moral evil inadequate?
A: Here are some of them.
1. "whatever I do not like." If all described by this was evil, then what about the dentist’s drill, the surgeon’s knife, or the kid who is screaming because she has to take bad-tasting medicine? What about the contradictory situation that arises when a parent disciplines a child?
Bad things can serve good purposes to:
Refine our faith. 1 Peter 1:6-7
Help us die to sin. 1 Peter 4:1
Test our faith and develop perseverance. James 1:2-4
Be used not for our sake, but for others. Colossians 1:24
Be a sign to help unbelievers. Philippians 1:28
Just comes with being a Christian. 2 Timothy 3:12; Philippians 1:29
Sometimes we can see no reason, except that our persevering glorifies God. See Job 1:8-12; 2:2-6.
2. "whatever is not good for me." If so, what about the things a child judges are not good for him, like vegetables. What about the criminal who is jailed for the good of society, not his own good.
Even with this view there is a problem of perspective. In 1 Corinthians 15:12-19, Paul says that what he is suffering for and preaching about is useless, and we would be the most pitiful of men, if Christi did not really rise from the dead. Paul clearly saw that what was best for both his hearers and himself would be very different if Jesus was not resurrected. In Matthew 10:39 and Mark 8:35 Jesus said, "Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." In other words, whoever is willing to lose his earthly life will find genuine life in eternity, and whoever lives only for this life will have lost for all eternity. So what is best for a person’s life depends on if you focus exclusively on the short-term earthly life or on the long-term eternal life.
3. "whatever does not bring about the greatest good for society." In John 11:49-52, Caiphas the high priest said about the plot to kill Jesus "…it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish." In a strange, unintended sort of way, he was exactly right. That did not make crucifying Jesus good, though. Judas’ betrayal of Jesus was a necessary part of Christ’s death which brought about our salvation. Does that mean Judas should be our hero for being good? -Of course not. Acts 2:23 says Jesus was handed over through God’s set purpose and foreknowledge. Yet Mark 14:21 says it would have been better for Judas if he had not been born. Judas’ crime was heinous, but God used Judas’ evil choice to bring about the greatest good.

Q: In Hab 1:13, why does God let people sin?
A: God answers this question in two parts, with a picture of the future.
1. Hab 1:5-11 shows that their happiness is short-lived, for an even more ruthless people will soon conquer them. God’s toleration of sin on earth is only temporary. If we could only take to heart Psalm 39:4-5, and ask how lengthy earthly life will seem, millions of years from now, this answer would be so clear to us.
2. Hab 2:1-3:16 paints a picture in words. The first part of the answer, Habakkuk 2:2-20, details the sins of the oppressors, and their fate, in this life. Aptly, Habakkuk writes that they enlarge their desires as Hell in Habakkuk 2:5. Not only will they come to ruin, but as they weary themselves in vain to feed the fire in Habakkuk 2:13, their hopes and labors will come to nothing.
The second part of the answer, in Habakkuk 3:1-16, shifts the focus to "an appointed time" in Habakkuk 2:3, the end times and the last judgment. Many wicked do appear to live well all their life on earth, and life does not seem fair to us, if our focus is only on this life.
David prayed to God about his own bitter feelings toward the violent and wealthy in Psalm 73. Once David entered the sanctuary in Psalm 73:17, he saw clearly the same answer Habakkuk saw. It is a certainty that God will severely punish their sin, but it is God’s discretion to punish their sins in the timing He chooses. As 1 Timothy 5:24-25 implies, some consequences of sin come sooner, and other consequences are delayed until judgment day.
When Corrie ten Boom was in a Nazi concentration camp, a Jewish former Violin player, whose fingers were gnarled by Nazi torture, asked how Corrie’s God could let this happen. The lady was in no mood for a theological discussion. Corrie answered that she did not know. But she did know that her Savior came to earth, and He too was tortured unjustly, and that he as experienced what she experienced and understands her pain. Amen!

Q: In Hab 2:8, why does God punish the Chaldeans for being instruments of His will and doing what He told them to do?
A: God never told the Chaldeans to invade Judah, and they did not conquer because of a desire to obey God’s commands. Instead, God, in what is called concurrency, used their evil desire to conquer for His good plan. God can work everything together for good for those who love Him in Romans 8:28. God uses all as a part of His plan in Ephesians 1:11 and Proverbs 16:4.

Q: In Zeph 1:12, why does it seem that sometimes God will not do good or evil?
A: Sometimes God wants to see what we will do. God cannot judge a person’s actions if they have no opportunity to do good or evil.

Q: In Mt 5:39, why do Christians resist evil?
A: No verse says Christians are not to resist any evil. This verse specifically says not to resist an evil person, who is doing evil to you. We are to resist the devil in James 4:7 and 1 Peter 5:9. Like Jeremiah in 7:6 and 22:16, we should speak up for the oppressed. In the Old Testament, Proverbs 28:4 says the righteous "contend" with the wicked who forsake the law. Leviticus 5:1 says it is a sin to refuse to testify in court about an evil we have seen. We are to guard against false teachers. (1 John 2:26; 3:7; 4:1; 2 John 7-8; Revelation 2:16; 2 Peter 2:2; Acts 20:28-29. We are to refute false teachers (1 Timothy 1:3; Titus 1:9-11; Jude 3). We are to contend for the faith. (Philippians 1:27; 4:3).

Q: In Mt 17:14-16 and Lk 9:37-39, why do demons often hurt the people they possess?
A: Perhaps for a similar reasons as evil people often hurt those who have helped them. For a logical, actually cruelly logical explanation of this, Michiavelli’s book The Prince speaks of cases where a mercenary leader is dangerous while he is serving a prince, and even more dangerous if he defects. He wrote that the safest thing is often assassination. If someone cavorts with evil, they should not be surprised when evil is done to them by those they were helping.

Q: In Lk 6:9, what kind of good and evil was Jesus talking about?
A: The word "evil" is used similar to the English word for bad; it can mean morally wrong things, or it can mean harmful things. Jesus was using the metaphor of harmful things to make a point about both helpful and morally good things. You would not allow your animal to die of neglect on the Sabbath. Likewise, healing a person is OK any day of the week.

Q: In Jn 12:6, why did Jesus permit Judas to be a disciple, since Judas was a thief and a future traitor?
A: After he became a disciple, Judas was a thief according to John 12:4-6. God can use whatever means He chooses to carry out His plan. The betrayal of Jesus was a part of God’s plan, as Psalm 41:9 Acts 2:23; and Matthew 26:24,54; Mark 14:21; Luke 22:22; and John 13:18 show.
Judas betraying Jesus was an evil thing, but God used this bad thing as a part of His plan to accomplish good, in this case, Jesus dying on the cross for our sins. This is an example of what is called "concurrency".

Q: In Acts 8:1, was this persecution a good thing?
A: No, it was an evil thing to persecute Christians. However, many see that God used this evil thing for good. Apparently, the earliest Christians were slow to obey the great commission in Matthew 28:19 and especially Acts 1:8. Persecution drove them out of Jerusalem and into other places where they were supposed to be evangelizing anyway.

Q: In Acts 8:1, why did Christians flee Jerusalem because of persecution, while the apostles remained?
A: There are two views.
1. According to Hard Sayings of the Bible p.522-523, the persecution was by the Sanhedrin and directed mainly against the Greek-speaking Christians. Christians who were also Aramaic-speaking Jews were not persecuted until later. See also the Bible Knowledge Commentary : New Testament p.371-372 for more on this view.
2. They did try to persecute the apostles, when they killed James the brother of John, and imprisoned Peter. However, since God protected Peter, they did not try anymore, because of how it would look to the people.

Q: In Acts 8:1, would the Christians have scattered throughout Judea and Samaria if there had not been the persecution?
A: Probably at a slower pace than if there had not been the persecution.

Q: In Acts 23:5, why did Paul say you should not speak evil of the ruler of your people?
A: Exodus 22:28 says not to "curse" the ruler of your people. The Hebrew word here (qalal) also means to revile, bring into contempt, esteem lightly, and so forth.

Q: In Rom 1:26-27, how does God give people over to the lust of their hearts?
A: One of the punishments of sin is more desire to sin. A consequence of sin is that it is a vicious circle. You can think of unrepentant sin similar to an astronomical "black hole" that sucks everything around it in. Revelation 22:11 and Daniel 12:10 also imply that good and evil will both multiply. See Now That’s a Good Question p.165 for more info.

Q: In Rom 3:8, why shouldn’t we do evil so that good may result? (The evil Russian leader Rasputin taught this.)
A: If this were true, then Satan would have caused more good than anyone else. God many times does use evil for good. That does not justify people doing evil, or keep people who lived like Rasputin from suffering the consequences in the Lake of Fire for their evil. See the discussion on Romans 6:1,15.

Q: In Rom 8:19-22, why does God allow evil in a fallen world?
A: Both the newspaper and the Bible show the world contains evil as well as good. According to John 9:1-3, the man was not born blind because of his sin or the sin of his parents. In Luke 13:1-5, the murdered Galileans, and those on whom the tower of Siloam fell, may have deserved these things, but they did not deserve them any more than everyone else.
Romans 8:19-22 shows that after the Fall, God subjected creation to corruption. Corrupted man was not permitted to live in an uncorrupted creation. We have natural disasters, temporary injustice, and man’s inhumanity to man. Since the Fall, 1 Jn 5:19 says the whole world is under the influence of the evil one. The god of this age is Satan in 2 Cor 4:4. Satan is the prince of this world in John12:31; 14:30,16:11; Ephesians 6:12; and Colossians 1:13. See also the discussion on Eph 2:2 and Now That’s a Good Question p.166-167 for more info.

Q: In Gal 1:4, why is this present world is evil, when it is actually a good and wonderful place?
A: First of all, the best this world has to offer is poor and bad compared to the wonderful things of Heaven. Second, this world that God created does have good and wonderful aspects. However, people from Sudan, Somalia, World War II German and Japanese concentration camps, and Cambodia are not as naive as some Americans today. In fact, in the Buddhist religion, the first point of the eightfold path is that life is full of pain and suffering. Apart from the natural disasters, many fundamentalist Muslims and dedicated Communists sincerely believe it is their duty to invade and kill people who were not at war with them.
The world is definitely not all good and wonderful. We live in a fallen creation (Romans 8:19-22), and people have evil inside of them (Romans 3:23).

Q: In Gal 2:16-21, is Paul implying the Old Testament Law was evil, as Gnostic heretics taught?
A: Not at all. As Chrysostom (c.396 A.D.) put it, "he does not say they had abandoned the Law as evil, but as weak." See the discussion on 1 John 1:1 for more on the Gnostics.

Q: In Eph 1:11 and Prov 16:4,33, how are all things working together in conformance with the purpose of God’s will?
A: While everyone can see how God can use good things for His glory, God makes no apologies for using evil things, too. See the answer in Genesis 45:8. Here are a few of the ways God can use evil.