Everyday 17: Why Does God Allow Evil?

It's tempting to explain suffering by saying "God allowed this for a reason - he's teaching you something." That's not wrong exactly, but it can turn God into someone who manufactures pain as a lesson. Scripture shows something different: God grieves over evil. In Genesis 6, his heart is described as genuinely pained by human violence and corruption - not detached, not orchestrating it from a safe distance. Jesus wept at Lazarus's tomb, not because he didn't know Lazarus would be raised, but because death is genuinely wrong - an enemy, not part of some cold plan. At the same time, Scripture affirms that God works through the worst circumstances toward good: even Joseph's betrayal became the means of saving his family (Genesis 50:20), and the crucifixion, the very worst act in history, became the means of salvation, ordained yet carried out by human hands (Acts 2:23).
This matters because you don't have to choose between "God is sovereign" and "God grieves with you." Scripture holds both: real grief over real evil, and a God who is never defeated by it.
Scripture links:
- Genesis 50:20 - "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good." Human evil doesn't get the final word over God's purposes.
- Acts 2:23 - Jesus, "delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God," was killed "by the hands of lawless men." Both divine purpose and human responsibility for evil are affirmed together.
- Romans 8:28 - God "works all things together for good, for those who love God." Not that all things are good, but that God works through them.