Why does God, who hates evil, allow evil to exist in the world?

God is all good, holy, wise and powerful, but He permits evil and suffering as they are a result of sinful choices by human beings. We are not programmed like robots or computers. God gives us free will to choose good or evil. Free will cannot exist without the possibility of evil. Creatures free to love God must also be free to ignore Him. Adam and Eve disobeyed God (Gen. 2:16-17; 3:6). Since then, everyone is a sinner deserving God’s judgment (Rom. 3:23; 5:12). When people act outside God’s will, evil and suffering result, and are common in the world (Gen. 3:16-19).

Satan and his followers will suffer eternal torment in the lake of fire (Rev. 20:10,15). This will happen when Christ returns to judge evil. In the parable of the weeds, those judged are thrown “into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Mt. 13:24-30; 36-42).

God is not limited by time as we are. He can spread out or concentrate His activities. When scoffers doubted God’s judgment, Peter wrote of a coming “day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men” (2 Pet. 3:3-9).

God promises to judge evil, but not immediately (Rom. 2:5-11; 3:25; 2 Th. 1:5-10; 2 Pet. 3:7). He is patient, giving people time to repent and be rescued from coming judgment: “The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise … He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Pet. 3:9). He waited 120 years before He sent the flood (Gen. 6:3). God could judge wickedness immediately, but instead He waits patiently so that people can repent (Rom. 9: 22-23).

God loves people more than anything (Jn. 3:16). That’s why He is patient in not judging them immediately. He is capable of destroying evil – but not without destroying human freedom. To destroy evil, He’d have to destroy us.

Published, February 2006