Essay on Evil in The Holy Bible

3747 Words8 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: What is Evil? Essay

The Purpose of Evil in the Bible

God looked at everything He had made, and it was very good (Genesis 1:31) Five times in Genesis 1, God looks at that which He has created, and pronounces it "good". Then on the sixth day He creates Man, and says that His creation is now "very good". God's pronouncement of His creation, which would be everything around us and includes ourselves, as "very good" is hard to reconcile with that which we see on a daily basis -- a reality in which we experience much pain and cruelty from man and nature. These negative experiences we call "evil".

Evil, in this sense, is a very broad term, and needs to be defined. In general terms, "evil" is that which works against the life-giving power of God, and seeks to thwart God's will. In the Bible, the term "evil" is used to describe anything that brings sorrow, distress, calamity, and moral wrong-doing. In more modern times, "evil" has been associated with warfare, especially chemical and nuclear warfare, as well as problems associated with over-population, racism, ecological destruction, and worldwide disease. Indeed, evil is so much a part of our lives, the very term seems to have lost meaning. It is not uncommon in public debates to hear one side associate the other with evil, casually placing their opponents on the side of Satan and destruction.

So, what did God mean when He said that His creation was "very good"? Did He simply mean that He was finished, and that evil was an intentional part of His design? Or did evil come afterward, suggesting that it was beyond His control? This is a vexing question to those of faith, especially in the Judeo-Christian faith, who believe in an all-powerful, loving God. If God is good and lo...

... middle of paper ...

...gardless of my worth to God, I know I will fall. If I choose to do wrong, I know that the responsibility is mine. If I catch a disease, I would not blame God, or ask why he chose me to suffer. If I am to accept all the possible good aspects of being a thinking, reasoning human being with freedom of will, I have to accept the fact that I live in an existence where evil can happen.

Works Cited

Dobson, James C. (1993). When God Doesn't Make Sense. Illinois: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.

Green, Joel B., & Longman, Tremper (Eds.). (1996). Holy Bible -- The Everday Study Edition. Dallas: Word Publishing.

Hick, John H. (1990). Philosophy of Religion. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Kushner, Harold S. (1981). When Bad Things Happen To Good People. New York: Avon books.

McFague, Sallie. (1987). Models of God. Philadelphia: Fortress Press.

Show More
Related

  • Tim Storrier

    1024 Words  | 3 Pages

    Tim Storrier's artworks have been influenced by his childhood memories, dreams and myths of the Australian outback, country life, his travels to the outback, his travels to Egypt, and Dutch seascapes. Dutch artist Theo Kuijpers, English artists Constable and Turner, French artists Delacroix and Gericault, and Australian artists Russel Drysdale and Sydney Nolan have influenced Storrier's artwork as well.

    Read More

  • Gospel Essentials Essay

    1491 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis1:1.) God’s perfect wisdom created everything. In Genesis 1 and 2 we can see that God has loving and gentile nature when He created the earth and heavens. God created man in his image and we are the only creation that God breathed in the breath of life for human beings (Genesis 2:7). God did not do this for any of other creations but only for humans. The Bible has many scriptures that tell us how creative God is. Genesis 1;26 states “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” God created all of this for us to have fellowship with him.

    Read More

  • Metaphysics: What Is Time? Is Time Travel Possible?

    2024 Words  | 5 Pages

    Throughout the day we are constantly checking the time, preparing for the upcoming months, and keeping track of the year. Clocks tell us the time we use as a measurement. It’s how we keep track of those important months and events, such as holidays and birthdays. Although there are many investigations and research being done on the nature of time, many unresolved issues remain.

    Read More

  • Control In A Midsummer Night's Dream

    530 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the book Oberon and Lysander find a way to try and control others. Oberon and Lysander try to have power . In act three scene two Lysander convinces Hermia that he loves Helena. For example in the book it states, “ What love could press Lysander from my side?” (3.2.189).This shows that Hermia believes Lysander when he says that he loves Helena now. In act four scene one the lovers find themselves all together. For example in the book it states, “ These couples shall be eternally knit.” (4.1.188). This shows that they all got what they want in the end. Oberon and Lysander, not in control of others.This shows that they have a little bit of power ,but have one hundred percent of it. Oberon and Lysander learn that they aren’t in control and that they can’t control

    Read More

  • Saint Augustine's Journey: Understanding Evil and God

    729 Words  | 2 Pages

    Since God is perfect, he could not have created evil. Rather, the origins of evil date back to Adam and Eve. Satan, a fallen angel, managed to tempt Eve into eating the forbidden fruit; thus introducing evil into the world. One may wonder why God, whom is omnipotent, decided not to eradicate evil from the world. The answer is straightforward. When God created man, he gave him free will due to his immeasurable love. As a result, the introduction of evil into the world gave man a choice; to follow God and pursue righteousness, or pursue evil and henceforth separate oneself from

    Read More

  • Moral Evil Research Paper

    2001 Words  | 5 Pages

    Moral evil was an issue that weighed heavily on the minds of the people of the Medieval period. Philosophers and poets alike attempted to address and understand the problem of moral evil, scrutinizing the roots of evil and the effects of evil on the body and, more importantly, on the soul. Of the philosophers that the period produced the views of St. Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, and Boethius on the problem of evil are perhaps the most notable. From the literary side of the spectrum, the problem of evil is addressed heavily in Beowulf.

    Read More

  • The Men of Rule in William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”

    1337 Words  | 3 Pages

    Theseus and Oberon are both compassionate and understanding towards the young lovers, Hermia and Lysander, and Helena and Demetrius. They are involved in a love triangle that encompasses matters of the law and love. Demetrius intends to marry Hermia, although, she shares a mutual love with Lysander; Helena loves Demetrius, although, he no longer loves her. Theseus, as the Duke of Athens, maintains the laws and standards of Athenian society. He acknowledges “the Ancient privilege of Athens” (I.1.41) that allows Egeus to “dispose of” (I.1.42) Hermia. This law permits Egeus to give his daughter to Demetrius or “to death, according to [the] law” (I.1.44). However, Theseus takes pity on Hermia and gives he...

    Read More

  • Exploring the Idea of Evil

    1158 Words  | 3 Pages

    People have constantly attempted to understand what evil truly is, and, if possible, how to eliminate this evil from their lives. However, first it must be known what it is that is being eliminated. Different people, cultures, and eras have all had a different view of what evil is, and how it affects their lives, and there is no true answer. Because of this, discussing the idea of whether people are born or can be evil is meaningless. The idea of what evil is, and whether people can be evil, is relative and cannot be applied to human nature in a universal way.

    Read More

  • Effective Time Management

    1531 Words  | 4 Pages

    Effective time management is crucial to achieving team goals, relating to productivity, targets, profit and reputation resulting in lower stress levels. Good time management is making the best use of your time to become more efficient and productive (Demien Kasier 2014). This is important as an individual’s work load will affect others. As a Romec Engineer and an aspiring team leader effective time management will allow me to complete tasks, hit targets set by the Royal Mail, therefore boosting profits. Achieving targets would allow superiors (Field Service Manager FSM) more time as they are not focusing on managing failures. There would also be a knock on effect to the team i.e;

    Read More

  • The Kingdom of God

    1133 Words  | 3 Pages

    Carson, D, & Moo, D. (2005) An introduction to the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

    Read More

  • The Unique relationship between God & Mankind in Genesis

    1966 Words  | 4 Pages

    When you read chapter one of Genesis you have the feeling that God is perfect. God holds all power and control. God turns chaos into order. "God said 'Let there be light.' And there was light, And God saw the light, that it was good" (Gen 1. 3). God's word is action, God's word is law in the universe. When God creates something, he ends it with God seeing that's its good. This is in effect giving support to the perfect nature that is God and the creations God has made. "God does not play dice" (Armstrong 9), God has order and a purpose for what he makes. An important aspect to God is seen while he is creating the world. He separates water from land. Light from Darkens, Day and Night, Male and Female. This shows that boundaries are important to God. We see examples where God put boundaries on mankind with their language by mixing the language up so confuse man and killing off the evil from the good.

    Read More

  • The Compatibility of Faith and Reason

    1234 Words  | 3 Pages

    Holy Bible: Contemporary English Version. New York: American Bible Society, 1995. Print. (BS195 .C66 1995)

    Read More

  • Impact of Telephone on Society

    1655 Words  | 4 Pages

    Farley, Tom. "Telephone History Part 3-1921 to 1984." n.pag. Online. Available: http://privateline.com/TelephoneHistory3/History3.html, Feb. 24, 1999.

    Read More

  • Time And Time Machine: The Nature Of Time

    1206 Words  | 3 Pages

    The concept of time is one that has many connotations attached to it, some are confusing and the others are too abstract. Time is an entity that cannot manifest itself, it is something that is always around us but it seems that it is forever going to be elusive. It passes without the assistance of anyone or anything and it seems to be unstoppable. There are many stories, such as H.G. Wells’ The Time Machine that hint at the possibility of manipulating time in order to enter into its domain and travel through it to other various points in the Earth’s timeline. These stories tend to be based in science fiction, which could possibly make time travel a reality. Time machines have always been one of the many staples of science fiction literature

    Read More

  • Time Travel

    677 Words  | 2 Pages

    Time travel seems to be something for only the Sci Fi movies, but it could have been invented in the future and the course of history has already been changed. As we sit here right now, all of our feelings, thoughts, and memories could have just been reset and we are in a different universe. Neither you nor I would have any recollection of it.

    Read More

More about Essay on Evil in The Holy Bible

Open Document