This is an ancient question, one to which the oldest book in the Bible, Job, was entirely devoted. It is asked repeatedly in the Scriptures: Jeremiah asks, “Why does the way of the wicked prosper?” (12:1). Psalm 73 is a discussion of this question. Jesus said, “In this world, you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world” (Jn 16:33).
But the answers the Bible gives, to the extent that it answers at all, are not very satisfying. Job is told (I’m paraphrasing Job 40), “Who are you to question me?” Others tell us to look to another place, heaven, where wrongs will be finally righted. But why would God allow evil in the first place? Continue reading