Good and Evil from God

After Job suffered tremendous personal loss and was afflicted with boils head to toe, his wife was incredulous he clung to his integrity.  She scornfully said, "Curse God and die!"  His response is provided in Job 2:10:  "But he said to her, "You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?" In all this Job did not sin with his lips."  Despite his pain and troubles, Job did not accuse God of doing wrong or sin with His lips.  He praised God who gave him life rather than cursing Him.  Though Job did not understand why such awful things befell him, he was convinced God remained only good.

This morning I was reading in the book of Micah how God would come down to the earth with the mountains melting before His presence like wax before flame and that the valleys would be torn in two.  The God of Israel would reduce the capital city of Samaria to a heap, throw down the altars and destroy the images, for His people had forsaken Him for idols.  Sin had long festered in the lives of His people, so He would severely chasten them as a father a son in whom he delights.  Micah 1:12 says in the KJV, "For the inhabitant of Maroth waited carefully for good: but evil came down from the LORD unto the gate of Jerusalem."  God's people imagined themselves entitled to good from God, yet evil (disaster, calamity) came down from the LORD Himself upon them.

There are many people like the wife of Job, who would blame and curse God when disaster strikes.  There are others who are confused how God--who is only good--could possibly do evil without His righteousness and honour being sullied.  God's righteous, good character is established as is written in James 1:13-14:  "Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. ¹⁴ But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed."  Because God is just, He will render to each one according to their works.  A good judge will hand down a sentence according to the law, and God's Law says the soul that sins will surely die.  Thus it is not evil for God to slay a wicked man, for in dying a sinner simply receives his just due because the wages of sin is death.

In the case of Job and others, God was aware of Satan's murderous scheme and set strict limits on what Satan was permitted to do.  While Satan desired to provoke Job to curse God to His face, God had a totally different aim in mind.  James 5:10-11 says, "My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. ¹¹ Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord--that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful."  God was with Job in his darkest days to reveal His compassion and mercy to him personally.  Our LORD is able to redeem unthinkable loss into the great blessing of knowing God better.  God's grace is seen in sending His only begotton Son Jesus (who was and is without sin) to die for the sins of the world so we might be forgiven and reconciled to Him.

Answering the question Jesus posed in the parable in Matthew 20:15, it is lawful for God to do whatever He wants with His things.  The eye of man can be evil because our LORD is generous and good.  We would fault Him for being just to punish evildoers, and we would also complain when He grants undeserving sinners salvation.  God is so glorious and good it is difficult for mankind to accept because we are so small and evil.  May Job's response to evil inspire us to worship, praise and bless God even when we suffer and cannot understand why in Job 1:20-22:  "Then Job arose, tore his robe, and shaved his head; and he fell to the ground and worshiped. ²¹ And he said: "Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked shall I return there. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; Blessed be the name of the LORD." ²² In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong."