Why is there Evil?

And what if God, wanting to display his wrath and to make his power known, endured with much patience objects of wrath prepared for destruction? And what if he did this to make known the riches of his glory on objects of mercy that he prepared beforehand for glory…? Romans 9:22-23 CSB

Romans chapter 9-11 were probably some of the most difficult but pivotal chapters in the Bible for me. Inevitably, when we’re on the subject of God’s Sovereignty and Providence, the question of “why evil exists” comes up.

When we view the Bible and redemptive history in its entirety, we shouldn’t land at seeing God as nervously wringing His hands not knowing the outcome, hoping that sinners come to Him, nor should we view God as a schizophrenic scientist conducting weird experiments with mankind. We need to know that with a truly all-powerful God, all that occurs has a purpose and is methodical (Isaiah 46:9-10, Ephesians 1:11-12, Proverbs 16:33, just to name a few).

We have to know that if there is an all-powerful, all-wise God, there are going to be things we can not grasp. However I believe, at least in part, this section of Romans 9 has an answer for this: If the purpose of man is to “Glorify God and enjoy Him forever (Westminster Catechism- with many biblical texts to go with it)” then, in some ways, to see any other alternative (sin/evil) from that will also elevate and exalt God in the view of those that are rescued.

“…to see any other alternative (sin/evil) from that will also elevate God…”

Let’s say my entire life I’ve been eating the Manager’s Special frozen pizzas from the local grocery store. You know the ones: cardboard crust, plastic cheese, semi-nauseating sauce. I didn’t know any better, I just had a longing for pizza and so I ate these. But then a juicy, cheesy, beautiful Chicago-style deep dish comes along (all you Chicago-style haters out there… haha). The vast difference between the two is crazy! I wouldn’t have known until I could see the two! All joking aside, you can see the analogy.

The line, “And what if He did this to make known the riches of His glory on objects of mercy that He prepared beforehand for glory” says pretty similar. Now, I do not think God is dependent on or “needy” of us or our praise (read Isaiah 1). But, for those being saved, God is wanting us to see that any other alternative apart from God in Jesus is death. This inevitably calls into question the Doctrine of Election (Soapbox– yes, the terms ‘elect’ and ‘predestined’ are in the Bible. So before we say something like “we don’t believe in that,” really research the Bible and church history for answers). This is why I feel, at least for one reason, that God allows evil to exist currently: in evil’s destruction, it will reveal God’s glory even more to the redeemed, the vessels of mercy.

-Austin