God Controls Evil?

[HeDied4Me]

In order for God to be completely sovereign, He must have complete control over absolutely everything, right? If there were anything or anyone He did not control, then His plan would be subject to change based on the actions of that person...

This leads to the conclusion that God controls evil. Not only that God controls evil, but that God controls Satan. That would mean that God is actually the author of evil.

Can someone please explain how that is wrong? I know it must be wrong, because it goes against God's character, but it seems be the logical conclusion if we assume that God is completely sovereign.

 

[UMP]

In order for God to be completely sovereign, He must have complete control over absolutely everything, right? If there were anything or anyone He did not control, then His plan would be subject to change based on the actions of that person...

This leads to the conclusion that God controls evil. Not only that God controls evil, but that God controls Satan. That would mean that God is actually the author of evil.

Can someone please explain how that is wrong? I know it must be wrong, because it goes against God's character, but it seems be the logical conclusion if we assume that God is completely sovereign.

As you may imagine, your question is not exactly one of the easiest to answer. After all, God's ways are "past finding out". However, perhaps this may shed "some" light. Let's say I compete in the Olympics and run 1 mile in world record pace. The guy just behind me runs 1 mile and shatters my record. I become jealous of him. In the process, my competetor made me jealous, he in a way "created evil" by running faster than me. If he had not run faster I would not have been jealous, yet he did nothing wrong by running faster than myself.
In the same way I believe God can "make" evil by simply being Holy and not overriding the evil. For example, Acts 2: [23] "Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain:"
Here you have Jesus Christ being delivered up in the mind of God, before the foundation of the world, yet those that crucified Him did so with "wicked hands". The question becomes, how can God determine something to happen, yet those that execute the actions do so with wicked hands? I'm not exactly sure, yet I do know that God is perfectly Holy with "no sin in him" and I do know that I am responsible for my own sin.
How the twain meet, only God fully knows.
Here is another good answer:
From chapter 16 of Hassell's History:
God, by the withdrawal of His sustaining influence, is no more the proper
cause of sin than the sun, by its departure, is the proper cause of darkness
and cold, but God is thus proved to be the fountain of all holiness, as the
sun is proved to be the fountain of light and heat... it would be strange
arguing indeed, because men never commit sin only when God leaves them to
themselves, and always sin when He does so, that therefore their sin is not
from themselves, but from God, and so that God must be a sinful being; as
strange as it would be to argue, because it is always dark when the sun is
gone, and never dark when the sun is present, that therefore all darkness is
from the sun, and that the sun itself is dark and cold, and its beams are
black and frosty... God overrules all the evil that He permits for the
ultimate good of His people and glory of His name.

From the London Confession, regarding "God's Decree":
1. God has decreed in Himself from all eternity, by the most wise and holy
counsel of His own will, freely and unchangeably, all things which shall
ever come to pass.
- Yet in such a way that God is neither the author of sin nor does He have
fellowship with any in the committing of sins, nor is violence offered to
the will of the creature , nor yet is the liberty or contingency of second
causes taken away, but rather established.
- In all this God's wisdom is displayed, disposing all things, and also His
power and faithfulness in accomplishing His decree.
2. Although God knows everything which may or can come to pass under all
imaginable conditions, yet He has not decreed anything because He foresaw it
in the future, or because it would come to pass under certain conditions.
3.By the decree of God, for the manifestation of His glory, some men and
angels are predestinated or foreordained to eternal life through Jesus
Christ, to the praise of His glorious grace. Others are left to act in their
sin to their just condemnation, to the praise of His glorious justice.

Hope this helps. Part of the difficulty, of course, is that God's ways are
simply above our ways and so we cannot hope to understand all the workings
of His sovereignty any more than we can hope to grasp all the workings of
the Trinity.

 

[HeDied4Me]

As you may imagine, your question is not exactly one of the easiest to answer. After all, God's ways are "past finding out". However, perhaps this may shed "some" light. Let's say I compete in the Olympics and run 1 mile in world record pace. The guy just behind me runs 1 mile and shatters my record. I become jealous of him. In the process, my competetor made me jealous, he in a way "created evil" by running faster than me. If he had not run faster I would not have been jealous, yet he did nothing wrong by running faster than myself.
In the same way I believe God can "make" evil by simply being Holy and not overriding the evil.

So, do you mean that God allows evil to happen but He does not cause it to happen? That somehow --and we can't understand how-- Satan's evil work is allowed and fits in with God's plan, without changing God's plan in any way, or diminishing God's sovereignty?

The only problem I see with that idea, though, is that it would then seem like God's plan is built around Satan's actions. Is that true? It doesn't seem like the right kind of foundation for God's plan.

 

[UMP]

So, do you mean then that God allows evil to happen but He does not cause it to happen? That somehow --and we can't understand how-- Satan's evil work is allowed and fits in with God's plan, without changing God's plan in any way...

The only problem I see with that idea, though, is that it would then seem like God's plan is built around Satan's actions. Is that true? It doesn't seem like the right kind of foundation for God's plan.

Have you ever read this book?
http://www.reformed.org/books/pink/pink_sov_08.html
If not, it might answer many of your questions.
Remember, God is Holy, there is no sin in Him.
God is fully sovereign yet man is fully responsible for his own sin.
Can't put your mind around that? Join the club.
However, may God give us the grace to say along with Job:
Job 13: [15] "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him:"

 

[HeDied4Me]

Have you ever read this book?
http://www.reformed.org/books/pink/pink_sov_08.html
If not, it might answer many of your questions.
Remember, God is Holy, there is no sin in Him.
God is fully sovereign yet man is fully responsible for his own sin.
Can't put your mind around that? Join the club.
However, may God give us the grace to say along with Job:
Job 13: [15] "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him:"

I'm actually reading The Sovereignty of God right now. I've only read a few chapters so far... I guess some of my questions will probably be answered later in the book.

 

[Reformationist]

In order for God to be completely sovereign, He must have complete control over absolutely everything, right? If there were anything or anyone He did not control, then His plan would be subject to change based on the actions of that person...

This leads to the conclusion that God controls evil. Not only that God controls evil, but that God controls Satan.

It is important that we define the manner in which you use the word "control." Yes, God is sovereign. Nothing falls outside of His purview as God. All things come to pass, ultimately, because God ordained that they would. That said, God's "control" of the events of history are determined providentially. That is, God uses different means to accomplish His will. Understanding this is, in my opinion, essential if one wishes to understand the nature of the relationship between God's sovereign will and man's responsibility for his actions.

When God created man, He created him as a volitional creature without any predisposition toward sin. Man was posse non peccare et posse peccare, that is, the power to not sin and the power to sin. When man fell, he retained his constituent volitional characteristics but inherited a corrupt nature that, apart from the regenerative grace of God, was inclined only to sin. He became non posse non peccare et posse peccare, that is, not able not to sin and able to sin, i.e., only able to sin. God's salvitic plan was structured upon substitution, both in the case of our fall and our redemption. Just as Adam stood before God as representative for his progeny (a group which includes all humanity except, of course, Jesus), Jesus stands before God as the representative for His people, the elect.

I lay this foundation because it is important to realize that, though God created post-Fall man as a sinner, post-Fall man sins because post-Fall man desires to sin. God does not force him to act against his will.

Now, while I could not tell you why either satan or Adam desired that which God forbade, much less why they actually acted upon sinful impulses that were not in accordance with their nature, rest assured that they acted of their own volition.

That would mean that God is actually the author of evil.

When God established the Law He defined what was righteous and, by default, what was evil. However, the sense in which that title, the author of evil, is employed refers not to who is the ultimate Creator of evil things but, rather, the source from which evil stems.

Can someone please explain how that is wrong? I know it must be wrong, because it goes against God's character, but it seems be the logical conclusion if we assume that God is completely sovereign.

God's culpability for the volitional acts of His creation is not established by His sovereign rule for He does not force His creation to act contrary to their natural inclinations. God's plan has always included within it the commission of acts that He does not condone or endorse.

Think of this on a more practical level. There are many godly virtues which we are commanded to add to our character. How shall we add godliness or patience or kindness or self-control or perseverance if we never encounter hardship. On the contrary, it is through hardships and suffering that we learn obedience, just as our Lord and Savior (Heb 5:8).

In closing, I point you toward the edifying story of Joseph in the OT (Gen 37-50). I would say he suffered from the evil of others as much as anyone in the Bible, except the Lord Himself. Despite all of the hardship, Joseph proclaims the great truth that we all should heed when we encounter difficulty, "But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive." The answer to the question you ask in your post should, ironically, be a source of great comfort for believers. Even the evil machinations of mankind are not independent of the control of the Almighty. Though man freely and willfully commits these acts, our Lord is greater than all and assures us that all things work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28).

God bless,
Don

 

[Reformationist]

I'm actually reading The Sovereignty of God right now. I've only read a few chapters so far... I guess some of my questions will probably be answered later in the book.

Great book. And, if I may, I'd also recommend The Invisible Hand, by Dr. R. C. Sproul.

May God bless you and keep you.

 

[CCWoody]

In order for God to be completely sovereign, He must have complete control over absolutely everything, right? If there were anything or anyone He did not control, then His plan would be subject to change based on the actions of that person...

This leads to the conclusion that God controls evil. Not only that God controls evil, but that God controls Satan. That would mean that God is actually the author of evil.

Without remarking on what exactly is a proper definition of "control" or what you mean by that or even your leap to a conclusion that God's sovereignty over all of creation must mean that God is the author of evil (whatever that means to you)....

Anyway, you get the idea.

What saith the Word:

Job 1:12, 21-22 GB
(12) Then the Lord sayde vnto Satan, Lo, all that [Job] hath is in thine hand: onely vpon himselfe shalt thou not stretch out thine hand. So Satan departed from the presence of the Lord.
(21) And sayd, Naked came I out of my mothers wombe, and naked shall I returne thither: the Lord hath giuen, and the Lord hath taken it: blessed be the Name of the Lord.
(22) In all this did not Iob sinne, nor charge God foolishly.

Notice the immediate actor which brought about Job's misery: Satan.
Notice the ultimate attribution of the source: God.

The Lord took away from Job by the hand of Satan. It is not foolish or sinful to attribute the ultimate source to God.

This is not isolated. The Lord pronounced a curse upon a certain king of Israel and a wicked man carried out all that was in the Lord's heart to do. Jehu, conspired against his king Joram, something righteous David dared not do, had him killed, then had his 70 sons killed and their heads put in a pile. Yet, all of this was in the Lord's heart to do....

2Ki 10:30-31 GB
(30) And the Lord sayde vnto Iehu, Because thou hast diligently executed that which was right in mine eyes, and hast done vnto the house of Ahab according to all things that were in mine heart, therefore shall thy sonnes vnto the fourth generation sit on the throne of Israel.
(31) But Iehu regarded not to walke in the law of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart: for hee departed not from the sinnes of Ieroboam, which made Israel to sinne.

Jehu's crimes:
1. Conspiracy against and the killing of his king.
2. The killing of the king's sons and piling their heads in a heap.
3. Walking in the sin of Jeroboam by worshipping the golden calves Jeroboam created.

Yet, this evil man performed all that was in the Lord's heart. God even appointed evil against and sent lying spirits to entice Ahab to his eventual death....

1Ki 22:20-23 GB
(20) And the Lord sayd, Who shall entise Ahab that he may go and fall at Ramoth Gilead? And one said on this maner, and another sayd on that maner.
(21) Then there came forth a spirit, and stoode before the Lord, and sayd, I wil entise him. And the Lord sayd vnto him, Wherewith?
(22) And he sayd, I will goe out, and be a false spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. Then he sayd, Thou shalt entise him, and shalt also preuayle: goe forth, and doe so.
(23) Now therefore behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirite in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the Lord hath appoynted euill against thee.

With the exception of Job, these are but 2 examples from my last week of Bible reading and are certainly all of the examples of the OT.

Does God direct the wicked. Most certainly yes. It must gall Satan to no end to know that even the evil that he intends and performs works out for the ultimate good of the ones he hates. It must gall him to know that he is still God's servant and will be so until the day that he is cast aside in the Lake of fire.

Psa 12:4 GB
(4) [The ungodly] haue saide,... our lippes are our owne: who is Lord ouer vs?

Answer: God! He is your Lord and your lips are not your own.

Recognize that all true Christians will be Calvinists in glory....

Your friendly neighborhood Cordial Calvinist
Woody.​

 

[Calvinist Dark Lord]

In order for God to be completely sovereign, He must have complete control over absolutely everything, right? If there were anything or anyone He did not control, then His plan would be subject to change based on the actions of that person...

This leads to the conclusion that God controls evil. Not only that God controls evil, but that God controls Satan. That would mean that God is actually the author of evil.

Can someone please explain how that is wrong? I know it must be wrong, because it goes against God's character, but it seems be the logical conclusion if we assume that God is completely sovereign.

Ok,

Time to take a deep breath and look at the presuppositions.

First off, what are we talking about? It comes down to this first issue...Define EVIL. i wish you good hunting on that. You can determine whether or not something is Evil (sin is always evil), but to define evil itself, in the abstract is difficult if not impossible.

Second issue: Control:

What Reformationist and C.C. Woody are reaching for is the demonstrated-to-be-true, biblical doctrine that God restrains evil, sinful actions of men. Examples of this restraint abound: Offhand, you can look at Genesis 20:1-6. There are other examples.

Third issue Define Author: It cannot always mean creator. God has said explicitly that He created Evil, (Isaiah 45:7).

The only two conclusions that can be reached are as follows:

1. God created evil
2. Evil is eternal
   

Consider that there is nothing that God has not made, (John 1:3). By this revelation, we can eliminate the second choice above.

Q.E.D., when the term Author is used, it does not mean creator, since God HAS created evil.

 

[calmcoolandelected]

In order for God to be completely sovereign, He must have complete control over absolutely everything, right? If there were anything or anyone He did not control, then His plan would be subject to change based on the actions of that person...

This leads to the conclusion that God controls evil. Not only that God controls evil, but that God controls Satan. That would mean that God is actually the author of evil.

Can someone please explain how that is wrong? I know it must be wrong, because it goes against God's character, but it seems be the logical conclusion if we assume that God is completely sovereign.

The June 2006 issue of Tabletalk by Ligonier Ministries is titled, "The Problem of Evil". www.ligonier.org

CC&E

 

[heymikey80]

In order for God to be completely sovereign, He must have complete control over absolutely everything, right? If there were anything or anyone He did not control, then His plan would be subject to change based on the actions of that person...

This leads to the conclusion that God controls evil. Not only that God controls evil, but that God controls Satan. That would mean that God is actually the author of evil.

Can someone please explain how that is wrong? I know it must be wrong, because it goes against God's character, but it seems be the logical conclusion if we assume that God is completely sovereign.

Sure. The question as CDL pointed out is bound up in the way you interpret what's happening. In addition we're all products of a fractured ethical system, which prevents us from thinking very consistently about ethics.

God can definitely cause, even create things for purposes that are good, and yet they are evil in themselves.

He created Satan. He might not have. Then where would evil have come from?

Does that mean God authored evil, which Satan did? Well, no. That presumes on a number of modern assumptions about good & evil that are wrong. For instance you might think a particular action is inherently good or evil. Well it's not. Change a person's intent in performing an action, and you discover it's not the action itself, but the intention of the action that controls whether it's evil or not.

There's also the point that God inflicts pain and destruction on sinful -- yes, evil -- people. God is under no compunction to be nice to evil people.

God's intent is good, yet some of His creation is made evil. Yet even in this God declares (as a good God would do) that evil will be put to an end.

And also, we've all discovered that in many cases, evil inflicted upon us actually brings about good in our lives. Taking an eternal view, a completely limited form of evil is bound to have a good effect on us at some point in the infinite future.

So evil brings about good and correction in the lives of sinful people; God's intent in bringing about evil is good; and God doesn't directly impose evil on anyone who is good.

Finally, a note about being an author -- or an authorizer -- of evil. God's creation of persons who are evil does not mean God authorizes their evil acts. In fact God says their judgement will arrive (again pointing to evil as a temporary, corrupt condition of His creation). So God doesn't justify evil. He says it shall be destroyed.

If this in modern terms is authorship, well, the words have changed their meanings. People don't write -- much less authorize -- the things they oppose. It's just a contradiction in terms. God doesn't take responsibility for the evil of those He creates who oppose Him. That is also a contradiction in terms. Your parents may've brought you into this world, but if you openly defy them, they're not responsible for your actions.

 

[HeDied4Me]

Thanks for the replies. I think I understand it a little better now.

 

[jonas3]

Thanks for the replies. I think I understand it a little better now.

Hmm, well, I think you understood it for the most part in your first post.

In order for God to be completely sovereign, He must have complete control over absolutely everything, right?

You are absolutely right.

If there were anything or anyone He did not control, then His plan would be subject to change based on the actions of that person...

Excellent logic. Correct.

This leads to the conclusion that God controls evil. Not only that God controls evil, but that God controls Satan. That would mean that God is actually the author of evil.

Yes, God created Satan and controls Satan. Obviously, Satan did not exist before God created him. God is not the author of evil or the author of sin IN THE SENSE that God does not commit sin Himself; however, God is the author of all things, including sin and evil.

Can someone please explain how that is wrong? I know it must be wrong, because it goes against God's character, but it seems be the logical conclusion if we assume that God is completely sovereign.

It is not wrong at all. God is sovereign, and the logical conclusion of that is 100% truth.

-jonas

 

[Ryft]

[The sovereignty of God] leads to the conclusion that God controls evil. Not only that God controls evil, but that God controls Satan. That would mean that God is actually the author of evil. Can someone please explain how that is wrong? I know it must be wrong, because it goes against God's character, but it seems be the logical conclusion if we assume that God is completely sovereign.

The course of your reasoning is solid and I commend your logic. However, your conclusion does not seem to follow necessarily from the premises. Indeed God is sovereign and it must mean that he controls everything, including sinful creatures. But this does not somehow make him the author of evil, because being the author of evil involves committing evil. I argue that although God is the First Cause of all things, including evil, he is not the author of evil.

First of all, good and evil are strictly moral terms. When we say that this thing is good or that thing is evil, we are making a moral pronouncement. And if God is our ultimate ground of moral order—and he is—then these terms become relational descriptions. What this means is, a thing is determined to be 'good' by the degree of its relationship to God’s righteous nature, notably expressed prescriptively through his law, and evil becomes a privative term expressing any want of conformity with such (inasmuch as cold is a privative description of heat).

Evil (or sin) is not some 'thing' that can be created; it describes a relationship between things but is not itself a thing, it’s not any sort of entity itself. It is strictly a term which describes a privative relationship (i.e. consisting in the absence of something), whether it’s a privation from an original state of righteousness in communion with God (a condition of being which we call “original sin”) or a privation from God’s holy law (acts of commission or omission which we call “actual sin”). Both original sin and actual sin discuss what is ultimately a relational privation of some form; in the scope of Christian theology, sin is described in only these two forms.

Secondly, I submit that God is the First Cause of evil's existence only insofar as (1) all things are ultimately traced back to him as the sovereign First Cause, and (2) he created beings capable of relational privation (sin) through endowing them with free agency. Given God’s nature as eternal, sovereign, omniscient and so forth, he knew exactly what he was doing when he created those beings. Ergo, he had a purpose in it. But evil in itself is merely a relational privation brought about by creatures whose actions create a breach between them and God and his law.

Put as simply as possible, (1) God created man; (2) man fell; (3) this condition of being, and all actual transgressions which proceed from it, are both identified as sin (original and actual). In this way man is the author of sin, not God. God is the author of man. But since God already knew what would happen with this creation that he was about to produce, he is the ultimate First Cause.

 

[Reformationist]

The course of your reasoning is solid and I commend your logic. However, your conclusion does not seem to follow necessarily from the premises. Indeed God is sovereign and it must mean that he controls everything, including sinful creatures. But this does not somehow make him the author of evil, because being the author of evil involves committing evil. I argue that although God is the First Cause of all things, including evil, he is not the author of evil.

First of all, good and evil are strictly moral terms. When we say that this thing is good or that thing is evil, we are making a moral pronouncement. And if God is our ultimate ground of moral order—and he is—then these terms become relational descriptions. What this means is, a thing is determined to be 'good' by the degree of its relationship to God’s righteous nature, notably expressed prescriptively through his law, and evil becomes a privative term expressing any want of conformity with such (inasmuch as cold is a privative description of heat).

Evil (or sin) is not some 'thing' that can be created; it describes a relationship between things but is not itself a thing, it’s not any sort of entity itself. It is strictly a term which describes a privative relationship (i.e. consisting in the absence of something), whether it’s a privation from an original state of righteousness in communion with God (a condition of being which we call “original sin&#8221 or a privation from God’s holy law (acts of commission or omission which we call “actual sin&#8221. Both original sin and actual sin discuss what is ultimately a relational privation of some form; in the scope of Christian theology, sin is described in only these two forms.

Secondly, I submit that God is the First Cause of evil's existence only insofar as (1) all things are ultimately traced back to him as the sovereign First Cause, and (2) he created beings capable of relational privation (sin) through endowing them with free agency. Given God’s nature as eternal, sovereign, omniscient and so forth, he knew exactly what he was doing when he created those beings. Ergo, he had a purpose in it. But evil in itself is merely a relational privation brought about by creatures whose actions create a breach between them and God and his law.

Put as simply as possible, (1) God created man; (2) man fell; (3) this condition of being, and all actual transgressions which proceed from it, are both identified as sin (original and actual). In this way man is the author of sin, not God. God is the author of man. But since God already knew what would happen with this creation that he was about to produce, he is the ultimate First Cause.

Simply put, that is one of the best posts I have ever been privileged to read on this MB.

God bless,
Don

 

[bradfordl]

I dunno. Sounds like alot of mental gymnastics to get around an uncomfortable fact. It may mean I'm a heretic, but I've never yet found an explanation that clearly defines why God Himself is not in some measure responsible for all evil. No evil acts would have ever been committed if God had not planned it, provided both the means and the method, caused the chemical reactions we call thought to give His creatures the idea, and created the circumstances intentionally designed for evil acts to be carried out. Scary thought, I know, and seems to contradict scripture, but if nothing happens except God plans it, doesn't that make evil acts a part of God's will? And can planning be defined as authorship or not? Why not?

Psa 139:16 Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there were none of them.

 

[Reformationist]

Scary thought, I know, and seems to contradict scripture, but if nothing happens except God plans it, doesn't that make evil acts a part of God's will? And can planning be defined as authorship or not? Why not?

You may already be familiar with this Bradford but, in reformed theology this is called the "doctrine of concurrence/confluence," or, more commonly, the "doctrine of providence." Probably the best biblical example of this, excepting, of course, the events that lead to the necessary death of our Savior, is found in the OT story of Joseph. Yes, God knew that the evils leading to the terrible events that Joseph endured would happen and, as is clearly shown in Genesis 50:20, actually ordained that they would manifest His will to save all the people that were spared from the famine through His servant Joseph. Now, we all know that God could have raised Joseph up to such a preeminent level of influence in a less horrific fashion but, alas, He chose to do it in the way that He chose to do it. Consider, though, all the events that never would have happened, had Joseph's brother's not feely chosen to sell him into slavery. Consider the outcome had that event never come to pass. There would have been an enslavement of the Jews. There would never have been an Exodus. There would never have been a Savior. There would be no salvation.

It is this sovereign and providential government of God that assures us of our place in His family. The machinations of man will not thwart Him, for nothing can, and, in fact, all things will only pronounce His glory, even the wickedness of man.

God bless

 

[Ryft]

I've never yet found an explanation that clearly defines why God Himself is not in some measure responsible for all evil.

The explanation would depend heavily on what you mean by "responsible" here.

If you mean that God should be "held accountable" (i.e. liable to account for one's actions), then the explanation already exists: There is no moral law over God to which he is subject, nor is there a moral authority over God that could place him in subjection to judgment. It is God alone that is the supreme Lawgiver and sovereign Judge and is, in himself, the ground of moral order in all of creation.

But if by "responsible" you mean that God should be recognized as the cause of evil, then the explanation already exists: Yes, he is. But this is a misleading, potentially damnable answer due to its incompleteness. It has to be noted that God is the logical first cause of evil, inasmuch as he is the first cause of everything in the created order. Yet if he is the antecedent first cause, it implies there are other consequent causes (e.g. secondary causes). This is why the Westminster Confession of Faith states, "God, from all eternity, did, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely, and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass: yet so, as thereby neither is God the author of sin, nor is violence offered to the will of the creatures; nor is the liberty or contingency of second causes taken away, but rather established."

Both the king of Assyria and the brothers of Joseph serve as illustrative examples of this. (There are additional examples but these are the most clear and will serve the purpose here.) With respect to the former, the king boasted about his pillaging and plundering of the nations (secondary cause) but God said, "Have you not heard? Long ago I did it; from ancient times I planned it, and now I have brought it to pass, that you should turn fortified cities into ruinous heaps" (first cause). With respect to the latter, we know the brothers' intention (secondary cause) was to harm Joseph, but God's intention (first cause) was the saving of many lives. "It was not you who sent me here, but God," Joseph said to them. In both cases man was the author of evil; God was the author of man.

Although God's creative, sovereign purposes decreed that evil should exist, he is not an author of evil—that is, he has never committed any evil, essentially because it is impossible for him to do so. We can know this more clearly by, first, dismissing our humanistic concepts of evil and, second, maintaining a proper understanding of the nature and definition of sin or evil. From Scriptures we understand that sin is a privative term which describes a privation from an original state of righteousness in communion with God (a condition of being which we call "original sin") or a privation from God’s holy law (acts of commission or omission which we call "actual sin"). With this proper understanding of sin we can intuitively understand the impossibility of God authoring any sin, for how can he fall out of relationship to himself or disobey himself?

P.S. Thank you, Reformationist, for such a warm compliment. You are very kind.

 

[Reformationist]

You're on a roll Ryft.

Again, nicely done. I was greatly edified by this most recent post of yours.

God bless,
Don

 

[Rick Otto]

brad,
God IS responsible for all evil.
He is not GUILTY of ANY evil.
Just like Eve was guilty, but Adam was responsible.
Eve's transgression didn't bring sin & death into the world, Adam's did.

I think you may be reflexively assigning evil motive to God for His having created evil (Isaiah 45:7). Trust that when God created evil, He did it for good reason. The difference in senses of the word "authorship" is that when men engage in evil, they do it out of evil intent.
Sure, it's God intent that they do so, but it is them doing it, not God. So it is then God being responsible and men being guilty.

We have this empathy & sympathy for sinners(humanity) that we can't have for God. That makes it easy for us to highly value human life & want to protect & defend it from unfair abuse, but that reaction is blind to the value of divine life & the fact that righteousness & justice are about what's fair to God, not men because we are His creation, not our own.