HOW CAN EVIL COME FROM GOD?

A friend asked me to explain 1 Samuel 18:10 which states that an evil spirit from God came on King Saul. How can this be if only good comes from God? But it is not quite accurate to say that only good comes from God, for while God’s original creation was declared to be good (that is, good for what it was created for) and that God does not entice anyone to evil (James 1:13), nevertheless it remains true that genuine goodness in a moral God requires that a real difference be made between good and evil. As the ordainer and preserver of the moral order, it is absolutely necessary for God to punish sin, to hold people accountable, no matter how much love and compassion he may feel toward the sinner.

In Isaiah 45:7 we read, “I am the One forming light and creating darkness, causing wellbeing and creating calamity; I am the Lord who does all these.” Calamity has the basic meaning of either moral or natural evil. Here it points to the painful, harmful consequences that follow the consequences of sin.

In Saul’s case, he had knowingly flouted the law of God by taking upon himself the role of priest and by his impatience and refusal to execute justice on King Agag. He became insanely jealous of David because of the public praise he has received for his victories over the Philistines. By these successive acts of rebellion against the will and law of God, King Saul left himself wide open to satanic influence – just as Judas Iscariot did after he determined to betray Jesus.

God established the spiritual laws of cause and effect, so Saul’s disobedience cut him off from the guidance and communion of the Holy Spirit that he had formerly enjoyed and left him a prey to a malign spirit of depression and intense jealousy that drove him increasingly to irrational paranoia. Although he was doubtless acting as an agent of Satan, Saul’s evil bent was by the permission and plan of God. We must realize that in the last analysis all penal consequences for sin come from God, as the author of the moral law and the one who always does what is right (Gen. 18:25).

In a secular world where there is no fear of God before men and women, the example of Saul should humble those who think that they can do anything and get away with it. In the last analysis our sins will find us out and unless we repent and seek forgiveness at the Cross of Christ, we will face divine judgment in one way or another.

(Some material from Gleason L. Archer, Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties, Zondervan, 1982)