This is often the most vexing of all problems for those who believe in God. Early in church history, Christian theologians appealed to something called “privation theory” to explain the existence of evil. This theory argues that evil was not initially a created thing; it is simply the absence or “privation” of something good. Does this help? Perhaps a little. The theory is fraught with philosophical difficulties, but perhaps we can say a few positive things about it. Certainly God did not directly create evil; God can only do good. This theory, then, might explain something of how evil came into existence; beyond that, I would argue, it doesn’t help us much.

The reason it doesn’t help us much is not hard to find. The real problem with evil is not how it came about, but why it exists at all. And here we come to the crux of the problem. The Bible is very clear that God knows all things (he is omniscient) and that he can do anything that is possible to do (he is omnipotent). Regardless of how evil came into the world, then, God knew it would happen. Furthermore, he chose to create a world that would contain it. And, to make matters more serious, he chose to create this world–the world we live in. He allowed Satan to be created, knowing full well he would fall away. He allowed Satan to tempt Adam and Eve, knowing full well they would fall away. And he created our world knowing full well all the horrible things that would occur down through the centuries.

Does appealing to free will help? Not really. If God gave man free will, it might explain why some evil exists–namely, the evil of people’s moral choices. But why must there be this sort of evil, the evil humans actually do and experience every day? Why must we be as vulnerable as we are, physically and emotionally? Why must it be so easy to hurt each other, shame each other, or even kill each other? Couldn’t God have created a world where humans have free will but aren’t as vulnerable? It seems he could have. And what about natural evil, the evil that comes about through, say, diseases or natural disasters? Is all of it really necessary? And, finally–why must there be so much evil? Couldn’t God intervene to stop the consequences of some evil choices, especially those with potentially horrendous and wide-spread consequences? If he really knows the future, couldn’t he prevent those choices at least on occasion? All of this makes it clear that appealing to free will doesn’t really help at all.

There is really one option open to Christians–and it is one that is inescapably clear in the Bible. The believer who is faithful to the word of God knows that God is omniscient and omnipotent. God is truly sovereign over all things. Thus, there is really only one answer to this most difficult of all questions. Evil and suffering exist because God ordained that it be so, as we have said. More to the point, because God is perfectly good, there is ultimately a good reason why evil exists. There must be a “greater good,” as philosophers say, for all of it. To state it succinctly: God ordained that evil exist in order to accomplish a greater good.

Don’t get me wrong–sin definitely plays a part. God has allowed the world to experience the consequences of its own sinful choices. There is judgement and justice at play in our world. Furthermore, we can conceive of some pretty sensible philosophical reasons why evil might exist. Any world that would display the moral beauty of God or of virtuous human action must contain some evil, otherwise it would be difficult to say that virtue exists at all (what is courage without danger, or unselfishness without deprivation?). So, really, any world worth creating would have to contain some evil, it seems; virtuous action would then be a greater good that makes evil worth it on some level. But in the end, the Christian must confess that we cannot explain exactly how each and every occasion of the evil we experience fits into the good purpose of God. This, after all, is why the problem of evil persists. We can only say on the authority of the Word of God that he sovereignly allows it, and that in the end, he is just. And if we see that the Bible teaches that God’s ultimate purpose is to glorify himself in all things, then we must go further and say soberly: evil exists–even the evil in this actual world–because it ultimately serves the greater good of bringing glory to almighty God. We may not see how or why in every instance; but the believing Christian will persist in his belief that it is so. And this, after all, this faith that perseveres in the midst of real pain and suffering, is ultimately that virtue, given by God, through which we will finally enter into that sacred rest where suffering and sorrow are gone forever.