Sunday Devotional: Proverbs 16:4

Yahweh has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of evil.

We live in a fallen world. Evidence of that fall surrounds us daily, from war and famine to disease and suffering. Even disobedient children and bad tempered friends display the effects of sin throughout creation. This is what theologians mean when they talk about man’s “total depravity.” It’s not that people are always evil all the time. Rather, it’s the fact that sin has pervaded every corner of our thinking, and every inch of creation. Everything falls short of God’s glory.

There are times when we want to cry out to God: Why must it be this way? Why must there be scammers who rob innocent people of their money? Why must there be gangs who terrorize the streets? Why must there be pandemics that kill thousands?

Some suggest these things are all our fault. They have nothing to do with God and are merely the result of what happens when sinful people are given free will. There is some truth to this. When people do bad things, they do so either because they want to, or they are forced to do so by others with evil intentions. So human will is involved, and those people are guilty for their wicked desires. But is it true that God had nothing to do with these things, and He is helpless to prevent them?

Others suggest that these things are, in fact, evidence that there is no God. After all, if there was a God, He would make sure these kinds of things didn’t happen. What kind of God would He be to allow all this suffering, and simply look on while millions of innocent people live in misery? There is an element of truth to this response, too. How can God be God, at least in the sense that He is spoken of in Scripture–almighty, sovereign, omnipotent–if He is powerless over sin, sickness, and suffering?

The Bible’s answer is given in numerous passages, but succinctly summed up in Proverbs 16:4. Yahweh has created all things with purpose. This means, behind every aspect of creation there is divine intention. God didn’t create the sun, moon, and stars because He had nothing better to do. They each serve a purpose within the created order. Likewise, each person has a purpose within God’s divine plan. There isn’t a birth or a death that is without meaning.

The second half of the proverb underscores the point: even the wicked person is created for the day of evil, or “trouble” as the ESV translates the Hebrew. Some people are created for great, glorious, and noble purposes; others for wicked purposes. Each play their part in God’s design for creation. The same is true not only for people, but for diseases, tornadoes, hurricanes, and earthquakes. These are not random acts, but acts of creation that God has purposed.

This still leaves us wondering: Why would God allow, even ordain, such things? And we must humbly admit that Scripture doesn’t say. I suspect the reason why Scripture is silent has to do with the fact that we would not understand or comprehend the answer, at least not this side of eternity. The Lord is working a plan for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28) that involves good and evil, creation and destruction, life and death. To understand why all these things need to happen, we would need to know the complete plan. And no-one knows that but God.

Sometimes we do get a glimpse of the purpose behind suffering. Things often happen that have larger, unforeseen consequences. Scripture gives us a picture of this in the story of Joseph in the book of Genesis. Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers, imprisoned, and suffered all kinds of humiliation. However, had he not gone through those experiences, he would not have ended up in Egypt and at Pharaoh’s palace, where he became Pharaoh’s right-hand man and saved thousands of people, not least his own family, from starvation during a seven-year famine. Joseph himself sums this all up in Genesis 50:20, addressing his brothers: “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.”

It is also true that, through adversarial situations, we can learn about ourselves and others, and grow. Perhaps this is part of the reason the Lord brings evil, disease, and disaster into our lives. Such things humble us when we need to be reminded of where our idols are. They draw us together, and help us recognize our need for the Lord.

Ultimately, however, we may never know why bad things happen. But we can take comfort in the fact that all things are created by God with a purpose. No child is born without purpose. No life ends without meaning. Even if we don’t see it now, the Lord knows what He intends. And it is always for good.