Even the Wicked for the Day of Evil
As Islam continues to bring terror to the world and Communists bring terror to the cities of the United States, both of which are intensified when political leaders are weak, some questions arise about evil. The origin of evil is usually attributed to Satan, but the devil is far too often used as an excuse. The sin in man’s heart is his own responsibility, and the human heart is desperately wicked (Jer 17:9). Evil is attributed to the devil, his demons, and man, but there is another consideration in the discussion of evil…God.
“The Lord (Yahweh) has made everything for its own purpose, even the wicked for the day of evil (Prov 16:4).” Most Christians have no problem with acknowledging God as the Creator of everything. It is a rich biblical motif. Seeing design in the systems of nature helps us to see purpose in everything made by God. He has made everything appropriate in its time (Eccl 3:11a). The prophet Isaiah quotes God in the first person when he writes, “Behold, I Myself have created the smith who blows the fire of coals and brings out a weapon for its work; and I have created the destroyer to ruin (Is 54:16).” All of it, evil included, brings glory to God.
Christians are far more uncomfortable with the idea of wicked people being made for wicked deeds. A proverb is a matter-of-fact statement. It is clear. It is concise. The word of the prophet must be tested, and we find apostolic affirmation of these truths about God. The apostle Paul says the same thing as Proverbs 16:4 and Isaiah 54:16, in Romans 9:22, “What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction?”
With these three verses informing us about God’s purposeful use of evil, we must avoid attributing the blame for evil upon God. God did create evil, Him being the primary cause of all things. There is also the secondary cause. Evil is a by-product of fallen sinful creatures, whether they are flesh or spirit. Did God create these creatures? Yes, but He did not act out their rebellion in sin. Did God know His creatures would fall into sin? Yes, and He makes all things work together for His glory. Even the evil deeds of the wicked will bring Him praise.
Having established God as the primary cause of everything, we can acknowledge fallen creatures as the secondary cause of evil. The texts quoted above called evildoers, “the wicked” and “vessels of wrath.” God has sovereign power over evil despite the common myth of good and evil being equals. God is good. God is sovereign in will and power. What can we learn about God and evil from these passages?
First, God uses evil to demonstrate His wrath (Rom 9:22a). The wrath of God is revealed against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men (Rom 1:18a). We read in the Bible of how God raised up evil nations to scourge Israel for walking in gross disobedience. Pharaoh hardened his heart against the Hebrews (Ex 7:13), but God had a hand in hardening Pharaoh’s heart (Ex 9:12). In their twisted reasoning, men will kill others, thinking they are serving God in righteousness (Jn 16:2). In providence, they are serving God in unrighteousness, for which they are responsible on the day of God’s judgment.
The wrath of God has been propitiated for Christians, by Jesus Christ on the Cross (Rom 3:25; Heb 2:17; 1 Jn 2:2; 4:10). God still disciplines His people, but it is done in love, as a parent disciplines a child (Heb 12:4–13). The wrath of God, in judgment of reprobate people and nations, is seen in natural disasters, political intrigue, famine, war, pestilence, etc. We should not limit the scope of these displays because all of it is under God’s sovereign control. His will must be done, and it will be for His glory.
Second, God makes His power known (Rom 9:22b). God’s power is demonstrated in both mercy and wrath. Christ, the wisdom and power of God (1 Cor 1:24), defeated Satan and his demons at the Cross (1 Jn 3:8). In this unusual display of warfare, Christ simultaneously has mercy on the elect (Rom 9:15–16, 23), while defeating sin, death, and the devil. In the same way, the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the power of God unto salvation, for those who believe (Rom 1:16; 1 Cor 1:18). The kingdom of God invading the kingdom of this world is a demonstration of the power of God (1 Cor 4:20). The power of God is seen in the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead (Rom 1:4).
The Lord (Yahweh) said, “I have created the destroyer to ruin (Is 54:16c).” When man sinned against God, he was so totally depraved but unaware of his depravity. Hell will offer time and a clearer view to these now veiled operations (Is 14; Ezek 28; Lk 16:23–24; 2 Cor 4:4). God separated Himself from sinful man (Gen 3). God gave sinful man His Law (Ex 20; Dt 5), which caused man to increase and intensify his sinful actions (Rom 5:22). God sent King Sennacherib and King Nebudchadnezzar to crush Israel and Judah, respectively. Satan is the destroyer (1 Cor 10:10; Heb 11:28), and it is his spirit in the sons of disobedience (Eph 2:2; 5:6). God employs the destroyer for His own will and purpose, even the wicked for the day of evil. He ordained Satan to test Job, to sift Peter like wheat, and to be a thorn in Paul’s side.
Third, God endures evil and evildoers with much patience (Rom 9:22c). The Bible teaches us that God is slow to anger, slow to wrath, but He will not let the wicked go unpunished (Nahum 1:1–3). Every great drama increases in tension with each turn in the plot line. World history is the intensifying drama of God’s salvation of His people from captivity to evil. If Satan were some kind of slothful lackey, the story would not offer much of a view to the glories of Christ. Satan is an incessant tyrant, but God is indefatigable. He never sleeps nor slumbers. He is omniscient and omnipotent regarding the machinations of every kind of terrorist. They serve His purposes on earth, which often ends in their surprisingly virgin-less eternal hell (Mt 25:46; Jude 7; Rev 20:14–15).
Fourth, the wicked are prepared for destruction (Rom 9:22d). Evildoers have their day of evil, but all of this prepares them for demise (Ps 27:2; 37:9). Satan’s end is in the place God prepared for him and for his demons (Mt 25:41). Evildoers will join their father (Jn 8:44; Eph 2:2; 1 Jn 3:10) for an eternity of darkness (Mt 8:12; 22:13), conscious fiery torment (Lk 16:23, 28), and unquenchable thirst (Lk 16:24; Jn 19:28). In this, God displays His perfect justice against reprobate sinners.
The wicked propagate their own kind like weeds in an untended garden. The timing of the farmer, in harvesting the wheat and separating the chaff to be burned, is in his own wisdom. God’s final separation of saints and sinners will be at the resurrection of the dead on the Day of the Lord (Jn 5:28–29). In the ultimate purge of evil and evildoers, God will Himself torch Creation (2 Pet 3:10–12) before making it new (Is 65–66; Rev 21–22).
We live in a day of evil. Islam has brought terror to the world for 1400 years. The killers yell, “God is great,” as they slaughter people. Unfortunately, they worship and serve the wrong god, while holding an utterly deficient view of the one true God. Allah is the destroyer, and he has been a murderer from the beginning (Jn 8:44). Yahweh, the God of heaven and earth, has created him for His sovereign purposes.
How should we then live? Redeem the time, for the days are evil (Eph 5:16). Take up the full armor of God to resist the devil (Eph 6:13; Jam 4:7). Keep your behavior excellent (1 Pet 2:12). The children of God and the children of the devil are made obvious by their practices (1 Jn 3:10). Pursue peace (Ps 34:14; Heb 12:14). Fight the good fight of faith (1 Tim 6:12). Preach the word of truth, in love (Eph 4:15; 2 Tim 4:2). Call all men to repent and believe in Jesus Christ (Acts 17:30). Finally, be encouraged, for our present suffering is not to be compared to the glories to be revealed to us (Is 40:5; Rom 8:18).
In summary, we have considered God’s employment of evil for the demonstration of His glorious attributes. God is just and His judgments are right. He is exposing the wickedness of men through their own evil actions. He shows them the ignorance of their own evil by exposing them (Jn 7:7; Eph 5:11). They do not seem to understand, but eternity will clarify the mysteries we endure, today. The righteous watch and marvel at the extent of wickedness in the world, grateful for God’s gracious restraint of evil (2 Thess 2:7), which will be removed on the coming climactic day of the evil one. Christ will blow him away (2 Thess 2:8), at His glorious return (Mt 24–25; Mk 13; Lk 21; 1 Thess 4:13–5:11) when the purposes of God, for evil, find their consummation (Rev 19).
In conclusion, Christians are encouraged not to fret because of evildoers (Ps 37:1). God has incorporated the wicked in His providence (Prov 16:4). The destroyer is given boundaries by God’s sovereign command (Job 1:12). God endures the wicked, and He encourages us to endure them, even resist them (Jas 4:7), until the great day of the Lord, in which evil and evildoers will be cut off…forever.
David E. Norczyk
Spokane Valley, Washington
January 20, 2021
