What does the Bible say about good versus evil?

Daily Life. — Turning to daily life (12:9-21), we learn of the Christian man's possible surroundings. Intercourse he would of course have with Christians, but with others as well; and he might have to experience, though undeservedly, the malice and enmity of neighbours or acquaintances, the outflow of hearts estranged from God, and venting themselves on His servant. To this he was liable. From it he could not expect to be wholly exempt. Through much tribulation" (or, many tribulations), was the apostolic warning, we must enter into the Kingdom of God (Acts 14:22). So, he was not to seek for a hermit's cell. An anchorite's life was never intended for a Christian. The Lord's life on earth would teach us that, and these directions by the Spirit through the apostle confirm it. In the world, but not of the world, the Christian would find opportunities for the outflow of spiritual life in healthy activity, such as he might seek for in vain in a cell, and that towards saints, towards men around him, and even towards his enemies, the spring of it all being love, the activity of the Divine nature, which is to be without dissimulation or hypocrisy. Was compromise with evil to characterise him? No. The first injunction forbids that: "Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good" (9). Then beginning with the circle of Christian brotherhood, the members of it were to be kindly or tenderly affectioned one to another. Christian brotherly love, they were reminded by the term used, was of that character known as family affection.* They were brothers and sisters. This leads on to various displays of spiritual life in connection with saints, and the service in which the individual might be engaged, and the spirit in which he was to walk. Then extending the sphere of Christian activity, so as to embrace all men, graciousness and upright dealing he was to cultivate, and kindness was to be shown even to his enemies when needed. Under the law retaliation in righteousness was permitted. In the Gospel love to enemies is enjoined (Matt. 5:38-47). To no man was the Christian to recompense evil for evil. With all, if possible, he was to be at peace. Avengement of himself was not to be his aim, but to leave that with the Lord. And watchfulness was to be exercised, not to be overcome of evil, but, on the contrary, to overcome evil with good.

(Vv. 19-21). Finally we are exhorted as to showing a right Christian spirit in connection with wrongs that we may have to meet. In a world like this we may have to suffer wrong, face insults and opposition, and that even from professing Christians; but come from what quarter it may, we are not to attempt to avenge ourselves, but quietly give way to wrath. Naturally we should seek to revenge a wrong, but this the Lord does not entrust to us. Vengeance He keeps in His own hands, for He has said, "Vengeance is mine: I will repay says the Lord" (Ps. 94:1). Our part is, under all circumstances, to maintain the Christian spirit and seek to win our enemies by shewing kindness to those who have acted wrongly toward us. Thus acting we shall not be overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

Grace is the characteristic of the gospel; and as it is the spring in God Himself as shown in Christ so would He have it in His children, not human justice, for the just against the unjust, but unselfish love doing good to the evil and suffering evil from them. Thus would He have us to be not overcome of evil but to overcome evil with good. Such is Christianity in practice above heathenism and Judaism alike. Such is it one with another and toward all, and so Peter no less than Paul: "If when ye do well and suffer, ye shall take it patiently this is acceptable — grace — with God."

The good are those who continue in their proper allegiance to their Creator; the evil are those who are in revolt against Him, following the leadership of Satan. But both good and evil are deeply interested in the affairs of men; the one delighting in their blessing, and the other seeking to compass their ruin.

Has man, then, no thought of God at all? Not so. He cannot judge by his mind, but he has the knowledge of good and evil - conscience. It may be corrupted, perverted, hardened, but he makes the difference of right and wrong. Scripture shews us he got this by the fall, and so as under sin. Still it brings in God, saying "The man is become as one of us, knowing good and evil." It is not a law, a rule from without, imposed, but what is intrinsic (in man). He says, That is a good thing, that a bad one; and he concludes at once, God cannot approve a wrong thing, nor condemn a good thing. A man may, from passions, education, habit, have a very wrong measure of right and wrong; and demon-gods may make him put evil for good, and good for evil; but he makes the difference, and the sense of right or wrong in itself leads him to attribute right to God, and not wrong. "Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?"

There is in all persons a certain knowledge of good and evil; such and such things they say are good, and such and such things are evil. But perhaps no two persons fix exactly the same standard either of good or evil. What people do is to fix such a standard of good as they can come up to themselves, and such a standard of evil as shall just exclude themselves, and include others. For instance, the drunkard thinks there is no great harm in drinking, but would consider it a great sin to steal. The covetous man, who is every day perhaps practising some cheating or deception "in the way of trade," satisfies himself by thinking "it is necessary and customary to do so in business, and at all events I do not get drunk or curse and swear as others do." The profligate person prides himself upon being generous and kind-hearted to others, or, as he says, "he does nobody any harm but himself." The upright moral man, and the domestic amiable man, satisfies himself with doing what he calls his duty, and looks round and pities the open sinners that he sees; but he never considers how many an evil thought, how many a sinful desire, he may have cherished, unknown to others, in his bosom: and that God judges the heart, though man looks only at the outward conduct. Thus each congratulates himself upon his not having done some evil, and compares himself with some one else who has committed the sin, which he thinks he has managed to avoid. Now all this proves that men do not judge themselves by one regular fixed standard of right and wrong, but just take that which suits themselves and condemns others. But there is a standard, with which all will be compared, and according to which all will be judged, - a standard of righteousness, all who fall short of which will be eternally condemned; and that is no less than the righteousness of God. When a person begins to find that it is not by comparing himself with others that he is to judge, but by comparing himself with God, when his conscience begins to be awakened to think of sin as before God, then indeed he finds himself guilty and ruined; he will not then attempt to justify himself by trying to find out some one that is worse than himself, but he will be anxious to know whether it is possible that God, before whom he knows himself condemned, can pardon or forgive him.

But this may have only to do with physical evil; the deeper question is the moral evil, and the second part of the section takes up this. In Eden man's perfection was to abide in good where evil was not, and to be a stranger to this altogether. Now, on the contrary, it is in having the "senses exercised to discern between good and evil"; both being before him. (Heb. 5:14.) The presence of evil around is therefore permitted with this end in view; and in ourselves we come into nearer contact with it,and learn to hate it with corresponding energy. In all this we find One over all who is good and does good; whose acts are truly accordant with His nature. Joy indeed is it, then; to be taught His statutes, which enlighten the conscience and preserve moral vision. In the darkness of the cave the organ of sight is well known to atrophy from mere disuse.

But there was something still more perplexing, for there were times in the lives of the most honoured servants and saints, when they were suffering, and being made to pass through the deepest trials when the wicked were prospering, and at their ease. This was, to the righteous, most baffling. The patriarch Job, who was perhaps the greatest sufferer in the Old Testament — but there were many others (James 5:10-11) — had to say: "Wherefore do the wicked live, become old, yea, are mighty in power? Their seed is established in their sight with them, and their offspring before their eyes. Their houses are safe from fear, neither is the rod of God upon them. …" (See Job 21:7-13). So also with David "I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree" (Psalm 37:35). Such things these men could not reconcile with the justice of God's moral government. In His revealed will, the order seemed to be joy and happiness for the good, but sorrow and suffering for the evil. The law had laid this down very fully and clearly, and it had been said, "He that will love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it" (1 Peter 3:10-11; also Psalm 34:12). Yet those who sought to live according to this were kept in suffering. Think of a man like Job of whom Jehovah could say to Satan, "Hast thou considered My servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth," yet his suffering were prodigious. It is just at this point that we may learn the wonders of God's wisdom, and see the richest and choicest of His dealings with His children in the world. The wicked may prosper for a brief season, as we have seen, but in a moment their candle goes out, and then for them it is the blackness of darkness for eternity. The righteous may suffer in a world where sin and death are permitted, but, this, in the hand of a Father, is educative in view of forming the character, and making them morally Christ like in view of future glory.

We see this instinctive sense, if one may so call it, of God's interest in human concerns clouded over for the time being in a very remarkable scripture, Ps. 73. The great problem of history, the apparent dominance of evil, its seeming success in the world, and its counterpart — the subservience, and to all appearance the adversity attaching to a righteous course — is there come up for solution. "I was envious at the foolish when I saw the prosperity of the wicked," proceeds the Psalmist, recounting his experience. It is a common experience. We all know it well. Hard thoughts and perplexing doubts chase one another through the despondent mind. Sin, pride, and violence are so apparently successful, His own people so poor, oppressed, despised, tried. These on the one hand "are not in trouble as other men, neither are they plagued like other men. Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain; violence covereth them as a garment. Their eyes stand out with fatness; they have more than heart could wish."

145 First see the blessed character in which the Lord visits the world. Certain truths may be learned elsewhere, such as creation and providence, but not judgment in righteousness, at least not until the end, and then it will be learned in the destruction of the wicked. This was what Job found so hard to understand — how those who did evil prospered, whilst the righteous were persecuted. This is just because the time of judgment is not come; the time of mercy is now going on, and we cannot have mercy and judgment at once. So all is a riddle now. There is too much of badness for man to be able to think that things are of God; and too much of goodness, even amidst all the ruin and wretchedness, for him to see how it is not of God. Men try to get over it, and to be indifferent to it; but there is too much even for selfishness itself not to see it. However favourable exterior circumstances may, for a few, partially remedy things, we must see that, taken as a whole, there is but ruin and wretchedness in the world.