Here is another psalm that examines the problem of evil. This one is communal rather than individual. It is a late psalm, seemingly after the destruction of the temple.
This psalm has a fascinating structure.After an introduction of the question at hand1 (1), a series of imperatives call on God to do something (2-3). Then a series of perfect tense verbs describe what has happened, how completely they have been defeated (4-9).
At the centre of the psalm the central question is stated in two forms.
10 How long, O God, is the foe to scoff? Is the enemy to revile your name forever? 11 Why do you hold back your hand, your right hand? (10-11).
A second series of perfects describes how God has acted in the past (12-17).
Finally, a second series of imperatives calls on him to act in a similar manner now (18-23).
The psalm ends without resolution, with the worshippers still waiting for an answer. In that respect many find it to be a frustrating passage. Yet,here is the fundamental difference between biblical religion and some of the more popular alternative faiths. We are not given all the answers. That is reality. We are, however, assured that there are answers. We are not urged to answer from within ourselves, from our own resources, but we are called to trust that an effective response will come at the proper time.
Some have given up
Some other religions have given up on the idea of justice.Buddhism tells us to kill all desire and live impassively. Stoicism gave a similar response.Atheism tells us that there are no reasons, no blame, no justice or injustice, all is chance. We are the product of blind chance and therefore have no reasonable basis for expecting justice. In fact, the word justice itself is a meaningless term in a universe of chance.
It is odd that these faiths (especially the last of them) criticise Christianity while they offer no logically sound alternative. They must borrow the biblical concept of morality in order to attack Christian morality.
Why is the world the way it is?
Biblical religion offers a coherent answer – if we will take the time to study it. It may not be a totally satisfactory reply from our point of view. But it is coherent. These other faiths offer nothing beyond the observation, “There is no reason. There is no such thing as right or wrong. We live in a meaningless material universe. We cannot teach or enforce morality. Life is just the way it is, so we might as well accept it.”
Modernism
Others have claimed that we are gods and can know everything and solve everything.Modernism told us to worship mankind. It told us that we can solve all our problems. We just need a little more government, a bit more education. The UN will save us. Eighty plus years into the experiment, it does not seem to be working.
The new age message and the prosperity gospel are only slightly different from this.In these post-modern forms of modernism, we are told to worship ourselves (“The goddess in every woman”).
Joel Osteen is a good example of this heretical view. He says,
“God has breathed His life into you. He planted seeds of greatness in you. You have everything you need to fulfil your God-given destiny….It’s all in you. You are full of potential. But you have to do your part and start tapping into it…You have the seed of Almighty God on the inside of you…We have to believe that we have what it takes.”2
The Bible says otherwise. It warns us that we are fallen creatures. It warns us not to trust ourselves (Jer 17:9). It warns us that we have every form of evil within us (Mk 7:21). We do not have what it takes within us, but we must rely on the Lord for what is needed.
Which view fits?
Biblical religion seems to reflect reality better than these other views.Biblical religion recognizes our sense of justice as legitimate. The Bible does not claim that we will always know the reasons, but it does not dismiss the questions. It records the questions, even the unanswered ones.
The meaning may be difficult to see at this time.The current moral situation in the world, and God’s seeming inactivity with reference to it, is hard to understand.The destruction of the temple was difficult to understand each time it happened. In this case, there is a complaint about the lack of a prophetic word (9). This lack of a prophetic word had been predicted (Amos 8:11).We are being told that, when we ignore what God says, his voice is lost to us. To understand, we must obey. 3
Under the biblical view, there is meaning in negative events.Those involved in the events may not see resolution of the situation or the revealing of the reasons, but more than chance was at work in such events.Any approach that claims that no reason is to be sought, that ascribes all to chance, that tells us to just switch off our brains and remain impassive is unacceptable.
Faith is the reasonable response.Faith is presented today as an illogical response of the weak. But it is those ascribing all to chance who are the ones who have thrown in the towel mentally.The Christian faith does not disregard what we do know.
Blind chance does not explain what we see in the world, nor what we find within ourselves.Things which appeared inexplicable in the past have turned out to have a meaning. It is therefore reasonable to seek meaning where we can and trust that further meaning will be revealed in the future when we cannot see it.
The ‘how long’ question is not answered, but we are assured that there is a limit to evil. It will not go on forever.
The ‘why’ question is not answered, but we are assured that there is a reason, and that it will be understood at some point by those who continue to trust the Lord.
1 “O God, why do you cast us off forever? Why does your anger smoke against the sheep of your pasture?”
2 Joel Osteen, Becoming a Better You: 7 Keys to Improving Your Life Every Day (New York: Free Press, 2007), 5.
3 Chesterton’s statement comes to mind here, “The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult; and left untried.” What’s Wrong with the World, Part I, Chapter 5, “The Unfinished Temple.”