Does God create Evil? See what Happens When A Students Asks A Tough Question | Frank Epic Response!

In this thought-provoking video, Frank Turek addresses a critical question often raised by Christians and skeptics alike: Does God create evil? Using Isaiah 45:7 as a starting point, Frank explains the difference between moral evil and calamity, helping us understand the true meaning behind this commonly misunderstood verse. Is God responsible for evil, or is He just in allowing calamity as a form of judgment? Watch as Frank unpacks the biblical context and shows how God's justice and sovereignty align with His goodness. Perfect for anyone looking to deepen their understanding of the nature of God and biblical theology.

[mdrake]

Thank you Mr Turek. I’d truly appreciate an opportunity to talk with you some day. Thanks for all you do Sir.

[manamanathegreat]

Frank always does well when answering students who aren't ready to respond to his special pleading, mental gymnastics, deflection, false equivalences, redefining of terms, and subject switching.

[MrLogo]

The best way to deal with the Bible when you're an apologist and it feels uncomfortable to you is to ignore it.

[timhaley]

What did God mean when he said at Isaiah 45:7 that "I make peace, and create calamity (2013 New World Translation, "calamity", Hebrew ra', H7451, meaning "bad or evil (natural or moral), displeasing"), the King James Bible reads as "create evil") ? This can readily be understood that God "creates calamity" or "evil" or "bad" when a person recognizes what true justice is, God's justice, as when he told Adam and Eve, whereby Genesis 2 reads:


"Jehovah (God's name, see Ex 6:3, KJV) God took the man and settled him in the garden of Eʹden to cultivate it and to take care of it. Jehovah God also gave this command to the man: “From every tree of the garden you may eat to satisfaction. But as for the tree of the knowledge of good and bad, you must not eat from it, for in the day you eat from it you will certainly DIE (or Jehovah creates "evil", death, for those who rebels against his rightful sovereignty).”


So, when Adam and Eve rebelled against Jehovah God, by violating his command to not eat from "the tree of knowledge of good and bad" (Gen 3:1-6), they were properly judged as rebels, deserving of death, as Genesis 3 states:


"And to Adam he said: “Because you listened to your wife’s voice (verse 6) and ate from the tree concerning which I gave you this command, ‘You must not eat from it, ’ cursed ("cursed", Hebrew 'arar, meaning "execrate, curse") is the ground on your account. In pain you will eat its produce all the days of your life."


"It will grow thorns and thistles for you, and you must eat the vegetation of the field. In the sweat of your face you will eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For dust you are and to dust you will return (or dying and returning to the same state of non-existence before he was created, back to "dust").”(Gen 3:17-19) Jehovah "created calamity" or "evil" for Adam and Eve for rebelling against him, so that they died and has no hope of a resurrection.


Another example of rebels against Jehovah is at Numbers 13, one year after being released from Egyptian slavery in 1512 B.C.E., when 12 Israelite spies (who had seen the miraculous ten plagues and the destruction of Pharaoh and his entire army at the Red Sea, Ex 14:26-28) were sent to examine the land of Canaan.


Upon returning 40 days later to Kadesh, 10 of the 12 Israelites spies gave a "bad report" to the nation of Israel (Num 13:31-33), so that "all the assembly raised their voice, and the people continued crying out and weeping all through that night."


"All the Israelites began to murmur against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly spoke against them, saying: “If only we had died in the land of Egypt, or if only we had died in this wilderness ! Why is Jehovah bringing us to this land to fall by the sword ? Our wives and children will become plunder. Is it not better for us to return to Egypt ?” They were even saying to one another: “Let us appoint a leader and return to Egypt !”


These faithless men, along with almost the rest of the nation of Israel, made Jehovah's angelic representative angry, so that he told Moses: "How much longer will this people treat me without respect, and how much longer will they not put faith in me in spite of all the (miraculous) SIGNS that I performed among them In Egypt (see Ex 7-12) ? Let me strike them with pestilence (or "create calamity" or "evil") and drive them away (by destroying them), and let me make you into a nation greater and mightier than they are.”(Num 14;11, 12)


He further said that "not one of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness and yet have kept testing me these ten times and have NOT listened to my voice will ever see the land (of Canaan) about which I swore to their fathers. No, NOT ONE of those treating me without respect will see Ps 95:8-11)


"How much longer will this evil ("evil", Hebrew ra' or wicked in heart) assembly keep up this murmuring against me ? I have heard what the Israelites are murmuring against me. Say to them, ‘“As surely as I live, ” declares Jehovah, “I will do to you just what I have heard you speak !"


"In this wilderness your corpses will fall, yes, the whole number of you from 20 years old and up who were registered (or 603, 550 men, Num 1:46), all of you who have murmured against me. None of you will enter into the land that I swore to have you reside in except Caʹleb the son of Je·phunʹneh and Joshua the son of Nun."(Num 14:22, 23, 27-30)


So, Jehovah "creates calamity" or "evil" for those who rebel against him, bringing about "divine justice" (as at the Global Deluge, Gen 6:17, and at Armageddon, Rev 16:16; see also 2 Thess 1:7-9), for Isaiah 45:7 states: "This is what Jehovah form light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity; I, Jehovah, am doing all these things."(2013 New World Translation)

[sla.scrptura]

The Hebrew word (ra’ah) means “calamity” in the Strong’s definition. The prime root means to spoil literally by breaking to pieces. This is not “evil” in the sense the atheist wants to apply it. Obviously the opposite of peace is calamity and that’s the point being made in Isaiah 45.7.

[ehecken]

Think that was a pretty good way to put it Frank.

[dravendfr]

God does not create evil, he may create calamity, but not evil. Through free will humans and demons may choose to commit evil. That translation of Isaiah is exactly why I use multiple Biblical translations rather than dying on the hill of one. It is downright insulting and horrifying to suggest God creates evil.

[ichernichenko]

Neither good or evil is a physical thing. But I do not understand his answer about not creating evil.

Children being tortured for some sadistic pleasure is not a lack of good but a pure act of evil.

This is where philosophy hits real world examples and they don't always correspond to each other.

That is true however that bringing of calamities is not the same as creating evil like the devil does.

[MyRoBeRtBaKeR]

Do you mean what ever is contrary to God evil, like God loves so you hate, God does not break covenants, but you commit adultery? Then yes, God created evil.

Yet, just because there is evil, does this mean you have to commit it or obey it, or can you actually choose good over evil?


Evil is not the problem. The problem is when you do evil, knowing that usually could do good instead.

That's like blaming guns for mass shootings or money for your greed.

[msmd]

Here we go… you should All be aware that this is a common apologetics practice… changing up terms to confuse the ignorant.
The point being, that god CAN’T be Evil in Any way. Everything that god does, murder, torture,
Abuse, etc. MUST have some unexplained righteous motive. Anything pertaining to god must have a righteous motive because Heaven forbid, god (or Allah or any other supernatural entity) has played the game like any schizophrenic might.

[mikev]

Then how can I believe anything the Bible says if I can't believe what is written? It seems like every time a hard to explain topic comes up you say that is not what it really means.

[stevegarrett]

God did not create a resister - but by free (satan) chose to become bad - Ezek 28: 14, and v15 says you were faultless in your ways from the day you were created Until unrighteousness was found in you. (Satan) V 17 your heart became haughty ( proud/ pride ) you corrupted your wisdom because of your own glorious splendour. ( narcissistic which is having an unreasonably high sense of there own importance and wanting people to admire them.

[douglaspinsak]

However you want to slice it, God ordains evil. We can talk about Godly evil versus satanic evil; but he is ordaining evil nonetheless.

[DiggitySlice]

These comments definitely tell me that many Christians lack a proper theological teaching.

Here's your first lesson: God can't do everything. I know that scares theologically shallow Christians, but it's true. God cannot do logically impossible things or evil things by definition.

If it helps, think of it like this. Doing evil is just the failure to do good, and God never fails to do good. God can't lie because he never fails to tell the truth. God can't do logically impossible things because he never fails to be logical

[nikolapejcinovski]

The true God JEHOVAH the Father and God of JESUS CHRIST and our Father and God does not create evil.He created all the angels in heavens perfect and he created Adam and Eve perfect.But he created them to have a free choice, to choose out of love for God to stay with him and be obedient to him, which will result in being blessed and live forever on Paradise Earth or for the angels to live forever in heavens.But also we humans or angels can choose to live in our own way not to be dependent on our Maker.But if we choose to be independent of our Creator we are the ones that will suffer, whether it is an angel or human, someone might ask but why we should suffer?Because JEHOVAH GOD made us that way, only if we choose to be obedient to him we can continue to live perfect on this Earth for humans and in heavens for angels.And this is what happened in heavens first, one of JEHOVAH'S angels became disobedient and became even an enemy of the true God JEHOVAH, and from there on he is known as Satan the Devil.And he is the one that lied to Eve to make her to disobey her Maker JEHOVAH GOD as well.From there sin intered into this World, and for that reason the time is coming when JEHOVAH GOD is going to destroy the disobedient angels in heavens with their leader Satan the Devil and the disobedient humans who knowingly or unknowingly follow Satan the Devil and his demons.So we are the ones whether it is in heavens or on this Earth that are choosing to become evil the true God JEHOVAH did not make us evil..

[ehecken]

And for anybody that's upset because they believe God created evil. He also gave us the freedom to choose good over evil yet we choose evil. When we have the choice why do we choose evil!! 🤔🤔🤔

[logeydogey]

The ai voice at the end of the videos sounds a little like the devil 😆 kinda threw me off . Great video though 🕊🙏

[ehecken]

Adam and Eve in the garden finally somebody or something has taken it back to the source. I've been wondering when evil would find his way back to Adam and Eve.

[jesphaylobo]

God did create evil, stop putting your own understanding to things, just because you cannot understand a concept. The same way someone determines what speeding is by setting a limit to how fast you can legally drive, is the same God created evil. God created evil by defining its boundaries, so what ever crosses those boundaries are evil.

[stumpintheearth]

When you don't understand the truth of why man was created and the fall of man, then you must grasp at straws, to explain God's Word. This world is a threshing floor to separate the wheat from the chaff. Only the wheat is meet for God's Kingdom.