📖 Passage

Read Genesis 50 (NKJV)

“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good...” — Genesis 50:20 “We know that for those who love God all things work together for good...” — Romans 8:28

🧠 Context & Background

The question “Why do bad things happen to good people?” strikes at the heart of human suffering and divine justice. It’s not merely philosophical — it’s personal. Every hospital room, funeral service, and battlefield echoes with this cry. For many, it becomes a barrier to trusting God.

From a biblical perspective, we must first challenge the premise: according to Scripture, no one is truly good in the ultimate, sinless sense (Romans 3:10–12). Yet, we also affirm that real suffering befalls those who are innocent of the immediate cause — children with cancer, faithful believers persecuted, families torn by tragedy.

The Bible does not shy away from this complexity. In fact, it addresses it directly through the stories of Joseph, Job, David, Jesus, and the early church. It offers not easy answers, but a redemptive lens: God is not absent in suffering. He is at work through it — shaping character, revealing His glory, and drawing hearts toward eternity.

This study explores passages that:

• Show that suffering entered through sin, but God limits and repurposes it (Genesis 3; Romans 5).
• Affirm that God works all things — even suffering — for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28).
• Reveal that Christ Himself suffered, identifying with us in our pain (Isaiah 53; John 11).
• Offer a hope-filled future in which God will wipe away every tear (Revelation 21:4).

This is not a question God ignores. It is one He answered — not with an argument, but with a cross.

🌿 Key Themes

• Human sin introduced evil and death into creation.
• God is not the author of evil but uses it for redemptive ends.
• Jesus suffered with us and for us.
• Our hope is not in escaping suffering now, but in the restoration to come.

📖 Verse-by-Verse Commentary

Genesis 50:20 – God Meant It for Good

“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good…”

• Divine sovereignty over evil: Joseph acknowledges that while people act sinfully, God uses it for redemptive purposes.
• Comfort in providence: Even betrayal, slavery, and false accusation were woven into God’s plan to save many.
• Good from evil: God doesn't merely allow evil—He overrules it for good.

Romans 8:28 – All Things Work for Good

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good…”

• Conditional promise: This applies to those who are called according to God’s purpose.
• All things: Even suffering, injustice, and pain are part of the tapestry of grace.
• Ultimate good: Not comfort, but conformity to Christ (v. 29).

Job 2:10 – Shall We Receive Good and Not Evil?

“Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?”

• God’s sovereignty in suffering: Job acknowledges God's hand even in calamity.
• Balanced theology: Faith isn’t based on comfort but on trusting God’s wisdom.
• Mature faith: Job’s response reveals a reverent submission in affliction.

Isaiah 53:3–5 – The Man of Sorrows

“He was despised and rejected… a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief…”

• Jesus suffered: Christ bore the ultimate “bad” though He was perfectly good.
• Substitutionary atonement: “He was pierced for our transgressions…”
• Purpose in pain: His suffering was redemptive, not random.

Romans 8:18–27 – Present Suffering and Future Glory

“The sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing…”

• Eternal perspective: Glory outweighs suffering beyond comparison (v. 18).
• Creation groans: All of creation is affected by the fall and longs for restoration (vv. 20–22).
• Hope in weakness: The Spirit helps us pray when we don’t have words (v. 26).

Revelation 21:4 – No More Death or Pain

“He will wipe away every tear… neither shall there be mourning, nor crying…”

• Future restoration: God promises an end to all suffering.
• Personal comfort: He doesn’t just fix the world—He wipes away your tears.
• New creation: Suffering is not eternal. Healing is.

Romans 5:12 – Sin Entered Through One Man

“Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man…”

• Original cause: Suffering entered the world through Adam’s sin.
• Universal effect: All have inherited the consequences—death, disease, decay.
• Theological clarity: The root of “bad things” is sin, not divine indifference.

Isaiah 63:9 – In All Their Affliction He Was Afflicted

“In all their affliction he was afflicted…”

• Divine empathy: God is not distant from our pain—He enters into it.
• Covenant love: The angel of His presence saved them.
• Suffering with us: God is not only sovereign but sympathetic.

John 11:35 – Jesus Wept

“Jesus wept.”

• Shortest verse, deep meaning: Shows the heart of God for human grief.
• Sorrow over death: Even knowing He would raise Lazarus, Jesus still grieved.
• Validation of emotion: Grief is not unbelief. Jesus dignifies it.

2 Corinthians 4:17 – Momentary Light Affliction

“For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory…”

• Training ground for glory: Suffering produces a future that far outweighs pain.
• Perspective shift: Affliction is momentary; glory is eternal.
• Purpose in pain: Trials are not pointless—they shape eternal joy.

🧩 Review Questions

1. Where does evil ultimately come from?
2. Why does God allow suffering in His plan?
3. How does the cross change our understanding of pain?

🔍 Definitions

• Theodicy: A defense of God’s goodness in the face of evil and suffering.
• Providence: God’s purposeful sovereignty over all creation, including suffering.

🙋 Application Questions

1. Have you ever doubted God’s love during suffering?
2. How can you use past pain to minister to others?
3. Are you trusting that God is working all things for your good?

🔤 Greek Keywords (with Simple Explanations)

• Agathos (ἀγαθός) – “Good”; used to describe God’s character and actions.
• Pas (πᾶς) – “All”; as in “all things work together for good” (Romans 8:28).

📚 Cross References

• Psalm 34:19 – “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.”
• Lamentations 3:32–33 – “Though he cause grief, he will have compassion… for he does not afflict from his heart.”
• James 1:2–4 – “Count it all joy… when you meet trials… that you may be perfect and complete.”
• 1 Peter 1:6–7 – “Tested by fire… may be found to result in praise and glory.”
• John 9:2–3 – “Who sinned…? Neither… but that the works of God might be displayed.”
• 2 Corinthians 1:3–4 – “God… comforts us… so we can comfort others.”
• Romans 3:10–12 – “None is righteous, no, not one… no one does good, not even one.”
• Revelation 21:4 – “He will wipe away every tear… death shall be no more.”