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Man because of disobedience lost his state of innocence and
became aware of good and evil. "…when you eat of
it [the fruit of the tree] your eyes will be opened, and you
will be like God, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3:5).
Good and evil are the moral principles by which God rules
his creation. The introduction of death, and making the earth
for the present a hostile environment in which man must live,
are other aspects of evil (see Genesis 3:17-19).
Man is not by nature good: he has a natural tendency towards
evil. Before the flood "The Lord saw how great man's
wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination
of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time."
(Genesis 6:5). Evil in human nature is an interchangeable
term for 'wickedness', 'sin' and 'iniquity' (see Jeremiah
36:3, NIV and KJV).
God has used His control over evil to correct or punish. "During
the reign of David, there was a famine for three successive
years; so David sought the face of the Lord. The Lord said,
'It is on account of Saul and his blood-stained house; it
is because he put the Gibeonites to death'" (2 Samuel
21:1).
God told His people Israel: "You only have I chosen of
all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you
for all your sins…. When disaster [KJV: "evil"]
comes to a city, has not the Lord caused it?" (Amos 3:2,6).
(See also ANGELS - Evil angels).
It is the duty of the Christian, through his faith in Christ,
to overcome the evil that is within him. The apostle Paul
writes: "I know that nothing good lives in me, that is,
in my sinful nature…. When I want to do good, evil is
right there with me…. Who will rescue me from this body
of death? Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our Lord!"
(Romans 7:18-25). "Do not repay anyone evil for evil….
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."
(Romans 12:17,21).
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Earth
Ecclesia
Egypt
Elder
Elect, Election
Elohim
Everlasting
Evidence
Evil
Evil Spirit
1. Bodily illness or disability,
or mental affliction
2. Jealousy, anger, or violence
3. Suspicion and hatred
Exile
Exodus
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