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Karen, I don't read or refer to Ecclesiasticus (Ben Sira), however, there is similar verse in Isaiah 45:7: "I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things."
To read that the LORD makes peace and creates evil can be disturbing to us. I checked on the Hebrew word for Evil as written in this verse: it is 'ra:'. And this speaks not of sin as we understand sin, but of 'adversity or calamity', as when 'evil (a calamity, suffering) may come upon us. So does God even do evil or want to do this to us? Well, He does, in a sense. In this context, it shows that when there is absence of Peace, whether in a person's heart or in worldly affairs, then there must be adversity. A little like Truth & Lies (they are 'absolutes'): if the Truth is not spoken, then the words must be a lie - and there cannot be a mix of Truth & Lies - then it's no longer Truth. So to, the presence of Peace cancels out 'evil'. So the opposite is true: if there is adversity, then no peace.
So we can't understand this verse as God making it a point to create adversity (evil) for us, rather, that in the absence of His Peace, He permits adversity to be present. It seems to be our choice: if His Peace reigns in us, then no spiritual or emotional calamity will be ours. If we sin, if we're disobedient to His Spirit, then the result is turmoil within.
To read that the LORD makes peace and creates evil can be disturbing to us. I checked on the Hebrew word for Evil as written in this verse: it is 'ra:'. And this speaks not of sin as we understand sin, but of 'adversity or calamity', as when 'evil (a calamity, suffering) may come upon us. So does God even do evil or want to do this to us? Well, He does, in a sense. In this context, it shows that when there is absence of Peace, whether in a person's heart or in worldly affairs, then there must be adversity. A little like Truth & Lies (they are 'absolutes'): if the Truth is not spoken, then the words must be a lie - and there cannot be a mix of Truth & Lies - then it's no longer Truth. So to, the presence of Peace cancels out 'evil'. So the opposite is true: if there is adversity, then no peace.
So we can't understand this verse as God making it a point to create adversity (evil) for us, rather, that in the absence of His Peace, He permits adversity to be present. It seems to be our choice: if His Peace reigns in us, then no spiritual or emotional calamity will be ours. If we sin, if we're disobedient to His Spirit, then the result is turmoil within.
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