Why does God permit evil? Why was Satan allowed to tempt Eve in the first place?

Some background: Lucifer was a “morning star” and prominent spirit being in the heavenly realm.

“How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, you who have weakened the nations!” (Isaiah 14:12)

Jesus himself was called a “morning star” in Revelation 22:16: I, “Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”

• Satan as Lucifer was an early and bright and powerfully harmonious creation of God
• He was one of two known “morning stars”

Prophetically he is spoken of in Ezekiel 28, represented by the King of Tyre:

“Again in the word of the LORD came to me saying, ‘Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him, Thus says the Lord GOD, You had the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering:…On the day that you were created they were prepared. You were the anointed cherub who covers, and I placed you there.” (Ezekiel 28:11-14)

God gave the privilege of oversight of this physical creation to one of his highest and most respected!  He was the “covering cherub” in the Garden of Eden, sent to protect the human creation.

“You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created until unrighteousness was found in you. By the abundance of your trade you were internally filled with violence, and you sinned; therefore I have cast you as profane from the mountain of God. And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I put you before kings, that they may see you.” (Ezekiel 28:14-17)

What a contrast between what Lucifer was given and what he chose to do!  He was given authority, beauty, wisdom, splendor and privilege but chose to take credit for all of it and demand more!

Isaiah speaks of the transformation in Lucifer’s mind, wanting to be like God:

“You have been cut down to the earth, you who have weakened the nations! But you said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, and I will sit on the mount of assembly in the recesses of the north. ‘I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’” (Isaiah 14:12-15)

Lucifer was looking for a dominion – power and authority.  He looked to usurp the rights of his Creator.  However, God knew what would happen, permitted it and provided a solution by already providing for the Lamb before the foundation of the world (1 Peter 18:20).

God allowed Satan to do what he did because He wanted humans and spirit beings to have the freedom to choose their behavior, also known as “free will.” He didn’t want to create robots that had no choice except to obey Him.

God wants intelligent and willing obedience, rather than pre-programmed service to Him. This means we (including Satan and the angels) have a choice in what we do.

Lucifer had free will to choose good, but he chose evil. He tempted Eve, who gave the fruit to Adam and then HE sinned too, causing a “chain reaction of sin” that affects all of us.

God’s wisdom permitted Satan’s sin, even though it has resulted in temporary pain, sickness, and death. This permission of evil for a time is providing an everlasting learning experience that will never be forgotten.God is allowing us to experience the painful effects of what the sin of disobedience brought. However, it’s important to remember God promised a future earthly kingdom, in which everyone will be raised from the sleep of death and given an opportunity to live a righteous, everlasting life without sin.

When everyone is raised from death and begins obeying the kingdom rules, they will gradually receive blessings better than they could ever imagine. Everyone will remember the powerful lesson that choosing sin produces terrible consequences that lead to death. Because they experienced first-hand the damaging effects of sin, we believe most people will choose to live good, righteous lives on a perfect earth.

Revelation 21:4 (NLT) says,

“He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”

God’s divine plan to temporarily allow evil for a time was best for everyone to learn an everlasting lesson: sin and disobedience brings sadness and death, while obedience to God and His rules brings happiness and blessings.

To learn more about why evil happens listen to:

“Why Does God Let the Innocent Suffer?”

“So, Why Hasn’t God Destroyed Evil?”

Watch our short, animated video on a similar question, “Why does God let bad things happen?”