Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be calamity in a city, and the LORD has not done it?
Read Chapter 3
Cyril of Alexandria
AD 444
By evil in the text that is caused by God in cities, therefore, we should understand not depravity-perish the thought! But rather harassment, or any wrathful response that he would make to sinners with the intention of converting them to what is more seemly.
Afraid. Yet you can hear these terrible truths without consternation! Will you therefore escape? (Calmet)
Evil. He speaks of the evil of punishments of war, famine, pestilence, desolution, but not of the evil of sin, of which God is not the author. (Challoner)
All evil of punishment is sent by God, either to reclaim sinners or to be the beginning of sorrows, if they die impenitent. (Worthington)
You know that He rewards or punishes. If, therefore, what I foretell come to pass, do not blame me.
I do not say these things in arrogance, but I have the prophet Amos standing at my side, crying and saying, “There is no evil in the city which the Lord has not done.” Now evil is a manyfaceted term. I wish that you shall learn the exact meaning of each expression, in order that on account of ambiguity you may not confound the nature of the things and fall into blasphemy. There is then evil, which is really evil; fornication, adultery, covetousness, and the countless dreadful things, which are worthy of the utmost reproach and punishment. Again there is evil, which rather is not evil but is called so, famine, pestilence, death, disease, and other of a similar nature. For these would not be evils. On this account I said they are called so only. Why then? Because, were they evils intended to become the sources of good to us, chastening our pride, goading our sloth and leading us on to zeal, making us more attentive.
Since the word evil is ambiguous it has two meanings, for it sometimes means what is by nature evil, being the opposite of virtue and against God's will, while at other times it means what is evil and painful in relation to our sensibility, which is to say, tribulation and distress. Now while these last seem to be evil, because they cause pain, actually they are good because to such as understand them they are a source of conversion and salvation. It is these last that Scripture says are permitted by God. Moreover, one must know that we too cause them because involuntary evils spring from voluntary ones.
It is, then, customary for sacred Scripture to speak of his permission as an action and deed, but even when it goes so far as to say that God “creates evil” and that “there is not evil in a city which the Lord has not done,” it still does not show God to be the author of evil. On the contrary, since the word evil is ambiguous it has two meanings, for it sometimes means what is by nature evil, being the opposite of virtue and against God’s will, while at other times it means what is evil and painful in relation to our sensibility, which is to say, tribulation and distress. Now while these last seem to be evil, because they cause pain, actually they are good because to such as understand them they are a source of conversion and salvation. It is these last that Scripture says are permitted by God. Moreover, one must know that we too cause them because involuntary evils spring from voluntary ones.
Evil in a city: He speaks of the evil of punishments of war, famine, pestilence, desolation, etc., but not of the evil of sin, of which God is not the author.
But if there were no evils in the world, much good would be lost to man, as well in respect of knowledge, as also in respect of desire and love of good: for good is better known in contrast with evil; and while evil results come about, we more ardently desire good results: as sick men best know what a blessing health is.
