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What about Evil?: A Defense of God's Sovereign Glory

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Reconciling the existence of God and evil has been a long-standing conundrum in Christian theology, yet a philosophical approach--rather than a theological one--dominates the discussion. Turning to the Bible's grand storyline, Scott Christensen examines how sin, evil, corruption, and death fit into the broad outlines of redemptive history. He argues that God's ultimate end in creation is to magnify his glory to his image-bearers, most notably by defeating evil through the atoning work of Christ.

763 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 16, 2020

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Scott Christensen

2 books6 followers

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
Profile Image for David Steele.
Author 6 books216 followers
November 11, 2021
Achilles was the Greek hero in Homer’s Iliad during the Trojan War who was killed by Paris with an arrow that struck his only vulnerable spot, - his heel. So the Achilles heel is the vulnerable or susceptible spot. Critics of historic Christianity often point to the problem of evil and argue that it is the weak spot of our faith. Hence, the problem of evil is often referred to as the Achilles heel of the Christian faith.

Theodicy is “a defense of the justice or goodness of God in the face of doubts or objections arising from the phenomena of evil in the world.” Many arguments (theodicy) have been proposed over the history of intellectual thought. I’ve read several books over the years that attempt to advance a theodicy. Scott Christensen’s book, What About Evil? A Sovereign Defense of Sovereign Glory is without a doubt the best book I’ve ever read on the subject.

In the end, the author reveals what he refers to as the greater-glory theodicy. He successfully demonstrates how God is sovereign over every evil event and uses it to advance his purposes. He refers to the hope of shalom, a notion that “would not exist without the tragic loss of paradise devolving into hell … If you know Christ, your suffering is never wasted. Your deepest pain is not in vain. Your sin cannot condemn you. Your fear of death need not worry you, for your redemption drawers nigh!”

The purpose of this review is not to give a detailed summary but to alert readers to a book that is saturated with Scripture and Christ-glorifying arguments that advance the cause of the kingdom and build the faith of God’s people.
Profile Image for Chris Land.
76 reviews12 followers
January 11, 2021
One of the best books on the subject about evil in the world in light of the sovereignty of God.
Profile Image for Benjamin.
158 reviews15 followers
August 29, 2023
What About Evil: A Defense of God’s Sovereign Glory by Scott Christensen is certainly a tour de force in the world of theodicy. If one wishes to grasp a good comprehension of a reformed theodicy, this might be your one-stop shop. Christensen does an incredible job in the first few chapters addresses what theodicy is, and shows how secularism has largely failed to disprove God because of the existence of evil. If anything, the humanistic secular experiment of the enlightenment has only increased the problem of evil in thought and deed. From there he begins to consider different answers to the problem of evil from a Christian perspective, mostly focusing on the libertarian free will option, which is the default position by most Christians, after critiquing it, Christensen takes several chapters to mount what he calls the “greater-glory theodicy” which rests on the combination of the immanence and transcendence of God as the sovereign of the Universe, yet a God who stands intricately involved in his creation, this is mainly seen in the incarnation of Jesus Christ, the uncreated mets the created, allowing us a greater glimpse into the why for the fall, sin, and evil. Christensen here brings in the concept of “Felix culpa” or the blessedness of the fall, as ironic as that may sound we are reminded that although life was good before the fall, we could never know the blessed state of being redeemed in Christ and one day glorified with Him, if the world had never fallen into sin, thus redemption is exemplified in the background of every lurking sin. Thus, because God created the world to display his own glory, and his own glory is magnified in the atonement of Christ, in some way, “redemption is unnecessary unless human beings have fallen into sin. Therefore, the fall of humanity is necessary to God’s ultimate purpose in creating the world.” The Lord, as the author of history, is displaying his love, mercy, compassion, justice, holiness, and transcendence perfectly so throughout the cosmos, and the perfect manifestation to that is found in the Lord Jesus Christ. Rest assured saint, the fall, sin, and evil, although despicable and terrible as these things are, it did not surprise, shock, or alter the plans of God to display His glory and mercy to His creatures through the person and work of Jesus Christ.

The only negative comment I have towards the book is concerning the author’s eschatological views affecting the conclusion a little more than I would desire. Christensen advocates for a reformed premillennialism, in which he states that God’’s glorious purposes are displayed in saving a small portion of humanity throughout time. For how well he traced the biblical narrative of creation, fall, and redemption and spoke so articulately concerning the binding of Satan at the cross, I think he totally beefed the redemptive purposes of Jesus throughout the New Covenant period. Aside from that, I heartily recommend this book, even if you disagree with the reformed perspective!
Profile Image for Pat.
60 reviews9 followers
March 23, 2024
Depths of God’s sovereignty I had not considered before to this magnitude and I’m left like Job with my mouth shut and feet on the solid ground of my Savior because where else can I go for the truth. Parts beyond my depth so hope to explore in hard copy. Not for the faint of heart but a blessing to me ❤️
Profile Image for Patrick S..
392 reviews27 followers
June 29, 2022
You can find a break down, chapter-by-chapter look at this book from the Cave To The Cross Apologetics podcast (CaveToTheCross.com)

What Scott Christensen has done here is provide a scholarly and biblical undertaking on the alleged problem of evil. With a brief overview of the history of philosophy in chapter two and then dealing with some of the main explanations for theodicy, Christensen points out the flaws both philosophically and Scripturally with them. He provides a fair and, at times, praise-worthy when called for look at them. Some of the discussion around the free will theodicy will sound familiar from his previous book "What About Free Will" but is important to the discussion.

This isn't your normal, dry and academic look at the problem of evil. Christensen gives you the answer right on page 6 and comes from the Reformed perspective. After critiquing the other views, he launches into providing support for his view. And just like the Reformed perspective does, and what his view calls for, Christensen goes into a beautiful discussion of who God is, His nature, Jesus' Incarnation, and the ramifications of God's work in creation. All this adds to and leads up to putting the point on the fact that God is the ultimate focus of Scripture, creation, history, and yes - even in the theodicy.

Two chapters that should be viewed of high value is the chapter on God being a storyteller. Taking a page from Jordan Peterson but putting it through the Reformed Christian perspective, this chapter probably provided me with some of the most spiritually rich and useful action in applying and living out my Christian faith - no small feat for a scholarly book on the problem of evil! Another chapter that, in a few pages, take an amazing breakdown of an important Christian concept is the chapter on the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. There was a lot of notes and underlining here and would be a great standalone chapter to give someone on the greatness and glory of the Incarnation.

I believe this book does what it needed to do, what other scholarly works tend to fail to do, and does what it did well enough that this sits at the top of my recommendation for the subject. While there might have been a few chapters that could have been boiled down for the purpose of space and focus on the actual theodicy, the same case could be made to expand the book further with more focus on different aspects of God's nature. Even the final chapter on putting the theodicy into practical living should have been longer with a focus more on action points for the Christian walk. However, that could have been another book in and of itself and from this book I found myself applying what I was reading to my own walk and in answering questions of faith from those of 6 years olds to new Christians to general discussions of life, politics, and faith.

This book is a great tool and a useful addition to the topic of the alleged problem of evil. I highly recommend this book for anyone who has any interest in the subject and want an amazing tool that will challenge you to glorify God and put Him in His rightful place as the apex of life.

Final Grade - A+
Profile Image for Thaddeus.
137 reviews47 followers
October 5, 2021
One of the best and most thorough Reformed theodicy (justification of God) that you'll read! Christensen is an excellent thinker and author. His arguments are well expressed, consistent, biblical and draw from the best of Reformed theology on the question of Evil.

The first half of the book reads like a systematic theology of theodicy and the second half like a biblical theology - tracing the theme through scripture. It's a great way to tackle it, but somewhat felt like two books put together. However, I thoroughly appreciated it.

Highly recommended!
20 reviews
November 11, 2023
This book articulates well how a universe with evil ultimately serves as a better-equipped theater for the fuller display of the glory of God than a universe devoid of evil. I really enjoyed this book. I think Christensen does a masterful job of handling the subject and presents a fantastic biblical theodicy.
There were a few things I did not care for in Christensen’s writing style, but that’s just taste. I also think he appeals too often and leans too heavily on the carefully articulated thoughts of other authors to make his points. Sometimes the quotations seemed excessive, adding little to what he was trying to say.
I also think he spends too much effort appealing to Calvin or Calvinism and reformed doctrine, which, in the midst of suffering, does not bring quite the same comfort and assurance as reasoning through and exegeting straight Scripture. Calvin could be wrong.

I also am not sure I agree with his statements that echo Augustine and his argument that evil is the *necessary* black backdrop to see and appreciate God’s glory. As if God’s glory needed a backdrop to be seen. Among many other things, evil certainly works to highlight God’s glory in the perception of His creatures by way of stark contrast, and its presence works in us a heightened longing for God’s goodness, etc. In this way God’s extrinsic glory is magnified by the presence of evil. But I don’t believe that in the absence of evil and suffering God’s goodness would be “domesticated”, as Christensen puts it, nor would it appear so common the we would be unimpressed or bored by it. That is certainly how we react to God’s goodness and blessing now, *with our sin-tainted nature*. But the angels who hover around God’s throne shouting “Holy, holy, holy!” don’t seem bored, nor do they take it for granted. God could have created us with the proper affections and capacity to clearly see and to never be anything but thrilled nearly to death by God’s uninterrupted goodness. But He chose not to. Why? Christensen puts it well enough when he describes this evil-tainted universe as the proper “theater” for a fuller expression of God’s glory that we would otherwise not see. Because evil exists God puts on display excellencies and glorious acts that we would not otherwise see; we get a fuller, richer sight/experience/knowledge of who our God is. Evil does provide a contrasting backdrop, yes, but I don’t believe it’s because the colors of God’s goodness would seem *muted and dull* without the dark presence of evil. I think it ultimately must come down to what God most enjoys *doing*. Evil is the proper catalyst for God to be and do what He enjoys most—namely being Himself, getting the joy of acting out who He is—for our eternal good and joy and satisfaction in Him, yes, but ultimately so He might enjoy displaying a fuller expression of His own glory. It is not merely for our sakes, but for His sake that evil exists: He gets to glory in Himself in fuller ways, act out a wider spectrum of the glorious light of His being, by responding to evil with both justice and mercy, wrath and loving kindness.
Profile Image for Thomas.
343 reviews12 followers
March 8, 2022
Christensen provides a robust and thorough defense of what he calls a 'greater-glory' theodicy. In sum, evil of every sort, even gratuitous evil, is ultimately allowed by God for his glory. Utilizing the best-of-possible worlds theodicy (Leibniz), he argues that our world is the best possible world for displaying God's glory for it is in the face of evil and suffering that we see God's love, grace, mercy, justice and power the most clearly. The author walks through other theodicies (e.g., the free will defenses), noting their strengths and shortcomings. Though at first blush, Christensen's theodicy may not be palatable for those who are unsympathetic to his arguments, it is my view that if one would seriously weigh his arguments and his biblical reasoning, it would make the best sense of evil and suffering in our world. The truth of things boil down to this: God is good; we, due to sin, our evil; and any goodness we have from God is undeserved. When we align our hearts and minds with these truths, then importance of God's glory is given its proper place.
Profile Image for Brenden Wentworth.
72 reviews4 followers
January 27, 2024
Undoubtedly one of the best books I’ve ever read. Top 10, easily. Maybe top five. One of the best journeys I’ve taken with undivinely-inspired words on a page.

A wide sweeping range of theological depth that covers everything from Freewill, God’s sovereignty, sin, philosophy, literature, impassibility, presuppositionalism, Eschatology, etc.
Christiansen is a tour de force in terms of his intellectual, theological, biblical, and philosophical veracity. His bibliography is a library in and of itself.

If you want, probably the best treatment that is accessible, deep, sound, saying, and convincing about why the good & all-powerful God of scripture would allow, permit, and even purpose evil, pain, sorrow, and suffering in this world, look no further than this tome.
Profile Image for Zack Hill.
7 reviews1 follower
June 9, 2023
Though admittedly lengthier than most books on the subject, Christensen’s book is far and away the best work that I have read on the Problem of Evil. While most tend to approach the topic from a purely philosophical perspective, Christensen recognizes that the Problem of Evil necessarily relies on the Biblical presentation of God and seeks to produce the produce a scripturally faithful theodicy in response.
Profile Image for J.T..
Author 3 books16 followers
January 25, 2022
The best treatment on the problem of evil I have read. It is not the pastoral work of Keller's "Walking With God Through Pain And Suffering," but instead a theology of evil and why God planned evil to exist to show us His supreme glory. Remarkably well done and I will be thinking on it for a long time...
67 reviews5 followers
September 19, 2023
This is a remarkable work of theology that mines the problem of evil with compassion, realism, clarity, and biblical wisdom. There is nothing like it in depth and scope.
Profile Image for Hank Pharis.
1,591 reviews31 followers
February 13, 2021
(NOTE: I'm stingy with stars. For me 2 stars means a good book or a B. 3 stars means a very good book or a B+. 4 stars means an outstanding book or an A {only about 5% of the books I read merit 4 stars}. 5 stars means an all time favorite or an A+ {Only one of 400 or 500 books rates this!).

This is a great book on the problem of evil. Sometimes he goes on what seem to me to be unnecessary "rabbit trails" but some of those are excellent.

Here are some quotes to give you a taste and summary of his approach:

1. God’s ultimate purpose in freely creating the world is to supremely the riches of his glory to all his creatures, God’s ultimate purpose in freely creating the world is to supremely magnify the riches of his glory to all his creatures, creatures, especially human beings, who alone bear his image.

2. God’s glory is supremely magnified in the atoning work of Christ, which is the sole means of accomplishing redemption for human beings.

3. Redemption is unnecessary unless human beings have fallen into sin.

4. Therefore, the fall of humanity is necessary to God’s ultimate purpose in creating the world. (30-31)

This theodicy is sometimes referred to by the Latin phrase felix culpa. It can be translated as “fortunate fall,” indicating that the fall of humanity in the garden of Eden, though terrible in itself, was a good (fortunate) thing. Some who suggested or shown an affinity for a theodicy along these lines include Augustine (A.D. 354–430), the great English poet John Milton (1608–74), the Puritan divine John Owen (1616–83), the German philosopher Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646–1716), and more recently the Christian philosophers Alvin Plantinga and Paul Helm.
The idea is simply this: the fall of humanity was no mistake. It did not catch God by surprise. Nor was it the result of Adam and Eve’s free will, as most understand the term free will. The fall was planned by God because it brings about the greater good of redemption. A fallen-but-being-redeemed world is far better than an unfallen-not-needing-redemption world. Such a world brings greater glory to God. No better world seems possible than one in which Christ’s redemptive work brings such supreme glory to God. (30-31)

It upholds the meticulous sovereignty of God. It is radically theocentric—God is squarely
at its center. The problem of evil is resolved by focusing attention … on how God’s actions in creation and providence serve to maximize his own glory. (32)

In the end, I hope we will see that there really is no problem of evil—only an unfathomably glorious God whose wise and wonderful ways should elicit our astonishment and our adoration. (38)

Others who show an affinity for a similar theodicy without explicitly endorsing the felix culpa argument include Jonathan Edwards (1703–58) and, more recently, John Piper, Jay Adams, Robert Reymond, and Randy Alcorn. (40)

God’s meticulous sovereignty (determinism) is compatible with human freedom and responsibility.
Thus, there is a dual explanation for every choice that we human beings make. God’s sovereign determination serves as the sufficient primary (ultimate) but remote cause of our choices, while we serve as the secondary but proximate (the near or immediate) cause of our choices. While there is some degree of mystery in acknowledging this “double agency” (dual causation), there is nothing contradictory in affirming it. Paul Helm brings some clarity here: “The primary cause [God] is an enabling and sustaining cause, making possible secondary causes and setting bounds to them.” Furthermore, the primary (divine) cause is not an event in time, whereas the secondary (human) cause is. Rather, it is “an eternal cause which has the whole of the creation as its effect.”66 Secondary causes have no independent power. Everything we say and do is dependent on God.
Yet God’s causal power is rarely if ever directly experienced. Most people are unaware that he stands behind the choices they make. In this regard, God’s fixed providential direction is never coercive. He never moves people to act against their will.
(240-241).

John Piper: “God’s purpose is to defeat Satan in a way that glorifies not only Christ’s raw power, but also his superior beauty and worth and desirability. Christ could simply exert sovereign power and snuff Satan out. That would indeed glorify Christ’s power. But it would not display so clearly the superior worth of Jesus over Satan. It would not display the transforming beauty and power of Christ’s meekness and humility and lowliness and self-emptying love. The aim of the gospel is to put the glory of the crucified Christ on display and to shame Satan by millions of people who “turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God” (Acts 26:18) and forsake Satan’s lies in preference for the beauty of Christ in the gospel. (571)
44 reviews2 followers
March 8, 2021
The question of the existence of evil, especially in relation to the existence of a good God, has been around for a long time now. It has confused many Christians, never mind non Christians. It would seem that, on the surface, Scripture hasn’t much to say on the topic, however, Scott Christensen would beg to differ. This is why he wrote the book, to present what is called a theodicy, which is essentially a fancy way of describing an attempt at reconciling the seemingly irreconcilable truths of the presence of evil and the presence of a good God.

So what about evil? In the last chapter, he sums up his conclusion (a modification of the greater good theodicy) well, when he says, “Because only through such a bitter and tragic story with hope held out before us could his glory be so remarkably magnified - supremely magnified”. He basically argues that the glory of God shines brighter against the backdrop of this fallen world, and the consummation of the kingdom of God in the new creation is thus even more glorious than the Garden of Eden was before then fall.

The appendix is entitled, “Sullied by Supralapsarianism,” which is an issue usually reserved for the most complex Systematic Theologies, but it relates to evil in significant ways. In this he helpfully shows the inadequate nature of both infra and supra positions and somewhat goes with a modified version of the supra position. It is a very helpful appendix for those interested in some of the deepest theological questions.

The book is very well written. It is a significant length at 635 pages but one can easily get through it in taking a chapter or two a day. He ends every chapter with helpful discussion questions, key terms, suggestions for further reading and the references. Take this book slow. Don’t rush. Think deeply about what he is saying. Read well to profit from this book. Read with a friend or a Church group and use the questions to discuss the book. Take it in and decide for yourself if you agree with his conclusions. Personally, I agree fully with his conclusions.

If you are a regular reader and have read some more complex theology, you will find this easy to read. However, if you haven't read much complex theology you will find this a hard, slow and long read. All in all. I highly recommend this book and encourage everyone who has a good level of theological understanding to read it. It will lead you to worship, I had to stop and pray multiple times!

Disclaimer: I received a free PDF copy for review from P&R Publishing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Eric Yap.
133 reviews8 followers
December 12, 2022
Comprehensive in breadth. Christensen builds a steady and patient case for what is commonly known as the "greater glory" (felix culpa) theodicy. Covers a lot of grounds that are usually related to theodicy, like God's sovereignty and freedom, morality in the secular world, proximate and ultimate cause, libertarian free will, the necessity of the fall, and so on. The first part of the book begins by demonstrating the problem of evil against a secular background, and then he proceeds to dismantle other views such as the free will defence or the best-of-possible-world defence, by simultaneously developing a reformed conception of the doctrine of God. Christensen then spends the latter half of the book (about another 250 pages) detailing his greater glory theodicy against the backdrop of the reformed understanding of God's sovereignty, man's free will, the nature of moral evil and redemptive history.

Personally, I think Christensen takes a lot of cues from John Frame's "redemptive story" theodicy. The work is written in an accessible manner, as Christensen notes that he is writing not from a point of an academic but as a pastor to laypersons. Therefore, it covers a lot of theological grounds and subjects, and personally, I felt that it was perhaps a bit too belabouring. Perhaps Christensen had seekers, sceptics, or even amateur theological readers in mind because the intersection of topics and loci ranges from the doctrine of God (simplicity and immutability) to the biblical theology of salvation in judgement, to the kenosis and trinitarian dogmatic, and there was even a chapter akin to a "philosophy of good stories." However, I wonder if the page count of the book might deter these audiences (under 500 pages) away. As I mentioned above, this work is comprehensive in breadth, but lacking a bit in depth, as Christiensen does not posit any new material that is not already agreeable to those holding on to reformed convictions but presents them in a pastoral and accessible manner. Hence this work might be in a somewhat awkward position: it looks too long and bulky for seekers and theological amateurs, but it is not sophisticated enough for academics. What was most beneficial to me was his cases against the contrary views, such as the free will defence (popularised by Alvin Plantinga) or the best of possible world defence (by the Molinists), demonstrated with the simplest yet compelling theological reasoning.
57 reviews1 follower
September 22, 2023
“As strange as it seems, we thank God for the fall of our human parents. We do no praise their arrogance and rebellion. We praise God for wisely structuring their fall to bring about the glory of redemption. I assure you that we would want it no other way!” This quote is from page 457 of “What About Evil” by Scott Christensen.

The quote above seems to be a good representation of the basic “Felix Culpa” (Greater Good Theodicy) explanation that Christensen uses to account for evil. He doesn’t believe that God is the author of sin, but that God did ordain the fall for His greater glory in redemption through Jesus Christ.

I am not much of a philosopher, so some of this required reading, and re-reading, passages, and I’m still not sure I fully comprehended. However, the book should be a fairly straight forward read for anyone with a basic Philosophical knowledge. I could see this used as an apologetic tool for talk to people about evil in this world.

I would highly recommend the book, to Christian or a non-Christian.

“Take up and Read”. - St. Augustine
1,414 reviews
October 13, 2023
Robust Augustinianism here. What about evil? The magnification of God's glory. The fall was a happy accident (felix culpa), planned by God for his greatest glory and our greater good. Everything falls into place in this rubric.

Lost a star for being too long. The last 100 pages could be cut--they're a different book. A decent description of redemption, but done elsewhere better. Unless you just love reading Reformed theology all the time, you could probably skip this and rely on Christensen's earlier What about Free Will?: Reconciling Our Choices with God's Sovereignty (which is itself superb). But make no mistake, this book makes a strong case and could be read profitably alongside Providence, by John Piper.
Profile Image for Angel Ruiz.
3 reviews
February 27, 2024
Christensen's book is not a support of God's sovereignty; instead, it is an attack on God's character. Through the conflation of evil and suffering, he distorts the biblical teaching regarding the significance of suffering and God's triumph over evil. This is worsened by his unthinking acceptance of God's impassibility (inability to suffer), which leads to unsolved quandaries of his own invention. Some very important Bible lessons are completely missing from this book: suffering for no reason is evil, suffering for a reason is good, and since God chooses to suffer, suffering can not be evil. Everyone learns the value of pain through experience. To gain knowledge and experience, college students go into huge debt to pay someone to make them suffer. If you were hoping for answers, Christensen only gives you doubt and chaos.
1 review2 followers
August 18, 2021
"What About Evil" is worth your time. The pages take you on a walk through redemptive history while Mr. Christensen uses Scripture to expound his defense of the "greater-good" theodicy. It reads like a textbook with a glossary, study guide and further reading resources, but is colored with thoughts and quotes by godly men and women from throughout history. The 471 paged volume does get in the weeds somewhat, but is beneficial to anyone who wants a better understanding of how evil fits into the world. By the end of the book, my heart overflowed in awe of our amazing God.
Profile Image for Jake Cannon.
111 reviews1 follower
July 31, 2022
“What About Evil?” is a book that attempts to answer this question by raising another question “what about it?”

This book is a uniquely Reformed view of theodicy, defending God’s glory from attempts to distract us from it.

Christensen’s book is simply a triumph. An unflinching look at the evil of this world and an even more unflinching look at the end to which evil was ordained: God’s glory.

There is so much to praise in this book. It is nothing short of paradigm-shifting for me.
Profile Image for Dan Duerkop.
129 reviews1 follower
March 17, 2023
A systematic explanation and powerful defence of the ‘greater-glory’ theodicy. I doubt anyone could persuasively argue against the cumulative weight of Biblical argumentation presented by Christensen. Some parts of this book were difficult to read, as the author does not shy away from some of the most blatant evils in history. However, ultimately this book magnified the glory of Christ and sovereignty of God over all history.
Profile Image for Tiffany Dubois.
49 reviews1 follower
July 30, 2023
I would highly recommend this book. I did read it with a dictionary handy as Christensen has a rich vocabulary which he freely uses.
I have wrestled with the problem of evil for most of my adult life, reading many treatises on the subject with very little satisfaction. This book presents a claim for the-greater-glory theodicy. I am fully convinced this is the most biblical theodicy, but not one most man-centered Christians would be willing to hear.
I will be reading this book again.
Profile Image for April.
106 reviews6 followers
October 26, 2022
I LOVED this book. Skip seminary altogether and read this instead 😉 I learned so much about God and theodicy…a word I had never head before reading this book. This book answered questions I didn’t realize I had, made me think, and strengthened my faith. I thought the writer was great…he stayed on-point and made something difficult to understand accessible and interesting. I am so glad I read it.
79 reviews
September 28, 2023
This book was extremely helpful in understanding soteriology as well as the issue of God's sovereignty. He writes very clearly and explains his arguments well, with Scripture and sound authors to back him up. I like how he is humble in his writing and his bravery for tackling such a daunting subject.
Profile Image for Jessica.
308 reviews13 followers
Want to read
August 2, 2021
Recommended by Dr. Ryan McGraw: "Not your run of the mill answer to the problem of evil, but it traces the theme and function of evil throughout the Bible as a whole, with a special focus on a Trinitarian Christology."
23 reviews
January 30, 2022
Really good examination of the different views on theodicy and a clear presentation of the biblical view.
Profile Image for Kristin Mitchell.
45 reviews4 followers
December 13, 2023
This is a clear and concise book. Well written. I will refer to this often! Highly recommend to EVERYONE!!!
88 reviews2 followers
August 28, 2022
No other volume on this topic provides as lucid and as comprehensive a treatment. Its depth and clarity are also matched by its breadth — Christensen interacts with many views by diverse advocates. His recommendations for further reading add to the excellence of this volume. Don’t let the length of the volume deter you from reading it — it’s well worth the time to read every single sentence.
February 14, 2021
A really good solution to the problem of evil, focused of God's glory and redemption at the cross.
The only reason for 4 instead of 5 stars is that there were several elements and discussions I did not feel were necessary to the development of the argument. I believe it could have been a 300 page book instead of 471 (plus all the glossary and indexes and whatnot). Good read.
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