Does God maintain a stable of evil spirits? - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Judges 9:22-23,

"After Abimelech had governed Israel three years, God sent an evil
spirit between Abimelech and the citizens of Shechem, who acted
treacherously against Abimelech."

Here is an interesting comment in Judges: God sent an evil spirit.
Does God harbor evil spirits (in the sense of beings of a spiritual
nature with a predisposed malevolent disposition and with sinful
intent) to dispatch at his convenience to accomplish what he desires?
Does God maintain a stable of evil spirits in his arsenal to effect
his determined impact on the peoples of earth as he sees fit?
Entertaining that thought might bring one to the horrible conclusion
that our God harbors and exploits evil to accomplish his purposes.

This thought is contrary to what is revealed to us about God in the
pages of Scripture. We know that God allowed Satan to bring misery and
suffering to Job. The lesson there was for Satan himself. God
demonstrated through Job to Satan that others (certainly Job) will
maintain their allegiance to God in spite of misery and difficulty -
not because God has bought them off with goodies. We also know that
God raised up Pharaoh, a man with a hardened heart and opposed to God
and his people. In Scripture the Lord says to Pharaoh, "But I have
raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power
and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth." Exodus 9:16
(see Romans 9:17.)

Clearly, nothing in all creation is beyond our God's ability to
manipulate to his own ends. However, those ends are always and without
fail, just and righteous. And, although he may manipulate to his own
ends that which is evil, he nonetheless remains consistent with his
own holy and righteous character and nature. Therefore his means in
carrying out those ends are likewise holy, just and righteous.

Throughout the pages of Scripture we read of God's involvement and
interaction with various men and women. Many of whom he used to carry
out his purposes to achieve what he desired. Apart from his one and
only Son, Jesus Christ, everyone of them was a sinner. All had sinned
and all had within them an inherent sinful nature. Yet God does not
abide evil and he will not accept evil within his creation. He may be
patient, but all evil will find its end in the fiery lake of burning
sulfur at the end of the age, see Revelation 20-22. All evil will be
paid for, and thankfully, many of us have availed ourselves of the
payment Jesus Christ made for our sins that we might inherit eternal
life.

In speaking of Christ's atonement for our sins Paul made the
observation, "God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through
faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in
his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished—
he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be
just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus." Romans
3:25-26. Here we see that God's patience, his forbearance in not
immediately crushing any and all who sin rests in the satisfaction of
Jesus' death on the cross, providing opportunity and possibility for
repentance. "He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but
everyone to come to repentance." 2 Peter 3:9b.

In this passage, Judges 9:22-23, the "evil spirit" there can be
understood as merely a "troubling" or "disastrous" mindset between
Abimelech and the folks of Shechem, not a personality at all. A simple
turning them against one another, suspicions and the like.

When it comes to God and evil, James tells us, "When tempted, no one
should say, 'God is tempting me.' For God cannot be tempted by evil,
nor does he tempt anyone..." James 1:13. John tells us, "...in him is
no sin" 1 John 3:5. John also tells us, "This is the message we have
heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no
darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in
the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth." John 1:5-6.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com