Welcome and thank you for taking a bible break to test your knowledge of God's word.
This week's question:

As Job's friends gathered around him, their thoughts were portrayed as Eliphas spoke to him with these questions, "Remember, who ever perished being innocent? Or where were the upright destroyed?" (Job 4:7) Does not the Lord grant us length of days and years of life to those who do not forget His teaching (Proverbs 3:1-2)? And in that same book He teaches that when calamity fall's on those who refuse Him, He will not answer (Proverbs 1:24-33). It would seem, then, very logical that good things happen to good people and bad happens to bad. End of story.

Isaiah 5:20-23 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light and

light for darkness; who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! Woe to those who are wise in

their own eyes and clever in their own sight! Woe to those who are heroes in drinking wine and valiant

men in mixing strong drink, who justify the wicked for a bribe, and take away the rights of the ones who

are in the right!

So the warnings go out to those who try to make evil into something good. Micah tried to do just that as he worshipped idols, and yet thought he would please the Lord by having a Levite in his home as his priest and that the Lord would surly prosper him because of it. But that did not remove the wickedness from his life as he still worshipped his idol. And interestingly enough, his built in priest did not apparently direct him in the way that he should go as he still had the idols until they were stolen (Judges 17:5-13). "In those days there was no king in Israel, every man did what was right in his own eyes." (Judges 17:6).

Even Jesus' disciples wondered aloud which one did something wrong, the man or his parents, because the man was born blind (John 9:2). But not only the Israelites felt that way, even when Paul was shipwrecked on Malta and was scarcely saved, while he was adding wood to the fire a viper came out because of the heat and bit Paul. The natives that watched the incident murmured among themselves,

Acts 28:4 When the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they began saying to one another,

"Undoubtedly this man is a murderer, and though he has been saved from the sea, justice has not

allowed him to live."

With all these preconceived notions, and to find our answer of "Why were the eighteen killed by the tower of Siloam?" we turn to,

Luke 13:1-5 Now on the same occasion there were some present who reported to Him about the

Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. And Jesus said to them, "Do you suppose

that these Galileans were greater sinners that all other Galileans because they suffered this fate? I tell

you , no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. Or do you suppose that those eighteen on

whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them were worse culprits that all the men who live in

Jerusalem? I tell you, no, but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish."

So there we have the answer to our question, and it is that they did not do anything bad to receive their fate. They were just in the wrong place at the wrong time and were killed. Their lives on this earth are over and their epitaph's are set for the final judgment. But they were no worse than any other in Jerusalem.

Paul says, "The Lord will deliver me from every evil deed,…" How can he say this when he was stoned and left for dead (Acts 14:19), five times he received thirty-nine lashes, along with many other continuous distresses (Acts 11:23-28), and history saying that he was beheaded in Rome? Well, let's finish the sentence, "…and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen. (2 Timothy 4:18). Even though life was not always a bed of roses to Paul, he learned how to be content in every circumstance (Philippians 4:11), he has fought the good fight of faith and in the future the crown of righteousness awaits not only him, but all those who love His appearing (2 Timothy 4:7-8). In his difficult life Paul fulfills Jesus' prophecy about himself as Jesus told Ananias about Saul (Paul), But the Lord said to him, "Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine, to bear my name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel; for I will show him how much he must suffer for my name's sake." (Acts 9:15-16). Yes, difficult tests are allowed to happen to us by the Lord. But they will either break us down or as we overcome them, strengthen us to become better people as we walk like our Lord upon this earth in obedience to Him for life, and that is eternal life! Men may take our lives, but they cannot take our souls away from us, but we are to fear Him who can (Matthew 10:28).