Evidence · Case 06 · Problem of Evil
The book of Revelation on the end of suffering
One exhibit from the free evidence repository at apologetics.pro.
John’s vision of the renewed creation says God “will wipe away every tear,” and that death, mourning, crying, and pain will all be gone. This is the endpoint we’re pointing toward: not suffering explained away now, but suffering brought to an end in the end.
Sources
Revelation 21:4, NASB
Objections & responses
- The same book of Revelation describes a lake of fire and eternal torment for most of humanity. A God who ends suffering for some by inflicting infinite suffering on others hasn’t solved the problem of evil; he has made it eternal.
The doctrine of hell is the largest question this case does not take up on its own, and the objection is a fair one. Christians hold different views: eternal conscious torment, annihilation, and universal restoration all have defenders who take Scripture seriously, and the shape of the afterlife is an area where thoughtful Christians genuinely differ. What can be said here is that Revelation presents judgment as the removal of evil from the new creation, not as gratuitous suffering; whether that removal requires everlasting torment is exactly the debate. It is the hardest case, and nothing here should be read as if it had been answered.