It’s easy to become discouraged when we see evil and evil people prospering and seemingly getting away with their deeds. Whatever godly people there were in Israel when Gideon died, his family slaughtered, and his bastard son became king, were certainly distressed!
In Psalm 37, David weaves this concern with the believer’s necessity of trusting God to do justly and good for His people. Whatever evil people do, believers must do what is good. In God’s own time and way, He gives everyone what they deserve: He brings true and righteous justice.

I. An Evil Spirit (Judg 9:22-25). Untrustworthy Abimelech didn’t trust the men who helped him gain power. Three years into Abimelech’s reign, God sent a spirit of ill will (Judg 9:23), to create conflict between the king and his supporters. God was in control of this spirit, sending it to accomplish His purpose, just as He’d done by sending famine (Ezek 5:16), wild animals (Ezek 14:21), warfare (Ezek 14:21), plague and disease (Ezek 19:19, 21), violence (Ezek 23:3), and natural disaster (Ezek 39:6).
The Hebrew term spirit can denote a human attitude, or a spirit being, like an angel, demon, or even the Third Person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit. God sent this spirit to stir up conflict between King Abimelech and his supporters.
This spirit of ill will, whether a demon or a bad attitude, replaced the spirit of good will Abimelech had with the Shechemites earlier (Judg 9:2-3). The spirit of ill will was purposely sent by God to stir up conflict between the king and his supporters. As individuals and merchants traveled through the valley between Mt Gerizim and Mt Ebal, the king’s supporters began robbing travelers on the highway.
The writer of the Judges insists that we remember to view everything in Judges as God’s direct work. He is sovereign, and sovereignly carrying out His eternal will and purpose. And while men do their worst and think they are winning, God is ruling and working all things (1 Ki 22; Is 45:7; Amos 3:6).

II. God’s Methods Are Not Ours. As the Creator of all things, God is also in control of all things. He sovereignly rules in and over the universe He created, sustains, and will bring to an end at His time and manner. He is sovereign, even when evil seems to be winning. While God is not the author of evil (Jas 1:12-18), He uses all things that He created to fulfill His will, even using evil men and demons.
Men will do their worst. They will think they are winning, and it will even appear that way. But God is actively ruling and working all things according to His eternal will and determined end (1 Ki 22; Is 45:7; Amos 3:6).
The prophet Habakkuk lamented the godlessness of the southern kingdom of Judah. God would do something Habakkuk couldn’t understand. He would send the wicked and violent Babylonians to be His tool of judgment on Judah.
Habakkuk recoiled that God would use wicked pagans to discipline His own people (Hab 1:12-2:1). But God reminded the prophet that He was just. Judah would be disciplined for her sins, but God would also destroy Babylon for her sins, including her wicked ways against Judah. Everyone, in His way and at His time, would receive what they deserved. And God’s people have the promise of His strength, provision, and joy in our Saviour (Hab 3:16-19).

III. God’s Great Purpose. It’s easy be discouraged by the active works of evil around us; Scripture reminds us, however, that God is also actively at work. He is working all these things in life together for good in the lives of His people, who love Him and are the called according to His purpose: glorification of His saints in His presence for eternity (Rom 8:28-30).