Sin Is Madness


Madness is connected with evil (Eccl 9:3, ESV). Sometimes, insanity is one of God’s judgments for sin (Dt 28:28, LXX; Zec 12:4; cf. 2 Ki 9:20). How does He do this? He might allow tragedy to so overwhelm us that we cannot handle it and go insane (Dt 28:34, LB). Another method could be to let us have spiritual experiences that are so outside our comprehension that we become mentally imbalanced (Lk 2:47, Wuest). A further way is for the Lord to allow the demonic to influence us (1 Sam 18:10, LB). Not all mental illness is a result of demonic attack, though, as the distinction between the two is shown in Mt 4:24 (CEV; Phillips-2nd ed).  

There are times when we attribute insanity to what is actually spiritual health. At one point, Jesus’ own family thought He was insane (Mk 3:21, Wuest). Likewise, the rebellious in Hosea’s time thought that spiritual individuals, who lived under the guidance of God’s Spirit, were crazy (Hos 9:7, NCV).

How do we deal with mental illness? We must remember that we are required to keep ourself sane (2 Tim 4:5, NEB). If insanity is caused by the demonic, obviously we must cast out the demons. People found the man from whom the demons had gone out to no longer be crazy but to be in his right mind (Lk 8:35, NIV) – and they could tell he was in his right mind, in large part, because he was acting appropriately. On the other hand, if the mental illness is not caused by the demonic, then several things are important. The first is repentance. According to Lk 15:17 (NASB), the prodigal son “came to his senses.” This portrays sinning against the Lord as a type of insanity with repentance as the first step in returning to sound mental health (WSNT note on Lk 15:17). Second, we need to operate in God’s wisdom and perspective because living by His wisdom can keep us sane (Prov 8:12, Message). Finally, we need to use our faith (Rom 12:3, Beck) and walk by His Spirit because He is a Spirit of sanity (2 Tim 1:7, AB-1987). And, yes, there are times we need the help of wise counselors to help us.



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