Brent Pollard
Some believe chronic illness is evidence of unrepentant sin or demonic oppression. Before evaluating that claim, we should consider how the Fall affected the human body.
From “Very Good” to Death: How the Fall Changed Human Life
When God created the world, and all it contains, He declared it very good (Genesis 1.31). This was no ordinary superlative; it expressed the harmony, beauty, and fitness of all He had made. Goodness, then, is not a human construct but a divine attribute woven into creation. This declaration also suggests that humanity’s fall corrupted what was good from the beginning.
God warned that disobedience would bring death (Genesis 2.16-17). This death involved separation from God and, because humanity was barred from the tree of life, the loss of the perfect food that sustained physical immortality (Genesis 3.22-24). Thus, the Fall brought both spiritual and physical death.
The process became fully apparent only after the effects of the Global Flood took hold. Before then, people lived for hundreds of years; afterward, lifespans declined to “by measure of strength” eighty years (Psalm 90.10). In this way, as mortality replaced immortality, death became the natural end of human life.
The Curse, Genetic Decay, and Shorter Lifespans
What happened to fallen humanity? In short, life no longer supported longevity. Adam and Eve would have had pristine DNA, free of flaws, copying errors, and hereditary diseases. As a result, their descendants could live for centuries and intermarry without the genetic risks people face today. Over generations, however, those conditions changed, and genetic vulnerabilities became increasingly significant.
After the Fall, the curse of decay described in Romans 8.20-22 entered the physical world. As cells copied genetic material, they began accumulating errors. These mutations were passed down through generations, gradually altering the human genome. In this account, mutations are overwhelmingly degenerative, leaving each generation with a slightly more degraded genome than the one before.
At the time of Noah’s Flood, humanity’s gene pool shrank to just eight people. Mutations within Noah’s family may have been passed down and become more common over generations, potentially contributing to an increase in genetic defects and a decline in lifespans.
Cut off from the Tree of Life, humans lost the divine sustaining power that may have prevented or reversed physical aging. Under the curse, natural decay led to genetic mutations that accumulated and compounded over generations, gradually diminishing human vitality to the limits we observe today.
Is All Sickness Caused by Sin or Demonic Oppression?
It is fair to attribute sickness and disease to the fallen human condition before considering other causes, such as demonic oppression. However, some attribute all illness to demonic oppression or other causes stemming from unrepentant sin, implying that chronically ill people brought their condition upon themselves.
Jesus’ disciples shared the assumption that the blind beggar’s congenital blindness resulted from his sins or his parents’ sins (John 9.2). Jesus rejected this view, explaining that the man’s blindness was not a basis for blame but an opportunity to reveal God’s work (John 9.3).
Paul was told something similar when he repeatedly pleaded for God to remove his “thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment” him (2 Corinthians 12.7). God did not remove the thorn—which some believe was a physical ailment—nor did He blame Paul for it. Instead, He showed Paul that the torment revealed the perfection of His power in weakness: His grace (2 Corinthians 12.9). In neither instance is the sufferer identified as a sinner who must repent to be healed or relieved; instead, relief—or strength to persevere—comes from God.
Lessons from Job’s Friends
We should therefore avoid blaming people for physical suffering, lest we resemble Job’s faithless friends, Bildad, Eliphaz, and Zophar. They repeatedly urged Job to repent of the hidden sin they assumed had caused his suffering (Job 8.5-6; 11.13-14; 22.23). Eliphaz even claimed that a dream had revealed truths about sinners that explained Job’s condition (Job 4.12-19).
Yet Job was righteous, and God allowed Satan to afflict him to demonstrate his righteousness. When God later appeared to Job and his companions, He led Job to repent—not of a hidden sin that had caused his adversity, but of speaking confidently about what he did not understand (Job 42.3).
The Woman Bent Double: Affliction Without Accusation
One notable account describes a woman who had suffered for eighteen years from a chronic condition attributed to Satanic influence. A spirit had left her “bent double,” unable to straighten up (Luke 13.11). Jesus nevertheless called her a “daughter of Abraham,” affirming her covenant relationship with God (Luke 13.16). The account does not link her affliction to unrepentant sin or suggest that she had to confess a hidden offense before being healed. Afterward, she glorified God (Luke 13.13).
The question is not whether Scripture records illnesses caused by evil spirits—it does—but who today has the authority to identify such a cause in another person. Jesus’ knowledge of the woman’s condition does not grant that authority to those who explain another person’s suffering. Neither the severity nor the duration of an illness proves demonic responsibility, much less hidden sin.
What Scripture Tells the Sick to Do
Scripture offers practical guidance for the sick. Timothy suffered from stomach problems and “frequent ailments” of unknown cause, and Paul recommended wine as medicine (1 Timothy 5.23). This suggests seeking medicinal remedies. Paul also traveled with a physician (Colossians 4.14). In addition, the sick may ask the elders to pray for them and anoint them with oil (James 5.14-15).
Can Illness Be God’s Discipline?
It would be intellectually dishonest to ignore the rest of James 5.15, which says that the elders’ prayers may also bring forgiveness of sins. The following verses similarly connect prayer and forgiveness, suggesting that some illnesses may be related to sin. If Paul is referring to physical sickness and death, 1 Corinthians 11.29-32 shows the Lord disciplining His people for profaning the Lord’s Supper through selfish and divisive behavior. Thus, some illnesses may result from God’s loving discipline (Hebrews 12.5-11). However, no one can attribute another person’s illness to God’s chastening; only God knows the heart (Acts 1.24; 15.8). As with the Corinthians, each person must examine their own actions and change as needed.
If we know of sins that need confessing, we should repent for the sake of our spiritual health, not merely our physical health. The problem arises when someone assumes, as Job’s friends did, that a person with chronic illness must be clinging to sin and needs deliverance from demonic oppression. How could they know? And if they don’t know, how can they offer deliverance through a “prayer of deliverance”? Asking the elders to pray for the sick is very different from presuming that the sick need deliverance from demonic oppression.
The Witness of Chronically Ill Christians
Why overlook the good that can come from the lives of the chronically ill? Their lives can magnify God’s grace and model perseverance. I remember a dear older sister with cancer who never missed a service. Though she had to lie in pain on the back pew, she loved the Lord and His people and wanted to worship, however limited her capacity. Her example, however, comes with an important caveat: recognizing her faithfulness does not mean Christians should seek suffering or treat illness as a badge of honor.
We can encourage others through our perseverance while still longing and praying for relief. Our sister’s example should not lead us to judge those whose illnesses prevent them from attending; their faithfulness may be evident in other ways. Illness reflects the brokenness of a fallen world, but God’s grace sustains His people. When their perseverance encourages us, may gratitude move us to help bear their burdens.
Caring for Those Who Suffer Without Adding Blame
We need not explain every illness to care faithfully for those who suffer. We can pray for healing, offer practical help, and encourage one another without claiming knowledge God has not given us. Those in Christ still await the redemption of their bodies (Romans 8.23), so ongoing illness proves neither hidden sin, failed repentance, nor demonic bondage. Suffering Christians need assurance of God’s love and the compassion of His people. Let us help bear their burdens without adding unfounded accusations.
