Evil in St. Augustine’s Confessions and St. Matthew’s Gospel

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a nonbeing, which is to say that it is the illusion of defying God even though in reality one cannot truly go against his will. Both of these arguments have correlation in the Gospel of Matthew, with the second being by far the most strongly supported. However, a close reading of the scripture would add a third dimension to the puzzle -- that in this book it seems sins of commission are defined by the conscience of the offender, yet it is sins of omission which truly matter before God.
Augustine's first argument (in his Book 2 of his Confessions) suggests that people usually sin not so much out of evil intent, per se, but because they are seeking in worldly and sinful ways to achieve ends which God alone may grant. Humankind has certain things which are seen as being good and valuable -- and generally these are things which were in fact granted to them by God -- and will seek to gain these things. However, people have a tendency to seek these things under their own power, rather ...

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the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?" (Matthew 6:25) One might assume, as Augustine does, that this commandment is designed so that people will not sin in trying to provide for themselves the things which (Jesus tells them) God Himself will provide for them. They should not try to play God.
However, a definition of sin that is based solely on pre-empting God's role in our lives, and fulfilling good needs through bad means does not quite explain the many verses in Matthew which suggest two more definitions of sin. First, there are a few verses which suggest that sin may exist because it is the will of God that it be allowed, and that though it seek to defy him it is in ...

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