The world is, for the most part, good, but because of our distorted perspective we sometimes perceive it to be predominantly evil. Most of the bad things in this world are not caused by external events, but are the result of human action. People often suffer because of their own character and personality flaws – for instance, due to the uncontrollable pre-occupation with physical desires.

Those who think the world is mostly evil are mistaken:

People often think that there is more evil in the world than good; many sayings and songs of the nations dwell on this idea. They say that it is rare to find a good event, whereas evil events are numerous and lasting. Not only do common people make this mistake, but even many who believe that they are wise…. The reason for this error is that this ignorant man, and those like him among the common people, judge the whole world by looking at only one single person. For an ignorant man believes that the whole world exists only for him; as if he is the only relevant factor. If, therefore, anything happens to him that he does not like, he at once concludes definitively that the whole universe is evil. If, however, he were to just consider all of existence and comprehend what a small part of the universe he actually is, the truth would become clear. For this misconception has become widespread in that people see [only] the multitude of evils in the world… Their only focus is on certain individuals in the human species. What we actually have to consider is this: Every individual in mankind that is alive at present, and a fortiori, those of every other species of animals, are of infinitesimally small value in the context of the universe as a whole.

What are the causes of evil in the world?

The first type of evil is that which happens to people due to the natural reality of creation and decay; namely, that they possess a physical body…. You will, nevertheless, find that the evils of this kind that befall man are very few and only happen rarely…. The second type of evil consists of the harm that people cause to each other…. The causes of this are numerous and well known; this kind of evil is nevertheless not widespread among people in any country of the world. On the contrary, it happens rarely…. This type of evil does affect many people in the course of great wars, but even these are not frequent in the world as a whole. The third type of evil consists of that which a person causes to himself by his own actions. This is the largest group…. All people complain especially about this type of evil…. This evil stems from man’s vices, such as excessive desire for eating, drinking, and sexual activity, over-indulgence and bad habits in these areas, or poor-quality food. (Rambam, Guide of the Perplexed III:12)

External appearances can be deceiving, and can even evoke the exact opposite interpretation of what is really happening. To someone who does not understand medicine, a surgeon might appear to be torturing an innocent and helpless person, cutting into his flesh with a sharp knife. But the moment we explain to him that he is watching a sensitive and humane, experienced surgeon trying to save the life of a patient, his interpretation of the entire scene transforms. A superficial view of suffering and misfortune likewise can evoke a gross misconception of what they really are, and create a mistaken picture of a painful world. Suffering is certainly meant for man’s good.

Man sees the external picture:

To clarify this idea I will use an analogy from the world of medicine: A person without any proper knowledge of medicine enters the operating room of a hospital. He sees in front of him a naked and helpless man lying on a table, surrounded by masked people who are holding lethal weapons (knives and other instruments). The masked men cut, poke, and extract this hopeless man’s blood, ignoring the groans of their drugged and immobilized victim. The stranger’s instinctive reaction would be to call for help: “Sadists are attacking a helpless man and mercilessly torturing him!” From his limited perspective and based on his “understanding” of medicine there is no doubt in his mind that he is witnessing first-degree murder.

The inner meaning of what he witnessed:

Had the stranger known that what he was witnessing was, in fact, a vital medical operation to save the life and health of the sick patient, he would easily have understood that those few hours of suffering on the operating table were not only tolerable but essential. The stranger would have been able to see and even to prove that the surgeons were not only not murderers, but exactly the opposite, deeply humanitarian people doing a great service to a sick man. He would maintain this impression even though [he knows that] the doctors are only human, cannot guarantee the success of the operation or the patient’s complete recovery, and do not know how long the patient will live even if the operation succeeds.

The divine plan:

From all of this you can understand that during a person’s lifetime in this world it is possible that [he will experience] periods of pain and suffering (either real or imaginary). But we know and can bear witness that all of this is [guided by] divine providence. It is clear to us that things do not “just happen” in our world. Painful events like these are part of the divine plan that takes into account the individual, his family, all other people [affected by it], and whatever happens to them. A person who thinks rationally will understand that the things that happened to him are, in truth, part of a system of divine providence at work in the world. [Our inability to understand suffering] is because we do not accept the [divine] promise of the Doctor or the Surgeon that great benefit will come from the temporary pain and suffering. (Rabbi Menaĥem Mendel Schneerson, Emuna UMada, p. 84)

When Rabbi Shmelke of Nikolsburg visited the maggid (preacher) of Mezritch for the first time, he complained that he did not understand the meaning of the rabbinic statement: “One is obligated to recite a blessing for the bad [that befalls him] just as he recites a blessing for the good” (Berakhot 54a).