Mike,

I was also wondering what causes evil dreams? I think it is our own mind, but I often hear people say,”the devil caused you to have that evil dream.”
The other night I had a dream where this guy was working on a railroad and about a 12 inch nail went into his eye. When he ran to the bathroom to see his face, he was shaking and bleeding. It really hurt!. He was looking into the mirror and was horrified. He leaned his head back and smacked his head on the counter, driving the nail through his entire head.
My mom said there is something evil going on in this house because she also had a very evil dream where I got shot.
I think it is our own minds and thoughts. Besides, how could Satan cause those thoughts? Does he stand over you and because he is near you he causes evil thoughts? That seems stupid. How would he have the power to give us evil thoughts?

J____

Hi J____,
Thank you for your question.
You ask:

What causes evil dreams?

The short and simple answer is that God is the ultimate “cause” of all things good and evil. This Truth is a scriptural no- brainer. It is God who is working “all things after the counsel of His own will.”

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

Evil dreams have been used by God in scripture to bring about the salvation of His people on at least two occasions that come to mind.
Pharaoh had two evil dreams which led to bringing Joseph out of prison, placing Joseph on the throne of Egypt, and through Joseph, the saving of both Egypt and Israel.
Nebuchadnezzar had an evil dream which he could not remember. God gave the same dream to Daniel along with the meaning of that dream. This too, led to placing Daniel and His friends in power “over all the province of Babylon.”
Those two events are one and the same event. It is the “one event to all men” mentioned in Ecc 9:2.

Ecc 9:2  All things come alike to all: there is one event to the righteous, and to the wicked; to the good and to the clean, and to the unclean; to him that sacrificeth, and to him that sacrificeth not: as [ is] the good, so [ is] the sinner; [ and] he that sweareth, as [ he] that feareth an oath.

That “one event” is the death of our old, first Adam. It is an event from which our flesh recoils, but which is, in reality, the very best thing that will ever happen to any of us. Here is the scriptural proof of that Truth:

Joh 12:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.
Mat 10:39  He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.
Pro 16:4  The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.
Ecc 7:1  A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one’s birth.
Ecc 7:8  Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.

Not one of those verses computes in the mind of the natural man. Yet the entirety of God’s word is declaring this Truth. It culminates in the book of Revelation, which simply documents the dying of our old man, and his entire system, by the appearing of Christ in our lives. What should be considered a wonderful work in the lives of mankind, is instead looked upon either as the work of a monster, or the result of our own bad choices. Neither is True and this is the wonderful ‘apocalyptic’ truth concerning every evil deed ever conceived of, dreamed of, or ever done:

Gen 45:8  So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.

Paul agrees with Joseph concerning all our evil deeds in this life:

Rom 7:17  Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Rom 7:18  For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but [ how] to perform that which is good I find not.
Rom 7:19  For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
Rom 7:20  Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Rom 7:21  I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.

We find in the very next chapter that “law” is “the law of sin and death'” which is innate to all flesh by God’s design:

Psa 51:5  Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.

“In… flesh there is no good thing,” and that is why we are told so emphatically that whether it is the flesh of an innocent 2 year old child, or the flesh of Christ Himself, the Truth still remains:

1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

All the twisted sermons on the subject of “spiritual flesh” cannot, and will not change that Truth. The truth of God’s Word is:

1Co 15:44  It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.

It does not say ‘There is an natural spiritual body.’ Here rather is the nature of a “spiritual body.”

Joh 3:6  That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
Joh 3:7  Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
Joh 3:8  The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

Does that sound like Christ believed in a ‘natural spiritual’ body, or a ‘spiritual physical’ body? I think not!
So all of the nightmares ever experienced by mankind, are so terrible because mankind is so attached to the flesh and to the things of the flesh. While no true Christian would ever commit suicide nor encourage anyone else to do so, yet a true Christian understands that this life is but a necessary “evil experience” which God has “given to man to humble him.”

Ecc 1:13 I applied my heart to inquiring and exploring by wisdom concerning all that is done under the heavens: it is an experience of evil Elohim has given to the sons of humanity to humble them by it.

… and a true Christian understands that ‘the day of one’s death is better than the day of one’s birth’ (Ecc 7:1).

You say:

I think it is our own mind, but I often hear people say, ‘the devil caused you to have that evil dream.’

No, it is neither the Devil or our mind. Our very thoughts are the work of our Creator.

Pro 16:1  The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD.
Gen 45:8  So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.

Selling Joseph into Egypt, like the murder of our Lord, was an extremely evil deed. The murder of Christ was the most evil deed ever committed, and yet who are we clearly told was the real author of that deed? Who was the real original author of that evil deed? There is simply no escaping it. Here is who came up with that plan and caused it to be carried out, down to the minutest detail:

Act 4:26  The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.
Act 4:27  For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,
Act 4:28  For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.
Pro 16:1  The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD.

Is God the author of all of this evil, but not the author of your evil dreams? I think not! Your mother is exactly right, “There is something evil going on in this house.” But that evil is not unique to your house or her house. “It is an evil experience which God has given to the sons of humanity, to humble them by it.”
The nail in the eye in your dream is the death of your old wicked way of seeing things. That way, along with all flesh, must be destroyed and nailed to the cross with all flesh, which will then be replaced by a “new man.”

2Co 5:17  Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

By simply knowing this and seeing the scriptures which insist that all flesh is doomed to destruction, we are killing those who would kill us. But we still have to relinquish this vessel of clay at the time of “the redemption of the purchased possession.”
Here is how that is worded in the books of Revelation and Ephesians:

Rev 11:5  And if any man will hurt them [ those who witness to this Truth], fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.
Rev 11:6  These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.
Rev 11:7  And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.
Rev 11:8  And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

It wasn’t someone else who killed our Lord, it was me and you. Until we see that “any man who will hurt them” is not outside of us but is within, we will never come to know who is truly the worst enemy any of us will ever face. The two witnesses that “any man who will hurt them” are both within us. Those two parties are the old and the new man, within us all. That enemy who we all must face, sits on the throne of God in each of our hearts, and as long as he succeeds in keeping our focus ‘out there’, he will maintain his domination over the throne of God in our hearts and minds.
The harlot, the seven kings, the ten kings and any man who will hurt God’s witnesses, are one and all within each of us, and are one and all to be destroyed with the brightness of His coming.

2Th 2:5  Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
2Th 2:6  And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth [ same Greek word translated ‘withhold’ in verse 6] will let, until he be taken out of the way.
2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

The Lord will consume and destroy all who oppose Him. The outcome is sure. If we are with Him then we, too, will consume and destroy all who oppose Him, because He is in us, and He never changes. So your mother’s dream about you getting “shot” is not necessarily a negative thing. If it symbolizes the death of the old you, it is a very good thing, and that is what I want to think is taking place.
God knows what He is doing and He will give you the understanding He wants you to have.

Job 33:14  For God speaketh once, yea twice, yet man perceiveth it not.
Job 33:15  In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falleth upon men, in slumberings upon the bed;
Job 33:16  Then he openeth the ears of men, and sealeth their instruction,

It is when we are in our most vulnerable state, that “the Lord opens our spiritual ears and seals our instructions to us.” Here are a few of those instructions, which your dream and your mother’s dream demonstrate:

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
1Co 3:21  Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours;
1Co 3:22  Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours;
1Co 3:23  And ye are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s.
Rom 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

All things, the good and the evil, “work together for good.” I hope this all helps you to see that all dreams, as well as all other things, are all of God, who is working all things after the counsel of His own will. I hope this helps you to see that “all things present and future, are ours,” and I hope this serves to give you the faith to believe that “all things work together for good…” because it is God who has “predestined” it to be so. It is plainly so stated right here in the very next verses in Rom 8 and in Ephesians one:

Rom 8:29  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be  conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Rom 8:30  Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.
Rom 8:31  What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

And that “will” of His was predestined before we ever were; even the day of your and your mother’s dreams.

Psa 139:16  Thine eyes did see mine unformed substance; And in thy book they were all written, Even the days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was none of them(ASV).

What it all comes down to is that your dreams and all other things in your life are always God working His work for your good in your life.

Your brother in Christ,
Mike