Why does God not punish the wicked? This is the central question here. The mystery of creation (Gn 1:2) is given as an answer: all things exist because God wills it, and he mercifully reserves—an extension of divine creative power—an end for each of them (Gn 9:6; Judg 1:6f; 1 Sam 15:23; Prov 5:22). For example, it explains how the Egyptians suffered the punishment of animal plagues (Ex 8-10) because they had sinned by worshipping them—in Egypt, snakes, crocodiles, lizards, and toads were worshipped. Idolatry is not limited to the past. Many forms of worship today still show it—money, abuse of power, etc. Using the language of the book of Wisdom, it can be said that in sin lies punishment.