God created everything. John 1:1-4 says:

1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was with God in the beginning.

3Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.

So, the first response to this answer is "How can a loving God let evil into the world?" I will try to explain it the best way I know how.

God loves you and wants you to know what true love is. God wants to show you a love that would allow him to lay down his life for you and a love that surpasses time and understanding. BUT.... If all you had ever experienced in your life was love and happiness then you would not have any appreciation for the sacrifice that was made. The only way a human being can experience love is to have something to balance it against, or to have a comparison. There must be evil in the world in order for you to understand what real love is.

If, as a child, nothing bad ever happened to you then you wouldn't even know that bad stuff existed so you would always believe that everything was good. It is only after the first bad experience that you can feel good about the previous and future happy times.

God allows bad things to happen. God puts situations in your life that will teach you, show you, and grow you. He wants you to experience his love to the fullest, and you can if you will admit that you need him to save you from this sinful life and you allow him to work through you in an obedient faith.

Evil was created in a secret laboratory by Proctor and Gamble in 1952 as a high-industrial solvent and teeth whitener to boost lagging sales. Unfortunately, it performed poorly in test trials so the government purchased it to help reimburse P & G's research losses through an under-the-table deal. Evil sat accumulating dust on the shelf for many years until Richard Nixon heard about the product and found it made a good marinade and overall body wash. Obviously the side effects are now quite apparent but Evil still continues to have a strong underground following for many CEOs and heads of state.

Heavenly Father created Evil along with everything else. To know joy is to overcome sin. Life is like a testing area or school. We live, we learn, we die and hopefully wind up in a place much better than the hell we now live in.

"Evil" was solely the name of a marketing ploy used predominately throughout the 1970s and early '80s to generate capital. "..created in a secret laboratory by Proctor and Gamble in 1952 as a high-industrial solvent and teeth whitener to boost lagging sales"--this may be true, but I will argue that the REAL financial gain did not come until the first wave of hair-bands (before the guys of "Glam Metal" started using hairspray and wearing eyeliner).

WHEN: late 1970s and early '80s; WHY: Financial Gain; HOW: performance and praise in an arena full of stoned and hungry fans urinating and defecating on one another; WHO: from Accept to Black Sabbath to Iron Maiden to Lizzy Borden to Slayer, etc., there are far too many bands to name; WHERE: first throughout England and the United States, then soon many other European countries.

Whether or not any of these bands ever tried to commercially promote (or even personally used) any of this "high-industrial solvent and teeth whitener," or any "Evil" toothpaste whatsoever, could be the topic for a debate. So I'll leave that as "unknown."

God has a spiritual purpose for allowing affliction and hardships in our lives. That's the short answer. I can't give you the long answer until after I've endured and finished my life. Then, maybe, I'll be able to see the big picture.