Only bad people die young, or tragically, or painfully, because that would be fair. So surely, these unfortunates we read about in the headlines, surely they were especially bad people. But Jesus says, no. They were no worse than any one else. They just died unfortunately.
Bad things do happen to good people.
Wait a minute, I thought their deaths had nothing to do with their sins, or at least that their sins were no worse than anyone else s. Well, yes, that is part of what Jesus is saying. Death came into the world because human beings sinned. The wages of sin is death. But that isn t all that Jesus is saying.