Divine chastisement

13 There were some present at that very time who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 And he answered them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? 3 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. 4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish” (Lk 13:1-5). 

9 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him (Jn 9:1-3). 

4 But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it (Jn 11:4). 

i) Natural evils are sometimes remedial or retributive punishment for sin. 

ii) However, natural evils can, and often do, befall the righteous and unrighteous alike. Much suffering is due to original sin rather than personal sin. Due to the fall, humans are liable to suffering or death by disease, senescence, war, murder, starvation, poisoning, fatal accident, fire, natural disaster, &c. 

iii) Apart from special revelation, we can't justifiably conclude that a particular illness or tragedy is divine punishment. Sometimes that's the case, but in many situations, that's not the case. Ironically, that connection is made by health-and-wealth charlatans.

There are heretics, infidels, or generally wicked folk who lead long, healthy, comfortable lives, viz. Hugh Hefner (89-), Robert Mugabe (91-), Adolf Grünbaum (92-), Mary Midgley (96-), Bertrand Russell (d. 97), W. V. O. Quine (d. 92), Martin Gardner (d. 95), Edward Teller (d. 95), Linus Pauling (d. 93), Leo XIII (d. 93), Hans Bethe (d. 98), Ernst Mayr (d. 100), John Hick (d. 90), Harry Emerson Fosdick (d. 91), Leni Riefenstahl (d. 101), Charles Hartshorne (d. 103). 

So there's nothing approaching a one-to-one correspondence between holiness/orthodoxy and good fortune, or sin/heresy and ill-fortune. Indeed, there's no probable correlation.  

Conversely, there are devout Christians who had short, often hard lives. Westminster Divine George Gillespie died at 35. Missionary Jim Elliot died at 28. Missionary Eric Liddell died at 43 of brain cancer. Robert Murray M'Cheyne died at 29. Missionary David Brainerd died at 29.

iv) We need to distinguish between individual divine judgment and collective divine judgment. In the nature of the case, collective judgments are indiscriminate. If God unleashes a pestilence on a community, those who become sick or die will be those with the least natural resistance to the contagion or those with the greatest contact, not those who are the most sinful. Collective judgments don't target sinners. Innocent and guilty alike will suffer.

v) There's a big difference between allowing for the possibility that ill-fortune is punishment for sin, and presuming that to be the case. Scripture warns us to avoid judgmental inferences (e.g. Job; Lk 13:1-5; Jn 9:1-3; 11:4). 

vi) Since illness and tragedy are sometimes divine chastisement, a suffering Christian should make allowance for that possibility and consider if there are unexamined sins of omission or commission in his life. If, after he rectifies the problem, the illness abates, that might be evidence that it was remedial punishment. Even then, that's iffy.