If Krsna knows everything, how can we have free will?

If Krsna knows everything, how is it that it's also said we have free will? These two ideas don't appear to go well together. If things are predetermined, how can we have free will?

It's described that Krsna knows everything, past present, and future. For example, on SB 3.24.33, Prabhupada mentions that "He is the time element and is all-cognizant. He knows everything—past, present, and future—as confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā. The Lord says, "I know everything—present, past, and future—in every corner of the universe." The material world, which is moving under the spell of the three modes of nature, is also a manifestation of His energy."

Krsna Himself declares in the Bhagavad-gītā that "O Arjuna, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, I know everything that has happened in the past, all that is happening in the present, and all things that are yet to come. I also know all living entities; but Me no one knows."

The words He uses are vedāhaṁ (I know) samatītāni (the complete past), vartamānāni (the present) cārjuna (and also, Arjuna), bhaviṣyāṇi (the future) ca bhūtāni (and also all living entities). The simple construction of the verse leaves no doubts that this is indeed what He implies.

It makes sense that being the Supreme Lord, Krsna is all-powerful and knows everything. Time itself is just another of His potencies, that he uses to impregnate the material energy and produce the material manifestation. Everything in the material creation exists under the purview of time, but Krsna is not only trikālātīta (beyond past, present, and future), but He is the controller of time itself.

However, this creates an apparent contradiction. If Krsna knows everything, how is it that it's also said we have free will? These two ideas don't appear to go well together. If Krsna knows the future, then the immediate reaction is to conclude that the future is already determined. If the future is determined, it means we don't have free will. If we don't have free will, how is it that we are responsible for our activities?

You can see that this is a delicate philosophical point. How can it be explained?

It's actually quite simple. Krsna knows the future, but not in the sense that things are predetermined. It’s just because he knows everything. He has all the information and all the intelligence to process this information, therefore He can predict the actions and thoughts of everyone.

For example, everyone accepts that it's not possible to predict the ups and downs of the stock market with 100% certainty. One who has access to good information may make some educated guesses, and he may end up being correct more often than not. However, no human being will be able to predict anything with 100% certainty, because we don't have complete information about all the factors that affect the market and our intelligence is quite limited.

However, imagine a person who has complete information about everything. All the companies, all the markets, all the hidden numbers, everything people are thinking, and so on. Not only that, but he also has unlimited intelligence, and thus the capacity for processing all this information without mistake. Knowing all the factors involved, such a person would be able to predict the ups and downs of the stock market with 100% certainty. Having perfect information and perfect intelligence, he would make perfect forecasts.

Krsna is like that. He knows everything we are thinking, everything we desire, what we need, and all the factors involved. He knows everything. Because he has so much information and is unlimitedly intelligent, He can predict what will happen.

In this way, it’s not that we don’t have free will. We have free will; we choose at every moment what we do or don’t do. It’s just because Krsna has so much information that he can predict things perfectly. We are free to decide and take any path we choose, but Krsna can always predict our decisions because he knows us so well. That's just another facet of Krsna's transcendental opulence.