In one sense there is little need to write an article on specific things
God hates for it is evident that God hates all sin. Just list a sin
and you know immediately it is a thing God hates and a thing that
separates man from God. "Your iniquities have separated you from
your God; and your sins have hidden his face from you, so that He will not
hear." (Isa. 59:2 NKJV) As much as God loves man his nature is such
that he cannot tolerate sin.
He who knowingly sins shows disrespect for God and a lack of love for
him. "For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments."
(1 John 5:3 NKJV) "He who has my commandments and keeps them, it is
he who loves me." (John 14:21 NKJV) "If anyone loves me, he will
keep my word." (John 14:23 NKJV) "He who does not love me does not
keep my words." (John 14:24 NKJV) It is true we all sin through
weakness of the flesh but when we do we need to face up to the fact of
what it tells us about ourselves and then repent.
For a Christian to sin willfully is to trample the Son of God underfoot,
count the blood of the covenant a common thing, and insult the Spirit of
grace (Heb. 10:26-29). Considered this way one can see that God is
entirely just in making the wages of sin death (Rom. 6:23) and especially
in light of the fact he sent Jesus into the world to make a sacrifice of
himself on the cross to redeem man from sin. God's great love should
not be spurned and will not be by those having a good and honest
heart.
While God hates all sin and we are all well aware of that it still seems
to hit one with more force when the word of God specifically says of a
thing that God hates it or if he specifically says of a thing that it is
an abomination to him. Here is a list of such things as taken from
the Psalms and Proverbs.
(1) "The wicked and the one who loves violence his soul hates." (Psalm
11:5 NKJV) How much so? The next verse reads, "Upon the wicked
he will rain coals, fire and brimstone and a burning wind; this shall be
the portion of their cup." (Psalm 11:6 NKJV)
Wickedness is determined by God. We can only know wickedness from
righteousness by his word. "All your commandments are
righteousness." (Psalm 119:172 NKJV) "Salvation is far from the
wicked for they do not seek your statutes." (Psalm 119:155 NKJV) To
walk without the light of God's word is to walk as a blind man and leads
into wickedness. "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my
path" (Psalm 119:105 NKJV) but that is only true of the one who will
follow it.
(2) "These six things the Lord hates, yes, seven are an abomination to
him: a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a
heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a
false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren."
(Prov. 6:16-19 NKJV) In Prov. 16:18 the Bible teaches that, "Pride
goes before destruction." (NKJV) "Everyone who is proud in heart is
an abomination to the Lord." (Prov. 16:5 NKJV) In Mark
7:22-23 Jesus listed pride as an evil thing that comes from within and
defiles a man.
As for liars, the book of Revelation tells us, "All liars shall have
their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the
second death." (Rev. 21:8 NKJV)
I really do not think it necessary to speak of the other things listed in
this Prov. 6 passage for we all know what the Bible says about murderers
("hands that shed innocent blood"), wickedness, evil, and false witnesses
who are liars, but I do think it might be good to take a moment to speak
of those who sow discord among brethren. It is a thing God hates but
some people thrive on stirring things up. We might well use the word
strife here for the meaning is the same.
Strife can be aroused as the result of hatred (Prov. 10:12), pride (Prov.
13:10, 28:25), anger or wrath (Prov. 15:18, 29:22), and/or pure perversity
(Prov. 16:28). Proverbs 16:28 deals with perversity and strife and
helps clarify the nature of a perverse man.
"An ungodly man digs up evil, and it is on his lips like a burning
fire. A perverse man sows strife, and a whisperer separates the best
of friends." (Prov. 16:27-28 NKJV)
The note in the NET Bible says of this perverse man, "This refers to someone who destroys lives. The parallelism suggests that
he is a 'slanderer' or 'gossip' — one who whispers and murmurs."
This goes along with Prov. 26:20, "Where there is no wood, the fire goes
out; and where there is no talebearer, strife ceases." (NKJV) "The
perverse person is an abomination to the Lord." (Prov. 3:32 NKJV)
John Gill, the well-known eighteenth-century Bible commentator, says the
perverse person of this passage (Prov. 3:32) "is one that acts contrary to
the nature, will, and word of God." It is a person who "goes astray"
as the NET Bible puts it. Some translations use the word "devious"
(HCSB, ESV) rather than perverse so we get the idea of an ungodly person
who does not care about God or keeping his word. The NAS77, the
original New American Standard Bible, uses the phrase "the crooked
man." Such a person is an abomination to God. Such a person
sows discord, he is devious.
The one who sows discord among brethren not only sins himself but
generally speaking leads others into sin as they begin to grow angry with
one another because of what he has said and done to stir up strife.
In turn, they end up saying and doing things they ought not and developing
hearts that are less than pure.
The church is not to tolerate and celebrate sin in its midst (see 1 Cor.
5, 2 Thess. 3:6). We are to have corrective discipline in the church
and it would be sinful not to; we are to "reject a divisive man after the
first and second admonition." (Titus 3:10 NKJV) This divisive man is
likely to find fault, sin, and error everywhere even when it exists mainly
in his own mind. He is a sower of discord.
In addition to perversity and its relationship to the sowing of discord
here are some other things that the Bible says in the Proverbs that are an
abomination to God. I will try not to repeat things already listed
above which are repeated elsewhere in the Psalms and Proverbs.
(3) "Those who are of a perverse heart are an abomination to the
Lord." (Prov. 11:20 NKJV) This differs from the above only in that
it goes deeper into the very heart of a man. One might say well as
long as a man does not do the deed he can think as he pleases. Not
so according to the Lord.
The Bible has much to say about God reading a man's heart and knowing it,
a topic for another article, but the bottom line is it is the pure in
heart that shall see God (Matt. 5:8). This passage from Proverbs
clearly teaches the state of a man's heart toward God, God's word, and
toward his fellow man makes a big, big difference with God. The
Psalmist said, "If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear."
(Psalm 66:18 NKJV) True it is that the perverse in heart will act
out in life but he is a condemned man because of the state of his heart
even before he acts.
Proverbs 15:26 teaches much the same thing but uses the word "wicked"
instead of "perverse." "The thoughts of the wicked are an
abomination to the Lord." (NKJV)
(4) "A false balance is an abomination to the Lord." (Prov. 11:1
NKJV, see also Prov. 20:10 and 20:23) For the younger generation who
might not know a false balance is a reference to "false scales" and the
passage has reference to one who sets out to cheat another, in reality,
steal from him, by using a dishonest measure. By implication, it is
necessarily implied that any attempt to cheat another person out of their
goods or short them in a sale, in a dishonest fashion of any kind or means
is abominable to the Lord. It is just and fair for a merchant to
make a profit as long as it is an honest profit, not one made by devious
means.
(5) "The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord."
(Prov. 15:8 NKJV, see also Prov. 21:27) One cannot just go through
the motions of worship, even if making a sacrifice to do so, and think God
is going to be pleased. Cain found this out very early in the
history of man. The sacrifice that is pleasing to God is a broken
and contrite heart. "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a
broken and a contrite heart-- these, O God, you will not despise." (Psalm
51:17 NKJV) This is the very sacrifice the wicked will not give
God. Repentance is far from them.
We also must remember God gets to define wickedness, not you or me.
A person may in fact be sincere in heart and not fit into the category of
those I just spoke about and yet his worship is unacceptable to God.
Why? Because it is authorized by man, not by God. Man, without
necessarily having ill intent, may worship God in ways thought up by other
men and handed down by tradition and not worship by what God's word has
taught him. The Bible says, Jesus quoting from the book of Isaiah,
"In vain they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men."
(Mark 7:7 NKJV) Some of these doctrines taught by the commandments
of men in our own time deal with how men should worship but God, not man,
gets to define what is acceptable worship.
(6) "He who justifies the wicked, and he who condemns the just,
both of them alike are an abomination to the Lord." (Prov. 17:15
NKJV) Wow! This one can easily arouse a lot of anger and
bitterness among men, especially in the realm of politics. How many
people are there when it comes to election season here in America want to
justify candidates who hold unscriptural positions? Unfortunately,
there are many. The Bible says it is an abomination.
Many in high positions of power and influence are today justifying
unscriptural marriage, fornication, abortion, homosexuality, and sexual
perversions, and yet we advocate for such men and women at election
time. They say we must separate politics and religion at the voting
box. However, I have never found that passage in my New
Testament. I will keep looking.
On the other hand, how many do we have today who will gladly condemn the
Christian who holds to Christian teaching from the word of God? The
number is growing every day as America becomes more and more
secular. They condemn the just because the just will not go along
with gay marriage or abortion or the secular agenda and it is said we are
denying civil rights and are engaged in a war against women, we are haters
and intolerant, and ignorant (ignorant for believing in God and the word
of God). The unjust are now setting the standards by which they
expect America to live but the Bible says, "those who hate the righteous
shall be condemned." (Psalm 34:21 NKJV)
One final thought on this. In the personal realm, we cannot justify
or uphold a son or daughter, a mother or dad, a sister or brother, a
husband or wife, or any other relative or friend engaged actively in
sin. It is an abomination to God. Who says so? God does
in Proverbs 17:15.
(7) "One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his
prayer is an abomination." (Prov. 28:9 NKJV) Sometimes we hear
people saying things like the more that are praying for you the
better. Well, yes, if they are the right kind of people.
However, if people are going to be praying for me I am more interested in
who is doing the praying rather than the number doing it. "The eyes
of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their cry." (Psalm 34:15 NKJV) Not every man's prayer is going to
help.
Those caught up in all kinds of false doctrine, believing it and
promoting it, are not going to do me much good according to this verse
(Prov. 29:9) and no more so than the man who is totally ungodly.
There are religious bodies doing things in the name of Christianity that
you cannot find a word of authority for in your New Testament and yet the
Holy Spirit says, "Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of
the Lord Jesus." (Col. 3:17 NKJV) It is hard to do a thing in
the name of the Lord Jesus when the Lord Jesus gave no word on it.
To do a thing in the name of the Lord Jesus is to do it by his authority,
by his word. Where there is no word there is no authority. To
act without the word is to turn away from hearing the law and do as you
please.
This completes a listing of things God says he hates or that are an
abomination to him from the book of Psalms and the book of Proverbs but I
think it would be good to go outside these two books and list three other
things God finds abominable or hates because of their application to
modern-day life here in the United States.
"You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an
abomination." (Lev. 18:222 NKJV) I list this because it is a sin
listed in the New Testament—see 1 Cor. 6:9 in the English Standard
Version--and there is a big push in the U.S. to legalize this sin and make
it a civil right (gay marriage). If they succeed will it be any less
an abomination to God in view of the fact he has condemned it in the New
Testament as well as the Old?
"One commits abomination with his neighbor's wife." (Ezek. 22:11
NKJV) This is listed because adultery is as much a sin under the New
Testament as it was under the Law of Moses and God declares it an
abomination. Literally millions of Americans have and/or are
presently engaged in this sin not just by having illicit affairs alone but
by living in adulterous marriages. The word neighbor in this passage
should not be limited to the woman next door. It was never meant to
be defined that narrowly.
And finally, God has made it clear that he hates divorce. "For the
Lord God of Israel says that he hates divorce." (Mal. 2:16 NKJV) I
also wanted to include this passage for it is such a common sin in America
today. Do not misunderstand. Just because you are divorced it
does not mean that you were/are the guilty party but in every divorce at
least one party has sinned and as is sometimes the case both parties
have. God hates it. Just about every time you find a divorce,
there are exceptions, of course, you will find another woman or man
involved and thus you have not only divorce but adultery also.
This concludes this piece but I would have the reader remember what was
said in the first paragraph of this article. God hates all sin and
its wages are death (Rom. 6:23). We all need forgiveness and have
the need to put away sin from our lives once and for all as far as is
humanly possible.
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