Rob Bell says Love Wins. Bob Goff says Love Does. Joel Manby says Love Works. I say “love hates.” God himself, who is love (1 John 4:16) hates, even with a passion, and teaches us what to hate. God hates what harms the people he loves.
What Does Love Hate?
God is love, but many writers of scripture tell us what God hates. God’s most notable hate list, the seven abominations, is found in Proverbs 6:16-19: God hates “haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies, and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.”
The Old Testament emphasizes that God hates violence, evil and wickedness: “The Lord examines the righteous, but the wicked, those who love violence, he hates with a passion” (Psalm 11:5); “For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery and wrongdoing” (Isaiah 61:8); ” ‘Do not plot evil against each other, and do not love to swear falsely. I hate all this,’ declares the Lord” (Zechariah 8:17).
God also hates idols (Deuteronomy 16:22). He is a jealous God, and wants our whole-hearted devotion. There are obvious parallels between what God hates and the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20) which show us how to love him and the people that he loves.
