The Hatred of God

If you will, let's turn tonight to Psalm 5. Last Wednesday, we looked at Psalm 4, and we saw that the title to it was also to the chief musician on Neganoth. I'm sure I'm not pronouncing that right, but that's the way it looks to me. And we're told it is a stringed instrument. This psalm tonight also is given to the chief musician but upon a different instrument, and this one is nihiloth, and it is a wind instrument. So last week the psalm was written to be sung to a stringed instrument, and this time to a wind instrument.

And that made me think about the fact that God is a God of order. We know that. We see that in his creation. When he fed the 5,000 one time in one of the gospels, I believe it tells us he made them sit down in companies of 50. He didn't feed them in just a mob. In other words, he's a God of order. And that's certainly borne out in creation. We see that. But having said that, that he is a God of order, he's also a God of variety. a variety.

We have a stringed instrument and those instruments that we know today that we call stringed instruments like the guitar, violin, and instruments like that make beautiful music. But then those wind instruments like the flute and the French horn, they too make beautiful music. I'm thankful in our congregation that we have some that play Both. On Sunday mornings we have the wind and we have the stringed instruments.

It is a psalm, as we see, a psalm of David. And as you read through it, and I don't know how many times I've read through it since last Wednesday, and even before last Wednesday, reading ahead, how many times I've read through it, and what we recognize is that While we're not told at what particular time in the life of David he wrote this psalm, we do see that he was in the midst of enemies, that he was in the midst of enemies and troubles around him. But tonight, what I want to do, I want to give us an outline of this psalm, four divisions, And then I want to spend the rest of the time looking at one subject that is mentioned here in this psalm. So first of all, in the first three verses, David asked God to hear his prayer, and he resolves to always call upon God. And though he himself was a king, He acknowledged that he had a king. Notice that in these first three verses.

Give ear to my words, O Lord. Consider my meditation. One of the writers pointed out that it would be good before we start speaking, when we go to the Lord in prayer, if we would give some time to meditation as to what we're going to say. realizing, of course, who we are speaking to, and that would be good. And David mentions his words and his meditations, hearken unto the voice of my cry. His cry unto the Lord reminds us of our Savior, who cried unto the Lord, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? My King and my God, For unto thee will I pray.

My voice, and he did pray audibly. We know that you don't have to pray audibly. I love to pray audibly. I have that privilege as a pastor. I've always had an office, even when my office was in our house, and I like to I like to pray out loud and call upon the Lord. But we know that's not necessary. You can pray silently, pray in your mind. But it helps me to pray aloud. And David, we see, and not only in this psalm, but in many of the psalms, we hear him speaking about the fact that he cried, he spoke, he prayed with his voice.

My voice shalt thou hear in the morning. What a blessing every morning to be able to call upon God before we call upon anyone else. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord, for giving me rest through the night, allowing me to wake up this morning. Thank you, Lord. For thou art, O Lord, in the morning, will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.

So that's the first division. David asks God to hear his prayer and resolves that he shall always, by the grace of God, be calling upon him. And then the second division, in verses four through seven, David confesses his knowledge of God is that God is a God of holiness, a God of holiness, a God of uprightness.

And those who are evil and wicked, they're not going to prosper, not eventually. Let's read verses four through seven. For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness, neither shall evil dwell with thee. The foolish shall not stand in thy sight. Thou hatest all the workers of iniquity. Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing or lying, deceitfulness. The Lord will abhor the bloody and deceitful man. But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy, and in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple."

Now we know when David wrote the Psalms, the temple had not been built in Jerusalem. But he speaks of that tent that he had pitched there in Jerusalem where they brought the Ark of the Covenant, no doubt, is where he went to worship. And towards the altar is where he looked. You remember Jonah in the belly of the fish at the bottom of the sea is very Obvious, the scriptures point out that he looked toward Jerusalem. In other words, he looked towards the altar in Jerusalem. And when we pray, we do so in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord. We look to our altar, that is Christ. recognizing that the only reason, the only way we have an audience with God is that we come in his name, we come in his righteousness.

And in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple. The fear of the Lord is a beginning of wisdom, and the fear of the Lord is to depart from evil, the scripture says. That's interesting if you take your concordance one day and just look up that phrase, the fear of the Lord, fear of the Lord, and see what the fear of the Lord is. Well, the third division, verses 8 through 10, we see that David, in his prayer, asked God to guide him, to lead him, and he also asked that God would overthrow. the evil devices that his enemies imagined against him. Lead me, O Lord, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies. Make thy way straight before my face. When I was looking at that verse, I thought about the hymn we sing sometimes. Teach me thy way, O Lord. Teach me thy way. Lead me, O Lord. in thy righteousness.

Verse 9, for there is no faithfulness in their mouth, their inward part is very wickedness, their throat is an open sepulchre, they flatter with their tongues. You recognize part of that verse, the Apostle Paul quotes in Romans chapter 3 when he is showing and proving how the whole world is guilty before God. He mentions, as the psalmist did, their throat is an open sepulchre. Death comes out of their mouth, their thoughts.

And then the last division of the psalm, the fourth division, verses 11 and 12, David encourages all, all men, all of us, He encourages us to trust in God and to rejoice in Him, to rejoice in the Lord. As the Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians, rejoice in the Lord. Again, I say rejoice. But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice. Let them ever shout for joy because thou defendest them. Let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee. For thou, Lord, wilt bless the righteous with favor, wilt thou compass them as with a shield. And looking at that last division there, David encourages all to trust in God.

I could not help but think about the question that the Lord Jesus asked his disciples. The night before he was crucified, this is recorded in Luke chapter 22, I believe it is. He asked them this question. When I sent, this is words of the Lord, when I sent you without purse, without script, and without shoes, lacked you anything? Think about that, he sent them out to preach the gospel, and don't take any money with you, don't take any script, any letters of recommendation, don't take any shoes, and they went out. And now he asks them, did you like anything?

I would to God that we could trust God, like little children trust their parents. Don't you? I mean, we have little children here tonight, and they're never concerned about food and clothes and Raymond. Why? Because they just know their father will take care of that, their mother will take care of that. What about our Father? Our Heavenly Father? Lacked you anything? And of course, their answer was nothing. Nothing.

God's children like David may have and most often do have many troubles and many difficulties in this world, but we always will have cause to rejoice if we rejoice in Christ. Because He changes not, Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is our eternal Savior. And He doesn't change, His blood doesn't change, His righteousness doesn't change, and His word, His promises do not change. Like to do anything? Nothing.

Notice the psalmist there closes the psalm with these words, for he will bless the righteous and with favor compass him as with a shield. A shield around each and every one of us here tonight who know him as our Lord and Savior. Who is that shield? It's not a metal shield or a gold shield. It's God. It's him. He is our shield around all of us. around our sides, over our head and under our feet. He is a shield so that nothing, nothing can touch you without God's permission.

And that's the first thing we should recognize when we are in trouble. This didn't just happen by accident. This didn't just spring out of the ground. This is something that my father has ordained for me, for my good. And that helps a whole lot, just knowing that. This is not accidental, whatever it is.

Well, I told you I wanted to speak on a subject that we find here in this psalm, and that is the hatred of God. the hatred of God. We don't hear many messages on this subject, that's for sure. Verse 5, David said, thou hatest all workers of iniquity.

Now hatred is considered one of God's attributes, just like love, is an attribute, grace, patience, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, so is hatred. It is one of his attributes. When considering these truths about God, any of these truths about God, characteristics, attributes of God, we must always be careful because we have a tendency always to think that God is like we are. And so we will come to this matter of God hating and think, well, his hatred is like our hatred. No. Man's hatred, and usually the writers, when they speak about the hatred of God, will always include the wrath of God. But when we think of man's wrath, a man flies off the handle, we say. You know, something aggravates him, makes him mad, and his anger and his wrath, his hatred is manifested.

Well, remember the psalmist told us this in Psalm 50 about God, thou thoughtest, this is God's complaint to man, thou thoughtest that I was altogether such and one as thou art. God is in a category all by himself. He asked, with whom would you compare me? God asked that question, and there is no one.

So when we think about an attribute like this, like God's hatred, then we must be careful that we do not think of God, as the scripture says, as an issue or a proof of our depravity. We come into this world, we are depraved, we're sinful. All men are. And Paul says this about lost men, and he includes himself, even though he was a Pharisee of the Pharisees, hateful and hating one another. God is not like that. That's man, hateful and hating one another. God's holy. God doesn't have passions like we have. And that must be recognized. There are people we know who say, well, I tell you, I only believe in a God of love. Don't talk to me about a God who has hatred. I only believe in a God of love.

Well, where there's love, where there's love of any person or anything, then there's going to be hatred of that which is contrary to that. If a person loves his wife, he's going to hate those who would do harm. to his wife. That's just so. I mean, you can't have love and not have hate.

And it was prophesied of the Lord Jesus Christ in Psalm 45 in verse 7, thou lovest righteousness and hatest iniquity. And that's quoted, of course, in Hebrews chapter 1, speaking about Christ, God's son, by whom God has redeemed his people, who loved us, the scripture says, and washed us from our sins in his own blood. Paul in Romans chapter 7, speaking about himself as a believer, he lamented the fact that he often did that which he hated. He hated, sometimes he did that which he hated, he said. Well, I don't have any problem understanding that, do you? We know that we still have what is called the flesh or the old man, and the new man would live perfectly without any sin. The old man would live always in sin. We know that.

And so that's the reason Paul said that he hated what he sometimes did. Why did he come to hate those things? Because he had been saved by the grace of God and now he loved righteousness and loved holiness. Now, I have three divisions concerning God and his hating. First of all, What is it that God hates? What is it that God hates?

And of course, the short answer is, it's sin. Sin. Sin must be hateful to God, for it is contrary to his nature. God is pure, holy, righteous. He is the holy Lord God, and sin, we know, is an abomination to him. Hold your places, but look over a few pages into the book of Proverbs, the Proverbs that were given, that were written by Solomon.

In Proverbs chapter 6, you say, does God hate something? Yes, he hates sin. We don't have any problem believing that, do we? We don't have any problem understanding that. In Proverbs chapter 6 and verse 16, we read, These six things doth the Lord hate. Yea. And what are these things? They're sinful things. They're sinful things. He hates a proud look. These six things doth the Lord hate. Yea, seven are an abomination unto him, a proud look. I don't need God. I'm a self-made man.

What I have, I have worked for. Yes, you have. But who gave you the strength to work? Who gave you the mind to do the job that you do to earn the living that you make? A proud look. No, I'm not dependent upon God. Proud look. God hates that. Why? Because sin is abominable to God. Hands that shed innocent blood. Murderers. Murderers. Yes. A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood. Someone said, well, it's just a little white lie. Yeah? You think that's what God says? The fact is, all liars shall have their part in the lake of fire. That's what the scripture says in Revelation, isn't it? Yes.

A lying tongue and heart that deviseth wicked imaginations. Some people just lay in their beds at night before they go to sleep and imagine how they can work wickedness and evil. Thief, thief that be swift in running to mischief. A false witness that speaketh lies and he that soweth discord among brethren.

God hates all sin, but there are some sins that God tells us in his book, in the Bible, that he especially abominates. Let me mention three. Idolatry. Idolatry. We find this in Deuteronomy chapter 16, verse 22. God says, neither shalt thou set thee up any image which the Lord thy God hateth, hateth.

It's sad when we see people bow down before an image, isn't it? It's one thing about having lived in a Catholic country, predominantly Catholic country like I did. You see these things, and the sad thing is our country is going in that direction, more and more. And people say, well, you shouldn't talk about that church. Well, it's an ungodly church. As far as I'm concerned, it is Satan's masterpiece of deception, idolatry. Oh, we don't worship the idol, we worship the thing the idol represents. Well, God says, thou shalt not make unto thee any image which the Lord thy God hateth. And then here's the second thing we're told especially that God hates, insincere, hypocritical worship.

In Isaiah chapter 1 and verse 14, God speaking to the nation of Israel, your new moons, a new moon every month was a special day of worship. Your new moons and appointed feasts, remember they had those various feasts every year that they observed. My soul hateth. But wait a minute, God. Didn't you command that these be observed? Yes, but with the heart, with the heart to worship him, but just to go through the ceremony with no heart. Your new moons and appointed feasts my soul hateth. They are a trouble unto me. I am weary to bear them.

And then one other thing that we read that God hates, and there's others besides these that I'm mentioning tonight, but in Revelation, the book of Revelation and the Lord Jesus, his message to the church at Ephesus, the Nicolaitans, the Nicolaitans, this thou hast. speaking to that church, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

So what is it that God hates? It's sin. My second point is, who is it that God hates? Who is it that God hates? Well, our text tells us here, doesn't it? Psalm chapter 5 and verse 5, thou hatest all workers of iniquity. It is sinful man, but listen, it's not all men who sin. If he hated all men that sin, then he would hate all men. Remember what we read in Ecclesiastes, for there's not a just man upon the earth. Well, there are just men upon the earth. There's just men here tonight. If you trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, you've been justified by his imputed righteousness. You are a just man on this earth.

But the writer said, there's not a just man upon the earth that doeth good, and there are just men upon the earth who do good and sinneth not. And sinneth not. And the apostle John, of course, tells us If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. No, the text tells us very clearly who it is that God hates.

It is the workers of iniquity. And you notice that word all. All workers of iniquity. It is those, and this is what John Gale said here, it is those who make a trade of it. It's like you have a trade that you follow. There are men and women who make a trade of sin. Those that make a trade of it make it the business of their lives. That's what they live for. That's what they do. That is their life. continually, constantly committed.

The Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 7, we read a few verses in Matthew 7 at the beginning of the service, but before those verses, he said, many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name, and in thy name have cast out devils, and in thy name done many wonderful works? Then will I profess unto them, I never knew you, depart from me, ye that work iniquity. I know we've all heard this statement, God loves the sinner but hates the sin. I read an article last week by Charles Spurgeon on that very statement. He said, it's been quoted so long that most people believe it's scripture. It's not scriptural. And according to him, he said, not only is it not scripture, it's not true. It's not true.

When a person makes that statement, God loves the sinner but hates the sin, it sounds like sin is some kind of commodity or something. As you go down to H-E-B and they've got the shelves lined with sin, a can of sin, a package of sin. No, if there were no person to commit the act to transgress against God's law, There would be no sin. God hates, the scripture says. Our text is very, and this is not the only place it says this. God hates all the workers of iniquity. You cannot separate sin from the person who commits it.

Well, my third point, and last point. What about Romans chapter 9? I want you to turn there with me. What about Romans chapter 9 and what it says about Jacob and Esau? Romans chapter 9, beginning with verse 11, For the children being not yet born, now notice this, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth, it was said unto her, that is, unto Rebekah, the elder shall serve the younger.

As it is written, Jacob have I loved, Esau have I hated. Now what is said here about Jacob is true of all of God's elect. Jacob have I loved. And that's true of all of God's elect. Loved with an eternal everlasting love. loved even as God loves his son, Jesus Christ. And what is said of Esau is also said of all of the non-elect.

But this hatred is not a positive hatred. It's not a positive hatred of them in the heart of God. And it's important to see, and I looked it up again today, But this word hate, Esau, have I hated, it is the same word that our Lord used in Luke 14 and verse 26 when he said, if any man come to me and hate, same word, hate, not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also. He cannot be my disciple." Well, you know that's not a positive hatred there. It is a comparative thing. that compared to our love for Christ, a believer's love for Christ, our love for these that he mentions here, our wife and children, it is though it was hatred. It's not a positive hatred that a man must have, but it is a comparative one. And you know, I've had people say, well, who do not believe in God's sovereign election, they say, well, that just, it doesn't mean that God hates them, means he loves them less.

But here's the point. There is a difference, right? There's a difference between Jacob and Esau, and it is God who makes the difference. He loves Jacob in the sense of choosing him and passing by Esau. God's sovereign will is exercised in election and in non-election. Our Lord gave a parable. in Matthew's gospel about the man who had a farm or vineyard or something like that.

You know, he went out early in the morning. He hired some men, penny a day. That's what I'm going to pay you. He goes out two or three hours later and people out there, hires them, sends them to the vineyard. Goes out at noon, hires some more, sends them to the vineyard. Finally, goes out. It's one hour before sunset. Sends them to work in his vineyard.

And then when it's time to pay off the workers, he pays those who had started working last first. And what do they get? They get a penny. And what about those who had only worked two hours? A penny. And what about those who had worked all day, born in the heat of the day? They got a penny. That's what they agreed to, and the Lord said this. This is what the good man, the owner says, and it has a type of God.

Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? You know, it's just a matter of God's sovereignty, isn't it? God has a right to do what he will with his own. Man, God created all men. We're not our own. Well, if you know Christ tonight, you know this. God loves you. And if you do not know Christ, then you would be considered a worker of iniquity. The best thing you better do is start seeking God. Call upon the Lord while he's near. May the Lord bless this word.

The Hatred of God

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