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"A Time to Hate"
Solomon wrote that there is an “appointed time for everything” (Eccl. 3:1) and that God “has made everything appropriate in its time” (3:11). In between those two statements, the wise man listed several events that we experience in the various seasons of life. One that is both appointed and appropriate is “a time to hate” (3:8). Sounds so un-Biblical, doesn’t it?
The Scriptures certainly attest to our responsibility to love. Jesus summed up all the Law and Prophets with the commandments to “love the Lord thy God” and “love thy neighbor as thyself” (Matt. 22:37,39). He taught His disciples to “love one another” (John 13:34) and even to “love your enemies” (Matt. 5:44). We understand “a time to love.” How can there be an appointed time to hate?
The same Scriptures reveal that there is a time when love is inappropriate. “Do not love the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 John 2:15-17). Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “No man can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to one and despise the other” (Matt. 6:24). These are two extremes, polar opposites, with no middle ground. You have to choose.
When, then, is the appropriate and appointed time to hate?
When we hate what God hates. “There are six things which the Lord hates, yea seven which are an abomination to Him” (Prov. 6:16-19). If any kind of hatred is a sin, why does God hate? If all we are supposed to do is love, why are these things an abomination to Him? Abomination means “worthy of causing loathing, detestable, a disgusting thing.” There are things that are despicable to God. Just as there is godly jealousy (Ex. 20:5) and righteous anger (Eph. 4:26), there is also such a thing as righteous hatred.
We don’t have to guess about what God hates. He has expressed them. “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord” (Prov. 12:22). You can’t get around that. “‘I hate divorce,’ says the Lord, the God of Israel” (Mal. 2:16). In a culture of convenience, He has made known His hatred of putting away. God hates sin. It robs Him of what He wants, a relationship with man. It caused His son to die on the cross as a sacrifice for sin. How dare we have a love affair with the things that God hates.
When we hate without being hateful. Notice the wording of the passages [emphasis mine]. “There are six things which the Lord hates.” In Revelation 2, a warning was given to two churches about a false doctrine. “Yet this you do have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate” (Rev. 2:6). This is later identified as their “teaching” (2:15). “Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good” (Rom. 12:9). It is what, not who. “I hate every false way” (Psalm 119:104). These verses illustrate the proverbial saying, “God hates the sin but loves the sinner.”
When did God demonstrate His love toward us? In Romans 5:6-10, we are reminded that Christ died for us while we were “still helpless,” “yet sinners,” and “enemies.” Not when we were cleansed and saved. In John 3:16, God so loved the world that He gave His son. If He hated people, why would He give such a precious gift? We must abhor what is evil and hate sin. But, like the Holy One who called us, we must demonstrate a love for sinners so they, like us, can be saved from the wrath of God.
When we do not repay hatred with hate. When you take a stand, you are going to be hated. Jesus’ life and work produced in some people a hatred for Him. Even Pilate was able to detect that Jesus’ enemies handed Him over out of envy (Matt. 27:18). They hated Him. But Jesus also prepared His disciples for similar treatment (John 15:18-25). They will hate you because you don’t love the world. Being the friend of God makes you their enemy (Jam. 4:4). Not only that, you may even be called a hater.
What should be the response of God’s people? In one of his prison epistles, Paul wrote, “Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned, as it were, with salt, so that you may know how to respond to each person” (Col. 4:5-6). Jesus never watered down the truth or avoided conflict or controversy. But neither did He respond with hate-filled speech. We have the responsibility as those who have sanctified Him as Lord to give an answer for our hope “with gentleness and reverence” (1 Pet. 3:15). We want the world to see the God of love in us.
Our Creator has set eternity in our hearts (Eccl. 3:11). Through His divine word, our hearts can determine when it is a time to love and a time to hate.
