As Christians, we are required to affirm the whole counsel of God — and that particularly includes those parts that the modern world would prefer to ignore, or even to condemn. We are told that love is a matter of permissiveness and that Christians must not — cannot — hate. But is that what Scripture says about the matter?

The numbers certainly tell a different story. For Scripture certainly speaks of love:

αγαπη (‘love’) — 115, NT; 15, LXX

αγαπαω (‘to love’) — 143, NT; 213, LXX

αγαπησις (‘loving’) — 0, NT; 8, LXX

αγαπητος (‘beloved’) — 61, NT; 17, LXX

but it just as certainly speaks of hate:

μισεω (‘to hate’) — 40, NT; 143, LXX

μισος (‘hate’) — 0, NT; 11, LXX

μισητος (‘hateful, hated’) — 0, NT; 4 LXX

εχθρα (‘enmity’) — 6, NT; 15, LXX

εχθρος (‘hostile’) — 32, NT; 320, LXX

We dare not attempt to be more righteous than God, and we dare not call anything God does or commands wicked. “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!” If God says to hate, then it is our duty to understand what we must hate, and (if possible) why.

He, who does not hate, does not love.

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Show Notes

“love”

“hate”

“enmity”

See Also

“Marquart on The Question of Procedure in Theological Controversies” {Be like this man.}

“The Myth of “Righteous Anger” What the Bible says about Human Anger” {Not like this one.}

“God’s Mandate for Righteous Anger” [PDF]