God hates sinners?

[Malachi4U]

JMJ

Gods peace be with you theophilus (friend of God),

I have been asked this question, “Does God hate sinners? Does God hate the souls in hell?”

My question is this, does God hate anyone? Who does He hate? If He hates someone and the sinner repents and turns back to God, will God once again love Him?

OK, that’s more then one question.

Thanks for the help and please give any Catechism or Bible reference that supports you opinion if possible.

A Prisoner of Christ,

 

[Lillith]

John 3:16… For God so loved the **World ** that he gave his only Son so that everyone that believes in him might not perish but have eternal life. 17. For God did not send his son to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.

Notice of course the word I emboldened…

God is the brightest light…Love itself! God cannot hate. God doesn’t send people to hell…people choose hell. Sin is a wound to our souls…and if we are mortally wounded by sin…the beautiful light from God that is love will be like salt to the wound…something that we would have to get away from…we would throw ourselves away from God …

 

[trumpet152]

God is love.

 

[johnshelby]

trumpet152:

God is love.

God hates sin… not sinners…

 

[Jim_Baur]

Psalm 5: 5-6

The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity. Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the LORD will abhor the bloody and deceitful man.

 

[johnshelby]

Jim Baur:

Psalm 5: 5-6

The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity. Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the LORD will abhor the bloody and deceitful man.

yes, lots of men speak of how much God hates lots of
things…

but, God said…

Luke 15:7
I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

and the parable of the prodigal son is also in Luke 15

 

[johnq]

trumpet152:

God is love.

Yes, God is perfect love. Although, that does not answer the question.

No, God does not hate sinners. We were made in His image and likeness. If He hated sinners, He would hate his own image and likeness. This is not possible. As johnshelby said God loves the sinners, but hates the sin.

My question is.

Can God, whom is perfect love, hate something?

Answer: YES, God hates whatever seperates us from Him. Sin seperates us from real love. God only wants what is best for us. He is what is best for us.

Prov.8
13] The** fear of the LORD** is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.

 

[Malachi4U]

From what I have seen above the God does appear to hate sinners. If this is true, then it would prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Bible contradicts itself.

Is the context missing in the verses that prove God hates sinners wrong?

I believe God is pure love. Some of the Scripture appears to say God hates too. Is this is impossible? Can God be love and hate? What does the Catholic Church say on this or has it been placed in the dungeon as a contradiction that could prove the Bible false?

We are told to love but, does God reserve absolute hatred for Himself?

JMJ

 

[johnq]

From what I have seen above the God does appear to hate sinners.

Are we reading the same thread?

If this is true, then it would prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Bible contradicts itself.

This is not true. Who said it was? God loves the sinner and hates the sin.

Is the context missing in the verses that prove God hates sinners wrong?

? Can you clarify please.

I believe God is pure love. Some of the Scripture appears to say God hates too. Is this is impossible? Can God be love and hate? What does the Catholic Church say on this or has it been placed in the dungeon as a contradiction that could prove the Bible false?

God is pure love. God hates evil. Why? It takes us away from His pure love.

Let’s say your child is on drugs. Do you love your child? Do you love your child’s addiction?

God wants what is best for us. What is that? His pure love. Sin takes us away from that love.
There is no contradiction.

We are told to love but, does God reserve absolute hatred for Himself

?

We are called to be like Christ. We must hate sin while loving the sinner.

Prov.8
13] The** fear of the LORD** is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.

 

[rwoehmke]

Jim Baur:

Psalm 5: 5-6 The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity. Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the LORD will abhor the bloody and deceitful man.

It is a good thing to read Old Testament verses in the light of the New Testament. A lot of the blood, guts, and hate was in the minds of the human authors and not in God’s. Jesus, being God himself, is much more reliable than a lesson from the Old Testament. As Catholics we do not depend on"proof texts" but take the whole of the Bible into consideration when trying to understand a particular part. The New Testament sometimes does appear to contradict the Old because the authors of the Old incompletely understood what God was working in his people. Jesus was the fulfillment of the message.

 

[Steven_Merten]

rwoehmke:

It is a good thing to read Old Testament verses in the light of the New Testament. A lot of the blood, guts, and hate was in the minds of the human authors and not in God’s. Jesus, being God himself, is much more reliable than a lesson from the Old Testament. As Catholics we do not depend on"proof texts" but take the whole of the Bible into consideration when trying to understand a particular part. The New Testament sometimes does appear to contradict the Old because the authors of the Old incompletely understood what God was working in his people. Jesus was the fulfillment of the message.

Hello rwoehmke,

That is a pretty big statement you have made that the Old Testament writers distorted Old Testament with their hatred. Can you give any Church statements to back up your accusation against Old Testament writers?

 

[johnshelby]

Steven Merten:

Hello rwoehmke,

That is a pretty big statement you have made that the Old Testament writers distorted Old Testament with their hatred. Can you give any Church statements to back up your accusation against Old Testament writers?

you know what he was refering to…

if God hates sinners, then he hates all of us… plus the supposed
author of the psalm quoted, David, committed some whoppers,
and God loved him…

 

[rwoehmke]

Steven Merten:

Hello rwoehmke,

That is a pretty big statement you have made that the Old Testament writers distorted Old Testament with their hatred. Can you give any Church statements to back up your accusation against Old Testament writers?

I don’t think that was exactly how I put it. Many old testament laws and practices were very similar to todays Sharia of the Moslems. The Church would hartdly support putting a whole city to the sword, or I suppose nuking it and killing non-combatants. I would reityerate the Old Testament must be read in light of the New, or one can be led astray. One only has to recall the tragedy at Waco and similar events and personages to realize this.

Leviticus13:6-18, 17:2-7, 19:21, 21:10-21, 22:13-25, 25:11-12
Judges 1:1-10, 22-25
Psalms 5:9-11, 17:12-14, 18:36-44, 58:7-11, 109:8-20, 137:7-9, 141:5-6 and there is more. Hardly seems like forgiving 70 times 70 or turning the other cheek.

Also why do we not feel obliged to follow the Mosiac dietary laws and those concerning rape, divorce, etc.?

 

[Steven_Merten]

rwoehmke:

I don’t think that was exactly how I put it.?

Hello rwoehmke,

Here is how you put it.

rwoehmke:

It is a good thing to read Old Testament verses in the light of the New Testament. A lot of the blood, guts, and hate was in the minds of the human authors and not in God’s.

Do you retract or confirm that "‘hate’ was in the minds of the human authors (of Old Testament scriptures).

 

[cmt]

johnshelby:

God hates sin… not sinners…

Agreed! God is love. He hates the Sin, not the sinner. I am sure he pities those in Hell, but does not hate them. For Hate, is NOT of God.

 

[rwoehmke]

Steven Merten:

Hello rwoehmke, Here is how you put it. Do you retract or confirm that "‘hate’ was in the minds of the human authors (of Old Testament scriptures).

Do I condemn these authors for what they wrote? No I don’t for those were other times and such was sincerely believed to be right and ordered by God. Hatred of enemies and sinners was thought to be rightous. Whoever wrote some of those Psalms about bashing out the teeth of enemies and dashing their children against the rocks or whoever wrote the law about taking a rebellious son outside the city walls and having the elders stone him to death don’t exactly sound filled with love nor do I think that God actually commanded them to do those things or write those laws. Did Jesus advocate such actions when he walked and taught on this earth? Did God change his mind between Leviticus and the Gospels? Is there a better word than hate? Follow some of those laws today and one would end up in prison or be getting a potassium Chloride injection. During WW II we wiped out whole cities in Germany and as an eight year old boy I cheered. We get into a war and we are no better than some of the biblical peoples. Kill anyone that is the least threat, combatants and non-combatants alike. Even children. We call it collateral damage because we do it from a mile up in the sky and not with a sword in the belly face to face like they did it then

It is not my idea that one needs to read both testaments in light of the other if one is not to go astry. I think that biblical scholars like Scott Hahn and Jeff Cavins would support the need to do that to avoid misunderstanding what is being taught in a particular verse or sets of verses.

We are repulsed today when very similar practices and laws are being followed in Darfur, Somalia, Iran and other countries where the Sharia is the law of the land. We are struggling and shedding the blood of our young people in Iraq with the hope that they will establish a real democracy and not a theocracy with Sharia being the law.

No I think I have to basically confirm what I said unless you have a better word than hate. I guess I would like to hear a counter arguement since I cannot help but think you are quite sincere and honest in questioning my take on the matter. I am not a theologian, a biblical scholar, or someone who does not abide correction. Just expressing my opinion on the matter.

 

[Malachi4U]

Thanks for the help so far.

Why do some Bibles use the word ‘hate’ if God means something else?

 

[Montie_Claunch]

O.K. This poll had me thinking. Did God Hate Judas Ischariot? The reason I ask is when Jesus said that it would have been better for the betrayed to have never been born. Is that Hate? or something else?

 

[Evanescence]

Does God love those in hell?

Would you eternally seperate someone you love? and send them to a place of hell and torture?

we all hate to see our loved ones suffer…
so how does God do it?

Evanescence

 

[Mike_O]

God cannot hate.

Someone who says that God “hates” anything at all is mistaken. Theologically, God’s nature is of a Necessary Being who is fulfilled in all positive qualities; love, honesty, power, etc. He is truth and therefore cannot deceive or be deceived. He is Love and therefore, hatred is foreign to him.

What someone else said about the Old Testament is correct. God cannot be hateful; this is contrary to His nature and would divide Himself against Himself. If He loves, He must be perfect Love and be incapable of Loving anymore. Hatred is a perversion of Love; to suggest that there is hatred in God is blasphemy.

Moses and the ancient prophets spoke from a different cultural mindset from that which we understand today. Without a doubt, they attributed certain qualities to God which were not consistent with His nature.