19 Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God!
O men of blood, depart from me!
20 They speak against you with malicious intent;
your enemies take your name in vain.[b]
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?
22 I hate them with complete hatred;
I count them my enemies.
TRUE HATRED
Not all people will have the same attitude to God as we do. Indeed, there are many people who hate God, yes hate God.
Surely people don’t hate God, people are just not interested. When we share the gospel, the reaction from people is just to refuse, surely, they are just busy. No, they are against God, they hate him.
Before we were saved, we were haters of God, we shook our fists at God in rebellion.
People fight against God, they speak against God with malicious intent, they curse God, they revile God.
Remember this, that anyone who is outside of Christ is God’s enemy, but this is the wonder of salvation, when salvation happens, we who were once enemies became his friends, and yes his sons and daughters.
These people are atheists, they don’t believe what the psalmist believes, they don’t believe that God has created them. They believe that we came from some process, they rage at God, people like Richard Dawkins rage at God, they say that God hates people, when they hate God.
These people are to be pitied, hell awaits these people.
What do we do with these people, we pray for them, we continue to share the gospel with them, even if they reject us.
Matthew Henry says this
He detests them (v. 21, 22): “Lord, thou knows the heart, and canst witness for me; do not I hate those that hate thee, and for that reason, because they hate thee? I hate them because I love thee, and hate to see such affronts and indignities put upon thy blessed name. Am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee, grieved to see their rebellion and to foresee their ruin, which it will certainly end in?” Note, Sin is hated, and sinners are lamented, by all that fear God. “I hate them” (that is, “I hate the work of them that turn aside,” as he explains himself, Ps 101 3) “with a sincere and perfect hatred; I count those that are enemies to God as enemies to me, and will not have any intimacy with them,” Ps 69 8
God bless you
KK.