“My voice You shall hear in the morning O LORD; In the morning I will direct it to You. And I will look up. For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, nor shall evil dwell with You. The boastful shall not stand in Your sight: You hate all the workers of iniquity….The Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.” (Psalm 5:3-6)

The Bible tells us that God is love. That statement is certainly true. Love is not merely an attribute of God: it is the essence of His Person. Love exists in the universe; men are capable of love and nobility only because they are made in the image of the Creator, and as finite mortals, partake in measure of Infinite Immortality.

God’s love, however, is popularly misrepresented. The enemy of our souls has cleverly twisted this Divine Benevolence to a caricature of a smiling old Grandfather who indulges the meanness and wickedness of people as merely innocent mischievousness. The Bible does not permit this concept, for the God of the Bible is Holy. Holiness is also the essence of His Person. Holiness is not suspended by love during the willful evil acts of men. His anger is ready to burn hot against all who practice wickedness.

Our text tells us that God positively hates all the workers of iniquity, that He abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful. It is no small part of our prayers for His protection and deliverance to know that God is no friend of those who devour and persecute the righteous. We are made to understand that God is the Avenger of the downtrodden and abused, and are not moved to strike out against those who oppress us. Our God will do that much better, and far more effectively than we can. We are forbidden to hate them with a bitter carnal hatred, for our God hates them with a perfect and Holy Hatred.

So rather that rise in the morning, trembling and fearful of what may befall us during day, we may come before God with thanksgiving, praise and adoration, laying all our petitions in His Hand. If we are His obedient trusting child, He loves us with a holy and divine love. That means He will put a difference between us and all those who would oppress us. He destroyed the Egyptian army in pursuit of His liberated people. He will do no less for us. He is imminently worthy of our adoration.

– C. M.