Psalm 139:22

I hate them with complete hatred; I count them my enemies. 

As I said yesterday, I bristle at verses like these. I am not watering anything down here: we are to hate sin because it is an offense to the holiness of God. But I don't think the Bible tells us to hate people who sin. In fact, I believe it says the opposite. 

You have heard that it was said to those of old, you shall not murder, and whoever murders will be liable to judgment. But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment, whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council, and whoever says, "you fool!" will be liable to the hell of fire. Matthew 5:21-22 

Based on this, and what I know to be true of God, I don't believe it is His will got us to hate anyone. It's not our job. He is the judge, not us. I also believe the Bible and know that every word is profitable for instruction, so I still want to take this verse seriously. 

My thought it that the psalmist is actually in sin here (David? A sinner? Nah...adultery what? Uriah who?). Anyway, this may be evidence of his sinful condition; after all what will Jesus tell us about our enemies? 

But love your enemies, and do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. Luke 6:27-28 

But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. Luke 6:35-36 

There is no indication that we are ever called to hate anyone. Should we hate sin? Yes. Should we be able to recognize enemies of the cross and be aware of what that might mean for us? Yes. But we don't hate people. We bless them, we pray for them, we do good, and we are merciful. 

Sorry David. I think you need a heart check on this one. 

Psalm 139:21

Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord? And do I not loathe those who rise up against you, O Lord? 

When God saves you, you are a rebel. He doesn't save you because you're already pretty good, He saves you because He is rich in mercy and has decided to love you from before time through all eternity. You have no good apart from the Lord (Psalm 16:2). But after you've been rescued, this amazing thing happens: you come to know and love Jesus more and more, and all the rebellion starts to lose its appeal. You want less of that which God hates and more of that which God loves. Your old friends with whom you sinned have less sway with you, and you pursue community in God's people, the church. You serve and love those outside the family, but they no longer define you. You belong to Jesus and pursue His likeness. Ephesians 2 is a great chapter to read here. I'll include a short selection at the end, but in summary, it is the core of the gospel: God made the world good, we broke it with our rebellion, He promised to fix it, Jesus saved us from ourselves, and He's coming again to bring forth full restoration and wipe every tear from every eye.

Therefore, remember that at one tim you Gentiles in the flesh, called the uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision - remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of  promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. Ephesians 2:11-14

Maybe it's my heart for evangelism that keeps sidetracking me with Psalm 139, here, but I find it really difficult to discuss the wicked, the sinners, the rebels without acknowledging that 1) I have just described every person who ever lived (besides Jesus, duh) and 2) No one is too wicked, sinful or rebellious to be saved by Jesus and welcomed into the family of God. It doesn't matter how far you are from Jesus or how righteous you purport to be, when measured against the holy God, there is no scale, no curve. The only passing grade is a 100%. It takes God Himself in the person of Christ to save us. No one is worthy. So all are welcome. Isn't that pretty amazing? We are all made equals in Christ Jesus.

Psalm 139:20

They speak against you with malicious intent; your enemies take your name in vain. 

Here we see some more details as to what it means to be wicked. If you speak against God and take His name in vain, you are His enemy and He will come against you. This is cause for us to take pause, after all, in suffering, what does Job's wife say?

Then his wife said to him, "Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and died" Job 2:9 

She wasn't asking Job a one-time thing. She was asking him to become the enemy of God, to turn from the living God and worship instead the gods of ease and comfort. These are the people from whom the psalmist wants to run, and for good reason. Satan is the ultimate enemy of God. Satan hates you and wants you to die. Meanwhile, God is for you, His chosen people, and wants you to have life and life abundant. So it really is a question of life and death; choose this day which one you will pursue.

Psalm 139:19

Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God! O men of blood, depart from me! 

This marks quite the change of direction! After eighteen verses on God's protection, care and presence, we address a reason why we doubt these things - other people. Those who don't obey and trust God don't want you to either. Satan hates Jesus and he hates you and he wants you to die. For someone striving to believe Jesus and live according to His truth, the wicked are a dangerous group. It only makes sense for the psalmist to want them out of here.

Of course, we have to consider: aren't I wicked too? Haven't I rebelled against God? Yes. That's who you were. But that's not who you are.

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11

The fact that you want to be removed from the wicked is a pretty good sign that you have indeed been called into God's family. Your desires have changed - you want more Jesus and less of the world! And this is a desire the Lord is sure to give you.

Psalm 139:18

If I would count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you. 

The 'them' here, of course, refers to the thoughts the Lord has. The psalmist again highlights their enormity so that it begins to sink in for us: you are on God's mind! The second half of the verse is a return to the idea of God's omnipresence - He is always with us. Here, I get the idea that the psalmist with imagining these things, the ascending to heaven, the turning to the sea, the counting of God's thoughts - and now he wakes up to reality. And reality is this: God is the Lord, He will never leave you or forsake you. This is not a dream or your imagination; this is the truth of who we are in Christ. You have the Spirit of God dwelling inside you.

Psalm 139:17

How precious to me are your thoughts, O God, how vast is the sum of them! 

For God to know everything about you - your past, your future, the places you like to hide - He has to have quite the compilation of thoughts on you. I think what's impressive, though, isn't even the quantity. Let's face it - spend a lot of time thinking about ourselves too; too much time if you're anything like me. But how many of those are high quality thoughts? How many wreak of guilt, shame and condemnation? But God, every one of His thoughts for you is only for your good. He looks at you as He looks at His precious Son. Jesus covers you; you belong to God as one of His precious children. You are no longer a slave, but a dear son. He could not love you any more than He does right now or think any more highly of you. Guard this truth as precious! 

Psalm139:16

Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there were none of them. 

This is my proof text for everything I've been saying about how to have peace about the future. When you were in the womb, God had already mapped out each one of your days. They were formed for you, by the God who loves you and laid down His life for you. I take so much comfort in this. I hope you do too.