Hatred

Hatred in Scripture is categorized among the works of the flesh (Galatians 5:20 lists echthrai, enmities or hatreds, as a characteristic of the sinful nature) and is treated as a serious moral failing throughout both Testaments. The Mosaic law prohibited hatred of a kinsman in the heart: "Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart" (Leviticus 19:17), placing inner attitude on par with outward action. Proverbs makes a sharp distinction between hatred that stirs up strife and love that covers sins (Proverbs 10:12; 1 Peter 4:8).

Jesus extended the standard: not only murder but anger toward a brother is subject to judgment (Matthew 5:21–22), and his summary of the law was love of God and neighbor — the antithesis of hatred. John declares that anyone who hates his brother is a murderer (1 John 3:15) and cannot claim to love God (1 John 4:20). The exception in Scripture to the prohibition on hatred is the hatred of evil itself: "Ye that love the LORD, hate evil" (Psalm 97:10), and the psalmist declares he hates those who hate God (Psalm 139:21–22) — an expression of covenant loyalty that is carefully distinguished from personal animosity. Luke 14:26's requirement to "hate" father and mother for Christ's sake uses the term comparatively (as demonstrated by the parallel in Matthew 10:37) to express supreme love for Christ above all other relationships.