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Hating Our Enemies

             You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,  that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?  Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:43-48)requires 

            ‘Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord. (Leviticus 19:18)

 

            First, let’s start with the Old Testament reference for what we have heard it said. The people who did the cross-referencing listed the second passage. There are four times when Scripture mentions hating and your enemy/enemies. The other two are Deuteronomy 30:7, in which the Jews were promised that God would punish their enemies – those who hated them; and Luke 6:27, in which Jesus tells us to love our enemies and do good to those who hate us. In other words, the “hate  your enemies” part is like “God helps those who help themselves.” It’s something someone added to Scripture. Now, in the Psalms somewhere, David does assure God that he counts those who hate God as his enemies, but that’s not quite the same thing. 

            There is nowhere in the Bible that we are permitted to hate anyone. We are to hate evil. We may have to deal with people who hate us, but that does not mean we have to become like them by hating them back. It may even be necessary to kill someone doing evil, like the people attacking Israel. But even that does not require that we hate the person any more than killing a rabid animal requires that we hate the animal.  Refusing to hate is hard work, but Jesus tells us to be perfect?

            But what does He mean by "perfect"? His example is God, who gives good and necessary things to both the good and the evil, to His friends/children and His enemies. 

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