O you who love the LORD, hate evil! –Ps. 97:10
The book of Psalms is a rich collection of songs and poems. Many psalms contain allusions and quotes from various episodes in Israel's history. For example, Psalm 14:1 says "The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God.'" The word "fool" is simply a translation of Nabal's name from the story of Abigail and Nabal (1 Sam 25)! Psalm 78 alludes to the plagues of Egypt in detail (vv. 12-13, 43-51) and Israel's subsequent exodus (vv. 52-54). Psalm 110:1-2 quotes the Davidic Covenant (2 Sam. 7:8-17). Virtually every psalm has at least one echo of some story from Israel's past.
Unsurprisingly, Psalm 97 is no different. In the first verse it echoes Exodus 15:18 "The LORD reigns," and in verses 3-5 alludes to Exodus 19, the burning bush on Mt Sinai, "Fire goes before him...the mountains melt like wax before the LORD..." So, when verse 10 of the psalm instructs us to "hate evil," it is quoting Proverbs 8:13, which says, "The fear of the LORD is to hate evil." Furthermore, by quoting Proverbs, this psalm is invoking the wisdom tradition of Israel, which appears even in one of the earliest books of the bible, Job, "And to man He said, 'Behold, the fear of the LORD, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding'" (28:28). No wonder the Apostle Paul echoes this wisdom in Romans 12:9, "Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good."
So, it is wise to cultivate a hatred of evil in our hearts, for this will help us recognize evil and depart from it. This departure from sin will free our hearts to love God more. We must hate evil as much as we love God. Therefore, let Psalm 97 exhort us all, "O you who love the LORD, hate evil!"
