Proverbs 6:16-19 These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: 17 A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, 18 An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, 19 A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.
Have You Heard Of "The Seven Deadly Sins"?
I'm sure many of you have heard of "The Seven Deadly Sins". As I studied our text tonight, I thought about what people call "The Seven Deadly Sins". Where did the concept come from?
This is a concept that crept into Christianity
by way of the Catholic Church.
Illustrate: The concept of "Seven Deadly Sins" has been pushed as Biblical through television and the movies. Do you remember the show Gilligan's Island? Not many young people today know this show, but I grew up watching it. The show's creator Sherwood Schwartz (the head writer for The Red Skelton Show and producer of The Brady Bunch) wrote a book called "Inside Gilligan's Island" where he stated that each of the characters on the show represented one of the so called "deadly sins".
The Professor – Pride
Thurston Howell III – Greed
Ginger – Lust
Mary Ann – Envy (of Ginger's looks)
Mrs. Lovey Howell – Gluttony
The Skipper – Anger or wrath
Gilligan – Sloth
The concept of "The Seven Deadly Sins" came from the writings of a Catholic Monk named Evagrius Ponticus, who called it "The Eight Evil Thoughts" (addingsadness as a sin). In the Sixth Century Pope Gregory I wrote a Commentary on Job, rearranged the list from Ponticus, and gave it the name "The Seven Deadly Sins". A later Catholic Leader named Thomas Aquinas created the list of Seven Deadly Sins we have today.
The Catholic Church today teaches that these "Deadly Sins", also called "Capital Vices" or "Cardinal Sins" are mortal or deadly because they lead to the death of the soul. Professor of English at Arizona State University Richard G. Newhauser stated:
"Committing one of these mortal sins and not confessing {to your priest}, not doing penance and so on, will result in the death of the soul. And then you'll be in hell for eternity, or your soul will be in hell for eternity".
Does the Bible just list "Seven Deadly Sins"?
No, it does not. In fact, the Bible teaches that ALL sin is "Deadly". I have often quoted:
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Sin Defined: Sin is – properly defined – "a work of the flesh and of self satisfaction, separated from the glory of God". The Apostle Paul told us that when we walked apart from God that we would default to "the works of the flesh" or sin:
Galatians 5:19-21 (ESV) Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
This list contains 15 types of sin, "works of the flesh" that destroy the Kingdom of God. This list is not extensive. We are told in ...
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 (ESV) 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, 10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
In this list Paul addresses 9 sins – and clarifies the sexual sins of adultery and homosexuality. In the text the Apostle sent to his student Timothy, he wrote:
1 Timothy 1:9-10 (ESV) … the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers, 10 the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine
Again getting more specific into sins like striking your parents, homosexuality, the sin of enslaving others (chattel slavery is a sin to God), lying, and so on. There are much more than "Seven Deadly Sins" – much more.
Any work of the flesh where you put yourself above God or above respect of others is a deadly sin. If unrepentant, it will lead to some form of death in your world.
The Sins Of Proverbs 6 Are Sins God HATES
Read the text again:
Proverbs 6:16 These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto Him:
Word Study: This is not about "The Seven Deadly Sins", but it is about "The Seven Sins God in Particular Hates". We are told that these "seven are an abomination" to God. The word "abomination" is the Hebrew tôʿēḇâ (pronounced to-ay-baw'), which means "disgusting, unclean, idolatrous". To get an idea of how God views these sins in Proverbs 6, we can see how the Lord uses the word tôʿēḇâ in other contexts. On sexual perversion God decreed:
Leviticus 18:22 Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination [tôʿēḇâ (pronounced to-ay-baw')]
Concerning idolatry God said:
Deuteronomy 7:25 The graven images of their gods shall ye burn with fire: thou shalt not desire the silver or gold that is on them, nor take it unto thee, lest thou be snared therein: for it is an abomination [tôʿēḇâ (pronounced to-ay-baw')] to the LORD thy God.
And on giving God less than your best, He said:
Deuteronomy 17:1 Thou shalt not sacrifice unto the LORD thy God any bullock, or sheep, wherein is blemish, or any evilfavouredness: for that is an abomination [tôʿēḇâ (pronounced to-ay-baw')] unto the LORD thy God.
God also despises cheating your neighbor:
Proverbs 11:1 A false balance is abomination [tôʿēḇâ (pronounced to-ay-baw')] to the LORD: but a just weight is his delight.
That which God considers an ABOMINATION makes little of Him, and little of those around us. Our Lord Jesus said that the entire Law could be boiled down into two points:
Matthew 22:37-40 (ESV) … "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets."
What are the sins that God HATES? It is the sins that destroy love for God and love for others. We are to "love the Lord your God with all" that we have, above all else – and "love your neighbor as yourself". Love for God must be FIRST. But since mankind is created in the image of God, we are also to love other humans (Genesis 1:27).
Down the street there is a church with a sign out front that says "Open minds, open doors, open hearts". What's wrong with that? We are to have the MIND OF CHRIST (1 Corinthians 2:16), not a worldly mindset. We love God FIRST.
Defining The Sins God Hates
The Bible says "Hate what is evil; cling to that which is good" (Romans 12:9). As believers in Christ we are to hate what God hates, and love what God loves.
The "Hateful Seven" sins are all tied to the misuse of what God has given you. He has given you life. He has given you a body. You did nothing to earn nor deserve that body, but it is a grace gift. Thus, God wants you to use your body in a way that glorifies Him and blesses others. When you do not, then God HATES what you are doing.
Proverbs 6:17 … A proud look (rûm ʿayin)
God starts with our EYES. This is literally "PRIDEFUL EYES". A departure from the ways of God always comes when we reject His clearly taught Word and begin to examine the sinful with our eyes. This is what happened in the Garden of Eden. The Serpent (the devil, see Revelation 12:9; 20:2) tempted Eve, saying "If you eat of the forbidden fruit, you will not die. God knows that in the day you eat of it, you'll be just like Him, knowing good and evil" (Genesis 3:4-5). What happened next? The Bible says:
Genesis 3:6 … the woman SAW that the tree was good for food, and THAT IT WAS PLEASANT TO THE EYES …
This is the way that sin always entraps us. It starts with the eyes. You reject the Word of God, and then the devil parades out a good looking LAND MINE. Look in our context:
Proverbs 6:23-26 For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life: 24 To keep thee from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman. 25 Lust not after her beauty in thine heart; neither let her take thee with her eyelids. 26 For by means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread: and the adultress will hunt for the precious life.
God hates it when we ignore His Word, and look longingly at something He has forbidden. That is an ABOMINATION to God.
Proverbs 6:17 … a lying tongue
We go from the eyes, next to the MOUTH as we see that God hates lying. Our Lord Jesus told the Pharisees who told lies about Him and His ministry:
John 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
The Devil – a.k.a. Satan – is the inventor of lies. He lied in the Garden of Eden when he told Adam and Eve "You will not die!". The devil uses lies and trickery to get the righteous to fall, and to keep the unrighteous hell-bound. Lying is foreign to God. The Bible says "God NEVER LIES" (Titus 1:2). Believers in Christ are to be "speaking the TRUTH in LOVE" (Ephesians 4:15).
It was the lie of Satan that destroyed Paradise, and lies in the so called Churches that are leading the lost to greater lostness. God says:
Proverbs 12:22 Lying lips are an abomination to the LORD, but those who act faithfully are his delight
We are to cling to His Word and faithfully speak His Word – for His Word is TRUTH (John 17:17).
Proverbs 6:17 … hands that shed innocent blood
Eyes, mouth, and now to the hands. God established the death penalty for shedding the blood of someone who did not deserve to die. He first established this when Noah left the Ark:
Genesis 9:6 Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.
Life is sacred because God made us in His image. In fact, God states that "we are gods" (Psalm 82:6; John 10:34) – not in the sense that God is God, but we are little "g" gods because we are made in His image. God gave man dominion over the earth and all that is in it. Animals are animals but humans are NOT animals – we are in God's image. That makes human life supremely sacred, and this is why God demands "life for life" (Exodus 21:23) if innocent life is taken.
Not too long ago Comedian Bill Maher stated "abortion is murder, and I'm okay with that because there's 8 billion people in the world. We don't need you." God hates the shedding of innocent blood (which is what abortion is) and finds it abominable.
Proverbs 6:18 … An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations
The heart is next. The heart of a person is the control center of the soul. God hates the heart that focuses not on His Word, but on "wicked imaginations" because of the evil it introduces into the world. It was the heart focused on evil that caused God to flood the entire world with water in the days of Noah:
Genesis 6:5-7 … (ESV) The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. 7 So the Lord said, "I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land
The reason there is rampant crime and pain on this earth is because of the wicked imagination of the heart. Jesus said:
Matthew 15:19-20 (ESV) For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. 20 These are what defile a person.
Proverbs 6:18 … feet that be swift in running to mischief
God calls His people to be "Light" and "Salt". Jesus said:
John 8:12 (ESV) … "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."
Where we go, we are to bring the LIGHT OF CHRIST with us, not the darkness of sin. God hates when people run to an area to tear down rather than build up. It is contrary to the Christian way of life.
Proverbs 6:19 A false witness that speaketh lies …
God despises the "lying Tongue" (verse 16), that is, the Tongue that speaks against His Word. But God also hates the tongue that bears FALSE WITNESS. The Ninth Commandment of the Law is:
Exodus 20:16 (ESV) You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
Numerous times in the Book of Proverbs the Lord speaks out against the False Witness. We are told:
Proverbs 19:5 (ESV) A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who breathes out lies will not escape.
Proverbs 19:9 (ESV) A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who breathes out lies will perish.
It was the lies of the False Witnesses that brought Jesus to the judgment seat of Pilate (Matthew 26:59), and the lies of False Witnesses that caused the unlawful execution of the Evangelist Stephen (Acts 6:13). God condemned the False Witness under the Law, warning "You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness." (Exodus 23:1). Under U.S. Law perjury is punishable by imprisonment of 5-7 years. Under the Mosaic Law, the false witness would receive the punishment he intended to bring on the falsely accused, up to and including capital punishment.
The Worst Sin Is Sowing Discord
In the first part of this text, we read:
Proverbs 6:16 These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
All of the sins mentioned are hated by God – but the SEVENTH sin puts the cap on it. God particularly hates DISUNITY. The Seventh HATED sin is:
Proverbs 6:19 … he that soweth discord among brethren
God particularly hates those who run around behind the scenes stirring up trouble among His people. Previously God spoke of the worthless man in:
Proverbs 6:12-14 A NAUGHTY {bᵊlîyaʿal, son of Belial, worthless} person, a wicked man, walketh with a FROWARD {ʿiqqᵊšûṯ, perverse} mouth. 13 He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers; 14 FROWARDNESS {ʿiqqᵊšûṯ, perversity} is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually; he soweth discord.
A worthless person tears down the work of God. Jesus said "where two or three are gathered TOGETHER IN MY NAME, I am in their midst" (Matthew 18:20). It pleases God when His Church is in one accord, glorifying Him. God HATES it when a member of the body, like a cancer, goes rogue and begins to destroy the unity that Christ purchased with His own blood.
Shame on you!
The Apostle told the Church at Corinth to handle the young man spreading discord in the harshest of ways. Paul said:
1 Corinthians 5:5 … deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
Turn that person out. "Purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, for Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us" (1 Corinthians 5:7). Our Lord Jesus said:
Matthew 12:25 … Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand…
Division destroys the Work of God, and hinders the growth of the Kingdom of God. May God teach us to stand together, loving God with our all, and loving one another the way we want to be loved. Pastor Scott L. Harris of Grace Bible Church, NY writes:
"God's desire is for brothers to dwell in unity (Psalm 133:1). Such unity is even more important for those who are spiritual brothers. It is our love for one another that demonstrates we are disciples of Jesus (John 13:35). There is not to be divisions among us (1 Cor. 1:10) for we are to be diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Ephesians 3:6). That is done by having the humility to regard others more important than yourself and look out for their interests and not just your own (Philippians 2:3-4)."
For Christ's glory. For the advancement of His Kingdom. Amen and Amen.
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