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While these characteristics are not irrelevant to understanding evil, they offer weak explanations of evil as God sees it. We can begin to understand evil when we accept that God is love and that he has commanded that his people love their neighbors as they love themselves. That command demands that we understand the breadth and depth of Godly love. This link introduces a useful summary of what Godly love is and is not. For a deeper understanding, consider the following links:

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These links identify both the do’s and don’ts of Godly love. Thoughts words and deeds that are consistent with these do’s and “don’ts qualify as Godly love. Thoughts words and deeds that do not agree with these do’s and don’ts are evil in God’s sight. With this understanding we see that evil is much more than immorality or a horrific event that cannot be easily explained.  In God’s eyes, evil is any thought, word or deed that flows out of an evil, impure heart. The scriptures cited below provide a useful summary of evil:

Mark 7:15-23  “What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come—immorality, theft, murder,  adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.”

INTERPRETATION: Evil originates in the heart and is publicly expressed through evil words and behaviors that, for the most part, are not considered to be sin because they are culturally acceptable behaviors.

James 3:16-17 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. 17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peace-loving, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial, free of hypocrisy.

INTERPRETATION: Jealousy, gossip, selfish ambition, disorder, impartiality and hypocrisy are not typically associated with evil. But they are associated with evil, impure hearts. They can be fully understood only by people who understand God’s attitudes about religion, the characteristics of clean pure hearts and the characteristics of evil, impure hearts. For the most part, words and deeds are not considered to be sin by religious people because they are culturally acceptable behaviors. In God’s eyes, however, gossip, jealousy, selfish ambition, disorder, impartiality and hypocrisy are sin because they are inconsistent with his commands about loving your neighbor. Wisdom from above is a poetic way of referring to God’s laws written on the hearts of New Covenant disciples. A legitimate summary of this verse says that thoughts, words and deeds that are not pure, peace-loving, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial, and free of hypocrisy are evil.

Isaiah 1:10-17 Hear the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom; listen to the instruction of our God, you people of Gomorrah! 11“The multitude of your sacrifices— what are they to me?” says the Lord. “I have more than enough of burnt offerings, of rams and the fat of fattened animals; I have no pleasure in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats. 12When you come to appear before me, who has asked this of you, this trampling of my courts? 13Stop bringing meaningless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me. New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—I cannot bear your worthless assemblies. 14Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals I hate with all my being. They have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them. 15When you spread out your hands in prayer, I hide my eyes from you; even when you offer many prayers, I am not listening. Your hands are full of blood! 16Wash and make yourselves clean. Take your evil deeds out of my sight; stop doing wrong. 17Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.

INTERPRETATION: Rulers of Sodom is a symbolic term used to describe religious leaders. Here God relates evil to common religious activities such as sacrifices, Tithes and offerings, incense (i.e. prayer ), religious gatherings, traditions and festivals. And he tells people what they should do is seek justice, defend the oppressed, take up the cause of orphans and widows instead of doing religion. This also puts a very fine point on God’s idea of evil.

“The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride, arrogance, the evil way, And the perverted mouth, I hate.

COMMENTARY: This verse says that we fear God when we hate what he hates: pride, arrogance and evil. See this link for understanding of evil. Although this verse does not say so in so many words, it is fair to say that fear of God exists when we love what he loves.

Fear of God is also explained in Proverbs 24:21-22

Fear the LORD and the king (government leader), my son, and do not join with rebellious officials (i.e. political leaders), for those two (i.e. God and the king) will send sudden destruction on them (i.e. rebellious political leaders) and who knows what calamities they  (i.e. God and the king) can bring?

INTERPRETATION: Fear of God is often wrongly  interpreted in human terms. Human fear is sometimes associated with evil as humans understand evil (e.g. demons/devils, etc.) but not with evil as God defines it.  Human fear is more likely associated with uncertainty regarding future physical events and conditions that are beyond human ability to understand or control.

Human fear and Godly love are incompatible. It is impossible to fear someone you love with Godly love because love drives out fear. In human terms, however, it is possible to love someone you fear with human love.

It is necessary, therefore, to interpret fear of God and kings as hating any form of evil (e.g. pride, arrogance, evil laws, perverted speech, etc.) that they may exhibit. Kings and government leaders should be feared because their evil behaviors will bring destruction. Therefore, this verse is a caution against joining rebellious officials and political leaders by supporting them in their campaigns and by voting for them.

 1John 4:18  There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

COMMENTARY: Here are the key truths in this verse:

• • • Fear and love are incompatible.
    • God’s love is perfect love
    • Human love is imperfect.
    • People who have known only human love live in fear of many things punishments.
    • Withholding of love is often used as a punishment in relationships as a control mechanism.
    • People who receive Godly love no longer live in fear of punishment because God does not use the threat of loss of love to make people obey his laws/commandments
    • People who live in fear have not been made perfect by God’s love.
    • People who don’t want to live in fear anymore need to quit religion and seek Godly love.

MORE COMMENTARY: People who live in a constant state fear  have not experienced Godly love.  Religious people are anxious and fearful of many things including the following.

• • • Demons and devils
    • Not going to heaven
    • Going to hell
    • Loss of privilege and influence in society, politics and religion
    • Separation from their religious family (i.e. loss of love)
    • Myriad fears that are common to religious people.
    • See this link for more about the fears common to Christian Nationalists.

The fact that religious people are plagued by fear and anxiety is evidence that they have not been made perfect by God’s love. Nevertheless, they continue to seek God’s love by practicing religion.

1 John 4:19-20 “Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.

COMMENTARY:

• • • Religious people may sincerely be in love with the idea of God based on what they read in the bible and experience in church, but they have been deceived.
    • The love that religious people have for God is human love.
    • Religious people proudly claim that they love God but they are liars because they hate their neighbors.
    • Religious people who do not love their neighbors think they love God but do not love God because they do not love their neighbors.
    • People who receive God’s love in their hearts voluntarily, eagerly, sacrificially and unconditionally love their neighbors with Godly love.
    • People who receive God’s love in their hearts do not hate anyone because Godly love never shows partiality/favoritism/discrimination toward anyone.
    • People who hate others do not have God’s love in them.

1 John 4:16  And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.

INTERPRETATION: Relying on God’s love is not the same thing as relying on fellow humans for emotional, intellectual or financial needs. It is not like trusting in luck or fate or karma. The only thing we rely on God for is his love. love in all its many forms is all that he has to give us. God does not provide for our earthly needs. We look to God alone to satisfy all of our spiritual needs which are summarized as love. If we look for religion to satisfy our spiritual needs, we make religion an idol in our hearts.

Relying on God does not mean that we do not need to work for a living and provide for our families. It does not mean that we abandon common sense, logic, science and reason in conducting our daily lives. It does not mean that we can take risks with our money or our lives believing that God will  protect us from all kinds of material/physical dangers. God only involves himself in spiritual — not physical/material — matters.

Relying on God’s love does mean, however, that we rely on God’s love to deliver us from the consequences of laying down our lives sacrificially when we love our neighbors. Even though we are highly motivated to love others, we are still human and will suffer from time to time from rejection, and perhaps even violence that drains us. When that happens, we can rely on God’s love to restore us as he fills our hearts with love, joy, peace, etc. when we suffer rejection for loving our neighbor. This is the symbolic meaning of Jesus’ tribulation.

Living in God and God living in someone are poetic expressions that refer to clean, pure hearts that are created in God’s image.

1 John 4:18  There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out  fear because  fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not been made perfect in love.

INTERPRETATION: There are many lessons in this verse.

1. • Godly love has no element of fear — ever.
   • Fear may be absent in human love initially, but human love that seems pure at first has the potential to depreciate and evolve into fear and hate with time.
   • Godly love always expresses God’s spoken word and character through thoughts, words and deeds which are perfect.
   • Godly love is contained in his spoken word which is revealed in the thoughts, words and deeds of clean, pure hearts of New Covenant disciples.
   • God himself is contained in his spoken word which perfectly expresses his love.
   • When God’s word is present in our hearts it protects us and drives fear out of our hearts.
   • Hearts that do not have God’s words in them fear many things — especially evil people who could punish them for being different in one way or another.
   • People who live in fear and anxiety do not trust God for security.

Hate is a factor in relationships whenever fear is present. In the short run, people can hold  some measure of love and trust for people they fear, but sooner or later fear turns into hate and distrust. Here is how Perplexity ai explains the process:

Fear can lead to hate through a complex interplay of emotions and responses. When individuals experience fear, it can trigger feelings of anger as a defensive mechanism, especially when they perceive a threat to their well-being or beliefs. This fear-induced anger can then evolve into hate as a way to cope with the underlying fear and regain a sense of control over the situation.

The relationship between fear and anger is intricate, with fear often serving as a precursor to anger. Individuals may resort to anger as a way to mask their underlying fears or insecurities, leading to a progression from fear to anger and potentially culminating in hate. Moreover, when people feel threatened or challenged by others who hold different beliefs or values, this can trigger fear, which may eventually transform into hate as a defense mechanism against perceived threats .

In essence, the transition from fear to hate involves a complex emotional journey where fear triggers defensive responses like anger, which can then escalate into hate as individuals seek to protect themselves from perceived threats or challenges to their beliefs and well-being.

The lesson learned from the transition from fear to anger to hate is that Godly love is not present in the hearts of people who show fear, anger or hate. People who exhibit fear, anger and hate are targets for Godly love. As they receive Godly love, the world gets a little better for them and people around them.

The bible does not directly correlate fear and hate but it does correlate love and hate. Love is pure because it makes no judgments about the relative worthiness of the objects of love with respect to race, color, creed, gender, politics, religion, or any other criteria by which we might judge people. These judgments demonstrate God’s definition of hate: anytime favoritism and partiality is shown for or in opposition to another person.

In other words, whenever we show strong affection/preference/partiality for some people while showing less affection/preference/partiality for other people, we hate everyone in God’s eyes — no matter how we feel about them emotionally. Godly love is never qualified by the relative worthiness of the object of our love. Human love always  qualifies (i.e. judges) others with respect to their worthiness as objects of our love. Whenever we qualify (i.e. judge) someone to determine if they deserve our love, God considers this judgment to be evidence of hate — not love. By this strict standard, human love is never on par with Godly love.

This analysis expands understanding of fear and evil. As discussed above, fear and love are incompatible, but fear and human love are compatible. We know that perfect love casts out human fear, but human fear and Godly fear are not the same. In the bible, human fear is typically associated with fear of man. Godly fear is associated with fear of God which is to hate evil. Most people, including Christians and Jews would not admit to loving evil. However, many will admit to hating certain other people and ideologies. In God’s view, they hate what they fear and fear what they hate because they do not have God’s love in their hearts.

Despite this assurance of a generous reward for loving others, most people fear giving up their legal rights to their habits of envy, pride, boasting, anger, self-serving, unforgiveness, delighting in evil, dishonoring others, favoritism and partiality. They know how to navigate their relationships doing these things and even achieve a measure of uneasy acceptance, and maybe even respect, from others when they do them. The various cultures in which they move accept that envy, pride, boasting, anger, self-serving, unforgiveness, delighting in evil, dishonoring others, favoritism and partiality are the norms for getting along. There is no clear incentive to give up these rights – except God’s promise in Luke 6:38.

These norms allow, even encourage, microaggressions that cause hurt and pain, and even though God’s definition of love forbids these attitudes and behaviors, everyone, including religious people, continue to do what the cultures allow.

The reason they continue envying, boasting, displaying anger, serving themselves, holding on to unforgiveness, delighting in evil, dishonoring others, and displaying favoritism and partiality is that they fear the unknown consequences of what will happen when they sacrifice their rights to do the things that everyone else is doing with apparent impunity. Life can be a dangerous place for people who don’t conform to accepted social norms. We only need to look at the life of Jesus the lawbreaker and the tribulations he suffered to know that. These are the costs of loving your neighbor sacrificially.

Applying these principles and sharing them with others are acts of loving yourself and loving others. Division cannot be overcome unless more people practice these and other acts of Godly love.