If you've ever wondered what really gets under God's skin, this sermon on Proverbs 6 16 19 breaks down the seven things He specifically says He hates. It's a heavy list, I know. We usually spend our time talking about the things God loves—like mercy, grace, and kindness—but there's something incredibly clarifying about knowing what the Creator of the universe finds detestable. It's not that He's just "annoyed" by these things; the language Solomon uses here is visceral. It's about things that go against the very nature of who He is.
Let's be honest, we all like to think of ourselves as "good people." We haven't committed any major crimes lately, right? But when you look at this list in Proverbs, you realize it isn't just about big, flashy sins. It's about the attitudes of our hearts and the way we treat the people around us. It's a mirror that, if we're brave enough to look into it, might show us a few things we'd rather ignore.
The Problem with Pride
The list starts with "haughty eyes." Now, that's a bit of an old-school way of saying pride. But it's a specific kind of pride. It's that look you give someone when you think you're better than them. It's the "main character syndrome" we see so much of today, where everyone else is just an extra in our own personal movie.
Haughty eyes are about perspective. When our eyes are haughty, we're looking down on people. And the problem with looking down on others is that it's impossible to look up at God at the same time. Pride is the root of so much of our trouble because it tells us we don't need anyone else—and we certainly don't need God. It's the original sin, really. It's the "I've got this" attitude that keeps us from actually growing.
Words That Wound
Next on the list is a "lying tongue." We live in a world where truth feels flexible. We call them "little white lies" or "polishing the truth" to make ourselves look better or stay out of trouble. But God doesn't see it that way. To Him, a lie is a betrayal of reality and a betrayal of the people we're talking to.
Think about how much damage a single lie can do. It can ruin a reputation, break a marriage, or destroy a friendship that took years to build. A lying tongue isn't just about the words; it's about the intent to deceive. When we lie, we're trying to control the world around us through manipulation rather than trusting God with the truth.
The Violence of the Heart
Then we get to "hands that shed innocent blood." Most of us hear that and think, Whew, I'm safe on this one. But if we look at what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, He pushed this even further. He said that if you harbor hate in your heart for your brother, you've basically committed murder in your spirit.
While most of us won't literally shed blood, we can be incredibly violent with our attitudes. We "kill" people with our silence, our exclusion, or our bitterness. God hates the destruction of life, and that includes the destruction of someone's spirit or their sense of worth. He is a God of life, so anything that seeks to tear down or destroy what He has created is something He stands firmly against.
Schemes and Quick Feet
The list continues with "a heart that devises wicked schemes" and "feet that are quick to rush into evil." This is about intentionality. Sometimes we stumble into a mistake—we get caught off guard and we mess up. That's bad enough, but Solomon is talking about something deeper here. He's talking about the person who sits around planning how to get ahead at someone else's expense.
The "wicked schemes" part is about the inner life. It's the stuff we think about when no one else is watching. And the "quick feet" part? That's our tendency to run toward the drama. Have you ever noticed how easy it is to jump into a juicy piece of gossip or a heated argument online? We're often way faster to run toward conflict or sin than we are to run toward peace. God wants us to be people who are "slow to anger" and "quick to listen," not the other way around.
The Damage of a False Witness
The sixth thing is "a false witness who pours out lies." This sounds a lot like the lying tongue we already talked about, but there's a subtle difference. A false witness is specifically about perverting justice. It's about lying in a way that affects someone else's standing or their future.
In a community, trust is the currency. When someone acts as a false witness—whether that's in a courtroom, at a workplace, or in a friend group—they break the foundation of that community. It makes it impossible for justice to happen. God is a God of justice, so it makes sense that He would despise anything that twists the truth to hurt the innocent or help the guilty.
The Seventh Thing: The Divider
Finally, we get to the one that Solomon seems to emphasize the most: "a person who stirs up conflict in the community." In some translations, it's "one who sows discord among brothers." This is the big one. It's the person who can't just let things be. They have to whisper in one person's ear and then go tell something else to another person just to watch the sparks fly.
Why does God hate this so much? Because unity is sacred. God's goal is to bring people together, to heal wounds, and to build a family. A person who stirs up conflict is doing the exact opposite. They are tearing apart what God is trying to knit together. It's incredibly easy to be a divider; it takes zero talent to point out flaws or start a fight. It takes a lot more strength to be a peacemaker.
So, What Do We Do Now?
Reading this list can feel pretty discouraging. If we're being honest, most of us can see a little bit of ourselves in several of these categories. Maybe you've got a bit of a pride problem, or maybe you've been the one stirring the pot in your family or friend group lately.
The point of a sermon on Proverbs 6 16 19 isn't to make us feel like we're beyond hope. It's to show us where we need to let God do some work. The beauty of the Gospel is that God doesn't just list the things He hates and leave us to rot. He offers us a way out. He offers us a new heart—one that values truth, seeks peace, and looks at others with humility instead of haughtiness.
If you find yourself struggling with any of these "seven things," the first step is just admitting it. Don't try to sugarcoat it or explain it away. Just say, "God, I've been prideful," or "I've been causing drama, and I'm sorry." Change starts with that kind of honesty.
We serve a God who is capable of taking a heart that "devises wicked schemes" and turning it into a heart that seeks His kingdom. He can take feet that "rush into evil" and make them feet that carry the good news of peace. This list in Proverbs isn't a death sentence; it's a call to a better way of living. It's an invitation to step away from the things that destroy us and toward the things that bring us life.
Let's try to be people who love what God loves and hate what He hates. Let's trade in the haughty eyes for a spirit of service. Let's trade in the lying tongue for words that actually build people up. It's not always the easy path—in fact, it usually isn't—but it's the only path that leads to real peace, both within ourselves and in the world around us.