Romans-Related Topical Applications

Is The Confederate Flag a Symbol of Hate? Part 1

Transcript: AI Transcript

Professor: John Weaver

Subject: New Testament Studies

Genre: Sermon

Dictation Name:

Date: 2002-11-13

Synopsis: John Weaver argues that the Confederate flag is not a symbol of unbiblical hate but rather a symbol of biblical, righteous hatred against tyranny and the destruction of the Constitution. He establishes a biblical theology of hate, showing that God and godly men hate evil, and then uses historical quotes to demonstrate that it was the North, not the South, that hated the Union and sought its dissolution.

[John Weaver] Ecclesiastes 3, verse 1. The Word of God says, to everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under the heaven. A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted. A time to kill and a time to heal. A time to break down and a time to build up. A time to weep and a time to laugh. A time to mourn and a time to dance. A time to cast away stones and a time to gather stones together. A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing. A time to get and a time to lose. A time to keep and a time to cast away. A time to rend and a time to sow. A time to keep silence and a time to speak. A time to love and a time to hate. A time of war and a time of peace. Now I want you to look specifically at verse 8. God says there is a time to love and a time to hate.

[John Weaver] Now let me begin by asking a question. Is the confederate flag a symbol of hatred? If so, what hatred or what kind of hatred is it supposed to represent? You could go a little bit further and ask another leading question. How can the flag be a symbol of hate when it is a neutral object in and of itself and does not have the capacity to hate or to represent anything? However, there are many today who would loudly proclaim that the Confederate battle flag is a symbol of hate. And when they begin to proclaim that, what they undoubtedly mean is that somehow the Confederate battle flag symbolizes the hatred of the South or the hatred of those who flew the flag. Now, before we get carried away, we've got to ask a very important question. Now, listen carefully to this question. Is it wrong to hate? Is it wrong to hate? In a day of political correctness, tolerance for anything that is evil and wicked, undoubtedly most people would answer, yes, it's wrong to hate. Now listen carefully.

[John Weaver] If it is wrong to hate, then those who hate the Confederate battle flag are wrong, just simply because it's wrong to hate. And yet undoubtedly, and inevitably, there are multitudes that hate the biblical truth and they hate the Confederate battle flag.

[John Weaver] Now, one of the problems that we've had in America, one of the problems that we've had in Christendom is this. We have lost the theology of hate. Now let me say that again, we have lost the theology of hate. However, we must emphasize there is a distinct difference between biblical hatred and a humanistic, unbiblical, ungodly hatred. The word of God clearly says in verse 8, there is a time to love and a time to hate. Now if someone says then that all hate is wrong, then God is wrong for saying that there is a time to hate. Moreover, Anyone who says that to hate is wrong, then that individual must condemn God Himself. For in Jeremiah 44 and verse 4, in reference to sin, God said this, Oh, do not that abominable thing which I hate. So God hates sin. That's not all.

[John Weaver] I want you to look in your Bibles, if you would please, to Proverbs chapter 6, and let's begin reading there with verse 17. You see, just to condemn hatred, in and of itself, without a clear delineation between a biblical hatred and an unbiblical hatred, is to condemn God, for God Himself hates. In Proverbs 6, verse 17, in fact let's begin with verse 16, God says it like this, These six things doth the Lord hate, yea, seven are abomination unto him.

[John Weaver] A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked imaginations, feet that be swift or running to mischief, a false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among the brethren." Go back to verse 16. These six things doth the Lord hate. Does God hate? Yes. Undoubtedly!

[John Weaver] Now, if all hatred is wrong, then God would be wrong and God would have to be condemned Himself. Because the Bible says that God hates, and He hates a proud look, He hates a lying tongue, He hates the hands that shed Himself blood, He hates a heart that divides up wicked imaginations, He hates feet that are swift of mischief, He hates a false witness who speaks lies, and He hates the man who sows discord among the brethren.

[John Weaver] Well, if that's not plain enough, go back in your Bibles to Psalm 5. Let me just develop this a little more, because I want you to see that if you say that all hatred is wrong, then you must inevitably say that God himself is wrong. Because in Psalm 5, beginning there with verse 5, notice what the scripture says concerning God. In fact, let's read verse 4. Just so you can see the context, Psalm 5 verse 4, For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness, neither shall evil dwell with thee.

[John Weaver] The foolish shall not stand in thy sight. Thou hatest all workers of iniquity. Isn't that amazing? The Bible says that God hates all workers of iniquity. In fact, the Bible says in verse 6, thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing or lying, the Lord will abhor or hate the bloody and deceitful man.

[John Weaver] Now remember the word abhor is a strong word for hatred. So the Bible says very plainly in verse 5, in reference to God, thou hatest all the workers of iniquity. And now the Word of God says that God will abhor or hate the bloody and the deceitful man. Well, how about Psalm 10? Look, if you would please, in Psalm 10 and verse 3. I want you to see most of these verses.

[John Weaver] I'll quote several of them just for time's sake. But notice, if you would please, in Psalm 10 and verse 3. The Bible says, For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous whom the Lord abhorreth, or whom the Lord hateth. So God hates the covetous. Well, isn't that interesting? God is not only a God of love, He is also a God of hate. In the book of Zechariah chapter 8, you don't have to turn there, but verse 17 says this, And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbor, and love no false oath, for all these things that I hate, saith the Lord. All these things, or things that I hate, saith the Lord. So once again, God says He hates false oaths. He hates those who imagine evil in their hearts against their neighbor. Turn in your Bibles, if you would please, to the book of Proverbs, chapter 22. Proverbs 22. And look, if you would please, at verse 14.

[John Weaver] And by the way, there are a multitude of passages in the Bible that speak about the biblical doctrine of hatred. Here is one of them. Psalm 22, I'm sorry, Proverbs 22 and verse 14. The Bible says, the mouth of strange women is a deep pit. He that is abhorred or hated of the Lord shall fall therein. He that is hated of the Lord shall fall therein.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles to two passages. It can't get any plainer than this. So go to Malachi chapter 1 and Romans chapter 9. You know the passage that is coming up, but look at it anyhow. Book of Malachi, the last book in the Old Testament. Malachi chapter 1, and then we're going to go to Romans chapter 9. Look at Malachi chapter 1, beginning there with verse 1. Malachi 1 verse 1 the Word of God says the burden of the Word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. I have loved you saith the Lord yet you say wherein hast thou loved us. Was not Esau Jacob's brother saith the Lord yet I loved Jacob and I hated Esau and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness. Look what God says yet I loved Jacob And I hated Esau. If you will look in your Bibles to the book of Romans chapter 9, and notice how this truth is repeated in verse 13. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.

[John Weaver] So once again, the Bible says that God hates. He not only hates the wicked, he not only hates the covetous, he not only hates those who love false oaths, the Bible says specifically that he hated Esau. And the word hate is the strong word for hate. Look in your Bibles, if you would please, to Psalm 26 and verse 5. Psalm 26 and verse 5. Look what David, the man after God's own heart, declares. Psalm 26, verse 5. He says, I have hated the congregation of evildoers and will not sit with the wicked. I have hated the congregation of evildoers and will not sit with the wicked. Now, that was David's attitude. Turn over to Psalm 31. Look at verse 6. Psalm 31, verse 6. Once again, David says it like this, I have hated them that regard lying vanities or idols, but I trust in the Lord. Now, remember, if you would please, that David was a man after God's own heart. Turn right on over in your Bibles to Psalm 101 and look, if you would please, at verse 3.

[John Weaver] Psalm 101 and verse 3.

[John Weaver] David says, I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes. I hate the work of them that turn aside. It shall not plead unto me. So David was a man who hated. Now, turn in your Bibles to Psalm 139. As we read this passage, remember that David is called repeatedly a man after God's own heart. And look what he says in Psalm 139, beginning there with verse 21. And look at the context of this prayer. David asks or declares in verse 21, Psalm 139, Do not I hate them, O Lord, that hate thee? And am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee? I hate them with perfect hatred. I count them mine enemies.

[John Weaver] Now, let me just stop there. Go back to verse 21. Do not I hate them, O Lord, that hate Thee? And am not I grieved with those that rise up against Thee? Then he says, I hate them with perfect hatred. I count them mine enemies. Now, to demonstrate to you that this hatred, this perfect hatred that David had was biblical and right and godly, look at his next prayer request in verse 23.

[John Weaver] Search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts, and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Isn't that amazing? David just got through declaring that he hated those who hated God. He hated them with perfect hatred. He counted those individuals his enemies, and then he said, Lord, search me and know my heart. Make sure, Lord, there's no wicked thing in me." So evidently, there is a biblical hatred that one can hold and be just and right. And that biblical hatred is not condemned in Scripture. Rather, it is commended.

[John Weaver] And, I might add, it is commanded. You say, how in the world can that be? Well, turn in your Bibles to Psalm 97. Look in verse 10. Psalm 97, verse 10. Look at what John says. Psalm 97 verse 10. Ye that love the Lord hate evil. He preserved the souls of his saints. He delivered them out of the hand of the wicked. Ye that love the Lord what? Hate evil. Let me give you another verse that goes right along with this. Turn in your Bibles to the book of Amos. Daniel, Joel, Amos. Amos chapter 5. And look if you would please at verse 15. Amos 5 verse 15.

[John Weaver] Here God commands us again. Amos 5 verse 15. What does God say? Hate the evil and love the good and establish justice in the gate. It may be that the Lord God of hosts will be gracious under the remnant of Joseph. So what is God telling his people? That we're to hate the evil and love the good. Now, he just got out of his mouth, ye that love the Lord hate evil. Do you realize that biblical love and biblical hate are the two sides of one coin? You say, what are you talking about, Brother Weaver? Well, it is impossible to love God unless you hate at the same time everything that is opposed to God and that would dethrone God and destroy His kingdom. So he says, he that loved the Lord, what do you do? You hate the evil. You hate everything that is opposed to me. You hate everything that is opposed to my word. You hate everything that is opposed to my truth and my kingdom. Now, our Lord said essentially the same thing in Matthew chapter 12 and verse 30.

[John Weaver] You don't have to turn there. You remember it. But what did our Lord say? He that is not with me is what? Against me. And he that gathereth not, scattereth abroad. So very clearly then, there is indeed a biblical hatred. And there is a time to hate. And it is right and biblical to hate. Now, you've got to understand, when the Word of God condemns hatred, it is not a biblical hatred that is being condemned. It is a humanistic, sentimental, wicked, ungodly hatred that is being condemned. The positive, righteous hatred is commended in Scripture. What do we do? We normally turn everything around. We normally love sin and love wickedness and hate that which is righteous and godly. No, says God, if you are my people, you're going to love me and at the same time, you're going to hate everything that is opposed to me. Now, listen carefully to what I'm about to say. I'm going to explain this, not only today, but Lord willing, next week as well. If the Confederate battle flag is indeed a symbol of hatred, It is a symbol of biblical hatred and thus not condemned in scripture but rather commended.

[John Weaver] But let's set the record straight. Let's look at the voices of history and let's find out who really hated What was the essence of that hate? And who was that hatred directed against? Here's the one point I'm going to make today. Are you listening? It was the North who hated the Union, not the South. It was the North who hated, with an unbiblical hatred, the Union and not the South. One of the leading myths of revisionist history is that the South hated the Federal Union and sought to destroy the Union by secession.

[John Weaver] You heard that, haven't you? The South sought to destroy the Union by secession because the South hated the Union. That is a bald-faced lie. Another myth of revisionist history is simply this, that it was the North that was fighting to preserve the Union. That is not true as well. You see, the South was not seeking to overthrow the Constitution, nor the Confederated Union of the States. It was the North who sought to destroy the Constitution and the Confederated Union and said so openly and plainly on many occasions.

[John Weaver] Now what I want to do today is this. I want you to listen to the voices of history and judge for yourself who had an unbiblical hatred and who hated who and who hated what. I suppose one of the best ways that you can grasp and comprehend any movement is to listen to the leaders of that movement. Surely the leaders would be putting forth the party line. They would be putting forth what they believed, what they thought, what their objectives were, what their goals were. But what I want to do today is give you a number of quotes from the leading parties at that particular time, and I'm demonstrating one simple point, that it was the North who hated the Union, and not the South. Ardent abolitionist Wendell Phillips stated this, listen carefully, the Republican Party, that was Lincoln's party now, the Republican Party is in no sense a national party. It is a party pledged to work for the downfall of democracy, the downfall of the Union, and the destruction of the United States Constitution.

[John Weaver] The religious creed of the party was hate of democracy, hate of the Union, hate of the Constitution, and hate of the Southern people. Now Wendell Phillips was a leader in the abolitionist movement. A little bit later on, Wendell Phillips stated bluntly, and I'm quoting word for word, The Republican Party is the first sectional party ever organized in this country. It does not know its own face and calls itself national, but it is not national. It is sectional.

[John Weaver] Now listen, it is the party of the North pledged against the South. It was organized with hatred of the Constitution. The Republican Party that elected Abraham Lincoln is pledged to the downfall of the Union and the destruction of the United States Constitution. William Lloyd Garrison believed in the constitutional right to hold slaves and said the Union must be dissolved to free them. He believed in the constitutional right of secession so was willing to publicly burn the Constitution to destroy that right and called it a compact with death and a league with hell. Now that was what Wendell Phillips said, and I'm going to quote William Lloyd Garrison a little bit later when he said exactly the same thing and more. But here, William Lloyd Garrison is quoted as saying, the Constitution of the United States was a compact with hell. Wendell Phillips says, the Republican Party is the party of the North pledged against the South, and he says it was organized with hatred of the Constitution.

[John Weaver] Historian George Lunt writes thusly, he says, Mr. Lincoln, finding a geographical party in the process of formation, allowed himself to be placed at its head and encouraged its actions by that sectional declaration, I believe this government cannot permanently endure half slave and half free. That expression gave hope to the abolitionists and defeated Stephen Douglas. Although Abraham Lincoln was willing to use the Republican Party and the Republican platform, he himself said he did not want to be painted with the abolitionist brush, but he encouraged them by saying, this country cannot endure half slave and half free.

[John Weaver] Judge William Dewar of Oswego, New York on August 6, 1860 said this, Remember, this is a judge. The Republican Party is a conspiracy.

[John Weaver] Now let me finish it. The Republican Party is a conspiracy under the form, but in violation of the spirit of the Constitution of the United States, to exclude the citizens of the slave-holding states from all sharing in the government of the country, and to compel them to adapt to their institutions to the opinions of the citizens of the free states.

[John Weaver] Now what did the judge say? The Republican Party is a conspiracy under the form, but in violation of the spirit of the Constitution, and all the Republican Party wants to do is to force the South to change their opinions and adopt the attitude of the North. Senator Stephen Douglas, in a letter to Mr. Hayes dated December 27, 1860, said this, Many Republicans desire dissolution of the Union and urge war as a means of accomplishing dissolution. You've heard the old saying, that war is a method of achieving political goals by other means. And here, Senator Douglas said, Republicans desired, they wanted, the party of President Abraham Lincoln wanted dissolution of the Union and they urged war as a means of dissolving the Union. Again on February 2, 1861, Mr. Douglas said this, The leaders of the Republican Party are striving to break up the Union under pretense of unbounded devotion to it. Hostility to slavery on the part of the disunionists is stronger than fidelity to the Constitution. Now remember, Stephen Douglas was a senator. And he says the Republican Party is striving to break up the Union under pretense of unbounded devotion to it.

[John Weaver] Historian R. G. Horton wrote in 1867, I shall stress that this war was not waged by the North to preserve the Union, or to maintain the Republican institutions, but to destroy both. It will be seen that the war changed the entire character and system of our government, overthrew the rights of the states, and forced amendments against the actions of the people."

[John Weaver] Now folks, I want you to listen to that. That is a very important quote. Do you realize? Our country has never been the same since the war of Northern Aggression. You're talking about lost freedoms. You don't have the loss of states' rights. In fact, one historian said states' rights died at Appomattox. But here R. G. Horton wrote in 1867, I shall stress that this war was not waged by the North to preserve the Union or to maintain the Republican institution, but to destroy both. And consequently, basically what we have since 1866 is an empire and not a nation. The Cincinnati Inquirer wrote on January 15, 1881 for Cincinnati, Ohio, a northern state, but the Cincinnati Inquirer wrote, Republican hate has blasted the fair heritage of our fathers.

[John Weaver] The prediction made two years before Daniel Webster's death has literally come true. He said, if these fanatics, that is abolitionists, ever get the power in their own hands, they will override the Constitution, set the Supreme Court at defiance, change and make laws to suit themselves, lay vile hands on them who differ in opinion, or who dare question their fidelity, and finally deluge the country with blood. Yes.

[John Weaver] But they're quoting from the Republican Inquirer. And Daniel Webster, of course, this was before the weather broke out. He saw exactly where the abolitionists and the Republicans were going. He said, once they get into power, they're going to override the Constitution. How many times today is our Constitution even mentioned in a court of law? None. And if you bring it up, you're apt to You know have contempt of court charge leveled against you say yeah It's absolutely amazing you see our country has changed since the war It's just like the right to travel you have the right to travel as long as your papers are in order You

[John Weaver] follow what I'm saying do you think that They had to have driver's license in 1860. You say, well, come on, brother. We were working on the automobiles running down the road a hundred miles an hour. That's right. But I got news for you. Have you ever been hit by a running horse? Have you ever been hit by a carriage being pulled by horses? You follow what I'm saying? Have you ever been kicked by a horse? Well, let me go further.

[John Weaver] At a Republican convention held in Boston, Massachusetts in 1856, the following resolution was passed, resolved, that this movement, that is abolitionism, does not merely seek disunion, but the more perfect union of free states by the expulsion of the slave states from the Confederation in which they have ever been an element of discord, danger, and disgrace. Now what did the Republican convention say? We want to get rid of the southern states! We want a more perfect union, and how are we going to have it? By disunion, we're going to get rid of the south.

[John Weaver] Then all of us, who have the same opinion, will be in agreement. That's like me saying, well, Brother Tony and I agree. The rest of you folks don't agree with us, y'all can just leave. Isn't that absolutely ridiculous? And yet that's exactly what the resolution of the Republican convention said. Another Republican convention held the same year in Monroe, Wisconsin passed this resolution. Resolved, now listen carefully, resolved that it is the duty of the North, in case we fail in electing a President of Congress that will restore freedom, that is abolitionism to Kansas, to revolutionize the government. So in Monroe, Wisconsin, they said, in case we don't get Lincoln, and in case we don't get our Congress, our radical Republicans up there, it is our duty to revolutionize the government.

[John Weaver] You didn't know that there was a revolution going on at the same time there was a war going on, did you? They were indeed revolutionizing the government. Republican Senator Charles Sumner, Boston Commonwealth, printed this. Listen carefully. Charles Sumner? A radical Republican? A United States Senator? Here is the quote. How dare anyone pray for the preservation of that sin and shame, the Union. The unity of the states is a crime. May the tongue wither that prays for the preservation of that festering shame, the Union. Remember, Charles Sumner was a Senator. He had taken an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States. And the Constitution guaranteed each state a Republican form of government. And here he says, how dare Anyone pray for the preservation of that sin and shame, the union? The unity of the states as a crime? May the tongue wither that prays for the preservation of that festering shame, the union?

[John Weaver] I hope you're beginning to see there's an awful lot of hatred. But it wasn't on the part of the South. It's on the part of the North. Frederick Douglass, former slave and abolitionist, openly declared, listen to what he said, from this time forth, I consecrate the labor of my life to the dissolution of the Union, and I care not whether the bolt that rends it comes from heaven or hell. You really think the North was fighting to preserve the Union? Oh no.

[John Weaver] They wanted to destroy it. They hated it. They hated the Constitution. William Lord Garrison, the ardent abolitionist and editor of the Liberator, wrote this, I have said, and I say again, that in proportion of the growth of disunionism will be the growth of republicanism. The Union is a lie. The American Union is an imposture. and a covenant with death and an agreement with hell. I am for its overthrow. Up with the flag of disunion, that we may have a free, that is, an abolitionist and glorious union of our own." What is he saying? Up with the flag of disunion, that we can run the southern states out, that we can have a union all of our own.

[John Weaver] We don't want them in it. Wendell Phillips said this, No man has a right to be surprised at the state of things, that is the brewing of the hostilities between the North and the South. Are you listening? No man has a right to be surprised at the state of things, that is the brewing of the hostilities between the North and the South. It is just what we abolitionists and disunionists have attempted to bring about.

[John Weaver] There is merit in the Republican Party. It is the first sectional party ever organized in this country. It does not know its own face. It calls itself national, but it is not national. It is sectional. The Republican Party is the party of the North pledged against the South. I have labored 19 years to take 15 states out of the Union. And if I have spent any 19 years to the satisfaction of my purity and conscience, it was those 19 years. What did he say?

[John Weaver] The war was just what we abolitionists and disunionists have attempted to bring about. Why? We want to get rid of the southern states. In a letter to Garrison's paper, the liberator Wendell Phillips wrote this. The disunion we sought was one which should be begun by the North on principle. Are you listening? The North had a right to revolution. The right to break up the Union. How many times do you read things like this in your history books?

[John Weaver] On May 16, 1862, the Anti-Slavery Society of Essex County, Massachusetts adopted the following resolution, resolved, that the war as hitherto prosecuted is but a wanton waste of property, a dreadful sacrifice of life, and worse than all, of conscience and of character to preserve and perpetuate a union and constitution which should have never existed and which by all the laws of justice and humanity should in their present form be at once and forever overthrown." Well, there it is in black and white. They hated the Union. They hated the Constitution. They wanted the overthrow of the Constitution and of the Union. They wanted its dissolution. At a Republican meeting in New York on May 15, 1857, Unitarian minister Andrew T. Forbes said, There never has been an hour when this blasphemous and infamous Union should have been made. And now the hour has to be prayed for when it shall be dashed to pieces forever. I hate the Union.

[John Weaver] Well, let me ask the question. I'm going to bring you this to a conclusion in a moment, but let me ask the question. If the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, what is it hatred of? By contrast, let me give you the statements of the leaders of the South. I am a historian of that period. Alexander Hamilton Stevens, who was Vice President of the Confederacy, his nickname was Little Alec.

[John Weaver] He was a very small man. Before the South seceded, he said this. Here is his statement. It is well known that my judgment is against secession for existing causes. Stevens did not want the South to withdraw. He said, it is well known that my judgment is against secession for existing causes. I have not lost hope of securing our rights in the Union and under the Constitution. I have ever believed and do now believe that it is to be the interest of all the states to be and remain under the Constitution of the United States with a faithful performance by each of all its constitutional obligations. What is he saying? Well, Alexander Hamel and Stephen says the South really didn't have to secede. The only thing that needs to happen is that each state needs to live up to its constitutional obligations. Then there'd be no reason for secession. Let me put that in very plain and blunt words.

[John Weaver] If you do what's right, there's no need to fight. Let me tell you something, and I've probably told you this before, but this is an excellent illustration. I've had to counsel people for a long time, and inevitably, husbands and wives get into arguments, they get into fights, and sometimes, you know, well, I'm going to divorce you. And then they get upset. And then they say, well, we want to do what's right.

[John Weaver] And then this and then that. And so they come to me and they'll say, well, Pastor, Can you help us get back together? Can you restore our home? And my response has always been this. I can. As long as both of you want to do what's right. But now if one wants to do what's right, and the other wants to do what's wrong, the only person I can help is the one who wants to do what's right. I can't help both of them. And I can't get two people back together when one wants to do what's right and the other wants to do what's wrong.

[John Weaver] The same thing with the federation of states. When you have a group of states wanting what's wrong and another group of states wanting what's right, there's no way in the world those states are going to stay together. And I believe I've demonstrated today what group of states want to do what was wrong. Listen to what Alexander Hamilton Stevens said after the South seceded. Now before it seceded, he said I'm not for secession. All I want is for each state to fulfill its constitutional obligations. But after the South seceded, Stevens said this. The real object of those who resorted to secession, as well as those who sustained it, was not to overthrow the government of the United States, but to perpetuate the principles upon which it was founded. The object in quitting the Union was not to destroy, but to save the principles of the Constitution. The South never invaded the North. The North invaded the South. The South was not trying to change the North. The North was trying to change the South. Alexander Hamilton Stevens puts it very plainly.

[John Weaver] He says the real object of those who resorted to secession as well as those who sustained it was not to overthrow the government of the United States, but to perpetuate the principles upon which it was founded. The object in quitting the Union was not to destroy, but to save the principles of the Constitution. And did you know? The Constitution of the United States was basically what was adopted by the confederate states until they could write their own constitution and then when they wrote their own constitution they adopted most of what was in the federal constitution. I might point out the fact that the confederate constitution was the first and only constitution to outlaw slavery.

[John Weaver] Listen to what General Robert E. Lee said. He was the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia. And he said all the South ever desired was that the union as established by our forefathers should be preserved and that the government as originally organized should be administered in purity and in truth. Isn't that amazing? He said all we ever wanted was what was right. All we ever wanted was what our forefathers had bequeathed us. Again Lee said this, the South has contended only for the supremacy of the Constitution and the just administration of the laws made in pursuance to it. Virginia to the last made great efforts to save the Union and urged harmony and compromise. Lee says the only thing the South wanted was for the Constitution to be honored, for the Union to be preserved. R. G. Horton in his Youth's History of the Civil War stated this, listen carefully, at the very time the abolitionists were preaching a mad crusade against the Union and educating a generation to hate the government of our fathers, Southern men, the great leaders of the South, were begging and imploring that the Union might be

[John Weaver] preserved. Now let me read that to you again. At the very time the abolitionists were preaching a mad crusade against the Union and educating a generation to hate the government of our fathers, Southern men, the great leaders of the South, were begging and imploring that the Union might be preserved. Do you know something, folks? The abolitionists did their job well. Because the average American, and I will even go further, The average Christian hates the government of our forefathers. You know why? Because they have been hornswoggled by the welfare democracy that has got everybody in a suit line waiting for the handout from the federal government. States rights? Since when?

[John Weaver] You see what I'm saying? The average American, the average Christian knows nothing about states' rights. He knows nothing about the Constitution. He knows nothing about the Word of God. He knows nothing about the government of our forefathers. And if our forefathers were alive today, do you think they would put up for one minute with the trash that's going on in this country? And the answer is no. Now listen to me.

[John Weaver] The unbiblical and humanistic hatred towards the Union of the Confederated States was on the part of the abolitionists and Republicans, particularly, and the North generally. Are you listening? If the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, it is only a hatred against those who would dissolve the Union overthrow the Constitution and destroy our rights. Thus the confederate flag, if you would say it's a symbol of hatred, it would be a symbol of biblical, righteous, godly hatred. For what did God say in the book of Zachariah? One of those things that God hated were those who would not perform their oaths. If you want to know which flag was really a symbol of hatred, it was the stars and stripes, not the confederate battle flag. Not the stars in Mars.

[John Weaver] Not the first national, second national, third national. Not the Bonnie Blue. Not the battle flag. No. It was the stars and the strikes. If you say the confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, once you examine the history closely, it can only be a symbol of hatred against those who destroy our republican form of government. and take away our liberty and our freedom. Why do you suppose in every country, European country, South American country, when they are fighting against a tyrannical government, what flag is being flown? Confederate battle flag. Why? Because it's a symbol against tyranny and wickedness. If it's a symbol of hate, it can only be a symbol of hate against those who destroy our Constitution and our liberty and our freedom.

[John Weaver] But I want to show you secondly today that it was the North who hated and cherished evil feelings against the South.

Is The Confederate Flag a Symbol of Hate? Part 1

John Weaver | SermonAudio

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	SermonAudio
Media ID	111302114224
Subject	New Testament Studies
Course	Romans-Related Topical Applications
Genre	Sermon
Date	2002-11-13
Dictation Name
Book	Book 020: Is The Confederate Flag a Symbol of Hate? — Chapter 1
Source Timed Segments	56

Formatted Transcript

Introduction: A Time to Hate

Weaver reads Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, emphasizing verse 8 that there is 'a time to love and a time to hate,' and poses the question of whether the Confederate flag is a symbol of hate.

Ecclesiastes 3, verse 1. The Word of God says,

Scripture Reading — Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

"To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace."

Now I want you to look specifically at verse 8. God says there is a time to love and a time to hate.

The Question of Hate and the Flag

He questions how a neutral object can symbolize hate and notes that if all hate is wrong, then those who hate the flag are also wrong.

Now let me begin by asking a question. Is the Confederate flag a symbol of hatred? If so, what hatred or what kind of hatred is it supposed to represent? You could go a little bit further and ask another leading question. How can the flag be a symbol of hate when it is a neutral object in and of itself and does not have the capacity to hate or to represent anything? However, there are many today who would loudly proclaim that the Confederate battle flag is a symbol of hate. And when they begin to proclaim that, what they undoubtedly mean is that somehow the Confederate battle flag symbolizes the hatred of the South or the hatred of those who flew the flag. Now, before we get carried away, we've got to ask a very important question. Now, listen carefully to this question. Is it wrong to hate? Is it wrong to hate? In a day of political correctness, tolerance for anything that is evil and wicked, undoubtedly most people would answer, yes, it's wrong to hate. Now listen carefully.

If it is wrong to hate, then those who hate the Confederate battle flag are wrong, just simply because it's wrong to hate. And yet undoubtedly, and inevitably, there are multitudes that hate the biblical truth and they hate the Confederate battle flag. Now, one of the problems that we've had in America, one of the problems that we've had in Christendom is this. We have lost the theology of hate. Now let me say that again, we have lost the theology of hate. However, we must emphasize there is a distinct difference between biblical hatred and a humanistic, unbiblical, ungodly hatred. The Word of God clearly says in verse 8, there is a time to love and a time to hate. Now if someone says then that all hate is wrong, then God is wrong for saying that there is a time to hate. Moreover, anyone who says that to hate is wrong, then that individual must condemn God Himself. For in Jeremiah 44 and verse 4, in reference to sin, God said this, "Oh, do not that abominable thing which I hate." So God hates sin. That's not all.

The Lost Theology of Hate

Weaver asserts that America has lost the theology of hate and distinguishes between biblical and unbiblical hatred, citing God's hatred of sin in Jeremiah 44:4.

I want you to look in your Bibles, if you would please, to Proverbs chapter 6, and let's begin reading there with verse 17. You see, just to condemn hatred, in and of itself, without a clear delineation between a biblical hatred and an unbiblical hatred, is to condemn God, for God Himself hates. In Proverbs 6, verse 17, in fact let's begin with verse 16, God says it like this, "These six things doth the Lord hate, yea, seven are an abomination unto him:

Biblical Evidence That God Hates

He provides multiple scripture passages showing God hates specific sins and people, including Proverbs 6:16-19, Psalm 5:5, Psalm 10:3, Zechariah 8:17, Proverbs 22:14, Malachi 1:2-3, and Romans 9:13.

a proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, a false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among the brethren." Go back to verse 16. "These six things doth the Lord hate." Does God hate? Yes. Undoubtedly!

Now, if all hatred is wrong, then God would be wrong and God would have to be condemned Himself. Because the Bible says that God hates, and He hates a proud look, He hates a lying tongue, He hates the hands that shed innocent blood, He hates a heart that devises wicked imaginations, He hates feet that are swift to mischief, He hates a false witness who speaks lies, and He hates the man who sows discord among the brethren. Well, if that's not plain enough, go back in your Bibles to Psalm 5. Let me just develop this a little more, because I want you to see that if you say that all hatred is wrong, then you must inevitably say that God himself is wrong. Because in Psalm 5, beginning there with verse 5, notice what the scripture says concerning God. In fact, let's read verse 4. Just so you can see the context, Psalm 5 verse 4, "For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness, neither shall evil dwell with thee.

The foolish shall not stand in thy sight. Thou hatest all workers of iniquity." Isn't that amazing? The Bible says that God hates all workers of iniquity. In fact, the Bible says in verse 6, "Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing or lying, the Lord will abhor or hate the bloody and deceitful man."

Now remember the word abhor is a strong word for hatred. So the Bible says very plainly in verse 5, in reference to God, "Thou hatest all the workers of iniquity." And now the Word of God says that God will abhor or hate the bloody and the deceitful man. Well, how about Psalm 10? Look, if you would please, in Psalm 10 and verse 3. I want you to see most of these verses. I'll quote several of them just for time's sake. But notice, if you would please, in Psalm 10 and verse 3. The Bible says,

Scripture Reading — Psalm 10:3

"For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous, whom the Lord abhorreth,"

or whom the Lord hateth. So God hates the covetous. Well, isn't that interesting? God is not only a God of love, He is also a God of hate. In the book of Zechariah chapter 8, you don't have to turn there, but verse 17 says this, "And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbor, and love no false oath, for all these things that I hate, saith the Lord." All these things, or things that I hate, saith the Lord. So once again, God says He hates false oaths. He hates those who imagine evil in their hearts against their neighbor. Turn in your Bibles, if you would please, to the book of Proverbs, chapter 22. Proverbs 22. And look, if you would please, at verse 14.

And by the way, there are a multitude of passages in the Bible that speak about the biblical doctrine of hatred. Here is one of them. Proverbs 22 and verse 14. The Bible says, "The mouth of strange women is a deep pit. He that is abhorred or hated of the Lord shall fall therein." He that is hated of the Lord shall fall therein.

Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles to two passages. It can't get any plainer than this. So go to Malachi chapter 1 and Romans chapter 9. You know the passage that is coming up, but look at it anyhow. Book of Malachi, the last book in the Old Testament. Malachi chapter 1, and then we're going to go to Romans chapter 9. Look at Malachi chapter 1, beginning there with verse 1. Malachi 1 verse 1 the Word of God says,

Scripture Reading — Malachi 1:2-3

"The burden of the Word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. I have loved you, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob's brother? saith the Lord: yet I loved Jacob, and I hated Esau, and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness."

Look what God says:

Scripture Reading — Malachi 1:2-3

"Yet I loved Jacob, and I hated Esau."

If you will look in your Bibles to the book of Romans chapter 9, and notice how this truth is repeated in verse 13. "As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated."

So once again, the Bible says that God hates. He not only hates the wicked, he not only hates the covetous, he not only hates those who love false oaths, the Bible says specifically that he hated Esau. And the word hate is the strong word for hate. Look in your Bibles, if you would please, to Psalm 26 and verse 5. Psalm 26 and verse 5. Look what David, the man after God's own heart, declares. Psalm 26, verse 5. He says, "I have hated the congregation of evildoers and will not sit with the wicked." I have hated the congregation of evildoers and will not sit with the wicked. Now, that was David's attitude. Turn over to Psalm 31. Look at verse 6. Psalm 31, verse 6. Once again, David says it like this, "I have hated them that regard lying vanities or idols, but I trust in the Lord." Now, remember, if you would please, that David was a man after God's own heart. Turn right on over in your Bibles to Psalm 101 and look, if you would please, at verse 3.

Psalm 101 and verse 3.

David's Perfect Hatred

Weaver examines David's statements of hatred in Psalms 26:5, 31:6, 101:3, and 139:21-22, noting that David's hatred was 'perfect' and followed by a prayer for God to search his heart, showing it was righteous.

Psalm 101 and verse 3.

Scripture Reading — Psalm 26:5

David says, "I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes. I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me." So David was a man who hated. Now, turn in your Bibles to Psalm 139. As we read this passage, remember that David is called repeatedly a man after God's own heart. And look what he says in Psalm 139, beginning there with verse 21. And look at the context of this prayer. David asks or declares in verse 21, Psalm 139, "Do not I hate them, O Lord, that hate thee? And am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee? I hate them with perfect hatred. I count them mine enemies."

Now, let me just stop there. Go back to verse 21. "Do not I hate them, O Lord, that hate Thee? And am not I grieved with those that rise up against Thee?" Then he says, "I hate them with perfect hatred. I count them mine enemies." Now, to demonstrate to you that this hatred, this perfect hatred that David had was biblical and right and godly, look at his next prayer request in verse 23. "Search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts, and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Isn't that amazing? David just got through declaring that he hated those who hated God. He hated them with perfect hatred. He counted those individuals his enemies, and then he said, "Lord, search me and know my heart. Make sure, Lord, there's no wicked thing in me." So evidently, there is a biblical hatred that one can hold and be just and right. And that biblical hatred is not condemned in Scripture. Rather, it is commended.

The Command to Hate Evil

He cites Psalm 97:10 and Amos 5:15 to show that believers are commanded to hate evil, and explains that love for God necessarily involves hatred of what opposes Him.

And, I might add, it is commanded. You say, how in the world can that be? Well, turn in your Bibles to Psalm 97. Look in verse 10. Psalm 97, verse 10. Look at what John says. Psalm 97 verse 10.

Scripture Reading — Psalm 97:10

"Ye that love the Lord hate evil. He preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked."

Ye that love the Lord what? Hate evil. Let me give you another verse that goes right along with this. Turn in your Bibles to the book of Amos. Daniel, Joel, Amos. Amos chapter 5. And look if you would please at verse 15. Amos 5 verse 15.

Here God commands us again. Amos 5 verse 15. What does God say?

Scripture Reading — Amos 5:15

"Hate the evil and love the good and establish justice in the gate. It may be that the Lord God of hosts will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph."

So what is God telling his people? That we're to hate the evil and love the good. Now, he just got out of his mouth, "Ye that love the Lord hate evil." Do you realize that biblical love and biblical hate are the two sides of one coin? You say, what are you talking about, Brother Weaver? Well, it is impossible to love God unless you hate at the same time everything that is opposed to God and that would dethrone God and destroy His kingdom. So he says, "He that loveth the Lord," what do you do? You hate the evil. You hate everything that is opposed to me. You hate everything that is opposed to my word. You hate everything that is opposed to my truth and my kingdom. Now, our Lord said essentially the same thing in Matthew chapter 12 and verse 30.

You don't have to turn there. You remember it. But what did our Lord say? "He that is not with me is what? Against me. And he that gathereth not, scattereth abroad." So very clearly then, there is indeed a biblical hatred. And there is a time to hate. And it is right and biblical to hate. Now, you've got to understand, when the Word of God condemns hatred, it is not a biblical hatred that is being condemned. It is a humanistic, sentimental, wicked, ungodly hatred that is being condemned. The positive, righteous hatred is commended in Scripture. What do we do? We normally turn everything around. We normally love sin and love wickedness and hate that which is righteous and godly. No, says God, if you are my people, you're going to love me and at the same time, you're going to hate everything that is opposed to me. Now, listen carefully to what I'm about to say. I'm going to explain this, not only today, but Lord willing, next week as well. If the Confederate battle flag is indeed a symbol of hatred, it is a symbol of biblical hatred and thus not condemned in scripture but rather commended.

Historical Voices: The North Hated the Union

Weaver presents quotes from Northern leaders (Wendell Phillips, William Lloyd Garrison, Stephen Douglas, Charles Sumner, Frederick Douglass, etc.) to argue that the North, not the South, hated the Union and sought its dissolution.

But let's set the record straight. Let's look at the voices of history and let's find out who really hated. What was the essence of that hate? And who was that hatred directed against? Here's the one point I'm going to make today. Are you listening? It was the North who hated the Union, not the South. It was the North who hated, with an unbiblical hatred, the Union and not the South. One of the leading myths of revisionist history is that the South hated the Federal Union and sought to destroy the Union by secession.

You heard that, haven't you? The South sought to destroy the Union by secession because the South hated the Union. That is a bald-faced lie. Another myth of revisionist history is simply this, that it was the North that was fighting to preserve the Union. That is not true as well. You see, the South was not seeking to overthrow the Constitution, nor the Confederated Union of the States. It was the North who sought to destroy the Constitution and the Confederated Union and said so openly and plainly on many occasions.

Now what I want to do today is this. I want you to listen to the voices of history and judge for yourself who had an unbiblical hatred and who hated who and who hated what. I suppose one of the best ways that you can grasp and comprehend any movement is to listen to the leaders of that movement. Surely the leaders would be putting forth the party line. They would be putting forth what they believed, what they thought, what their objectives were, what their goals were. But what I want to do today is give you a number of quotes from the leading parties at that particular time, and I'm demonstrating one simple point, that it was the North who hated the Union, and not the South. Ardent abolitionist Wendell Phillips stated this, listen carefully, "The Republican Party, that was Lincoln's party now, the Republican Party is in no sense a national party. It is a party pledged to work for the downfall of democracy, the downfall of the Union, and the destruction of the United States Constitution.

The religious creed of the party was hate of democracy, hate of the Union, hate of the Constitution, and hate of the Southern people." Now Wendell Phillips was a leader in the abolitionist movement. A little bit later on, Wendell Phillips stated bluntly, and I'm quoting word for word, "The Republican Party is the first sectional party ever organized in this country. It does not know its own face and calls itself national, but it is not national. It is sectional.

Now listen, it is the party of the North pledged against the South. It was organized with hatred of the Constitution. The Republican Party that elected Abraham Lincoln is pledged to the downfall of the Union and the destruction of the United States Constitution." William Lloyd Garrison believed in the constitutional right to hold slaves and said the Union must be dissolved to free them. He believed in the constitutional right of secession so was willing to publicly burn the Constitution to destroy that right and called it a compact with death and a league with hell. Now that was what Wendell Phillips said, and I'm going to quote William Lloyd Garrison a little bit later when he said exactly the same thing and more. But here, William Lloyd Garrison is quoted as saying, "The Constitution of the United States was a compact with hell." Wendell Phillips says, "The Republican Party is the party of the North pledged against the South," and he says it was organized with hatred of the Constitution.

Historian George Lunt writes thusly, he says, "Mr. Lincoln, finding a geographical party in the process of formation, allowed himself to be placed at its head and encouraged its actions by that sectional declaration, 'I believe this government cannot permanently endure half slave and half free.' That expression gave hope to the abolitionists and defeated Stephen Douglas." Although Abraham Lincoln was willing to use the Republican Party and the Republican platform, he himself said he did not want to be painted with the abolitionist brush, but he encouraged them by saying, "This country cannot endure half slave and half free." Judge William Dewar of Oswego, New York on August 6, 1860 said this, Remember, this is a judge. "The Republican Party is a conspiracy.

Now let me finish it. The Republican Party is a conspiracy under the form, but in violation of the spirit of the Constitution of the United States, to exclude the citizens of the slave-holding states from all sharing in the government of the country, and to compel them to adapt their institutions to the opinions of the citizens of the free states." Now what did the judge say? The Republican Party is a conspiracy under the form, but in violation of the spirit of the Constitution, and all the Republican Party wants to do is to force the South to change their opinions and adopt the attitude of the North. Senator Stephen Douglas, in a letter to Mr. Hayes dated December 27, 1860, said this, "Many Republicans desire dissolution of the Union and urge war as a means of accomplishing dissolution." You've heard the old saying, that war is a method of achieving political goals by other means. And here, Senator Douglas said, Republicans desired, they wanted, the party of President Abraham Lincoln wanted dissolution of the Union and they urged war as a means of dissolving the Union. Again on February 2, 1861, Mr. Douglas said this, "The leaders of the Republican Party are striving to break up the Union under pretense of unbounded devotion to it. Hostility to slavery on the part of the disunionists is stronger than fidelity to the Constitution." Now remember, Stephen Douglas was a senator. And he says the Republican Party is striving to break up the Union under pretense of unbounded devotion to it.

Historian R. G. Horton wrote in 1867, "I shall stress that this war was not waged by the North to preserve the Union, or to maintain the Republican institutions, but to destroy both. It will be seen that the war changed the entire character and system of our government, overthrew the rights of the states, and forced amendments against the actions of the people."

Now folks, I want you to listen to that. That is a very important quote. Do you realize? Our country has never been the same since the war of Northern Aggression. You're talking about lost freedoms. You don't have the loss of states' rights. In fact, one historian said states' rights died at Appomattox. But here R. G. Horton wrote in 1867, "I shall stress that this war was not waged by the North to preserve the Union or to maintain the Republican institution, but to destroy both." And consequently, basically what we have since 1866 is an empire and not a nation. The Cincinnati Inquirer wrote on January 15, 1881 for Cincinnati, Ohio, a northern state, but the Cincinnati Inquirer wrote, "Republican hate has blasted the fair heritage of our fathers.

The prediction made two years before Daniel Webster's death has literally come true. He said, 'If these fanatics, that is abolitionists, ever get the power in their own hands, they will override the Constitution, set the Supreme Court at defiance, change and make laws to suit themselves, lay vile hands on them who differ in opinion, or who dare question their fidelity, and finally deluge the country with blood.' Yes. But they're quoting from the Republican Inquirer. And Daniel Webster, of course, this was before the war broke out. He saw exactly where the abolitionists and the Republicans were going. He said, once they get into power, they're going to override the Constitution. How many times today is our Constitution even mentioned in a court of law? None. And if you bring it up, you're apt to have contempt of court charge leveled against you. You say, yeah. It's absolutely amazing. You see, our country has changed since the war. It's just like the right to travel. You have the right to travel as long as your papers are in order.

You follow what I'm saying? Do you think that they had to have driver's licenses in 1860? You say, well, come on, brother. We were working on the automobiles running down the road a hundred miles an hour. That's right. But I got news for you. Have you ever been hit by a running horse? Have you ever been hit by a carriage being pulled by horses? You follow what I'm saying? Have you ever been kicked by a horse? Well, let me go further.

At a Republican convention held in Boston, Massachusetts in 1856, the following resolution was passed, "Resolved, that this movement, that is abolitionism, does not merely seek disunion, but the more perfect union of free states by the expulsion of the slave states from the Confederation in which they have ever been an element of discord, danger, and disgrace." Now what did the Republican convention say? We want to get rid of the southern states! We want a more perfect union, and how are we going to have it? By disunion, we're going to get rid of the south.

Then all of us, who have the same opinion, will be in agreement. That's like me saying, well, Brother Tony and I agree. The rest of you folks don't agree with us, y'all can just leave. Isn't that absolutely ridiculous? And yet that's exactly what the resolution of the Republican convention said. Another Republican convention held the same year in Monroe, Wisconsin passed this resolution. "Resolved," now listen carefully, "resolved that it is the duty of the North, in case we fail in electing a President of Congress that will restore freedom, that is abolitionism to Kansas, to revolutionize the government." So in Monroe, Wisconsin, they said, in case we don't get Lincoln, and in case we don't get our Congress, our radical Republicans up there, it is our duty to revolutionize the government.

You didn't know that there was a revolution going on at the same time there was a war going on, did you? They were indeed revolutionizing the government. Republican Senator Charles Sumner, Boston Commonwealth, printed this. Listen carefully. Charles Sumner? A radical Republican? A United States Senator? Here is the quote. "How dare anyone pray for the preservation of that sin and shame, the Union. The unity of the states is a crime. May the tongue wither that prays for the preservation of that festering shame, the Union." Remember, Charles Sumner was a Senator. He had taken an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States. And the Constitution guaranteed each state a Republican form of government. And here he says, "How dare anyone pray for the preservation of that sin and shame, the union? The unity of the states is a crime? May the tongue wither that prays for the preservation of that festering shame, the union?"

I hope you're beginning to see there's an awful lot of hatred. But it wasn't on the part of the South. It's on the part of the North. Frederick Douglass, former slave and abolitionist, openly declared, listen to what he said, "From this time forth, I consecrate the labor of my life to the dissolution of the Union, and I care not whether the bolt that rends it comes from heaven or hell." You really think the North was fighting to preserve the Union? Oh no. They wanted to destroy it. They hated it. They hated the Constitution. William Lloyd Garrison, the ardent abolitionist and editor of the Liberator, wrote this, "I have said, and I say again, that in proportion of the growth of disunionism will be the growth of republicanism. The Union is a lie. The American Union is an imposture, and a covenant with death and an agreement with hell. I am for its overthrow. Up with the flag of disunion, that we may have a free, that is, an abolitionist and glorious union of our own." What is he saying? Up with the flag of disunion, that we can run the southern states out, that we can have a union all of our own.

We don't want them in it. Wendell Phillips said this, "No man has a right to be surprised at the state of things, that is the brewing of the hostilities between the North and the South. Are you listening? No man has a right to be surprised at the state of things, that is the brewing of the hostilities between the North and the South. It is just what we abolitionists and disunionists have attempted to bring about.

There is merit in the Republican Party. It is the first sectional party ever organized in this country. It does not know its own face. It calls itself national, but it is not national. It is sectional. The Republican Party is the party of the North pledged against the South. I have labored 19 years to take 15 states out of the Union. And if I have spent any 19 years to the satisfaction of my purity and conscience, it was those 19 years." What did he say?

The war was just what we abolitionists and disunionists have attempted to bring about. Why? We want to get rid of the southern states. In a letter to Garrison's paper, the Liberator, Wendell Phillips wrote this. "The disunion we sought was one which should be begun by the North on principle." Are you listening? The North had a right to revolution. The right to break up the Union. How many times do you read things like this in your history books?

On May 16, 1862, the Anti-Slavery Society of Essex County, Massachusetts adopted the following resolution, "Resolved, that the war as hitherto prosecuted is but a wanton waste of property, a dreadful sacrifice of life, and worse than all, of conscience and of character to preserve and perpetuate a union and constitution which should have never existed and which by all the laws of justice and humanity should in their present form be at once and forever overthrown." Well, there it is in black and white. They hated the Union. They hated the Constitution. They wanted the overthrow of the Constitution and of the Union. They wanted its dissolution. At a Republican meeting in New York on May 15, 1857, Unitarian minister Andrew T. Forbes said, "There never has been an hour when this blasphemous and infamous Union should have been made. And now the hour has to be prayed for when it shall be dashed to pieces forever. I hate the Union."

Southern Leaders' Desire to Preserve the Union

He contrasts Northern hatred with quotes from Alexander Stephens and Robert E. Lee, who expressed a desire to preserve the Union and the Constitution.

Well, let me ask the question. I'm going to bring you this to a conclusion in a moment, but let me ask the question. If the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, what is it hatred of? By contrast, let me give you the statements of the leaders of the South. I am a historian of that period. Alexander Hamilton Stephens, who was Vice President of the Confederacy, his nickname was Little Alec. He was a very small man. Before the South seceded, he said this. Here is his statement. "It is well known that my judgment is against secession for existing causes." Stephens did not want the South to withdraw. He said, "It is well known that my judgment is against secession for existing causes. I have not lost hope of securing our rights in the Union and under the Constitution. I have ever believed and do now believe that it is to be the interest of all the states to be and remain under the Constitution of the United States with a faithful performance by each of all its constitutional obligations." What is he saying? Well, Alexander Hamilton Stephens says the South really didn't have to secede. The only thing that needs to happen is that each state needs to live up to its constitutional obligations. Then there'd be no reason for secession. Let me put that in very plain and blunt words.

If you do what's right, there's no need to fight. Let me tell you something, and I've probably told you this before, but this is an excellent illustration. I've had to counsel people for a long time, and inevitably, husbands and wives get into arguments, they get into fights, and sometimes, you know, well, I'm going to divorce you. And then they get upset. And then they say, well, we want to do what's right. And then this and then that. And so they come to me and they'll say, well, Pastor, can you help us get back together? Can you restore our home? And my response has always been this. I can. As long as both of you want to do what's right. But now if one wants to do what's right, and the other wants to do what's wrong, the only person I can help is the one who wants to do what's right. I can't help both of them. And I can't get two people back together when one wants to do what's right and the other wants to do what's wrong.

The same thing with the federation of states. When you have a group of states wanting what's wrong and another group of states wanting what's right, there's no way in the world those states are going to stay together. And I believe I've demonstrated today what group of states wanted to do what was wrong. Listen to what Alexander Hamilton Stephens said after the South seceded. Now before it seceded, he said I'm not for secession. All I want is for each state to fulfill its constitutional obligations. But after the South seceded, Stephens said this. "The real object of those who resorted to secession, as well as those who sustained it, was not to overthrow the government of the United States, but to perpetuate the principles upon which it was founded. The object in quitting the Union was not to destroy, but to save the principles of the Constitution." The South never invaded the North. The North invaded the South. The South was not trying to change the North. The North was trying to change the South. Alexander Hamilton Stephens puts it very plainly.

He says, "The real object of those who resorted to secession as well as those who sustained it was not to overthrow the government of the United States, but to perpetuate the principles upon which it was founded. The object in quitting the Union was not to destroy, but to save the principles of the Constitution." And did you know? The Constitution of the United States was basically what was adopted by the Confederate states until they could write their own constitution and then when they wrote their own constitution they adopted most of what was in the federal constitution. I might point out the fact that the Confederate constitution was the first and only constitution to outlaw slavery. Listen to what General Robert E. Lee said. He was the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia. And he said, "All the South ever desired was that the union as established by our forefathers should be preserved and that the government as originally organized should be administered in purity and in truth." Isn't that amazing? He said all we ever wanted was what was right. All we ever wanted was what our forefathers had bequeathed us. Again Lee said this, "The South has contended only for the supremacy of the Constitution and the just administration of the laws made in pursuance to it. Virginia to the last made great efforts to save the Union and urged harmony and compromise." Lee says the only thing the South wanted was for the Constitution to be honored, for the Union to be preserved. R. G. Horton in his Youth's History of the Civil War stated this, listen carefully, "At the very time the abolitionists were preaching a mad crusade against the Union and educating a generation to hate the government of our fathers, Southern men, the great leaders of the South, were begging and imploring that the Union might be

preserved." Now let me read that to you again. "At the very time the abolitionists were preaching a mad crusade against the Union and educating a generation to hate the government of our fathers, Southern men, the great leaders of the South, were begging and imploring that the Union might be preserved." Do you know something, folks? The abolitionists did their job well. Because the average American, and I will even go further, the average Christian hates the government of our forefathers. You know why? Because they have been hornswoggled by the welfare democracy that has got everybody in a suit line waiting for the handout from the federal government. States rights? Since when?

Conclusion: The Flag as a Symbol of Biblical Hatred

Weaver concludes that if the Confederate flag is a symbol of hate, it is a symbol of biblical, righteous hatred against those who would destroy the Constitution and liberty, and that the true symbol of unbiblical hatred was the Stars and Stripes.

You see what I'm saying? The average American, the average Christian knows nothing about states' rights. He knows nothing about the Constitution. He knows nothing about the Word of God. He knows nothing about the government of our forefathers. And if our forefathers were alive today, do you think they would put up for one minute with the trash that's going on in this country? And the answer is no. Now listen to me.

The unbiblical and humanistic hatred towards the Union of the Confederated States was on the part of the abolitionists and Republicans, particularly, and the North generally. Are you listening? If the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, it is only a hatred against those who would dissolve the Union, overthrow the Constitution, and destroy our rights. Thus the Confederate flag, if you would say it's a symbol of hatred, it would be a symbol of biblical, righteous, godly hatred. For what did God say in the book of Zechariah? One of those things that God hated were those who would not perform their oaths. If you want to know which flag was really a symbol of hatred, it was the stars and stripes, not the Confederate battle flag. Not the stars and bars.

Not the first national, second national, third national. Not the Bonnie Blue. Not the battle flag. No. It was the stars and the stripes. If you say the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, once you examine the history closely, it can only be a symbol of hatred against those who destroy our republican form of government and take away our liberty and our freedom. Why do you suppose in every country, European country, South American country, when they are fighting against a tyrannical government, what flag is being flown? Confederate battle flag. Why? Because it's a symbol against tyranny and wickedness. If it's a symbol of hate, it can only be a symbol of hate against those who destroy our Constitution and our liberty and our freedom.

But I want to show you secondly today that it was the North who hated and cherished evil feelings against the South.

Study Guide

Major Themes

Biblical Theology of Hate

Summary: There is a righteous, biblical hatred that is commanded and commended by God, distinct from sinful, humanistic hatred.

Evidence: Weaver cites Ecclesiastes 3:8, Jeremiah 44:4, Proverbs 6:16-19, Psalm 5:5, Psalm 10:3, Zechariah 8:17, Proverbs 22:14, Malachi 1:2-3, Romans 9:13, Psalm 97:10, Amos 5:15, and David's example in Psalms.

Northern Hatred of the Union

Summary: Historical evidence shows that Northern abolitionists and Republicans hated the Union and sought its dissolution, contrary to the myth that the South hated the Union.

Evidence: Quotes from Wendell Phillips, William Lloyd Garrison, Stephen Douglas, Charles Sumner, Frederick Douglass, and others are presented to demonstrate Northern disunionist sentiment.

Southern Desire to Preserve the Constitution

Summary: Southern leaders like Alexander Stephens and Robert E. Lee expressed a desire to preserve the Union and the principles of the Constitution, not to destroy them.

Evidence: Stephens said secession was to 'perpetuate the principles upon which it was founded' and Lee said 'all the South ever desired was that the union as established by our forefathers should be preserved.'

The Confederate Flag as a Symbol of Righteous Hatred

Summary: If the Confederate flag symbolizes hatred, it is a biblical hatred against tyranny and the destruction of constitutional liberty.

Evidence: Weaver states, 'If the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, it is only a hatred against those who would dissolve the Union, overthrow the Constitution, and destroy our rights.'

Key Arguments

All hatred is not wrong; God hates.

Summary: If all hatred is wrong, then God is wrong because Scripture repeatedly says God hates sin and sinners.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'if someone says then that all hate is wrong, then God is wrong for saying that there is a time to hate' and cites multiple verses.

David's perfect hatred was righteous.

Summary: David's hatred of God's enemies was 'perfect' and not sinful, as evidenced by his immediate prayer for God to search his heart.

Evidence: Psalm 139:21-24 shows David hating with 'perfect hatred' and then asking God to search him for any wicked way.

Love for God requires hatred of evil.

Summary: Biblical love and hate are two sides of the same coin; you cannot love God without hating what opposes Him.

Evidence: Weaver explains, 'it is impossible to love God unless you hate at the same time everything that is opposed to God.'

The North, not the South, hated the Union.

Summary: Numerous Northern leaders openly expressed hatred for the Union and a desire for its dissolution.

Evidence: Quotes from Wendell Phillips, William Lloyd Garrison, Charles Sumner, and others explicitly state hatred for the Union and Constitution.

The South sought to preserve the Union and Constitution.

Summary: Southern leaders like Stephens and Lee stated their goal was to preserve the principles of the Constitution, not destroy the Union.

Evidence: Stephens: 'The object in quitting the Union was not to destroy, but to save the principles of the Constitution.'

The Confederate flag symbolizes biblical hatred against tyranny.

Summary: If the flag is a symbol of hate, it is a righteous hatred against those who would destroy constitutional government and liberty.

Evidence: Weaver concludes, 'If the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, it can only be a symbol of hatred against those who destroy our Constitution and our liberty and our freedom.'

Scripture References

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Context: Read to introduce the concept that there is a time to love and a time to hate.

Jeremiah 44:4

Context: Cited to show God hates sin: 'Oh, do not that abominable thing which I hate.'

Proverbs 6:16-19

Context: Lists seven things the Lord hates, demonstrating God's hatred.

Psalm 5:4-6

Context: Shows God hates all workers of iniquity and abhors the bloody and deceitful man.

Psalm 10:3

Context: States the Lord abhors (hates) the covetous.

Zechariah 8:17

Context: God says He hates false oaths and imagining evil against a neighbor.

Proverbs 22:14

Context: Mentions those who are hated of the Lord.

Malachi 1:2-3

Context: God says, 'I loved Jacob, and I hated Esau.'

Romans 9:13

Context: Repeats Malachi: 'Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.'

Psalm 26:5

Context: David says, 'I have hated the congregation of evildoers.'

Psalm 31:6

Context: David says, 'I have hated them that regard lying vanities.'

Psalm 101:3

Context: David says, 'I hate the work of them that turn aside.'

Psalm 139:21-24

Context: David expresses perfect hatred for God's enemies and then asks God to search his heart.

Psalm 97:10

Context: Commands, 'Ye that love the Lord hate evil.'

Amos 5:15

Context: Commands to 'Hate the evil and love the good.'

Matthew 12:30

Context: Jesus says, 'He that is not with me is against me,' implying necessary opposition.

Historical References

Wendell Phillips

Context: Abolitionist who stated the Republican Party was pledged to the downfall of the Union and destruction of the Constitution.

William Lloyd Garrison

Context: Abolitionist who called the Constitution a 'compact with death and a league with hell' and advocated disunion.

George Lunt

Context: Historian who wrote about Lincoln's sectional declaration.

Judge William Dewar

Context: Called the Republican Party a conspiracy against the Constitution.

Senator Stephen Douglas

Context: Stated Republicans desired dissolution of the Union and urged war as a means to accomplish it.

R. G. Horton

Context: Historian who wrote that the war was waged to destroy the Union and Constitution.

Cincinnati Inquirer (1881)

Context: Northern newspaper that wrote 'Republican hate has blasted the fair heritage of our fathers.'

Daniel Webster

Context: Predicted abolitionists would override the Constitution and deluge the country with blood.

Charles Sumner

Context: Republican Senator who called the Union a 'sin and shame' and a 'festering shame.'

Frederick Douglass

Context: Abolitionist who consecrated his life to the dissolution of the Union.

Important Quotes

We have lost the theology of hate.

Significance: Central thesis that the church has abandoned the biblical concept of righteous hatred.

If it is wrong to hate, then those who hate the Confederate battle flag are wrong, just simply because it's wrong to hate.

Significance: Highlights the inconsistency of condemning the flag for representing hate while hating the flag.

I hate them with perfect hatred. I count them mine enemies.

Significance: David's example of righteous hatred, used to justify biblical hate.

It is impossible to love God unless you hate at the same time everything that is opposed to God and that would dethrone God and destroy His kingdom.

Significance: Argues that love and hate are inseparable in a biblical worldview.

The Republican Party is in no sense a national party. It is a party pledged to work for the downfall of democracy, the downfall of the Union, and the destruction of the United States Constitution.

Significance: Quote from Wendell Phillips used to show Northern hatred of the Union.

The real object of those who resorted to secession, as well as those who sustained it, was not to overthrow the government of the United States, but to perpetuate the principles upon which it was founded.

Significance: Alexander Stephens' statement that the South sought to preserve, not destroy, the Constitution.

All the South ever desired was that the union as established by our forefathers should be preserved and that the government as originally organized should be administered in purity and in truth.

Significance: Robert E. Lee's affirmation of Southern loyalty to the original Union.

If the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, it is only a hatred against those who would dissolve the Union, overthrow the Constitution, and destroy our rights.

Significance: Weaver's concluding definition of the flag's symbolism as righteous hatred.

Discussion Questions

How does the biblical concept of a 'time to hate' challenge modern cultural assumptions about hate?

Context: Weaver argues that Scripture commands hatred of evil, which conflicts with contemporary tolerance.

In what ways can love for God and hatred of evil coexist in a Christian's life?

Context: Weaver states that love and hate are two sides of the same coin for believers.

How should Christians evaluate historical symbols like the Confederate flag in light of biblical principles?

Context: The sermon applies the theology of hate to the specific symbol of the Confederate flag.

What does the historical evidence presented suggest about the true motives of the North and South during the Civil War?

Context: Weaver provides numerous quotes to argue the North hated the Union and the South sought to preserve it.

How does the loss of 'states' rights' after the Civil War affect our understanding of American government today?

Context: Weaver mentions that states' rights died at Appomattox and that the U.S. became an empire.

Applications

Develop a biblical understanding of hate

Summary: Believers must learn to hate what God hates—sin, evil, and opposition to His kingdom—as an expression of love for God.

Evidence: Weaver commands, 'Ye that love the Lord hate evil' (Psalm 97:10) and explains that love and hate are inseparable.

Evaluate historical narratives critically

Summary: Christians should not accept revisionist history but examine primary sources to discern truth about the Civil War and its symbols.

Evidence: Weaver presents numerous historical quotes to counter the myth that the South hated the Union.

Defend constitutional principles

Summary: The sermon implies that believers should uphold the original constitutional framework and resist tyranny that destroys liberty.

Evidence: Weaver praises the South's desire to 'perpetuate the principles upon which it was founded' and condemns the North's destruction of the Constitution.

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-04T15:31:44Z

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-05T19:15:02Z

Clean Transcript

Is The Confederate Flag a Symbol of Hate? Part 1

Clean readable transcript. This view follows the Commentary.net cleaned segment text while preserving timestamps for audio follow-along.

Ecclesiastes 3, verse 1. The Word of God says, "To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace." Now I want you to look specifically at verse 8. God says there is a time to love and a time to hate.
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Now let me begin by asking a question. Is the Confederate flag a symbol of hatred? If so, what hatred or what kind of hatred is it supposed to represent? You could go a little bit further and ask another leading question. How can the flag be a symbol of hate when it is a neutral object in and of itself and does not have the capacity to hate or to represent anything? However, there are many today who would loudly proclaim that the Confederate battle flag is a symbol of hate. And when they begin to proclaim that, what they undoubtedly mean is that somehow the Confederate battle flag symbolizes the hatred of the South or the hatred of those who flew the flag. Now, before we get carried away, we've got to ask a very important question. Now, listen carefully to this question. Is it wrong to hate? Is it wrong to hate? In a day of political correctness, tolerance for anything that is evil and wicked, undoubtedly most people would answer, yes, it's wrong to hate. Now listen carefully.
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If it is wrong to hate, then those who hate the Confederate battle flag are wrong, just simply because it's wrong to hate. And yet undoubtedly, and inevitably, there are multitudes that hate the biblical truth and they hate the Confederate battle flag.
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Now, one of the problems that we've had in America, one of the problems that we've had in Christendom is this. We have lost the theology of hate. Now let me say that again, we have lost the theology of hate. However, we must emphasize there is a distinct difference between biblical hatred and a humanistic, unbiblical, ungodly hatred. The Word of God clearly says in verse 8, there is a time to love and a time to hate. Now if someone says then that all hate is wrong, then God is wrong for saying that there is a time to hate. Moreover, anyone who says that to hate is wrong, then that individual must condemn God Himself. For in Jeremiah 44 and verse 4, in reference to sin, God said this, "Oh, do not that abominable thing which I hate." So God hates sin. That's not all.
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I want you to look in your Bibles, if you would please, to Proverbs chapter 6, and let's begin reading there with verse 17. You see, just to condemn hatred, in and of itself, without a clear delineation between a biblical hatred and an unbiblical hatred, is to condemn God, for God Himself hates. In Proverbs 6, verse 17, in fact let's begin with verse 16, God says it like this, "These six things doth the Lord hate, yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
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a proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, a false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among the brethren." Go back to verse 16. "These six things doth the Lord hate." Does God hate? Yes. Undoubtedly!
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Now, if all hatred is wrong, then God would be wrong and God would have to be condemned Himself. Because the Bible says that God hates, and He hates a proud look, He hates a lying tongue, He hates the hands that shed innocent blood, He hates a heart that devises wicked imaginations, He hates feet that are swift to mischief, He hates a false witness who speaks lies, and He hates the man who sows discord among the brethren.
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Well, if that's not plain enough, go back in your Bibles to Psalm 5. Let me just develop this a little more, because I want you to see that if you say that all hatred is wrong, then you must inevitably say that God himself is wrong. Because in Psalm 5, beginning there with verse 5, notice what the scripture says concerning God. In fact, let's read verse 4. Just so you can see the context, Psalm 5 verse 4, "For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness, neither shall evil dwell with thee.
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The foolish shall not stand in thy sight. Thou hatest all workers of iniquity." Isn't that amazing? The Bible says that God hates all workers of iniquity. In fact, the Bible says in verse 6, "Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing or lying, the Lord will abhor or hate the bloody and deceitful man."
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Now remember the word abhor is a strong word for hatred. So the Bible says very plainly in verse 5, in reference to God, "Thou hatest all the workers of iniquity." And now the Word of God says that God will abhor or hate the bloody and the deceitful man. Well, how about Psalm 10? Look, if you would please, in Psalm 10 and verse 3. I want you to see most of these verses.
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I'll quote several of them just for time's sake. But notice, if you would please, in Psalm 10 and verse 3. The Bible says, "For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous, whom the Lord abhorreth," or whom the Lord hateth. So God hates the covetous. Well, isn't that interesting? God is not only a God of love, He is also a God of hate. In the book of Zechariah chapter 8, you don't have to turn there, but verse 17 says this, "And let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbor, and love no false oath, for all these things that I hate, saith the Lord." All these things, or things that I hate, saith the Lord. So once again, God says He hates false oaths. He hates those who imagine evil in their hearts against their neighbor. Turn in your Bibles, if you would please, to the book of Proverbs, chapter 22. Proverbs 22. And look, if you would please, at verse 14.
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And by the way, there are a multitude of passages in the Bible that speak about the biblical doctrine of hatred. Here is one of them. Proverbs 22 and verse 14. The Bible says, "The mouth of strange women is a deep pit. He that is abhorred or hated of the Lord shall fall therein." He that is hated of the Lord shall fall therein.
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Now, I want you to turn in your Bibles to two passages. It can't get any plainer than this. So go to Malachi chapter 1 and Romans chapter 9. You know the passage that is coming up, but look at it anyhow. Book of Malachi, the last book in the Old Testament. Malachi chapter 1, and then we're going to go to Romans chapter 9. Look at Malachi chapter 1, beginning there with verse 1. Malachi 1 verse 1 the Word of God says, "The burden of the Word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. I have loved you, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob's brother? saith the Lord: yet I loved Jacob, and I hated Esau, and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness." Look what God says: "Yet I loved Jacob, and I hated Esau." If you will look in your Bibles to the book of Romans chapter 9, and notice how this truth is repeated in verse 13. "As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated."
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So once again, the Bible says that God hates. He not only hates the wicked, he not only hates the covetous, he not only hates those who love false oaths, the Bible says specifically that he hated Esau. And the word hate is the strong word for hate. Look in your Bibles, if you would please, to Psalm 26 and verse 5. Psalm 26 and verse 5. Look what David, the man after God's own heart, declares. Psalm 26, verse 5. He says, "I have hated the congregation of evildoers and will not sit with the wicked." I have hated the congregation of evildoers and will not sit with the wicked. Now, that was David's attitude. Turn over to Psalm 31. Look at verse 6. Psalm 31, verse 6. Once again, David says it like this, "I have hated them that regard lying vanities or idols, but I trust in the Lord." Now, remember, if you would please, that David was a man after God's own heart. Turn right on over in your Bibles to Psalm 101 and look, if you would please, at verse 3.
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Psalm 101 and verse 3.
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David says, "I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes. I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me." So David was a man who hated. Now, turn in your Bibles to Psalm 139. As we read this passage, remember that David is called repeatedly a man after God's own heart. And look what he says in Psalm 139, beginning there with verse 21. And look at the context of this prayer. David asks or declares in verse 21, Psalm 139, "Do not I hate them, O Lord, that hate thee? And am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee? I hate them with perfect hatred. I count them mine enemies."
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Now, let me just stop there. Go back to verse 21. "Do not I hate them, O Lord, that hate Thee? And am not I grieved with those that rise up against Thee?" Then he says, "I hate them with perfect hatred. I count them mine enemies." Now, to demonstrate to you that this hatred, this perfect hatred that David had was biblical and right and godly, look at his next prayer request in verse 23.
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"Search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts, and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Isn't that amazing? David just got through declaring that he hated those who hated God. He hated them with perfect hatred. He counted those individuals his enemies, and then he said, "Lord, search me and know my heart. Make sure, Lord, there's no wicked thing in me." So evidently, there is a biblical hatred that one can hold and be just and right. And that biblical hatred is not condemned in Scripture. Rather, it is commended.
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And, I might add, it is commanded. You say, how in the world can that be? Well, turn in your Bibles to Psalm 97. Look in verse 10. Psalm 97, verse 10. Look at what John says. Psalm 97 verse 10. "Ye that love the Lord hate evil. He preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked." Ye that love the Lord what? Hate evil. Let me give you another verse that goes right along with this. Turn in your Bibles to the book of Amos. Daniel, Joel, Amos. Amos chapter 5. And look if you would please at verse 15. Amos 5 verse 15.
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Here God commands us again. Amos 5 verse 15. What does God say? "Hate the evil and love the good and establish justice in the gate. It may be that the Lord God of hosts will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph." So what is God telling his people? That we're to hate the evil and love the good. Now, he just got out of his mouth, "Ye that love the Lord hate evil." Do you realize that biblical love and biblical hate are the two sides of one coin? You say, what are you talking about, Brother Weaver? Well, it is impossible to love God unless you hate at the same time everything that is opposed to God and that would dethrone God and destroy His kingdom. So he says, "He that loveth the Lord," what do you do? You hate the evil. You hate everything that is opposed to me. You hate everything that is opposed to my word. You hate everything that is opposed to my truth and my kingdom. Now, our Lord said essentially the same thing in Matthew chapter 12 and verse 30.
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You don't have to turn there. You remember it. But what did our Lord say? "He that is not with me is what? Against me. And he that gathereth not, scattereth abroad." So very clearly then, there is indeed a biblical hatred. And there is a time to hate. And it is right and biblical to hate. Now, you've got to understand, when the Word of God condemns hatred, it is not a biblical hatred that is being condemned. It is a humanistic, sentimental, wicked, ungodly hatred that is being condemned. The positive, righteous hatred is commended in Scripture. What do we do? We normally turn everything around. We normally love sin and love wickedness and hate that which is righteous and godly. No, says God, if you are my people, you're going to love me and at the same time, you're going to hate everything that is opposed to me. Now, listen carefully to what I'm about to say. I'm going to explain this, not only today, but Lord willing, next week as well. If the Confederate battle flag is indeed a symbol of hatred, it is a symbol of biblical hatred and thus not condemned in scripture but rather commended.
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But let's set the record straight. Let's look at the voices of history and let's find out who really hated. What was the essence of that hate? And who was that hatred directed against? Here's the one point I'm going to make today. Are you listening? It was the North who hated the Union, not the South. It was the North who hated, with an unbiblical hatred, the Union and not the South. One of the leading myths of revisionist history is that the South hated the Federal Union and sought to destroy the Union by secession.
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You heard that, haven't you? The South sought to destroy the Union by secession because the South hated the Union. That is a bald-faced lie. Another myth of revisionist history is simply this, that it was the North that was fighting to preserve the Union. That is not true as well. You see, the South was not seeking to overthrow the Constitution, nor the Confederated Union of the States. It was the North who sought to destroy the Constitution and the Confederated Union and said so openly and plainly on many occasions.
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Now what I want to do today is this. I want you to listen to the voices of history and judge for yourself who had an unbiblical hatred and who hated who and who hated what. I suppose one of the best ways that you can grasp and comprehend any movement is to listen to the leaders of that movement. Surely the leaders would be putting forth the party line. They would be putting forth what they believed, what they thought, what their objectives were, what their goals were. But what I want to do today is give you a number of quotes from the leading parties at that particular time, and I'm demonstrating one simple point, that it was the North who hated the Union, and not the South. Ardent abolitionist Wendell Phillips stated this, listen carefully, "The Republican Party, that was Lincoln's party now, the Republican Party is in no sense a national party. It is a party pledged to work for the downfall of democracy, the downfall of the Union, and the destruction of the United States Constitution.
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The religious creed of the party was hate of democracy, hate of the Union, hate of the Constitution, and hate of the Southern people." Now Wendell Phillips was a leader in the abolitionist movement. A little bit later on, Wendell Phillips stated bluntly, and I'm quoting word for word, "The Republican Party is the first sectional party ever organized in this country. It does not know its own face and calls itself national, but it is not national. It is sectional.
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Now listen, it is the party of the North pledged against the South. It was organized with hatred of the Constitution. The Republican Party that elected Abraham Lincoln is pledged to the downfall of the Union and the destruction of the United States Constitution." William Lloyd Garrison believed in the constitutional right to hold slaves and said the Union must be dissolved to free them. He believed in the constitutional right of secession so was willing to publicly burn the Constitution to destroy that right and called it a compact with death and a league with hell. Now that was what Wendell Phillips said, and I'm going to quote William Lloyd Garrison a little bit later when he said exactly the same thing and more. But here, William Lloyd Garrison is quoted as saying, "The Constitution of the United States was a compact with hell." Wendell Phillips says, "The Republican Party is the party of the North pledged against the South," and he says it was organized with hatred of the Constitution.
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Historian George Lunt writes thusly, he says, "Mr. Lincoln, finding a geographical party in the process of formation, allowed himself to be placed at its head and encouraged its actions by that sectional declaration, 'I believe this government cannot permanently endure half slave and half free.' That expression gave hope to the abolitionists and defeated Stephen Douglas." Although Abraham Lincoln was willing to use the Republican Party and the Republican platform, he himself said he did not want to be painted with the abolitionist brush, but he encouraged them by saying, "This country cannot endure half slave and half free."
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Judge William Dewar of Oswego, New York on August 6, 1860 said this, Remember, this is a judge. "The Republican Party is a conspiracy.
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Now let me finish it. The Republican Party is a conspiracy under the form, but in violation of the spirit of the Constitution of the United States, to exclude the citizens of the slave-holding states from all sharing in the government of the country, and to compel them to adapt their institutions to the opinions of the citizens of the free states."
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Now what did the judge say? The Republican Party is a conspiracy under the form, but in violation of the spirit of the Constitution, and all the Republican Party wants to do is to force the South to change their opinions and adopt the attitude of the North. Senator Stephen Douglas, in a letter to Mr. Hayes dated December 27, 1860, said this, "Many Republicans desire dissolution of the Union and urge war as a means of accomplishing dissolution." You've heard the old saying, that war is a method of achieving political goals by other means. And here, Senator Douglas said, Republicans desired, they wanted, the party of President Abraham Lincoln wanted dissolution of the Union and they urged war as a means of dissolving the Union. Again on February 2, 1861, Mr. Douglas said this, "The leaders of the Republican Party are striving to break up the Union under pretense of unbounded devotion to it. Hostility to slavery on the part of the disunionists is stronger than fidelity to the Constitution." Now remember, Stephen Douglas was a senator. And he says the Republican Party is striving to break up the Union under pretense of unbounded devotion to it.
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Historian R. G. Horton wrote in 1867, "I shall stress that this war was not waged by the North to preserve the Union, or to maintain the Republican institutions, but to destroy both. It will be seen that the war changed the entire character and system of our government, overthrew the rights of the states, and forced amendments against the actions of the people."
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Now folks, I want you to listen to that. That is a very important quote. Do you realize? Our country has never been the same since the war of Northern Aggression. You're talking about lost freedoms. You don't have the loss of states' rights. In fact, one historian said states' rights died at Appomattox. But here R. G. Horton wrote in 1867, "I shall stress that this war was not waged by the North to preserve the Union or to maintain the Republican institution, but to destroy both." And consequently, basically what we have since 1866 is an empire and not a nation. The Cincinnati Inquirer wrote on January 15, 1881 for Cincinnati, Ohio, a northern state, but the Cincinnati Inquirer wrote, "Republican hate has blasted the fair heritage of our fathers.
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The prediction made two years before Daniel Webster's death has literally come true. He said, 'If these fanatics, that is abolitionists, ever get the power in their own hands, they will override the Constitution, set the Supreme Court at defiance, change and make laws to suit themselves, lay vile hands on them who differ in opinion, or who dare question their fidelity, and finally deluge the country with blood.' Yes.
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But they're quoting from the Republican Inquirer. And Daniel Webster, of course, this was before the war broke out. He saw exactly where the abolitionists and the Republicans were going. He said, once they get into power, they're going to override the Constitution. How many times today is our Constitution even mentioned in a court of law? None. And if you bring it up, you're apt to have contempt of court charge leveled against you. You say, yeah. It's absolutely amazing. You see, our country has changed since the war. It's just like the right to travel. You have the right to travel as long as your papers are in order.
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You follow what I'm saying? Do you think that they had to have driver's licenses in 1860? You say, well, come on, brother. We were working on the automobiles running down the road a hundred miles an hour. That's right. But I got news for you. Have you ever been hit by a running horse? Have you ever been hit by a carriage being pulled by horses? You follow what I'm saying? Have you ever been kicked by a horse? Well, let me go further.
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At a Republican convention held in Boston, Massachusetts in 1856, the following resolution was passed, "Resolved, that this movement, that is abolitionism, does not merely seek disunion, but the more perfect union of free states by the expulsion of the slave states from the Confederation in which they have ever been an element of discord, danger, and disgrace." Now what did the Republican convention say? We want to get rid of the southern states! We want a more perfect union, and how are we going to have it? By disunion, we're going to get rid of the south.
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Then all of us, who have the same opinion, will be in agreement. That's like me saying, well, Brother Tony and I agree. The rest of you folks don't agree with us, y'all can just leave. Isn't that absolutely ridiculous? And yet that's exactly what the resolution of the Republican convention said. Another Republican convention held the same year in Monroe, Wisconsin passed this resolution. "Resolved," now listen carefully, "resolved that it is the duty of the North, in case we fail in electing a President of Congress that will restore freedom, that is abolitionism to Kansas, to revolutionize the government." So in Monroe, Wisconsin, they said, in case we don't get Lincoln, and in case we don't get our Congress, our radical Republicans up there, it is our duty to revolutionize the government.
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You didn't know that there was a revolution going on at the same time there was a war going on, did you? They were indeed revolutionizing the government. Republican Senator Charles Sumner, Boston Commonwealth, printed this. Listen carefully. Charles Sumner? A radical Republican? A United States Senator? Here is the quote. "How dare anyone pray for the preservation of that sin and shame, the Union. The unity of the states is a crime. May the tongue wither that prays for the preservation of that festering shame, the Union." Remember, Charles Sumner was a Senator. He had taken an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States. And the Constitution guaranteed each state a Republican form of government. And here he says, "How dare anyone pray for the preservation of that sin and shame, the union? The unity of the states is a crime? May the tongue wither that prays for the preservation of that festering shame, the union?"
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I hope you're beginning to see there's an awful lot of hatred. But it wasn't on the part of the South. It's on the part of the North. Frederick Douglass, former slave and abolitionist, openly declared, listen to what he said, "From this time forth, I consecrate the labor of my life to the dissolution of the Union, and I care not whether the bolt that rends it comes from heaven or hell." You really think the North was fighting to preserve the Union? Oh no.
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They wanted to destroy it. They hated it. They hated the Constitution. William Lloyd Garrison, the ardent abolitionist and editor of the Liberator, wrote this, "I have said, and I say again, that in proportion of the growth of disunionism will be the growth of republicanism. The Union is a lie. The American Union is an imposture, and a covenant with death and an agreement with hell. I am for its overthrow. Up with the flag of disunion, that we may have a free, that is, an abolitionist and glorious union of our own." What is he saying? Up with the flag of disunion, that we can run the southern states out, that we can have a union all of our own.
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We don't want them in it. Wendell Phillips said this, "No man has a right to be surprised at the state of things, that is the brewing of the hostilities between the North and the South. Are you listening? No man has a right to be surprised at the state of things, that is the brewing of the hostilities between the North and the South. It is just what we abolitionists and disunionists have attempted to bring about.
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There is merit in the Republican Party. It is the first sectional party ever organized in this country. It does not know its own face. It calls itself national, but it is not national. It is sectional. The Republican Party is the party of the North pledged against the South. I have labored 19 years to take 15 states out of the Union. And if I have spent any 19 years to the satisfaction of my purity and conscience, it was those 19 years." What did he say?
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The war was just what we abolitionists and disunionists have attempted to bring about. Why? We want to get rid of the southern states. In a letter to Garrison's paper, the Liberator, Wendell Phillips wrote this. "The disunion we sought was one which should be begun by the North on principle." Are you listening? The North had a right to revolution. The right to break up the Union. How many times do you read things like this in your history books?
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On May 16, 1862, the Anti-Slavery Society of Essex County, Massachusetts adopted the following resolution, "Resolved, that the war as hitherto prosecuted is but a wanton waste of property, a dreadful sacrifice of life, and worse than all, of conscience and of character to preserve and perpetuate a union and constitution which should have never existed and which by all the laws of justice and humanity should in their present form be at once and forever overthrown." Well, there it is in black and white. They hated the Union. They hated the Constitution. They wanted the overthrow of the Constitution and of the Union. They wanted its dissolution. At a Republican meeting in New York on May 15, 1857, Unitarian minister Andrew T. Forbes said, "There never has been an hour when this blasphemous and infamous Union should have been made. And now the hour has to be prayed for when it shall be dashed to pieces forever. I hate the Union."
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Well, let me ask the question. I'm going to bring you this to a conclusion in a moment, but let me ask the question. If the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, what is it hatred of? By contrast, let me give you the statements of the leaders of the South. I am a historian of that period. Alexander Hamilton Stephens, who was Vice President of the Confederacy, his nickname was Little Alec.
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He was a very small man. Before the South seceded, he said this. Here is his statement. "It is well known that my judgment is against secession for existing causes." Stephens did not want the South to withdraw. He said, "It is well known that my judgment is against secession for existing causes. I have not lost hope of securing our rights in the Union and under the Constitution. I have ever believed and do now believe that it is to be the interest of all the states to be and remain under the Constitution of the United States with a faithful performance by each of all its constitutional obligations." What is he saying? Well, Alexander Hamilton Stephens says the South really didn't have to secede. The only thing that needs to happen is that each state needs to live up to its constitutional obligations. Then there'd be no reason for secession. Let me put that in very plain and blunt words.
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If you do what's right, there's no need to fight. Let me tell you something, and I've probably told you this before, but this is an excellent illustration. I've had to counsel people for a long time, and inevitably, husbands and wives get into arguments, they get into fights, and sometimes, you know, well, I'm going to divorce you. And then they get upset. And then they say, well, we want to do what's right.
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And then this and then that. And so they come to me and they'll say, well, Pastor, can you help us get back together? Can you restore our home? And my response has always been this. I can. As long as both of you want to do what's right. But now if one wants to do what's right, and the other wants to do what's wrong, the only person I can help is the one who wants to do what's right. I can't help both of them. And I can't get two people back together when one wants to do what's right and the other wants to do what's wrong.
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The same thing with the federation of states. When you have a group of states wanting what's wrong and another group of states wanting what's right, there's no way in the world those states are going to stay together. And I believe I've demonstrated today what group of states wanted to do what was wrong. Listen to what Alexander Hamilton Stephens said after the South seceded. Now before it seceded, he said I'm not for secession. All I want is for each state to fulfill its constitutional obligations. But after the South seceded, Stephens said this. "The real object of those who resorted to secession, as well as those who sustained it, was not to overthrow the government of the United States, but to perpetuate the principles upon which it was founded. The object in quitting the Union was not to destroy, but to save the principles of the Constitution." The South never invaded the North. The North invaded the South. The South was not trying to change the North. The North was trying to change the South. Alexander Hamilton Stephens puts it very plainly.
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He says, "The real object of those who resorted to secession as well as those who sustained it was not to overthrow the government of the United States, but to perpetuate the principles upon which it was founded. The object in quitting the Union was not to destroy, but to save the principles of the Constitution." And did you know? The Constitution of the United States was basically what was adopted by the Confederate states until they could write their own constitution and then when they wrote their own constitution they adopted most of what was in the federal constitution. I might point out the fact that the Confederate constitution was the first and only constitution to outlaw slavery.
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Listen to what General Robert E. Lee said. He was the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia. And he said, "All the South ever desired was that the union as established by our forefathers should be preserved and that the government as originally organized should be administered in purity and in truth." Isn't that amazing? He said all we ever wanted was what was right. All we ever wanted was what our forefathers had bequeathed us. Again Lee said this, "The South has contended only for the supremacy of the Constitution and the just administration of the laws made in pursuance to it. Virginia to the last made great efforts to save the Union and urged harmony and compromise." Lee says the only thing the South wanted was for the Constitution to be honored, for the Union to be preserved. R. G. Horton in his Youth's History of the Civil War stated this, listen carefully, "At the very time the abolitionists were preaching a mad crusade against the Union and educating a generation to hate the government of our fathers, Southern men, the great leaders of the South, were begging and imploring that the Union might be
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preserved." Now let me read that to you again. "At the very time the abolitionists were preaching a mad crusade against the Union and educating a generation to hate the government of our fathers, Southern men, the great leaders of the South, were begging and imploring that the Union might be preserved." Do you know something, folks? The abolitionists did their job well. Because the average American, and I will even go further, the average Christian hates the government of our forefathers. You know why? Because they have been hornswoggled by the welfare democracy that has got everybody in a suit line waiting for the handout from the federal government. States rights? Since when?
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You see what I'm saying? The average American, the average Christian knows nothing about states' rights. He knows nothing about the Constitution. He knows nothing about the Word of God. He knows nothing about the government of our forefathers. And if our forefathers were alive today, do you think they would put up for one minute with the trash that's going on in this country? And the answer is no. Now listen to me.
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The unbiblical and humanistic hatred towards the Union of the Confederated States was on the part of the abolitionists and Republicans, particularly, and the North generally. Are you listening? If the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, it is only a hatred against those who would dissolve the Union, overthrow the Constitution, and destroy our rights. Thus the Confederate flag, if you would say it's a symbol of hatred, it would be a symbol of biblical, righteous, godly hatred. For what did God say in the book of Zechariah? One of those things that God hated were those who would not perform their oaths. If you want to know which flag was really a symbol of hatred, it was the stars and stripes, not the Confederate battle flag. Not the stars and bars.
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Not the first national, second national, third national. Not the Bonnie Blue. Not the battle flag. No. It was the stars and the stripes. If you say the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, once you examine the history closely, it can only be a symbol of hatred against those who destroy our republican form of government and take away our liberty and our freedom. Why do you suppose in every country, European country, South American country, when they are fighting against a tyrannical government, what flag is being flown? Confederate battle flag. Why? Because it's a symbol against tyranny and wickedness. If it's a symbol of hate, it can only be a symbol of hate against those who destroy our Constitution and our liberty and our freedom.
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But I want to show you secondly today that it was the North who hated and cherished evil feelings against the South.
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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-04T15:31:44Z

Is The Confederate Flag a Symbol of Hate? Part 1

John Weaver | Freedom Ministries

John Weaver argues that the Confederate flag is not a symbol of unbiblical hate but rather a symbol of biblical, righteous hatred against tyranny and the destruction of the Constitution. He establishes a biblical theology of hate, showing that God and godly men hate evil, and then uses historical quotes to demonstrate that it was the North, not the South, that hated the Union and sought its dissolution.

Introduction: A Time to Hate

Weaver reads Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, emphasizing verse 8 that there is 'a time to love and a time to hate,' and poses the question of whether the Confederate flag is a symbol of hate.

Ecclesiastes 3, verse 1. The Word of God says,

Scripture Reading — Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

"To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace."

Now I want you to look specifically at verse 8. God says there is a time to love and a time to hate.

The Question of Hate and the Flag

He questions how a neutral object can symbolize hate and notes that if all hate is wrong, then those who hate the flag are also wrong.

The Lost Theology of Hate

Weaver asserts that America has lost the theology of hate and distinguishes between biblical and unbiblical hatred, citing God's hatred of sin in Jeremiah 44:4.

Biblical Evidence That God Hates

He provides multiple scripture passages showing God hates specific sins and people, including Proverbs 6:16-19, Psalm 5:5, Psalm 10:3, Zechariah 8:17, Proverbs 22:14, Malachi 1:2-3, and Romans 9:13.

Scripture Reading — Psalm 10:3

"For the wicked boasteth of his heart's desire, and blesseth the covetous, whom the Lord abhorreth,"

Scripture Reading — Malachi 1:2-3

"The burden of the Word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. I have loved you, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob's brother? saith the Lord: yet I loved Jacob, and I hated Esau, and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness."

Look what God says:

Scripture Reading — Malachi 1:2-3

"Yet I loved Jacob, and I hated Esau."

If you will look in your Bibles to the book of Romans chapter 9, and notice how this truth is repeated in verse 13. "As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated."

Psalm 101 and verse 3.

David's Perfect Hatred

Psalm 101 and verse 3.

Scripture Reading — Psalm 26:5

David says, "I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes. I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me." So David was a man who hated. Now, turn in your Bibles to Psalm 139. As we read this passage, remember that David is called repeatedly a man after God's own heart. And look what he says in Psalm 139, beginning there with verse 21. And look at the context of this prayer. David asks or declares in verse 21, Psalm 139, "Do not I hate them, O Lord, that hate thee? And am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee? I hate them with perfect hatred. I count them mine enemies."

The Command to Hate Evil

He cites Psalm 97:10 and Amos 5:15 to show that believers are commanded to hate evil, and explains that love for God necessarily involves hatred of what opposes Him.

And, I might add, it is commanded. You say, how in the world can that be? Well, turn in your Bibles to Psalm 97. Look in verse 10. Psalm 97, verse 10. Look at what John says. Psalm 97 verse 10.

Scripture Reading — Psalm 97:10

"Ye that love the Lord hate evil. He preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked."

Here God commands us again. Amos 5 verse 15. What does God say?

Scripture Reading — Amos 5:15

"Hate the evil and love the good and establish justice in the gate. It may be that the Lord God of hosts will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph."

Historical Voices: The North Hated the Union

Southern Leaders' Desire to Preserve the Union

He contrasts Northern hatred with quotes from Alexander Stephens and Robert E. Lee, who expressed a desire to preserve the Union and the Constitution.

Conclusion: The Flag as a Symbol of Biblical Hatred

But I want to show you secondly today that it was the North who hated and cherished evil feelings against the South.

Is The Confederate Flag a Symbol of Hate? Part 1

John Weaver | SermonAudio

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	SermonAudio
Media ID	111302114224
Subject	New Testament Studies
Course	Romans-Related Topical Applications
Genre	Sermon
Date	2002-11-13
Dictation Name
Book	Book 020: Is The Confederate Flag a Symbol of Hate? — Chapter 1
Source Timed Segments	56

Lecture Guide

Outline

Introduction: A Time to Hate: Weaver reads Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, emphasizing verse 8 that there is 'a time to love and a time to hate,' and poses the question of whether the Confederate flag is a symbol of hate.
The Question of Hate and the Flag: He questions how a neutral object can symbolize hate and notes that if all hate is wrong, then those who hate the flag are also wrong.
The Lost Theology of Hate: Weaver asserts that America has lost the theology of hate and distinguishes between biblical and unbiblical hatred, citing God's hatred of sin in Jeremiah 44:4.
Biblical Evidence That God Hates: He provides multiple scripture passages showing God hates specific sins and people, including Proverbs 6:16-19, Psalm 5:5, Psalm 10:3, Zechariah 8:17, Proverbs 22:14, Malachi 1:2-3, and Romans 9:13.
David's Perfect Hatred: Weaver examines David's statements of hatred in Psalms 26:5, 31:6, 101:3, and 139:21-22, noting that David's hatred was 'perfect' and followed by a prayer for God to search his heart, showing it was righteous.
The Command to Hate Evil: He cites Psalm 97:10 and Amos 5:15 to show that believers are commanded to hate evil, and explains that love for God necessarily involves hatred of what opposes Him.
Historical Voices: The North Hated the Union: Weaver presents quotes from Northern leaders (Wendell Phillips, William Lloyd Garrison, Stephen Douglas, Charles Sumner, Frederick Douglass, etc.) to argue that the North, not the South, hated the Union and sought its dissolution.
Southern Leaders' Desire to Preserve the Union: He contrasts Northern hatred with quotes from Alexander Stephens and Robert E. Lee, who expressed a desire to preserve the Union and the Constitution.
Conclusion: The Flag as a Symbol of Biblical Hatred: Weaver concludes that if the Confederate flag is a symbol of hate, it is a symbol of biblical, righteous hatred against those who would destroy the Constitution and liberty, and that the true symbol of unbiblical hatred was the Stars and Stripes.

Major Themes

Key Arguments

All hatred is not wrong; God hates.

If all hatred is wrong, then God is wrong because Scripture repeatedly says God hates sin and sinners.

Weaver says, 'if someone says then that all hate is wrong, then God is wrong for saying that there is a time to hate' and cites multiple verses.

David's perfect hatred was righteous.

David's hatred of God's enemies was 'perfect' and not sinful, as evidenced by his immediate prayer for God to search his heart.

Psalm 139:21-24 shows David hating with 'perfect hatred' and then asking God to search him for any wicked way.

Love for God requires hatred of evil.

Biblical love and hate are two sides of the same coin; you cannot love God without hating what opposes Him.

Weaver explains, 'it is impossible to love God unless you hate at the same time everything that is opposed to God.'

The North, not the South, hated the Union.

Numerous Northern leaders openly expressed hatred for the Union and a desire for its dissolution.

Quotes from Wendell Phillips, William Lloyd Garrison, Charles Sumner, and others explicitly state hatred for the Union and Constitution.

The South sought to preserve the Union and Constitution.

Southern leaders like Stephens and Lee stated their goal was to preserve the principles of the Constitution, not destroy the Union.

Stephens: 'The object in quitting the Union was not to destroy, but to save the principles of the Constitution.'

The Confederate flag symbolizes biblical hatred against tyranny.

If the flag is a symbol of hate, it is a righteous hatred against those who would destroy constitutional government and liberty.

Weaver concludes, 'If the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, it can only be a symbol of hatred against those who destroy our Constitution and our liberty and our freedom.'

Scripture References

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8: Read to introduce the concept that there is a time to love and a time to hate.
Jeremiah 44:4: Cited to show God hates sin: 'Oh, do not that abominable thing which I hate.'
Proverbs 6:16-19: Lists seven things the Lord hates, demonstrating God's hatred.
Psalm 5:4-6: Shows God hates all workers of iniquity and abhors the bloody and deceitful man.
Psalm 10:3: States the Lord abhors (hates) the covetous.
Zechariah 8:17: God says He hates false oaths and imagining evil against a neighbor.
Proverbs 22:14: Mentions those who are hated of the Lord.
Malachi 1:2-3: God says, 'I loved Jacob, and I hated Esau.'
Romans 9:13: Repeats Malachi: 'Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.'
Psalm 26:5: David says, 'I have hated the congregation of evildoers.'
Psalm 31:6: David says, 'I have hated them that regard lying vanities.'
Psalm 101:3: David says, 'I hate the work of them that turn aside.'
Psalm 139:21-24: David expresses perfect hatred for God's enemies and then asks God to search his heart.
Psalm 97:10: Commands, 'Ye that love the Lord hate evil.'
Amos 5:15: Commands to 'Hate the evil and love the good.'
Matthew 12:30: Jesus says, 'He that is not with me is against me,' implying necessary opposition.

Historical References

Wendell Phillips: Abolitionist who stated the Republican Party was pledged to the downfall of the Union and destruction of the Constitution.
William Lloyd Garrison: Abolitionist who called the Constitution a 'compact with death and a league with hell' and advocated disunion.
George Lunt: Historian who wrote about Lincoln's sectional declaration.
Judge William Dewar: Called the Republican Party a conspiracy against the Constitution.
Senator Stephen Douglas: Stated Republicans desired dissolution of the Union and urged war as a means to accomplish it.
R. G. Horton: Historian who wrote that the war was waged to destroy the Union and Constitution.
Cincinnati Inquirer (1881): Northern newspaper that wrote 'Republican hate has blasted the fair heritage of our fathers.'
Daniel Webster: Predicted abolitionists would override the Constitution and deluge the country with blood.
Charles Sumner: Republican Senator who called the Union a 'sin and shame' and a 'festering shame.'
Frederick Douglass: Abolitionist who consecrated his life to the dissolution of the Union.

Important Quotes

We have lost the theology of hate.

Central thesis that the church has abandoned the biblical concept of righteous hatred.

If it is wrong to hate, then those who hate the Confederate battle flag are wrong, just simply because it's wrong to hate.

Highlights the inconsistency of condemning the flag for representing hate while hating the flag.

I hate them with perfect hatred. I count them mine enemies.

David's example of righteous hatred, used to justify biblical hate.

It is impossible to love God unless you hate at the same time everything that is opposed to God and that would dethrone God and destroy His kingdom.

Argues that love and hate are inseparable in a biblical worldview.

The Republican Party is in no sense a national party. It is a party pledged to work for the downfall of democracy, the downfall of the Union, and the destruction of the United States Constitution.

Quote from Wendell Phillips used to show Northern hatred of the Union.

The real object of those who resorted to secession, as well as those who sustained it, was not to overthrow the government of the United States, but to perpetuate the principles upon which it was founded.

Alexander Stephens' statement that the South sought to preserve, not destroy, the Constitution.

All the South ever desired was that the union as established by our forefathers should be preserved and that the government as originally organized should be administered in purity and in truth.

Robert E. Lee's affirmation of Southern loyalty to the original Union.

If the Confederate flag is a symbol of hatred, it is only a hatred against those who would dissolve the Union, overthrow the Constitution, and destroy our rights.

Weaver's concluding definition of the flag's symbolism as righteous hatred.

Discussion Questions

[Question]

How does the biblical concept of a 'time to hate' challenge modern cultural assumptions about hate?

[Context]

Weaver argues that Scripture commands hatred of evil, which conflicts with contemporary tolerance.

[Question]

In what ways can love for God and hatred of evil coexist in a Christian's life?

[Context]

Weaver states that love and hate are two sides of the same coin for believers.

[Question]

How should Christians evaluate historical symbols like the Confederate flag in light of biblical principles?

[Context]

The sermon applies the theology of hate to the specific symbol of the Confederate flag.

[Question]

What does the historical evidence presented suggest about the true motives of the North and South during the Civil War?

[Context]

Weaver provides numerous quotes to argue the North hated the Union and the South sought to preserve it.

[Question]

How does the loss of 'states' rights' after the Civil War affect our understanding of American government today?

[Context]

Weaver mentions that states' rights died at Appomattox and that the U.S. became an empire.

Applications

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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-05T19:15:02Z