Sin (8) Cannot look at Sin

Another common belief amongst Christians is that God cannot have anything to do with human sin. Some suggest that he is so holy that he cannot even look upon sin. The verse quoted to support this view is Habakkuk 1:13.

Your eyes are too pure to look on evil;
you cannot tolerate wrongdoing.

Several things should be noted about this verse. Firstly, the reference is to evil, not sin. God’s attitude to those who deliberately do evil is different to his attitude to those who drift into sin and fail to do good. These actions are quite different. Secondly, the word translated “look on” should not be taken too literally. In this context, it has more of a sense that “God cannot look on evil with pleasure”. Thirdly, following the common practice in Hebrew poetry, the second line of the verse repeats the theme of the first line. The second line of the verse is clear that God cannot tolerate wrongdoing amongst his people. That is quite different from the belief that he cannot look upon sin at all.

According to the scriptures, God quite happily deals with sinful people all the time. He came into the Garden of Eden and spoke to Adam and Eve after they had disobeyed by following the suggestion of the serpent. He kept on working with Abraham, David and the people of Israel despite their frequent failure and disobedience. Holy Spirit comes and lives in people who are far from perfect.

God does not like our sin, but we should be careful not to overstate his problems with it. The reality is that his love for us far outweighs the ugliness of our failings. God is keener to forgive us than we are to ask for forgiveness. It is the spiritual powers of evil who like to judge and condemn people who have sinned and load them with guilt and shame.