God so loved the world

[Whatever]

People say that by "world" it means everybody. If God loved the world, then He loved everybody in it.

John 17:6 "I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.
John 17:9 "I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.
John 17:16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.
John 7:20 "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word
Jesus does not pray for "the world."
Jesus says His disciples are not "of the world."
Jesus seems to be implying that we (who believe through their word) are also not of the world.
And in all of those passages, including John 3:16, the same word is used G2889 - kosmos

 

[electedbyHim]

I'm not settled on the issue.

I will post a few commentaries on this passage, I can see both sides.

From past studies I have done, many say Pink got it wrong.

The Meaning of Kosmos in John 3:16

It may appear to some of our readers that the exposition we have given of John 3:16 in the chapter on “Difficulties and Objections” is a forced and unnatural one, inasmuch as our definition of the term “world” seems to be out of harmony with the meaning and scope of this word in other passages, where, to supply the world of believers (God’s elect) as a definition of “world” would make no sense. Many have said to us, “Surely, ‘world’ means world, that is, you, me, and everybody.” In reply we would say: We know from experience how difficult it is to set aside the “tradition of men” (Mark 7:8) and come to a passage that we have heard explained in a certain way scores of times, and study it carefully for ourselves without bias Nevertheless, this is essential if we would learn the mind of God.

Many people suppose they already know the simple meaning of John 3:16, and therefore they conclude that no diligent study is required of them to discover the precise teaching of this verse. Needless to say, such an attitude shuts out any further light that they otherwise might obtain on the passage. Yet, if anyone will take a concordance and read carefully the various passages in which the term “world” (as a translation of kosmos) occurs, he will quickly perceive that to ascertain the precise meaning of, the word “world” in any given passage is not nearly so easy as is popularly supposed. The word kosmos, and its English equivalent “world,” is not used with a uniform significance in the New Testament—very far from it. It is used in quite a number of different ways. Below we will refer to a few passages where this term occurs, suggesting a tentative definition in each case:

Kosmos is used of the universe as a whole: Acts 17:24—“God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth.”

Kosmos is used of the earth: John 13:1; Ephesians 1:4, etc., etc.—“When Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.” “Depart out of this world” signifies, leave this earth. “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world.” This expression signifies, before the earth was founded. (Compare Job 38:4 etc.)

Kosmos is used of the world-system: John 12:31 etc. “Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.” (Compare Matthew 4:8 and 1 John 5:19, RV.)

Kosmos is used of the whole human race: Romans 3:19, etc.—“Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.”

Kosmos is used of humanity minus believers: John 15:18; Romans 3:6 “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.” Believers do not “hate” Christ, so that “the world” here must signify the world of unbelievers in contrast from believers who love Christ. “God forbid: for then how shall God judge the world?” Here is another passage where “the world” cannot mean “you, me, and everybody,” for believers will not be “judged” by God, see John 5:24. So that here, too, it must be the world of unbelievers that is in view.

Kosmos is used of Gentiles in contrast from Jews: Romans 11:12 etc. “Now if the fall of them [Israel] be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them [Israel] the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their [Israel’s] fulness?” Note how the first clause in italics is defined by the latter clause placed in italics. Here, again, “the world” cannot signify all humanity for it excludes Israel!

Kosmos is used of believers only: John 1:29; 3:16–17; 6:33; 12:47; 1 Corinthians 4:9; 2 Corinthians 5:19. We leave our readers to turn to these passages, asking them to note, carefully, exactly what is said and predicated of “the world” in each place.

Thus it will be seen that kosmos has at least seven clearly defined different meanings in the New Testament. It may be asked, has then God used a word thus to confuse and confound those who read the Scriptures? We answer, No! Nor has He written His Word for lazy people who are too dilatory, or too busy with the things of this world, or, like Martha, so much occupied with “serving,” they have no time and no heart to “search” and “study” Holy Writ! Should it be asked further, but how is a searcher of the Scriptures to know which of the above meanings the term “world” has in any given passage? The answer is: This may be ascertained by a careful study of the context, by diligently noting what is predicated of “the world” in each passage, and by prayer fully consulting other parallel passages to the one being studied. The principal subject of John 3:16 is Christ as the Gift of God. The first clause tells us what moved God to “give” His only begotten Son, and that was His great “love;” the second clause informs us for whom God “gave” His Son, and that is for, “whosoever (or, better, ‘every one’) believeth;” while the last clause makes known why God “gave” His Son (His purpose), and that is, that everyone that believeth “should not perish but have everlasting life.” That “the world” in John 3:16 refers to the world of believers (God’s elect), in contradistinction from “the world of the ungodly” (2 Peter 2:5), is established, unequivocally established, by a comparison of the other passages that speak of God’s “love.” “God commendeth his love toward us” (Romans 5:8)—the saints. “Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth” (Hebrews 12:6)—every son. “We love him, because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19)—believers. The wicked God “pities” (see Matthew 18:33). Unto the unthankful and evil God is “kind” (see Luke 6:35). The vessels of wrath He endures “with much long-suffering” (see Romans 9:22). But “His own,” God “loves”!

A. W. Pink, The Sovereignty of God (New Kensington, PA: Whitaker House, 2016).

 

[electedbyHim]

John Gill

John 3:16​

For God so loved the world,.... The Persic version reads "men": but not every man in the world is here meant, or all the individuals of human nature; for all are not the objects of God's special love, which is here designed, as appears from the instance and evidence of it, the gift of his Son: nor is Christ God's gift to every one; for to whomsoever he gives his Son, he gives all things freely with him; which is not the case of every man. Nor is human nature here intended, in opposition to, and distinction from, the angelic nature; for though God has showed a regard to fallen men, and not to fallen angels, and has provided a Saviour for the one, and not for the other; and Christ has assumed the nature of men, and not angels; yet not for the sake of all men, but the spiritual seed of Abraham; and besides, it will not be easily proved, that human nature is ever called the world: nor is the whole body of the chosen ones, as consisting of Jews and Gentiles, here designed; for though these are called the world, Joh_6:33; and are the objects of God's special love, and to them Christ is given, and they are brought to believe in him, and shall never perish, but shall be saved with an everlasting salvation; yet rather the Gentiles particularly, and God's elect among them, are meant; who are often called "the world", and "the whole world", and "the nations of the world", as distinct from the Jews; see Rom_11:12, compared with Mat_6:32. The Jews had the same distinction we have now, the church and the world; the former they took to themselves, and the latter they gave to all the nations around: hence we often meet with this distinction, Israel, and the nations of the world; on those words,

Barclay

THE LOVE OF GOD

John 3:16

‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son so that everyone who believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.’

ALL great men and women have had their favourite texts, but this has been called ‘everybody’s text’. Herein for every one of us is the very essence of the gospel. This text tells us certain great things.

(1) It tells us that the initiative in all salvation lies with God. Sometimes Christianity is presented in such a way that it sounds as if God had to be pacified, as if he had to be persuaded to forgive. Sometimes the picture is drawn of a stern, angry, unforgiving God and a gentle, loving, forgiving Jesus. Sometimes the Christian message is presented in such a way that it sounds as if Jesus did something which changed the attitude of God to men and women from condemnation to forgiveness. But this text tells us that it was with God that it all started. It was God who sent his Son, and he sent him because he loved the world he had created. At the back of everything is the love of God.

(2) It tells us that the mainspring of God’s being is love. It is easy to think of God as looking at human beings in their heedlessness and their disobedience and their rebellion and saying: ‘I’ll break them: I’ll discipline them and punish them and scourge them until they come back.’ It is easy to think of God as seeking human allegiance in order to satisfy his own desire for power and for what we might call a completely subject universe. The tremendous thing about this text is that it shows us God acting not for his own sake but for ours; not to satisfy his desire for power, not to bring a universe to heel, but to satisfy his love. God is not like an absolute monarch who treats each individual as a subject to be reduced to abject obedience. God is the Father who cannot be happy until his wandering children have come home. God does not smash people into submission; he yearns over them and woos them into love.

(3) It tells us of the width of the love of God. It was the world that God so loved. It was not a nation; it was not the good people; it was not only the people who loved him; it was the world. The unlovable and the unlovely, the lonely who have no one else to love them, those who love God and those who never think of him, those who rest in the love of God and those who spurn it—all are included in this vast inclusive love of God. As St Augustine had it: ‘God loves each one of us as if there was only one of us to love.’


William Barclay, The Gospel of John, Rev. and updated., vol. 1, The New Daily Study Bible (Edinburgh: Saint Andrew Press, 2001), 160–161.

 

[electedbyHim]

J C Ryle says here Jesus describes "the original source from which man’s salvation springs. That source is the love of God the Father....This wonderful verse has been justly called by Luther, “The Bible in miniature.” No part of it, perhaps, is so deeply important as the first five words, “God so loved the world.” ...The love here spoken of is not that special love with which the Father regards His own elect, but that mighty pity and compassion with which He regards the whole race of mankind. Its object is not merely the little flock which He has given to Christ from all eternity, but the whole “world” of sinners, without any exception. There is a deep sense in which God loves that world. All whom He has created He regards with pity and compassion. Their sins He cannot love;—but He loves their souls. “His tender mercies are over all His works.” (Psal. 145:9.) Christ is God’s gracious gift to the whole world....It is not true that God cares for none but His own elect, or that Christ is not offered to any but those who are ordained to eternal life....God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked. God is not willing that any should perish. God would have all men to be saved. God loves the world. (John 6:32; Titus 3:4; 1 John 4:10; 2 Pet. 3:9; 1 Tim. 2:4; Ezek. 33:11.)

 

[electedbyHim]

I highlighted in red (botttom of page) what I found interesting about this commentary.



16. For God so loved the world that he gave his Son, the only-begotten, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.

God’s infinite love made manifest in an infinitely glorious manner, this is the theme of the golden text which has endeared itself to the hearts of all God’s children. The verse sheds light on the following aspects of this love: 1. its character (so loved), 2. its Author (God), 3. its object (the world), 4. its Gift (his Son, the only-begotten), and 5. its purpose (that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life).

The conjunction for establishes a causal relation between this and the preceding verse. We might paraphrase as follows: the fact that it is only in connection with Christ that everlasting life is ever obtained (see verse 15) is clear from this, that it has pleased God to grant this supreme gift only to those who repose their trust in him (verse 16).

1. Its character​

The word so by reason of what follows must be interpreted as indicating: in such an infinite degree and in such a transcendently glorious manner. Great emphasis is placed on this thought.

So loved. The tense used in the original (the aorist ἠγάπησεν) shows that God’s love in action, reaching back to eternity and coming to fruition in Bethlehem and at Calvary, is viewed as one, great, central fact. That love was rich and true, full of understanding, tenderness, and majesty.80

2. Its Author​

So loved God (with the article in the original: ὁ θεός, just as in 1:1 where, as has been shown, the Father is indicated). In order to gain some conception of the Deity it will never do to subtract from the popular concept every possible attribute until literally nothing is left. God is ever full of life and full of love.81 Take all human virtues; then raise them to the nth degree, and realize that no matter how grand and glorious a total picture is formed in the mind, even that is a mere shadow of the love-life which exists eternally in the heart of him whose very name is Love. And that love of God ever precedes our love (1 John 4:9, 10, 19; cf. Rom. 5:8–10), and makes the latter possible.

3. Its object​

Now the object of this love is the world. (See on 1:10 and note 26 where the various meanings have been summarized.) Just what is meant by this term here in 3:16? We answer:

a. The words, “that whoever believes” clearly indicate that the reference is not to birds and trees but to mankind. Cf. also 4:42; 8:12; 1 John 4:14.

b. However, here mankind is not viewed as the realm of evil, breaking out into open hostility to God and Christ (meaning 6, in note 26), for God does not love evil.

c. The term world, as here used, must mean mankind which, though sin-laden, exposed to the judgment, and in need of salvation (see verse 16b and verse 17), is still the object of his care. God’s image is still, to a degree, reflected in the children of men. Mankind is like a mirror. Originally this mirror was very beautiful, a work of art. But, through no fault of the Maker, it has become horribly blurred. Its creator, however, still recognizes his own work.

d. By reason of the context and other passages in which a similar thought is expressed (see note 26, meaning 5), it is probable that also here in 3:16 the term indicates fallen mankind in its international aspect: men from every tribe and nation; not only Jews but also Gentiles. This is in harmony with the thought expressed repeatedly in the Fourth Gospel (including this very chapter) to the effect that physical ancestry has nothing to do with entrance into the kingdom of heaven: 1:12, 13; 3:6; 8:31–39.

4. Its gift​

“… that he gave his Son, the only-begotten.” Literally the original reads, “that his Son, the only-begotten, he gave.” All the emphasis is on the astounding greatness of the gift; hence, in this clause the object precedes the verb. The verb he gave must be taken in the sense of he gave unto death as an offering for sin (cf. 15:13; 1 John 3:16; especially 1 John 4:10; Rom. 8:32: John’s gave is Paul’s spared not). On the meaning of the only begotten, see on 1:14. Note that the article which precedes the word Son is repeated before only begotten. Thus both substantive and adjective receive emphasis.82 We hear, as it were, the echo of Gen. 22:2, “Take now thy son, thine only son, whom thou lovest, even Isaac.…” The gift of the Son is the climax of God’s love (cf. Matt. 21:33–39).

5. Its purpose​

… in order that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.

God does not leave mankind to itself. He so loved the world that his Son, the only begotten, he gave, with this purpose: that those who receive him with abiding trust and confidence83 may have everlasting life. Though the Gospel is proclaimed to men of every tribe and nation, not every one who hears it believes in the Son. But whoever believes—whether he be a Jew or a Gentile—has everlasting life.

The words “… should not perish” do not merely mean: should not lose physical existence; nor do they signify: should not be annihilated. As the context (verse 17) indicates, the perishing of which this verse speaks indicates divine condemnation, complete and everlasting, so that one is banished from the presence of the God of love and dwells forever in the presence of a God of wrath, a condition which, in principle, begins here and now but does not reach its full and terrible culmination for both soul and body until the day of the great consummation. Note that perishing is the antonym of having everlasting life.

“… but have everlasting life.” (On the meaning of life see on 1:4.) The life which pertains to the future age, to the realm of glory, becomes the possession of the believer here and now; that is, in principle. This life is salvation, and manifests itself in fellowship with God in Christ (17:3); in partaking of the love of God (5:42), of his peace (16:33), and of his joy (17:13). The adjective everlasting (αἰώνιος) occurs 17 times in the Fourth Gospel, 6 times in I John, always with the noun life. It indicates, as has been pointed out, a life that is different in quality from the life which characterizes the present age. However, the noun with its adjective (ζωή αἰώνιος) as used here in 3:16 has also a quantitative connotation: it is actually everlasting, never-ending life.

In order to receive this everlasting life one must believe in God’s only begotten Son. It is important, however, to take note of the fact that Jesus mentions the necessity of regeneration before he speaks about faith (cf. 3:3, 5 with 3:12, 14–16). The work of God within the soul ever precedes the work of God in which the soul cooperates (see especially 6:44). And because faith is, accordingly, the gift of God (not only with Paul, Eph. 2:8, but also in the Fourth Gospel), its fruit, everlasting life, is also God’s gift (10:28). God gave his Son; he gives us the faith to embrace the Son; he gives us everlasting life as a reward for the exercise of this faith. To him be the glory forever and ever!

26 Lexicons do not give a complete summary of the uses of the term world (κόσμος) in the Gospel of John. The root-meaning (Homer, Plato) is order, whence ornament, as in 1 Peter 3:3. This leads to the following significations, as found in the Fourth Gospel:

(1) the (orderly) universe, 17:5; perhaps, the earth, 21:25.

(2) by metonymy, the human inhabitants of the earth; hence, mankind, realm of mankind, human race, theatre of human history, framework of human society. 16:21.

(3) the general public, 7:4; perhaps also 14:22.

(4) ethical sense: mankind alienated from the life of God, sin-laden, exposed to the judgment, in the need of salvation, 3:19.

(5) the same as (4) with the additional idea that no distinction is made with respect to race or nationality; hence, men from every tribe and nation; not only Jews but also Gentiles, 4:42 and probably also 1:29; 3:16, 17; 6:33, 51; 8:12; 9:5; 12:46; 1 John: 2:2; 4:14, 15. Such passages should be read in the light of 4:42; 11:52; and 12:32. Whereas at least in some of these passages meaning (5) is clear, it seems strange that standard lexicons have apparently missed it entirely. This applies even to the excellent article in Th.W.N.T. Also meaning (3) is often ignored.

(6) the realm of evil. This is really the same as (4) but with the additional idea of open hostility to God, his Christ, and his people 7:7; 8:23; 12:31; 14:30; 15:18; 17:9, 14.

No attempt has been made to classify all the passages in which the term occurs. Besides, the transitions from one meaning into another [especially (4) into (6)] are sometimes very delicate. In each case the context will have to decide. Meaning (5), however, should no longer be ignored.

William Hendriksen and Simon J. Kistemaker, Exposition of the Gospel According to John, vol. 1, New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1953–2001), 139–142.

 

[electedbyHim]

Macarthur

Perhaps the best-known argument for this view is found in the unabridged edition of an otherwise excellent book, The Sovereignty of God, by A. W. Pink. 11 Pink wrote, “God loves whom He chooses. He does not love everybody.” 12 Later in the book, he added this:

Is it true that God loves the one who is despising and rejecting His blessed Son? God is Light as well as Love, and therefore His love must be a holy love. To tell the Christ-rejecter that God loves him is to cauterize his conscience, as well as to afford him a sense of security in his sins. The fact is, that the love of God, is a truth for the saints only, and to present it to the enemies of God is to take the children’s bread and cast it to the dogs. With the exception of John 3:16, not once in the four gospels do we read of the Lord Jesus—the perfect teacher—telling sinners that God loved them! 13

In an appendix to the unabridged edition, Pink argued that the word world in John 3:16 (“For God so loved the world … ”) “refers to the world of believers (God’s elect), in contradistinction from ‘the world of the ungodly.’ ” 14
Pink was attempting to make the crucial point that God is sovereign in the exercise of His love. The gist of his argument is certainly valid: It is folly to think that God loves all alike, or that He is compelled by some rule of fairness to love everyone equally. Scripture teaches us that God loves because He chooses to love (cf. Deut. 7:6–7), because He is loving—because He is love (1 Jn. 4:8)—not because He is under some obligation to love everyone the same. Nothing but God’s own sovereign good pleasure compels Him to love sinners. Nothing but His own sovereign will governs His love. This has to be true, since there is certainly nothing in any sinner worthy of even the smallest degree of divine love.

Unfortunately, Pink took the corollary too far. The fact that some sinners are not elected to salvation is no proof that God’s attitude toward them is utterly devoid of sincere love. We know from Scripture that God is compassionate, kind, generous, and good even to the most stubborn sinners. Who can deny that these mercies flow out of God’s boundless love? Yet it is evident that they are showered even on unrepentant sinners. According to Paul, for example, the knowledge of divine goodness and forbearance and patience ought to lead sinners to repentance (Rom. 2:4). Yet the apostle acknowledged that many who are the recipients of these expressions of divine love spurn them and thereby store up wrath for themselves in the day of wrath (v. 5). The hardness of the sinful human heart is the only reason people persist in their sin, despite God’s goodness to them. Is God therefore insincere when He pours forth mercies calling them to repentance? And how can anyone conclude that God’s real attitude toward those who reject His mercies is nothing but sheer hatred?

I want to acknowledge, however, that explaining God’s love toward the reprobate is not as simple as most modern evangelicals want to make it. Clearly there is a sense in which the psalmist’s expression, “I hate the assembly of evildoers” (Ps. 26:5) is a reflection of the mind of God. “Do I not hate those who hate Thee, O Lord? And do I not loathe those who rise up against Thee? I hate them with the utmost hatred; they have become my enemies” (Ps. 139:21–22). Such hatred as the psalmist expressed is a virtue, and we have every reason to conclude that it is a hatred God Himself shares. After all, He did say, “I have hated Esau” (Mal. 1:3; Rom. 9:13). The context reveals God was speaking of a whole race of wicked people. So there is a true and real sense in which Scripture teaches that God hates the wicked.

Many try to dodge the difficulty this poses by suggesting that God hates the sin, not the sinner. Why, then does God condemn the sinner and consign the person—not merely the sin—to eternal hell? Clearly we cannot sweep the severity of this truth away by denying God’s hatred for the wicked. Nor should we imagine that such hatred is any kind of blemish on the character of God. It is a holy hatred. It is perfectly consistent with His spotless, unapproachable, incomprehensible holiness.


John F. MacArthur Jr., The God Who Loves (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1996), 13–21.

Continued......

 

[electedbyHim]

God’s Love for the Unbelieving World​

Yet I am convinced from Scripture that God’s hatred toward the wicked is not a hatred undiluted by compassion, mercy, or love. We know from human experience that love and hatred are not mutually exclusive. It is not the least bit unusual to have concurrent feelings of love and hatred directed at the same person. We often speak of people who have love-hate relationships. There is no reason to deny that in an infinitely purer and more noble sense, God’s hatred toward the wicked is accompanied by a sincere, compassionate love for them as well. 15

The fact that God will send to eternal hell all sinners who persist in sin and unbelief proves His hatred toward them. On the other hand, the fact that God promises to forgive and bring into His eternal glory all who trust Christ as Savior—and even pleads with sinners to repent—proves His love toward them.

We must understand that it is God’s very nature to love. The reason our Lord commanded us to love our enemies is “in order that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” (Matt. 5:45, nasb). That passage and the verses in its immediate context refute Arthur Pink’s claim that Jesus never told sinners God loved them. Here Jesus clearly characterized His Father as One who loves even those who purposefully set themselves at enmity against Him.

While we are all eager to ask why a loving God lets bad things happen to His children, surely we should also ask why a holy God lets good things happen to bad people. The answer is that God is merciful even to those who are not His own.

At this point, however, an important distinction must be made: God loves believers with a particular love. It is a family love, the ultimate love of an eternal Father for His children. It is the consummate love of a Bridegroom for His bride. It is an eternal love that guarantees their salvation from sin and its ghastly penalty. That special love is reserved for believers alone. Limiting this saving, everlasting love to His chosen ones does not render God’s compassion, mercy, goodness, and love for the rest of mankind insincere or meaningless. When God invites sinners to repent and receive forgiveness (Isa. 1:18; Matt. 11:28–30) His pleading is from a sincere heart of genuine love. “’As I live!’ declares the Lord God, ’I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’” (Ezek. 33:11). Clearly God does love even those who spurn His tender mercy, but it is a different quality of love, and different in degree from His love for His own.

A parallel in the human realm would be this: I love my neighbors. I am commanded by numerous Scriptures to love them as I love myself (e.g., Lev. 19:18; Matt. 22:39; Lk. 10:29–37). I also love my wife. That, too, is in accord with Scripture (Eph. 5:25–28; Col. 3:19). But clearly my love for my wife is superior, both in excellence and in degree, to my love for my neighbor. I chose my wife; I did not choose my neighbor. I willingly brought my wife into my family to live with me for the rest of our lives. There’s no reason to conclude that since I do not afford the same privilege to my neighbors, my love for them is not a real and genuine love. Likewise it is with God. He loves the elect in a special way reserved only for them. But that does not make His love for the rest of humanity any less real.

Furthermore, even in the human realm, love for one’s spouse and love for one’s neighbor still don’t exhaust the different varieties of love we share. I also love my children with the utmost fervency; yet again I love them with a different quality of love than my love for my wife. And I love my Christian neighbors in a way that rises above my love for my non-Christian neighbors. Obviously genuine love comes in varying kinds and degrees. Why is it difficult for us to conceive that God Himself loves different people differently and with different effects?

God’s love for the elect is an infinite, eternal, saving love. We know from Scripture that this great love was the very cause of our election (Eph. 2:4). Such love clearly is not directed toward all of mankind indiscriminately, but is bestowed uniquely and individually on those whom God chose in eternity past.

But from that, it does not follow that God’s attitude toward those He did not elect must be unmitigated hatred. Surely His pleading with the lost, His offers of mercy to the reprobate, and the call of the gospel to all who hear are all sincere expressions of the heart of a loving God. Remember, He has no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but tenderly calls sinners to turn from their evil ways and live. He freely offers the water of life to all (Isa. 55:1; Rev. 22:17). Those truths are not at all incompatible with the truth of divine sovereignty.

Reformed theology has historically been the branch of evangelicalism most strongly committed to the sovereignty of God. At the same time, the mainstream of Reformed theologians have always affirmed the love of God for all sinners. John Calvin himself wrote regarding John 3:16, “[Two] points are distinctly stated to us: namely, that faith in Christ brings life to all, and that Christ brought life, because the Father loves the human race, and wishes that they should not perish.” 16 Calvin went on to add this:

[In John 3:16 the evangelist] has employed the universal term whosoever, both to invite all indiscriminately to partake of life, and to cut off every excuse from unbelievers. Such is also the import of the term world, which he formerly used; for though nothing will be found in the world that is worthy of the favor of God, yet he shows himself to be reconciled to the whole world, when he invites all without exception to the faith of Christ, which is nothing else than an entrance into life.

Let us remember, on the other hand, that while life is promised universally to all who believe in Christ, still faith is not common to all, but the elect alone are they whose eyes God opens, that they may seek him by faith. 17

Calvin’s comments are both balanced and biblical. He points out that both the gospel invitation and “the world” that God loves are by no means limited to the elect alone. But he also recognizes that God’s electing, saving love is uniquely bestowed on His chosen ones.

These same truths have been vigorously defended by a host of Reformed stalwarts, including Thomas Boston, John Brown, Andrew Fuller, W. G. T. Shedd, R. L. Dabney, B. B. Warfield, John Murray, R. B. Kuiper, and many others. 18 In no sense does belief in divine sovereignty rule out the love of God for all humanity.

We’re seeing today an almost unprecedented interest in the doctrines of the Reformation and the Puritan era. I’m very encouraged by this in most respects. A return to these historic truths is, I’m convinced, absolutely necessary if the church is to survive. Yet there is a danger when overzealous souls misuse a doctrine like divine sovereignty to deny God’s sincere offer of mercy to all sinners.

We must maintain a carefully balanced perspective as we pursue our study of God’s love. God’s love cannot be isolated from His wrath and vice versa. Nor are His love and wrath in opposition to each other like some mystical yin-yang principle. Both attributes are constant, perfect, without ebb or flow. God Himself is immutable—unchanging. He is not loving one moment and wrathful the next. His wrath coexists with His love; therefore, the two never contradict. Such are the perfections of God that we can never begin to comprehend these things. Above all, we must not set them against one another, as if there were somehow a discrepancy in God. God is always true to Himself and true to His Word (Rom. 3:4; 2 Tim. 2:13).

Both God’s wrath and His love work to the same ultimate end—His glory. God is glorified in the condemnation of the wicked, and He is glorified in the salvation of His people. The expression of His wrath and the expression of His love are both necessary to display His full glory. Since His glory is the great design of His eternal plan, and since all that He has revealed about Himself is essential to His glory, we must not ignore any aspect of His character. We cannot magnify His love to the exclusion of the other attributes.

Continued.....

 

[electedbyHim]

Nevertheless, those who truly know God will testify that the deepest spiritual delights are derived from the knowledge of His love. His love is what drew us to Him in the first place: “We love him, because he first loved us” (1 Jn. 4:19, kjv). His love—certainly not anything worthy in us—is the reason He saved us and bestowed on us such rich spiritual privileges: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:4–6, emphasis added).

We will return again and again to some of these same truths as we pursue our study in this book. My purpose is not to engage in polemics. My only design is to present God’s love in such a fashion that the splendor of it will fill your heart. If you are a Christian, my prayer is that the glory and greatness of His love will deepen your love for Him, and that you will grasp the joys and pains of life with a correct understanding of God’s love.If you are not a believer, perhaps God is drawing you to Himself. We know from Scripture that He is calling you to repentance and offering you the water of life. My prayer is that as you read these pages, the wonder and privilege of divine love will be unfolded to you—and that you will therefore respond to the truth of God’s Word with a humble and believing heart. I encourage you to drink in the mercy that Jesus offered in these tender words: “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My load is light” (Matt. 11:28–30).

But be warned: the knowledge of God’s goodness and mercy will only deepen your condemnation if you spurn Him. “How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” (Heb. 2:3). God’s love is a refuge for repentant sinners only. Those satisfied with their sin should take no solace from the knowledge that God is full of mercy and compassion. And impenitent sinners inclined to disregard the Savior’s offer of mercy should first consider this crucial warning of Scripture: “If we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain terrifying expectation of judgment, and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries” (Heb. 10:26–27).

That “terrifying expectation of judgment, and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries” provide the only legitimate context in which anyone can justly apprehend God’s love.

I will extol Thee, my God, O King;

And I will bless Thy name forever and ever.

Every day I will bless Thee,

And I will praise Thy name forever and ever.

Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised;

And His greatness is unsearchable.

One generation shall praise Thy works to another,

And shall declare Thy mighty acts.

On the glorious splendor of Thy majesty,

And on Thy wonderful works, I will meditate.

And men shall speak of the power of Thine awesome acts;

And I will tell of Thy greatness.

They shall eagerly utter the memory of Thine abundant goodness,

And shall shout joyfully of Thy righteousness.

The Lord is gracious and merciful;

Slow to anger and great in lovingkindness.

The Lord is good to all,

And His mercies are over all His works.

All Thy works shall give thanks to Thee, O Lord,

And Thy godly ones shall bless Thee.

They shall speak of the glory of Thy kingdom,

And talk of Thy power;

To make known to the sons of men Thy mighty acts,

And the glory of the majesty of Thy kingdom.

Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,

And Thy dominion endures throughout all generations.

The Lord sustains all who fall,

And raises up all who are bowed down.

The eyes of all look to Thee,

And Thou dost give them their food in due time.

Thou dost open Thy hand,

And dost satisfy the desire of every living thing.

The Lord is righteous in all His ways,

And kind in all His deeds.

The Lord is near to all who call upon Him,

To all who call upon Him in truth.

He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;

He will also hear their cry and will save them.

The Lord keeps all who love Him;

But all the wicked, He will destroy.

My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord;

And all flesh will bless His holy name forever and ever.

—Psalm 145 (emphasis added)

“May the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God” (2 Thess. 3:5).^[1]



11 Arthur W. Pink, The Sovereignty of God (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1930), 29–31, 245–52, 311–14.

12 Ibid., 29–30.

13 Ibid., 246.

14 Ibid., 314. The sections I quote here were removed in the edition of Pink’s work published by The Banner of Truth Trust (1961). In his biography of Arthur Pink, editor lain Murray called Pink’s denial of God’s love for the non-elect an “area of serious weakness.” lain Murray, The Life of Arthur W. Pink (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1981), 196.

This is not to suggest that God is ambivalent. God is perfectly consistent with Himself (2 Tim. 2: 13). Contradictory volitions cannot exist in His mind. What I am saying is this: God in a real and sincere sense hates the wicked because of their sin; yet in a real and sincere sense He also has compassion, pity, patience, and true affection for them because of His own loving nature.

15 This is not to suggest that God is ambivalent. God is perfectly consistent with Himself (2 Tim. 2: 13). Contradictory volitions cannot exist in His mind. What I am saying is this: God in a real and sincere sense hates the wicked because of their sin; yet in a real and sincere sense He also has compassion, pity, patience, and true affection for them because of His own loving nature.

nasb New American Standard Bible

16 John Calvin, Commentary on a Harmony of the Evangelists, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, William Pringle, trans. (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1979 reprint), 123.

17 Ibid., 125 (italics in original).

18 See Appendix 3: for specific quotations from these authors.

kjv King James Version

John F. MacArthur Jr., The God Who Loves (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1996), 13–21.

 

[electedbyHim]

So, there are mixed interpretations on the word "world" in John 3:16.

On a side note:

I can see how God hates the wicked in Scripture.

However, when I think about that hatred towards the unregenerate.

The rich young man, in the Gospel Of Mark, always comes to mind.

Mark 10:21 And looking at him, Jesus loved him and said to him, “One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

Mark 10:22 But at these words he was saddened, and he went away grieving, for he was one who owned much property.

That man went away sad and grieving, not a trait of salvation after confronting Jesus.

So this young man was unregenerate and in verse 21 its says Jesus loved him.

I know this does not have anything to do with the OP.

How do you reconcile this passage of Christ's love?

I am a firm believer that we have extremely limited knowledge on the love and hatered of God.

Apologies if I hijacked the thread.