Albert Barnes Commentary Psalms 78:59

"When God heard [this], he was wroth, And greatly abhorred Israel;" — Psalms 78:59 (ASV)

When God heard this - literally, “God heard;” that is, he understood this; he was acquainted with it. He heard their prayers addressed to false gods; he heard their praises sung in honor of idols.

He was angry - This is language taken from the common way people speak, because language derived from human concepts and expressions must be used when we speak of God, although it may be difficult to state its exact meaning. The general sense is that his conduct toward them was as if he were angry, or was like that of a person who is displeased.

And greatly abhorred Israel - The idea in the word “abhorred” is that of rejecting them with abhorrence; that is, the reference is not merely to the internal feeling or emotion, but to the act that naturally accompanies such an internal feeling. He cast them off; he treated them as not his own. The addition of the word “greatly” shows how intense this feeling was, and how decided his aversion to their conduct was.