Avenge Not Yourselves

“Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.” Romans 12:19

The word “avenge” means to “inflict harm in return for an injury or wrong done to oneself or another; to take vengance for or on behalf of; to exact satisfaction for a wrong by punishing the wrongdoer.”

An example would be a young child playing with a toy at a daycare when another child comes over and pushes them down, and takes the toy. Instead of walking away and finding a different one to play with, they get back up, and shove the other child right back and take back the toy.

Or maybe a neighbor starts to spread lies and rumors about someone, so they in turn do the same right back to them. Instead of dealing with the suffering, they go and avenge themselves.

“Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.” 1 Peter 3:9

Our natural person wants to retalitate when others do wrong things to us, but we need to resist that urge to avenge yourself and allow it to happen. As Christians, we need to follow Christ’s example, knowing that when we suffer at the hands of others, God the Father will avenge us. 

In the Old Testament, when somone injured another, whatever they had done was supposed to be done back to them; if they took out someone’s eye, then their eye was taken out. If they knocked out someone’s tooth, then the same happened to them.

“And if a man cause a blemish in his neighbor; as he hath done, so shall it be done to him; Breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth: as he hath caused a blemish in a man, so shall it be done to him again.” Leviticus 24:19-20

Now that we are in the New Testament, if someone does evil to us, we are taught to allow it to happen. When the soldiers smote Jesus when He was before Pilate, did Jesus strike out and hit them back? No, He didn’t. He didn’t resist the evil that was being done to Him but suffered through it.

“Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: 

But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.” Matthew 5:38-39

“Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.” 

“Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” Romans 12:17,21

When Jesus was reviled and mocked before His crucifixion, He didn’t return back the same, but He suffered it. Jesus could have destroyed them all right there, but He allowed those things to happen. 

“Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously:” 1 Peter 2:23

Jesus is our example of how to live in every aspect of our lives. Be as He is, and when you suffer wrong at the hands of someone else, know that God will avenge you.

In Christ,

Andrew