Do not take revenge my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge, I will repay,” says the Lord.
—Romans 12:19
Revenge is a popular literary theme, in the Bible and a plethora of other books. It has been called one of the oldest motives for crime in the world. When someone has wronged us, it certainly feels good to think about getting even, although we may not do so. Sometimes, when people do have the opportunity to get revenge, they take it. It might be easy to envy those people, but the Bible cautions us not to.
Sometimes Christians use, “Vengeance is mine” as a pat answer. They don’t want to deal with the fact that a fellow believer is angry enough to take revenge, so they try to smooth the emotion away quickly. A better response would be to acknowledge how the angry person feels. Let him or her talk through the wrong that was done, even if you are anxious or don’t agree with how things were handled.
Remind a fellow believer or yourself of this verse, not in the context of God pouring wrath on someone, but in the context of Him showing perfect justice. Human justice is often flawed. That’s where we get the concept of revenge in the first place. God’s justice, though, is always right. He may not enact it the way we want Him to, but He will enact it both for our good and for the other person’s.
If there is something you feel should be avenged in your life today, meditate on Romans 12:19. Ask God to give you a new measure of trust in His justice, and ask Him if He wants you to do something specific with your feelings. For example, maybe He wants you to reconcile with the other person. Pray and seek His guidance, and let your desire for vengeance cool.
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