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What Does The Bible Say About Revenge

At The End Of The Age When The Full And Final Wrath Of God Is Poured Out It Will Have Been Escapable

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That means it is escapable now. You do not have to spend eternity under the wrath of God if you will receive Gods Son as your Savior and Lord and Treasure. Why is that? How can that be? Because God so loved the world that he sent his own infinitely valuable Son to absorb the infinite wrath of God against all who take refuge in him. Listen with trembling wonder and gratitude and faith to this precious statement from Galatians 3:13: Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us for it is written, Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree.

Christ bore the curse of Gods wrath for all who come to him and believe in him and glory in the shelter of his blood and righteousness. Come. Come. He is infinitely worthy.

Bible Verses That Explain God’s View On Revenge

The world is a troubling place. If youve had your eyes glues to the TV, you would have seen that evil is rife. We have terrorist attacks, unnecessary killings and more. So many upsetting factors in a short space of time can have a really negative effect on us if we allow it to. Lately, weve read about stories of revenge. Police officers have been killed and military coups have been attempted. When we feel like were being treated unfairly, how does God want us to respond? Here are 5 Bible verses that share Gods thoughts on revenge and unforgiveness.

Romans 12:17-21

Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. To the contrary, if your enemy is hungry, feed him if he is thirsty, give him something to drink for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Matthew 5:38-39

You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.

And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

Luke 6:27

Matthew 18:21-22

Christians Should Beware Of Vengeful Actions

The proper attitude of a Christian regarding vengeance is illustrated by Jesus when giving His sermon on the Mount:

And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well .

This passage does not mean that a man should not defend his family or his country, but rather that he should not attempt personal vengeance, even through the means of the law, to compensate for a personal injury goes against the believer. All justice ultimately is in the hand and heart of God.

Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord. .

Self-vengeance has no place in the Christian life. We are told to make room for divine retribution to operate and therefore to give place unto wrath means to allow God to bring His vengeance to bear on those of the world, rather than taking revenge ourselves.

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What Does The Bible Say About Self

The Bible does support self-defense. While Christ does denounce retaliation and revenge, He does not prohibit acting in self-defense. Therefore, believers are not sinning when they defend themselves or others from harm and suffering.

Security is important in the modern world. Cybersecurity, advanced technological home safety systems, and knowledge of self-defense tactics are abounding in society. Christians also seek security in their churches and home, with self-defense classes sometimes offered by churches.

Although it can be easy to make assumptions about safety, the first concern for the follower of Christ should be what the Lord says about any subject, including personal safety and defense.

Relevant passages about self-defense can be found in Scripture, which includes specific statements and examples of faithful followers of God engaging in the protection of themselves and others.

Pauls Writings On Revenge

What the Bible Says About Revenge

Revenge is not a topic of the Bible that is up for debate.

The book of Romans is a wonderful book of the Bible and it covers a multitude of topics. Revenge is one of those topics. Paul gives a great explanation on it in Romans 12:14-21 which says,Bless those who persecute you bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, says the Lord. To the contrary, if your enemy is hungry, feed him if he is thirsty, give him something to drink for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head. Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. It doesnt get much clearer than this. We are called to love our enemies and not to retaliate against them. If God says, Vengeance is Mine, then we need to follow in obedience.

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Why God’s Vengeance Is More Effective

You might think you could do a good job of getting even with your enemy, but God can do it much better. God’s repayment for the wrong done to us is much more powerful and more effective than anything we could even think of doing to them.

God knows exactly what our enemies deserve. He also knows what should be done to get our enemies to change their wicked ways.

In many of the Psalms, David turned his enemies over to God. In the Contemporary English Version of the Bible, the psalmist said, “LORD God, you punish the guilty. Show what you are like and punish them now” .

We should do the same instead of trying to get revenge on our enemies ourselves.

What Does It Mean To Seek Revenge

Well-known artist, Taylor Swift, has widely popularized the idea of taking revenge. In her song Better Than Revenge, she sings, There is nothing I do better than revenge. It is not surprising that modern-day culture has popularized the trend of taking revenge on others.

Human beings tend to believe it is in our right to take revenge on others. If a person wrongs you, the immediate reaction of most of us is to get even with them. The Bible tells us this is wrong as we should never try to get even with someone nor should we seek out revenge on them. Only God has righteous revenge.

His revenge is not rooted in hate, pride, or sin. Gods vengeance is rooted in His perfectly holy nature. Hebrews 10:30 says, For we know him who said, It is mine to avenge I will repay, and again, The Lord will judge his people.

Seeking out revenge is never a good thing to do. It is inevitable that others will hurt us in our lives, even our own family, friends, and other Christians however, we should never seek revenge toward them. Revenge stems out of pride and hatred.

Even if you seek out revenge because a person clearly wrongs you in a very unbiblical manner, you still should not seek revenge on the person. God will repay everyone according to what they have done .

You can rest assured that no matter what a person has done to you, God knows, and He will repay accordingly. We should never try to intervene on Gods behalf because revenge is the Lords–not ours .

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Bible Verses About Revenge: Vengeance Is Mine Scriptures

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You cant love God and yet, revenge the sins of others.

When God comes into our lives, He pours his love into our hearts.

Immediately, we learn to love others and endure all our hurts and pains.

Gods love comforts us in our trials and teaches us to love our enemies.

More than ten years ago, before I gave my life to Christ, I took vengeance on one of my friends.

She was my girlfriend for about three years.

We were very fond of each other and in a very serious relationship.

In the first few months after we started dating, she was already cheating on me.

This continued for several years until the last one that broke the camels back.

I was so hurt because, despite my commitment and love, she was unconcerned.

I could remember, I had to beg and cry in her hostel to stop cheating on me.

But she was cold and just wanted to live her life on her terms.

And thats when I said to myself, I will pay her back the same way.

I continued in the relationship for another year without minding all her actions.

I had already made up my mind to retaliate in the most terrible way. And I did.

I broke up with her when she needed me most.

The truth is, I behaved horribly and shamefully.

As Christians, we mustnt pay back evil for evil.

Despite your hurt, God says, vengeance is mine.

I have put together bible verses about revenge to assist you.

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Should I Seek Out Revenge

Bible Verses About Revenge

Absolutely not. Seeking out revenge on others is not part of Gods will for your life. The only result of seeking out revenge is hurt, pain, and broken relationships. When you feel the temptation to seek out revenge, turn to God. He can help you overcome this temptation.

Another thing you can do is to pray for the individual who has wronged you. By praying for them, it helps redirect your focus on helping the individual rather than seeking revenge on the individual.

When you focus on helping the other person by praying for them, it helps you to grow in your Christian maturity. Emotionally healthy Christians do not entertain thoughts of revenge nor do they carry out revenge on others.

Emotionally healthy Christians have grown in their walk with Christ and do not fumigate on thoughts of revenge. Rather than seeking out revenge, mature Christians forgive the other person, pray for them, and trust that God will carry out righteous vengeance.

Revenge only belongs to the Lord because He is holy, righteous, and perfect . Since God is perfect, He is the only One who can carry out true and righteous vengeance on others. Mankind is not perfect, which means our vengeance is not rooted in holy righteousness.

If we are honest with ourselves, most of our revenge is rooted in pride, self-ambition, and vain conceit. As believers, we are to have nothing to do with any of these sins, including the sin of participating in revenge .

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Bible Verses About Revenge And Retaliation

Vengeance is Mine, and retribution,In due time their foot will slip For the day of their calamity is near,And the impending things are hastening upon them.

Do not say, I will repay evil Wait for the Lord, and He will save you.

as when a man goes into the forest with his friend to cut wood, and his hand swings the axe to cut down the tree, and the iron head slips off the handle and strikes his friend so that he dieshe may flee to one of these cities and live otherwise the avenger of blood might pursue the manslayer in the heat of his anger, and overtake him, because the way is long, and take his life, though he was not deserving of death, since he had not hated him previously.Therefore, I command you, saying, You shall set aside three cities for yourself.

Do not say, Thus I shall do to him as he has done to me I will render to the man according to his work.

If a man takes the life of any human being, he shall surely be put to death.The one who takes the life of an animal shall make it good, life for life.If a man injures his neighbor, just as he has done, so it shall be done to him:read more.fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth just as he has injured a man, so it shall be inflicted on him.Thus the one who kills an animal shall make it good, but the one who kills a man shall be put to death.

Bible Verses About Revenge

Vengeance is Mine, and retribution,In due time their foot will slip For the day of their calamity is near,And the impending things are hastening upon them.

And I will execute vengeance in anger and wrathOn the nations which have not obeyed.

For the day of vengeance was in My heart,And My year of redemption has come.

The righteous will rejoice when he sees the vengeance He will wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.

That it may cause wrath to come up to take vengeance,I have put her blood on the bare rock,That it may not be covered.

For jealousy enrages a man,And he will not spare in the day of vengeance.

For the Lord has a day of vengeance,A year of recompense for the cause of Zion.

Therefore thus says the Lord,Behold, I am going to plead your caseAnd exact full vengeance for you And I will dry up her seaAnd make her fountain dry.

O Lord, God of vengeance,God of vengeance, shine forth!

Flee from the midst of Babylon,And each of you save his life!Do not be destroyed in her punishment,For this is the Lords time of vengeance He is going to render recompense to her.

You have seen all their vengeance,All their schemes against me.

Say to those with anxious heart,Take courage, fear not.Behold, your God will come with vengeance The recompense of God will come,But He will save you.

Therefore the Lord God of hosts,The Mighty One of Israel, declares,Ah, I will be relieved of My adversariesAnd avenge Myself on My foes.

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What Does The Bible Say About Revenge

It is not healthy to seek out revenge nor to dwell on revenge. God does not want anger, hate, or revenge to dwell in your heart. God wants your life to be filled with love, mercy, and forgiveness.

The Bible does talk about revenge. The Bible tells us we are not to take revenge on others as revenge is the Lords. Paul tells us in Romans 12:19, My dear friends, dont try to get even. Leave room for God to show his anger.

It is written, I am the God who judges people. I will pay them back, says the Lord .

Heap Burning Coals Meaning

Pin on Bible Verses About Revenge

Heaping burning coals on someones head may mean that God will eventually bring justice to our issue. Another possibility is that our thoughtful response may lead to someones conscience responding to our undeserved kindness.

Jesus experienced this unmerited evil:

Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example.He who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth and while being abusively insulted, He did not insult in return while suffering, He did not threaten, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously .

They crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left. But Jesus was saying, Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing .

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Protecting Oneself And Others

The Bible does support self-defense. Many examples are given in Scripture of followers of God seeking to protect themselves and others from harm. While Christ does denounce retaliation and revenge, He does not prohibit acting in self-defense. Therefore, believers are not sinning when they defend themselves or others from harm and suffering.

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Christian Quotes About Revenge

The only revenge which is essentially Christian is that of retaliating by forgiveness. Frederick William Robertson

While seeking revenge, dig two graves one for yourself. Douglas Horton

A man that studieth revenge keeps his own wounds green. Francis Bacon

How beautiful it is to stay silent when someone expects you to be enraged.

Be happy, it drives people crazy.

Revenge is like a rolling stone, which, when a man hath forced up a hill, will return upon him with a greater violence, and break those bones whose sinews gave it motion. Albert Schweitzer

Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Revenge indeed seems often sweet to men, but oh, it is only sugared poison, only sweetened gall. Forgiving enduring love alone is sweet and blissful and enjoys peace and the consciousness of Gods favor. By forgiving it gives away and annihilates the injury. It treats the injurer as if he had not injured and therefore feels no more the smart and sting that he had inflicted. William Arnot

It is more honor to bury an injury than to revenge it. Thomas Watson

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