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.

 Leviticus 24

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. Romans 12:17-21

This morning, I continued my study of Leviticus using the Christ-Centered Exposition series commentary for this book - continuing chapter twenty-one - In God's Presence  - covering Leviticus 24:1-23, looking specifically at the fourth theme for the chapter - We Respond to People Graciously.  Here, the commentary theme for today examines Leviticus 24:17-23 and what Bible scholars refer to as the law of retaliation.  While modern culture sees revenge as commonplace, often using the words written here by Moses (eye for eye, tooth for tooth, etc.), the commentary strongly encourages us to see justice as belonging to the Lord.  The commentary states: "First, God did not give the authority of retaliation to individuals, but to all His people, the nation of Israel.  The New Testament teaches the same truth--punishing lawbreakers is the role of the government, not individuals.  Second, in the cultures surrounding Israel, "vicious revenge was the general rule".  Laws like those in Leviticus 24 limited punishment and fitted punishment exactly to the crime.  If someone injured another person, the guilty party was not put to death; he was made to suffer in some way that was equivalent.....Whatever the government may do in response to wrongdoing, individual followers of Jesus don't take revenge.  We turn the other cheek....Jesus did not retaliate.  Neither should we. The commentary refers us to the following scriptures to reinforce the point that "retaliation does not belong to individuals:

• Romans 13:1-7
• Matthew 5:38-41
• Romans 12:17-21

Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God's wrath but also for the sake of conscience. For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed. Romans 13:1-7

 Comment and discuss this post here.

My Prayer:  Lord Jesus, You alone are judge and authority over all, including earthly authorities that You place in our lives.  You are full of mercy and compassion for me as I know I have sinned and the wages of sin are death - yet You continue to spare me despite my sin - thank You Jesus!  I am certainly not deserving of the grace You pour out on me...every single day.  I have sin of worry, etc.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith. Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Do not 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”....Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Romans 12-13

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”....Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. Romans 12:17-19, 21

 

This afternoon, I continued my study of Romans.  Using my commentary - Exalting Jesus in Romans (eBook) - I started chapter sixteen Living in View of That Day, which covers Romans 12:17-13:14.  My focus today is v12:17-21, which my commentary refers to under the heading "Leave Vengeance to God." As I posted yesterday, once again, the focus today is for believers to be "counter-cultural." God wants us to act in such a way that others see Him in us.  This of course requires us to submit to Him - through daily scripture reading, prayer, worship, service, etc. - and allow Him to work through us. It is certainly not natural for us to avoid vengeance or even for us to avoid the thought of vengeance; it then goes beyond natural human custom for us to treat someone who harms us with hospitality (v12:20). This requires the Holy Spirit to move within us to cause obedience. I am often reminded of true stories and examples of how God moves in us to draw others to Him through forgiveness - check this out - a classic for sure and a great example of God at work!

Scripture is clear - love and forgive others as God has done for us - see John 13:34 and Ephesians 4:32. 

 

My commentary points to Paul's use of both Deuteronomy 32:35 and Proverbs 25:21 as divine inspiration for Paul in verse v12:17.  We are reminded that God's wrath exists, is real, and He can just as easily exercise His wrath on us (as all are deserving of such wrath - Romans 6:23) - so should be clear that we are to leave wrath and retaliation/vengeance to Him.

Comment and discuss this post here.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who is full of mercy, compassion and forgiveness for me - thank You Jesus!  Of course I am completely undeserving of such mercy, compassion and forgiveness as I have sinned greatly and I continue to sin - worry, anger, harsh words, etc. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me. Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well.

2 Thessalonians 1

God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well.  v6-7 

The MacArthur Bible Study Commentary (for purchase) indicates that the timing of this letter "was surely a few months after the first epistle" citing Acts 18:11 indication that the 18 month period when Paul was in Corinth was "ample" time for both epistles to be authored.  Per this overview, The church in Thessalonica needed encouragement, instruction on how to discern false teachers, and to focus on their faith, service to God and to one another, and to remain unified.  

Paul encourages the Thessalonians to remain strong in the face of perspecution.  He tells them that "God is just" - indeed.  See also posts here on this topic.  In particular this post is useful.   

We often grow weary when we face persecution.  Yet we can take comfort that God sees it all and the wicked will not go unpunished and the faithful will be rewarded.

For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. Luke 8:17

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who sees everything and is just.  I am encouraged to remain faithful and to be strong in the face of persecution.  Thank You Jesus.  I am not worthy of such love and blessing.  I sin...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.