In Romans 12:17-20 the
Bible says, "Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in
the sight of all men. " {18) "If it is possible, as much as depends on
you, live peaceably with all men. " {19} "Beloved, do not avenge
yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written,
"Vengeance is Mine, I will repay," says the Lord "{20} "Therefore if
your enemy hungers, feed him; if he thirsts, give him a drink; for in so
doing you will heap coals of fire on his head "
Revenge or retaliation
is God's business (Deuteronomy 32:35). In times past the Bible says that
God allowed man to take vengeance for himself (Exodus 21:23-25).
However, the Bible says that this changed with the coming of Jesus into
the world (Matthew 5.38-44). The Bible says that Jesus would not allow
Peter nor any of His disciples to retaliate when the mob arrested Him
(Jesus) in the garden of Gethsemane, nor would He avenge Himself
(Matthew 26:47-56). This fulfilled what the Bible said of Him in Isaiah
53:7, "He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He opened not ills
mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its
shearers is silent, so He opened not his mouth. "
The Bible says that
christians are not of the mindset and heart that devises retaliation
against others (1 Thessalonians 5:15; 1 Peter 3:8-9). When James and
John wanted to call down fire from heaven against a village of
Samaritans that had rejected the Lord's attempts to teach them Jesus
said, "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of For the Son of
Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them " (Luke
9:51-56).
To the contrary, when
christians are mistreated they respond in an opposite way from the one
that they have been treated (Matthew 5:38-44). In Proverbs 24:29 the
Bible says, "Do not say, "I will do to him just as he has done to me; I
will render to the man according to his work. " If we persist in evening
the score by retaliating against evil the Bible says that this will turn
on us and we will be the one(s) who ultimately suffer the most because
of it (Proverbs 26:27).