Proverbs 24
Verses 17-18, 29:
Do not gloat when your enemy falls;
when he stumbles, do not let your heart rejoice,or the LORD will see and disapprove
and turn his wrath away from him.Do not say, “I’ll do to him as he has done to me;
I’ll pay that man back for what he did.”
This was a great verse to read the other night. Living life the past few weeks, I’ve had encounters with people I wouldn’t necessarily call my enemies, but they certainly weren’t my friends. It was easy to cry for justice over the harsh or careless words they spoke and want to carry justice out on my own. But these three verses are a powerful reminder that it’s not up to us to do that. In fact, vs. 19 leaves an odd twist that it says the LORD will turn his wrath away from him (the object of your wrath). I’m not entirely sure how to interpret that, but it seems to indicate that the LORD will no longer take the vengeance we seek if we gloat over the circumstances of our enemies. Perhaps it implies that God’s wrath would be directed towards us?
Regardless, the command is pretty clear. We are not to rejoice in the failings of our enemies, and we are certainly not to repay evil with evil.