What about retaliation and revenge?

Is retaliation wrong? Is it ever appropriate for a person to carry out acts of personal revenge or retribution against a person who has wronged him? Before you say 'no,' you should remember that at least three places in Scripture suggest this possibility.

• Exodus 21:24 says, "Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot."

• Leviticus 24:20 says, "Fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth."

• Deuteronomy 19:21 says, "Life shall be for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot."

Perhaps you notice that each of these statements come from the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Old Testament (OT), also called the Law, written by Moses. Yet explaining these statements is not as simple as relegating them to the status of an OT law which is no longer relevant for church-era Christians today.

It is true that the New Testament (NT) entrusts revenge to God. Both Paul and the writer of Hebrews affirm this.

• Romans 12:19 says, "Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, 'Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,' says the Lord."

• Hebrews 10:30 says, "We know Him who said, 'Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,' says the Lord. And again, 'The LORD will judge His people.'”

When you read these NT quotations, you should notice that they are quoting from an OT source. Romans 12:19 says, "It is written," and Hebrews 10:30 says, "[He] said." So where did God say, "Vengeance is mine?" He said it in the same OT law which taught an "eye for eye," etc. Deuteronomy 32:35 says, "Vengeance is Mine, and recompense." What's more, the OT book of Psalms repeats this principle of divine retribution. Psalm 94:1 says, "O LORD God, to whom vengeance belongs— O God, to whom vengeance belongs, shine forth!"

When you read these NT quotations, you should notice that they are quoting from an OT source.

How does retaliation harmonize with trusting God?

So how does the "eye for an eye" principle harmonize with the principle of "do not avenge yourselves?" First, you should consider the context in which the "eye for an eye" principle was given. In Exodus 21:24, for instance, Moses was giving God-ordained guidelines for the Jewish judicial system, not for personal, individual retaliation. He was not instructing Jewish citizens in how to respond when someone wronged them. Instead, he was providing appropriate guidelines for Israelite judges to follow when they presided over cases involving physical injury (such as Exo 21:22-23).

As such, this was not a requirement which mandated that every time a person was injured, the judge must automatically prescribe an equal and opposite consequence. Instead, it was a guideline which ensured that the punishment would never exceed the scope of the crime. If a person caused another person to lose a finger, then the punishment should never exceed the injury that occurred. In other words, the person who committed this crime should not be required to lose two fingers as a punishment for his crime.

It was a guideline which ensured that the punishment would never exceed the scope of the crime.

We are not living under the OT national justice system today, but we should allow our current government to take responsibility for punishing crimes (Rom 13:1-5). Such retaliation is not our personal responsibility and we should trust God to bring about justice for the wrongs we suffer, whether this justice occurs in this life through human government or in eternity before God's throne. It is appropriate for a government to follow the equal-justice principle provided in Exo 21:24, Lev 24:20, and Deut 19:21. But whether or not they do so, we should trust in God nonetheless and refuse to take justice into our own hands (Deut 32:35; Rom 12:19; Heb 10:30).

What did Jesus say?

Jesus affirmed and expanded this perspective during his public teaching ministry (Matt 5:38-42). In doing so, he encouraged his followers to back away from personal retaliation, even if doing so incurred additional injury (Matt 5:39). He extended this logic by encouraging his followers to be generous when someone extorts money from you, being willing to lose even more (5:40-41). In a NT letter, Peter applied this same principle to our speech when he said, "Not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing" (1 Pet 3:9).

It depends.

So is retaliation wrong? According to both the OT and NT, it depends. On an individual level, we should not engage in personal retaliation. You are misusing Scripture when you cite Exo 21:24, Lev 24:20, and Deut 19:21 as your reason for doing so. These are not principles for personal retaliation.

You are misusing Scripture when you cite Exo 21:24, Lev 24:20, and Deut 19:21 as your reason for personal retaliation.

Nevertheless, on a social level it is appropriate for federal, state, or local governments to carry out justice for crimes which have caused physical or financial loss. In such cases, Exo 21:24, Lev 24:20, and Deut 19:21 provide God-given boundaries for proper justice, reminding us that the consequences for a criminal action should not surpass the nature of the crime.

Will you follow the example of Christ and "commit [yourself] to Him who judges righteously" (1 Pet 2:21-24)?

Even so, the followers of Christ in the later first century suffered through a corrupt judicial system under Nero, an emperor who blatantly disregarded common justice. In fact, he deliberately targeted Christians for their faith and subjected them to cruel injustices. Despite all this, Paul encouraged the believers in Rome to submit to the authorities of secular government nonetheless (Rom 13:1-5). Peter encouraged the same approach (1 Pet 2:13-17). In instances like this, God tests our trust in him to a significant degree. When he does, will you still trust him to bring about justice at the right time and in the right way (Deut 32:35; Rom 12:19; Heb 10:30)? Will you follow the example of Christ and "commit [yourself] to Him who judges righteously" (1 Pet 2:21-24)?