JustifiedIhe Atụ

When we get hit, we hit back. When someone takes something from us, we take something from them. If someone says something mean, we say something meaner.

We don't even really have to think or plan to do these things. It's just natural. It's how we even the scales. It feels like the only way to survive in the world, right? We can't just let people walk all over us. So when we get mad, we get even. Then they try to get even with us, and the endless cycle starts all over again.

So when God tells us not to take revenge, it can feel almost impossible to obey. What are we supposed to do instead? How is it possible to live in the world without making sure other people pay when they've hurt us?

The only way it's possible is by trusting that what God says in today's Scripture is true — that vengeance belongs to God. The reason we don't need to get even now is because God is going to handle that. When we try to take the things that belong to God into our own hands, things are bound to get messy.

So what are we supposed to do when someone hurts us? That's where things get really difficult. The Bible says we're supposed to look after our enemies. Loving the people who hurt you is definitely difficult, but it's also the only way we can really break the endless cycle of revenge.