Do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for God’s wrath, because it is written, Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord. —Romans 12:19
We may sometimes feel that if we forgive someone, justice won’t be served. That they’ll get off scot-free. That we’re giving them permission to do wrong again, seeing how easily we let them get away with it this time. According to God’s Word, however, wrongdoers will get their just due. But we’re not the ones responsible to mete out the penalty.
When we try to keep someone “on the hook,” we assume a role that belongs to God alone. It’s our way of wanting to oversee how justice is administered.
Read Romans 12:19 again. Paul is saying that letting the offender off your hook doesn’t mean he’s off God’s hook. Forgiveness releases the accused from your custody and turns him over to God—the righteous Judge— the only One able and responsible for meting out justice. So, what feels like the height of unfairness, what seems to be nothing more than giving our offender the pass, becomes for us a step of freedom.
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Choosing Forgiveness: Moving from Hurt to Hope
©2022 Revived Hearts Foundation
Scripture taken from The CSB
Make it Personal
Is there anyone you’re trying to keep “on the hook”? How can you let go and leave justice in God’s hands?