When someone has betrayed or hurt us, our first instinct is often to look for ways to get revenge. And it can be hard to resist those feelings, especially if we can see an easy opportunity for payback, or if people around us encourage us to even things up. But before deciding to retaliate, let’s stop and think about the story in 1 Samuel 24.

Consumed by jealousy, King Saul took every opportunity to try and destroy his God-ordained successor, David. Saul was driven by a desire to eliminate him, so he took three thousand soldiers to find David and kill him. On the journey, Saul stopped to rest in a large cave where David and his men were hiding. David’s men said, ‘Now is a perfect opportunity to kill him and take the throne.’ Instead, David just cut off a corner of Saul’s robe and showed it to Saul later as evidence that he had spared the king’s life. David’s men probably thought his strategy was ridiculous, but David lived by a different code – God’s Word! He told his men, ‘Don’t kill him. For who can remain innocent after attacking the Lord’s anointed one?’ (1 Samuel 26:9 NLT).

And God hasn’t changed His mind. The Bible says don’t take revenge, because justice is in God’s hands (see Romans 12:17-21). So what should we do instead? We need to set our instincts aside and show kindness. The Bible says, ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink…overcome evil with good’ (Romans 12:20-21 NIV). It might not necessarily change the attitude of the person who’s hurt us, but it will change our attitude, and God will be pleased.

What Now?

If you’ve been hurt and your mind’s turning to ways to retaliate, use those thoughts as an alarm that you need to talk to God urgently about the situation. Ask Him to help you react with kindness instead of revenge.