The Desire for Vengeance – The Tenth Commandment

The Desire for Vengeance

Exodus 20:17; Deuteronomy 5:21

“And you shall not covet…”

Psalm 26:1

Vindicate me, O LORD, for I have walked in my integrity, and I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.

What are you waiting for?

Have you ever been wronged by anyone? You know the feeling: Why should this happen to me? I’ve been following the Lord, seeking His will, doing His work. Why should this person attack me like this? What will people think? Meanwhile, within your soul, anger rises on the wings of resentment, and spawns a fierce desire to see things set right. At this point you are on a watershed. One slope of that watershed leads to vindication, when everything will be set right and God will be glorified at the revelation of truth. The other slope is that of vengeance, when the person who has wronged us gets his comeuppance, if not at our hands, then by whatever means gives him his due – to our great satisfaction. Whenever you are wronged, you must desire vindication, not vengeance. Taking vengeance, as we know, is not our prerogative (Rom. 12.19). Seeking vindication is altogether appropriate, and requires that we wait on the Lord to do what is right and just. The person who desires vindication waits on the good pleasure of God. The person who desires vengeance waits only for his opportunity. What are you waiting for?

How would you counsel someone to seek vindication rather than vengeance whenever he is wronged?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.