Bible Verses about Revenge

In a world that often champions the vigilante, it can be tempting to take matters into our own hands when we've been wronged. We fantasize about the sweet satisfaction of retribution, convinced that revenge will heal our wounds and restore our honor. However, the wisdom of ancient scriptures offers a contrary viewpoint, urging us to let go of our thirst for vengeance and instead place our trust in a higher power.

The Bible grapples with the complexities of human emotion and morality, and it has much to say about the subject of revenge. In both the Old and New Testaments, we find teachings that pivot away from vindictiveness. Verses such as "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord" (Romans 12:19) and "Do not say, 'I will repay evil'; wait for the LORD, and he will deliver you" (Proverbs 20:22) make it clear that revenge is neither ours to seek nor ours to dispense.

Instead of dwelling in bitterness or spiraling into a cycle of revenge, the Bible encourages us to focus on forgiveness, love, and self-control. It suggests that the true measure of strength isn't in how we retaliate but in how we show restraint and compassion. By releasing our desire for revenge, we not only allow room for divine justice but also free ourselves from the toxic grip of anger and resentment. This transformative concept challenges us to rise above our basest instincts and aspire to a life that reflects a deeper, more enduring form of justice and peace.

Verses on Leaving Revenge to God

Deuteronomy 32:35

Vengeance is mine, and recompense, for the time when their foot shall slip; for the day of their calamity is at hand, and their doom comes swiftly.

1 Samuel 24:12

May the LORD judge between me and you, may the LORD avenge me against you, but my hand shall not be against you.

Jeremiah 51:36

Therefore thus says the LORD: “Behold, I will plead your cause and take vengeance for you. I will dry up her sea and make her fountain dry.”

Ezekiel 25:17

I will execute great vengeance on them with wrathful rebukes. Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I lay my vengeance upon them.

Nahum 1:2

The LORD is a jealous and avenging God; the LORD is avenging and wrathful; the LORD takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath for his enemies.

Romans 12:19

Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”

2 Thessalonians 1:6-8

Since indeed God considers it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

Hebrews 10:30

For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.”

Verses on Vengeance

Exodus 21:24

Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Proverbs 20:22

Do not say, “I will repay evil”; wait for the LORD, and he will deliver you.

Proverbs 24:29

Do not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me; I will pay the man back for what he has done.”

Isaiah 63:4

For the day of vengeance was in my heart, and my year of redemption has come.

Verses on Forgiving Others

Matthew 6:14-15

For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Luke 6:37

Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven.

Colossians 3:13

Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.

Seek Love Instead Revenge

Leviticus 19:18

You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.

Proverbs 24:29

Do not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me; I will pay the man back for what he has done.”

Matthew 5:44

But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.

Practice Self-Control

Proverbs 16:32

Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.

Proverbs 20:22

Do not say, “I will repay evil”; wait for the LORD, and he will deliver you.

James 1:19-20

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.

Alternatives to Seeking Revenge

Proverbs 25:21-22

If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink, for you will heap burning coals on his head, and the LORD will reward you.

1 Thessalonians 5:15

See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone.

1 Peter 3:9

Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.

A Prayer of Repentance for Wanting Revenge

Heavenly Father,

I come before You today with a heart weighed down by thoughts of revenge and retribution. I acknowledge that I have let bitterness, anger, and a desire for payback consume my thoughts and cloud my judgment. I know that this is not of You, and it separates me from the love and peace that You offer. I repent for letting my emotions guide me toward destructive paths, for not trusting Your wisdom, and for wanting to take matters into my own hands.

Lord, Your Word tells me that "Vengeance is mine; I will repay, says the Lord" (Romans 12:19). I believe that Your justice is perfect, and I surrender my need for revenge into Your loving hands. Fill me with Your spirit of forgiveness, and help me to remember the grace that I have received through Jesus Christ. Give me the strength to love even those who have wronged me, just as You have loved me despite my own failures.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me (Psalm 51:10). Help me to walk in the way of Your truth, letting go of my own pride and wrath. May I trust in Your perfect justice and live out Your command to love my neighbor as myself. Thank You for Your endless mercy and grace, and for the gift of repentance that draws me closer to You.

In Jesus' name, I pray, Amen.