On Avenging Oneself
“You shall not hate your brother in your heart,
but you shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you incur sin because of him. 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.
~ Leviticus
19:17-18 ~
The
purpose of this passage is, in part, to set a limit to the measures an
individual may take to personally
redress a grievance he has against his neighbor. If his neighbor has sinned
against him, he may confront him and “reason frankly” with him. The Hebrew word
(yākah) means to rebuke, reprove, or correct.[1]
What the law has in view here is precisely the situation Jesus had in mind when
he said, “If your brother sins [against
you], rebuke him, if he repents, forgive him” (Lk. 17:3). Such verbal
correction, it should be noted, is not merely permitted, but encouraged. Rebuke
for wrongdoing is beneficial. “Whoever heeds reproof,” Solomon says, “is
prudent” (Prov. 15:5). He is “on the
path to life” (Prov. 10:17) and “will dwell among the wise” (Prov. 15:31). On
the other hand, “A scoffer does not listen to rebuke” (Prov. 13:1). “He who
hates reproof is stupid” (Prov. 12:1). “Poverty and disgrace will come to him”
(Prov. 13:18). It is as if he “despises himself” (Prov. 15:32). Hating reproof
may, in fact, lead to an untimely death (Prov. 15:10). This is why David said,
Let a righteous man strike me—it is a
kindness;
let
him rebuke me—it is oil for my head;
let
my head not refuse it (Ps. 141:5).
Reproof
is never a pleasure either to give or to receive, but it is nevertheless an act
of kindness. David no doubt smarted under Nathan’s pointed, “Thou art the man!”
(2 Sam. 12:7). But the rebuke had its intended effect. It brought David to
repentance (2 Sam. 12:13; Psalm 51). In the end he would agree with the Proverb,
“Faithful are the wounds of a friend” (27:6).
This
highlights the fact that the goal of
reproof is repentance, which involves not only internal remorse for the wrong
done, but also restitution to the victim (Ex. 21:33-36; 22:1-15; Lev. 6:1-5;
Num. 5:6-8). When restitution is made, the victim is restored to a state of
wholeness. By the very nature of the case, however, some offenses cannot be
amended by restitution. No restitution is possible for murder, for instance. David
could not restore Uriah to Bathsheba. In every case, however, in which
restitution is possible, it is a necessary
aspect of genuine repentance.
Jesus
applies Leviticus 19:17, not only in Luke 17:3, but also in Matthew 18:15.
Compare the passages below.[2]
Leviticus 19:17
|
Luke 17:3
|
Matthew 18:15
|
“You shall
reason frankly with him [your brother]”
|
“If your
brother sins, rebuke him, and if
he repents, forgive him”
|
“If your
brother sins against you, go and tell
him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have
gained your brother”
|
The
Matthew passage goes on to give us a more expansive account of Jesus’ teaching
on the subject. If the offender does not listen, the offended party is to take
one or two others with him and confront him a second time. If the offender
still does not listen, they are to take the matter to the elders of the church
(assuming the offender is a member of the church). The elders should then hear
the case and render judgment, imposing whatever church discipline may be
appropriate (Matt. 18:16-20; 1 Cor. 5:1-3; 6:1-8). Anything beyond verbal
correction and seeking the discipline of the church is forbidden, unless it is
a legally actionable offense, in which case he may take the offender to court
in order to recover damages as specified under God’s law.
This
legislation is given by God in order to impose a limit on what an individual
may do to redress a wrong done to him. The offended party may rebuke his
neighbor, but he may not personally exact vengeance on him (v. 18). He may not
strike him. He may not seize his property, or do anything else to harm him or
what belongs to him.
It
should be pointed out, however, that this law does not forbid the use of force
in self-defense. It forbids after the
fact vengeance. While a violent criminal act is in progress, a victim may
use force to defend himself. What he may not do is hunt the perpetrator down
afterward and take his own vengeance. This is the meaning of the distinction which
is made in Exodus 22:2-3 between a thief who “is found breaking in” and one on
whom “the sun has arisen.”
If a thief is found breaking in and is
struck so that he dies, there shall be no bloodguilt for him, but if the sun
has arisen on him, there shall be bloodguilt for him.
While
the crime is in progress, the homeowner is justified in using force; not so
after the fact. Afterward, “when the sun has risen on him,” there is a strict
limit to what he may do. (See The Ethics of Killing in Self-Defense.) He may rebuke him with the hope that the thief will be
moved to repentance and make amends for his theft; but he may not do anything
more on his own. Thus this law
forbids personal vengeance, vigilante action, feuds, duels, etc. It forbids
these things not because the Lord is uninterested in amends being made to the
victim, but because he is interested in justice, and justice can only be served
when there is a due process of law. This includes the gathering of evidence,
the examination of witnesses, the application of relevant case law, the
rendering of an official verdict, and the administration of appropriate punishment.
A just end must be reached by just means
by those whom God has authorized for the task.
It
should be stressed that it is not the desire for vengeance which is forbidden
in this passage, but the seeking of vengeance in an unlawful way by taking the
law into one’s own hands. The desire for vengeance is a desire to see justice
done, and refers specifically to the desire of the victim, who has a very
personal interest at stake. It is a desire to see the wrongdoer suffer the due
penalty of his wrongdoing, especially if
he should he continue unrepentant. This
is a legitimate desire. This should be clear from the fact that Scripture
represents the Lord as being a “God of vengeance” (Psalm 94:1). “Vengeance is
mine, and recompense,” says the Lord (Deut. 32:35; cited in Heb. 12:19; Heb.
10:30). He will take vengeance on his adversaries (Deut. 32:41; Nah. 1:2) and
avenge himself on his foes (Isa. 1:24).
Moreover,
the Lord not only avenges himself on his
enemies, but also on the enemies of his people, who are very dear to him, whom
he deems to be the apple of his eye (Deut. 32:10; Zech. 2:8). In Deuteronomy it
is stated that the Lord “avenges the blood of his children” (Deut. 32:43). He
is a “jealous and avenging God” (Na. 1:2). This is why the martyrs have
confidence to pray, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will
judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” (Rev. 6:10)
What
is forbidden in the passage is “extralegal retribution,”[3]
an attempt to bypass the judicial process and take the law into one’s own
hands. Ultimately, vengeance belongs to the Lord, but he has authorized rulers
and judges to act on his behalf.
Let every person be subject to the governing
authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist
have been instituted by God... [T]he one who is in authority…is the servant of
God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer (Rom. 13:1, 3, 4).
This
is why Paul says in another place, “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’” (Rom. 12:19). This is
sometimes taken to mean that the victim of wrongdoing should do nothing at all
toward seeking a remedy for the injustice committed against him. This is not
Paul’s meaning, however. Certainly he encourages his readers to patiently
endure mistreatment and to respond in kindness (Rom. 12:20), but he does not
forbid recourse to the proper authorities to make things right. What he
prohibits is avenging ourselves, or
taking the law into our own hands. We are either to leave the matter to God
alone or else seek the aid of his appointed ministers of justice. To take the
law into our own hands is itself a lawless act.
In
addition to setting a limit on what an individual may do to seek a remedy for a
wrong done, the passage also encourages a patient and forgiving spirit when
wronged. It opens with a prohibitive commandment, “You shall not hate your
brother in your heart,” and closes with the corresponding positive injunction,
“But you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” These two commandments stand
like book ends to the instruction in between them. The passage should be understood
as follows.
You shall not hate your brother in your
heart [when he sins against you], but
you shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you incur sin because of him
[by seeking to harm him in return]. You
shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people [for the offenses they commit against you],
but you shall love your neighbor as yourself [by eschewing personal vengeance and showing patience and kindness in
return]; I am the Lord.
This
is no different in spirit than what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount.
You have heard that it was said, “An eye
for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” But I say to you, Do not resist the one
who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other
also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak
as well (Matt. 5:39-40).
Please
note that the offenses Jesus mentioned are relatively minor—a slap on the
cheek, taking an article of clothing. They are unjust acts, certainly, but offenses
which are capable of being rather easily absorbed. Paul said something very
similar in his first letter to the Corinthians.
To have lawsuits at all with one another
is already a defeat for you. Why not
rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded? But you yourselves wrong
and defraud—even your own brothers!” (1 Cor. 6:7-8)
It
is the case, then, that Moses, Jesus, and Paul encourage forbearance when
wronged. It sometimes happens that refusing to retaliate for a wrong suffered,
but instead showing kindness in return, results in the softening and repentance
of the offender. “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him
something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals [of shame] on his head [leading to repentance]” (Rom. 12:20).
This voluntary repentance, whether elicited by “reasoning frankly” with the
offender or by returning evil with good, is preferable to a lawsuit. A lawsuit,
however, is not forbidden. The Lord has established the courts for the very
purpose of maintaining the rights of the innocent against those who seek to
harm them.
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