Do not say, “I’ll pay you back for this wrong!” Wait for the LORD, and he will deliver you. Proverbs 20: 22, NIV.
Merciful LORD, we are grateful to You for Your protection and Your care! May we rest this day and every day in You. In the name of Jesus Christ our Lord we pray. Amen.
Many of us have witnessed great injustice in this world, in our day. Perhaps some of you have even been victims of injustice. Whether we have suffered personally, or have only heard of, or witnessed, injustice, it is not a pretty sight; and it certainly does not feel good. The natural reaction for one who has been treated unjustly, is to “get even.” We usually want to “pay back” those who have done us wrong.
Our Scripture for today offers us some good advice, “Do not say, ‘ “I’ll pay you back for this wrong!” ‘ Wait for the LORD, and he will deliver you.” In other words, do not take matters into your own hands, instead, leave things in God’s hands. There are times that we give people a word of advice because it is the right thing to tell them; not because we have tried it and proven that it works. In this case, I can tell you, from personal experience, that leaving things in the hands of a just God, is the very best thing that we can do!
Several times in Scripture we find this counsel repeated: “Wait on the LORD.” It is said in many different ways, but the idea is the same:
“And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.”” (Exodus 14: 13-15, emphasis provided).
“Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! The LORD of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah” (Psalm 46: 10a, emphasis provided).
“Wait on the LORD; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the LORD” (Psalm 27: 14, emphasis provided)!
“But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40: 31).
When Moses and the children of Israel stood still, they witnessed the salvation of the LORD. They did not have to lift a finger! The LORD fought and won their battle for them. Pharaoh and his army were no more a threat to them. Oftentimes it is in our stillness, that God can be exalted, and receive the glory that He alone deserves.
As we wait on God, we receive strength for the rest of the journey! Trying to fight against foes who are usually very versatile in their warfare, can make us weary. Not so, if we wait on the LORD. We are constantly renewed in His presence. And as we observe Him in warfare against our enemies, we are restored!
Whenever war rise up against us, let us remember that, “in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; In the secret place of His tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock. And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me” (Psalm 27: 5, 6).
Remember when God allowed his prophet Elijah, to rest under a broom tree, when Jezebel threatened his life? Then the LORD took him on the mountain and revealed His glory to his servant (1 Kings 19: 5-12). Oftentimes the LORD Himself will hide us from our enemies (Be sure to read Exodus 14: 19, 20). He takes us to the high places of the rocks like He did David, and allowed him to look down on his enemy, king Saul (1 Samuel 26: 13-17). When we try to pay people back for the injustices done to us, as mere mortals, we tend to descend to their level. But if we wait on the LORD, He will “lift our heads above our enemies all around us.” In other words, we will always have the advantage over our enemies, if we are willing to wait for the LORD, and not run ahead of Him, and take things in our own hands!
So the next time you are tempted to “pay” someone back for the wrong they did to you, remember the words of the apostle, as he reminds us of the Words of the LORD: “Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, ‘ “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” ‘ says the Lord” (Romans 12: 19).