Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Romans 12:21
As we recall Day 21, entitled, “Blood for Blood”, God will bring vengeance on His enemies, as it is mentioned in Revelation 16:6 at the End of the Age, and in general as stated in Romans 12:19. Today, I would like for us to look at the two verses that follow in Romans 12 (20-21). Paul is actually quoting Proverbs 25:21-22. Both state: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Proverbs adds: “…and the Lord will reward you”.
At face value, this seems like an odd statement. First, we are told to do the exact opposite of our human instincts when our enemy is weak and vulnerable. If they are hungry or thirsty, we are to meet that need. Do you think this comes naturally to us? Yet, here is Paul directing us to do so. Why should we? It will heap burning coals on their heads. Say what?!
Before we look into what this strange saying might mean, let’s remember who is giving us this nugget of wisdom. Here is a man, Paul, who once made it his mission to persecute Christians. However, he also knew what it was like to receive kindness from a believer, for it was a Christian named Ananias whom God used to heal Paul of his blindness (Acts 9:1-19). Paul had lived from all sides and knew what it meant to persecute, to be loved by those he persecuted, and to love those who later persecuted him.
Now, to the heaping of burning coals on your enemy’s head. Sounds like they would die a rather quick but excruciating death, doesn’t it? That would mean taking the exact opposite action of helping them. To quote Inigo Montoya in the classic movie, The Princess Bride, “I do not think it means what you think it means”.
Would you agree with me that the goal is to have our enemies believe in Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world? The hope, then, is that our kind actions, overcoming evil with good, will be used by God to convict them, soften their hearts, and turn them forever toward the Messiah. Think of the burning coals as a metaphor for the enemy experiencing shame and guilt. Now, this may not work, but vengeance belongs to the Lord. In the meantime, continue to love your enemies. Heap as many burning coals on their heads as possible! Then maybe this weight will be too much to bear and their hearts will be broken towards the God Who loves them.