THE VENGEANCE SYSTEM OF GOD

BY

EFOSA PAUL OGBEBOR I YARE

A PRODUCT OF

WITHOUT WALLS CHRISTIAN ASSEMBLY

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 INTRODUCTION

The goal of this book is to show us a pattern. A pattern laid out in Scripture for
believ ers to follow in dealing w ith humans w ho for different reasons may become
our adv ersaries.

May the good LORD bless us and grant us understanding as w e read in JESUS
NAME… AMEN!

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 CONTENT

PART 1

The Reality of Enemies

PART 2

Our Responsibility in Dealing with Enemies

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 PART 1

JESUS had enemies

I t is hard, if not impossible to liv e through life as an effectiv e and prosperous person
w ithout hav ing enemies! And because this is so important, I am reiterating it, “it is
hard if not impossible to liv e through life as an effectiv e and prosperous person,
w ithout hav ing real, self-declared enemies.”

Jesus Christ, the son of the liv ing GOD w ho the Scripture says has no sin (Hebrew s
4:15) “…was in all points HE was tempted like as we are, yet without si n” had
enemies, real enemies! I f JESUS had no sin, it means HE did no w rong, and HE
offended nobody intentionally. I n character, JESUS w as perfect; in all things . HE w as
perfect as GOD is, yet HE had enemies; real unmasked enemies.

Apostle Paul said to the Galatians in Galatians 4:16 “Am I now your enemy for telling
you the truth?” JESUS CHRI ST became an enemy to a lot of folks because HE told
them the plain truth and up to the present time, people become quick enemies of
others for being truthful.

When the enemies of JESUS took HIM to Pilate so HE could be put to death, Pilate
asked a simple question “what accusation do you have against this man?” You
w ould hav e expected them to giv e a list of the crime(s) JESUS committed (like he
stole, killed someone, could not pay his debt, committed adultery…) but they said,
“If this man were not doing evil, we would not have delivered him to you” (John
18:29-30 ESV). What ev il w as HE doing exactly? None could say but somehow , they
expected Pilate to kill CHRI ST on the ground of being „perceiv ed‟ as an ev il person,
though he committed no know n crime.

After questioning JESUS, Pilate declared to the Jew s “I find no guilt in this man,
nothing deserving of death”. Still, they asked for the release of a w ell-know n robber

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and murderer but insisted on the death of one w ho committed no crime because
they w anted to get rid of an ENEMY.

All efforts to release JESUS by Pilate prov ed abortiv e because HI S enemies w ere
committed to nothing but HI S death. Leav ing HIM beaten, mocked, and in prison
w as not enough, they w anted HIM dead; precisely by hanging and nothing else
w ould be adequate.

Judas w ho betrayed JESUS said “I have sinned by betraying an INNOCENT BLOOD”,

the w ife of Pilate told him “Have nothing to do with that RIGHTEOUS MAN” and
Pilate also knew “it was OUT OF ENVY JESUS was being delivered up for death”
Matthew 27. So HI S innocence w as prov en, but HI S enemies w anted HI M dead and
they manipulated and blackmailed Pilate to carry out their desire.

At the end of the day, JESUS died and HI S enemies had their desire met. HI S dying as
w e know , w as part of the FATHERS‟ plan and that w as w hy the plot succeeded.
Although the plans w ere of GOD, it didn't make those enemies less guilty, for JESUS
said to Pilate “You would have no authority over ME at all unless it had been given
you from above. Therefore, he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin”
John 19:11.

To deny the reality of enemies is to live a life of assumptions. We‟ve got to be

careful out there. It is better to live in reality and trust the FATHER to deliver us
from evil rather than live a life of assumptions that deny realities (both good and
especially the evil ones). The world is a cruel place to live, it came with the fall,
and from generation to generat ion cruelty has existed and will exist till the
coming of CHRIST. The good news, however, is that the FATHER can deliver and
keep us from every form of cruelty.

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Read through SCRIPTURES and you will discover that CHRIST, after the
resurrection, ascension and up till now continues to have enemies, 1 Corinthians
15:25.

If CHRIST who on earth was a perfect man and as perfect as HE was still
attracted the worst of enemies who were bent on killing him, then think of us
humans who are imperfect.

Sometimes we do things we think are cool and righteous only to find out that
people are not cool with it and they end up taking offense, and seeking
payback for things we did, meaning no harm.

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 Gaining a Scriptural Perspective

To hav e a full understanding of the term ENEMY and hav e a good Scriptural
perspectiv e on it, w e did some research and our findings w ere indeed rev ealing,
amazing, and shocking.

First, w e discov ered that GOD the FATHER w ho created all things but w as not
created has real, unmasked enemies and some of these enemies w ere before the
creation of the w orld. I n 2 Samuel 12:14, the Prophet Nathan told King Dav id

“because by this deed you have given occasion to the ENEMIES OF THE LORD TO
BLASPHEME”, the child also who is born to you shall surely die”. I saiah 1:24 reads
“There the Lord, the LORD ALMIGHTY, the MIGHTY ONE of Israel, declares: Ah! I will
vent my wrath on my foes and avenge myself on my enemies”

We also discov ered that all humans by nature became enemies of the FATHER after
the fall of man, that is w hy Apostle Paul urged us to be reconciled to the FATHER
saying that “GOD in CHRIST is reconciling the entire world to HIMSELF…” (2
Corinthians 5:17-20) Also in Romans 5:1, he said: “Having being justified by faith, we

have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ”.

I t w as CHRI ST w ho reconciled us and is still reconciling the w orld back to the

FATHER. Aside from CHRI ST, ev ery one of us is an enemy of the FATHER because of
the sin nature in us. Ev en now that w e hav e peace w ith GOD as Christians, James
said we can still become enemies with HIM when we choose to be friends with the
world! James 4:4, Romans 8:7, Colossians 1:21.

Hav ing enemies, w e discov ered came w ith the fall of humans. From the early days
of Adam „hav ing enemies‟ has been. We are not referring to our common enemy -
Satan and his demons, w e are talking about flesh and blood, and how humans can
be enemies w ith their fellow man.

We asked ourselv es, w hat did Abel do to attract an enemy in his brother, Cain?
Going by Scriptures, how did Abel offend Cain his brother? He did nothing w rong,

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he just pleased GOD and w as accepted by HI M; for that reason, Cain picked him
up as an adv ersary. To Abel, Cain w as his brother but to Cain, Abel w as an enemy
w ho had no right to liv e any longer because he pleased and w as accepted by
GOD. I f Abel saw Cain as an enemy, he w ould not hav e follow ed him out alone
w hen his attention w as draw n.

After a little study of “enemy” in scripture, w e came to a firm conclusion that hav ing
enemies does not make anyone a good, bad, or ugly person.

To put it differently, that you hav e enemies is not as a result of w hether or not you
are a good or bad person. All men alike, w hether good or bad hav e enemies.
Some men ev en in the grav e still hav e enemies, people w ish them death and peril
ev en as dead men! This is the ugly reality w e liv e in today as humans. The best any
man can do here on earth is to be at peace w ith his enemies.

Note, w e are not saying people w ho intentionally do things out of a bad character
to attract enemies, do not exist. NO! that is not w hat w e are saying. What w e are
saying is regardless of how good, righteous, and holy you are as a person, some
people w ill still not like you. They may hate you, and be your enemy for being good,
righteous, and holy; it is a sad reality.

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 The FATHER acknowledged Enemies

On hav ing enemies, Scripture rev eals GOD didn‟t play „self-righteous or too holy on
it‟. The FATHER did not deny the reality of enemies, neither did HE put it aside as a
subject not w orth discussing or paying attention to.

When HE w as blessing Abraham and his seed, the FATHER mentioned “your seed
shall possess the gate of their enemies” Genesis 22:17. GOD did not play dow n on
enemies here and throughout Scripture, HE nev er did. I n pronouncing blessings, HE
noted that enemies w ill surely arise; HE acknow ledged it and addressed it.

The FATHER didn‟t say “w ell Abraham your people w ill be good, so they w ill be
lov ed and accepted by all men” Nope! (Abel w as good). I nstead, HE said, the
gates of their enemies they w ill possess. Was it because the FATHER knew there w as
no w ay these people could escape the reality of hav ing enemies regardless of how
righteous and holy HE could make them or they could be?

From Scripture, w e discov ered that of all the times the Jew ish people had rest and
peace, it w as gotten either through strength (conquering their enemies) or the
FATHER made their enemies be at peace w ith them (Solomon‟s reign an example),
but nev er because they stopped hav ing enemies. And from history, w e know w hat
they hav e been made to suffer and endure in the hands of their adv ersaries.
As believ ers in CHRI ST, w e are the spiritual and actual seed of Abraham (Galatians
3:7, 28-29). The question is; is Genesis 22:17 applicable to us also?

Isaac during his lifetime had peace and rest. His “w ould hav e been enemy” w as a
w ise man and instead of making trouble w ith I saac, he w as w ise enough to send
him aw ay in peace and later he w ent to sign a treaty of peace w ith him. The best
any man can get w as w hat I saac and Solomon enjoyed; they had peace w ith their
enemies Genesis 26:9-33, 1 Chronicle 22:7-10. Though GOD later raised enemies for
Solomon w hen he fell off track, 1 King 11.

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Observ e that GOD raised enemies for him w hen his heart became div ided and he
w ent after other gods.

Jacob told Pharaoh “The days of the years of my sojourning are 130 years, few and
evil have been the days of the years of my life”. His experience w as one of ev il, from
the w omb he w as an enemy w ith his brother and w hen he finally escaped his
brother‟s w rath, he fell into the hands of Laban his Father-in-law w ho told him bluntly
after he escaped “It is in my power to do you harm but GOD…”.

If you study Jacob's life recorded in Scripture, you w ould agree w ith w hat he told
Pharaoh. I t w as an endless stream of enemies and adv ersity and w hen his days
w ere almost ov er, he prayed for his children and praying for Judah he said, “Judah,
your brothers shall praise you; YOUR HAND SHALL BE ON THE NECK OF YOUR
ENEMIES; your father‟s sons shall bow down before you” I n pronouncing blessings,
Jacob, like the FATHER noted that enemies w ill be there; he acknow ledged it and
addressed it as w ell. Judah as w e know is strategic.

I n the law giv en to Moses and the children of I srael, the FATHER gav e instructions on
how they should treat their enemies. The instruction w as for them to treat their
enemies as brothers and not repay ev il w hen giv en an opportunity to help an
enemy (Exodus 23:4). I t is crucial to state that the law did not deny the existence of
enemies, the law acknow ledged it, addressed it, and so should w e (Deuteronomy
30:6-7).

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 Biblical Stories

Reading through scriptures w e ask ourselv es, w hat did Uriah do that made King
Dav id become his enemy and ev entually brought an end to his life? The man had a
beautiful w ife and w as a man of honor, a gallant and v aliant soldier any honorable
king w ould lov e to hav e on his team.

The great attributes the man possessed w ere the things that made him the king‟s
enemy and brought his planned death. He inherited the w ife of the deceased and
liv ed till a good old age . Though King Dav id w as forgiv en by GOD, it came w ith a
price. Think about this!

We can say Uriah‟s enemy w as not limited to King Dav id, his w ife also w as an
enemy. I f she w asn‟t, she w ould not hav e w atched her husband, an innocent man
die for the sin she committed. After his death, she still married the king w ho killed
him. Let‟s not talk about the men w ho lost their liv es because Uriah needed to die
and they w ere fighting alongside him, let alone the fact that Dav id w as a righteous
king, a man after GOD‟S heart w ho w as ov ercome by ev il and not an unrighteous
barbaric king.

Like w e said earlier, w e say again: the w orld is a cruel place to liv e; it came w ith the
fall of man and w e cannot liv e denying this reality, w e can only trust the FATHER to
deliv er us from harsh realities and make us dw ell in safety.

Read through Scripture, during the time of Ezra (Ezra 8:22, 31), Nehemiah (Nehemiah
4:15, 6:1, 16), Daniel (Daniel 6:11-13), you cannot escape reading about the reality
of enemies. There‟s another w ho slept w ith his brother‟s w ife to raise children for the
name of his brother. I f that man lov ed his brother he w ould not hav e done w hat he
did. Through his action, he prov ed a point, Genesis 38:8.

There w as a time in Jew ish history w hen a king declared a day of v engeance for
the

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Jew ish people, giv ing them the right and opportunity to defend themselv es and kill
all their enemies in all the prov inces he gov erned; according to scripture, 75,000
people w ere killed.

I n a single day of v engeance 75,000 people w ere killed in all prov inces and w ithin 2
days 800 men w ere killed in the main city making 75,800 ene mies! We know w hat
led to this: the story of Hamman, Mordecai, and Esther. How Hamman became the
enemy of the Jew s because he w as attempting to kill just one man and to make a
statement w ith it, he planned the annihilation of an entire race. I n summary, the
table turned, and the Jew s w ere giv en a day to defend and av enge themselv es of
all w ho had planned their demise and 75,800 men lost their liv es (story can be found
in the book of Esther).

Now w e think to ourselv es, if such an opportunity w as giv en to us to av enge

ourselv es of our adv ersaries, w ith the w eapons of mass destruction av ailable today,
do you think the w orld w ould surv ive beyond that day? Ev en if w e w ere not allow ed
to use any w eapon but to av enge w ith our hands, as many as our hands can
reach, do you think you w ould liv e beyond that day?

You may say “I hav e no enemy and there is no one on my w atch list”. That‟s
fabulous! Nonetheless, do you know if you are on the w atch list of others? Do you
know the number of people w ho perceiv e you and hav e accepted you as an
enemy, w ho w ould seize any opportunity to destroy you?

On that day, the w ords of JESUS that “a man‟s enemy will be members of his
household” w ould become real to so many. Remember Abel w as a brother to Cain,
but to Cain, Abel w as an enemy. Uriah w as dinning and drinking w ith Dav id, not
know ing Dav id had already defiled his w ife and w as masterminding his demise.
I believ e such a day w ould be crazy and many w ould come to accept the harsh
reality of hav ing enemies ev en w hen you hav e offended no one.

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 JESUS acknowledged Enemies

Like death, hav ing enemies is an inev itable reality of life. The best one can do,
going by Scripture, is to be at peace w ith his/her enemies. The scripture says “if the

ways of a man please GOD, HE makes even his enemies be at peace with him”
Prov erbs 16:7. That they are at peace w ith him does not mean they are not his
enemies, NO! I t means they are his enemies, but at peace w ith him. Big difference!

Though the w ays of man are pleasing to GOD, he ends up hav ing enemies. You
w ould think as one w ho pleases God, ev eryone should lov e him but that‟s not
alw ays the case. The only difference is; GOD HIMSELF makes those enemies through
HI S sov ereign pow er and w isdom to be at peace w ith him [I saac, a classical
example].

JESUS came on board and changed theology as the Jew s used to know it but on
hav ing enemies, instead of teaching us how to liv e so w e end up not hav ing
enemies, HE taught us how w e should treat enemies. Was it because HE knew the
impossibility of liv ing through life w ithout hav ing enemies? Or HE knew follow ing HIM
w ould inev itably bring enemies to the believ er?

HE said, “Do not think I have not come to bring peace on the earth. I
have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a
man against his father and a daughter against his mother and a
daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law, and a person’s enemies will
be members of his household” Matthew 10:34-36.

The absence of peace and the presence of a sw ord speaks of w ar. Friends and
brothers do not go to w ar, enemies do, so w hat w as JESUS communicating? I
believ e w e can say JESUS accepted the reality of hav ing enemies w ith this
statement “A PERSON‟S ENEMI ES WI LL BE THOSE OF HI S HOUSEHOLD”.
HE said “a servant is not greater than his master, if they persecuted me,
they will persecute you too, if they kept my word, they will keep yours
too” John 13:16, John 15:20.

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 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master, it is
enough for the disciple to be like his teacher and the servant like his
master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how
much more will they malign those of his household” Matthew 10:24.

I ndeed, the enemies of JESUS picked up w here they left off persecuting HIM after
HI S disciples started speaking in HI S name. Those w ho killed JESUS did not stop at HI S
demise, they w anted ev erything about him forgotten, so w hen the Apostles picked
up the baton and „ran‟ in HI S name, declaring HE resurrected, that HE is the exalted
SON OF GOD; they inherited JESUS‟ enemies for teaching this truth and w e know the
liv es they liv ed how they all ended up because they identified w ith JESUS.

JESUS saw this coming, so HE told them before it happened. JESUS accepted the
reality of enemies especially for the one w ho identified w ith HI M. JESUS did not deny
the reality of enemies; HE accepted it and addressed it.

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 Apostle Paul and the Jews

Romans 9 (ESV)
1. I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying; my conscience
bears me witness in the Holy Spirit —
2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart.
3 For I could wish that I were accursed and cut off from Christ for the
sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh.
4 They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the
covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises.
5 To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the
flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen.

Apostle Paul the great Apostle of the LORD had his share of enemies too. The JEW S
w ere nev er at peace w ith him after he encountered CHRI ST. They hated him
because they felt he aimed at destroying their religion (Judaism) w ith his teachings.
Paul did not choose to; neither did he enjoy being at odds w ith them.

I n Romans 10:1, his heart for his people w as rev ealed, though it may hav e been a
desire against the instruction he receiv ed. I n the opening Scripture, w e see him
saying, “I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish

that I were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen
according to the flesh." This speaks of a burning desire, how ev er, it w as not to be. I n
Acts 22:17-21 Paul said
17 “When I had returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, I
fell into a trance
18 and saw HIM saying to me, make haste and get of Jerusalem
quickly because they will not accept your testimony about me,”
19 And I said, LORD, they know that in one synagogue after another I
imprisoned and beat those who believed in you

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 20 and when the blood of Stephen your witness was being shed, I was
standing by and approving and watching over the garments of those
who killed him,
21 and HE said to me “go, for I will send you far away to the Gentiles”.

The ONE w ho know s all things told him these people w ill not accept your testimony
so run, go to the Gentiles , and there you w ill succeed. Although it w as one
instruction he struggled w ith throughout his life and ministry but ev ery time he
hearkened to the instruction, he succeeded: for all the times he w ent against the
instruction, he got beaten!

Before Paul accepted CHRI ST, he w as a leading figure amongst them, adv ancing in
Judaism more than his contemporaries, Galatians 1:14. But w hen he encountered
TRUTH, teaching that TRUTH made him an enemy of his brethren and JESUS said “I
have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against
his father and a daughter against his mother and a daughter-in-law against her
mother-in-law, and a person‟s enemies will be those of his household”.

At one time, ov er 40 men of his brethren cov enanted and came under an oath to
neither eat nor drink until they had killed him, Acts 23:12-22. They had a real hatred
for him and they w ere real enemies to him, though he w as one of theirs. Wisdom for
Apostle Paul w ould hav e been to stay clear of them and focus on those he w as
sent to because his efforts to fraternize w ith them got him into trouble repeatedly.
We truly cannot deny the reality of hav ing enemies, ev en as believ ers w hose only
delight is to please GOD in all things!

I t becomes v ery safe to say that hav ing enemies is a part of life regardless of how
good a person is and how noble his intentions maybe! Also, because you hav e
enemies does not make you a bad or terrible person. All men alike (good, bad,
ugly) hav e enemies and many hav e enemies because they are good
people…ironically.

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Why w as it impossible for Apostle Paul to find a middle ground w ith his brethren?
Remember he w as friends w ith these people, and looking at his achiev ement for
Judaism before he accepted CHRI ST, you w ould hav e expected them to giv e him a
little pardon or ev en try to see reasons w ith him. Why w as the hostility so sev ere, that
some had to put themselv es under oath to see him dead?

Like in the days of Paul, w e believ e it w ill be hard to find a middle ground w ith the
enemies of Christianity in the days to come. Look around you, almost ev eryone is
becoming a hardliner, people are hav ing their ow n opinions daily, airing those
opinions and are becoming so adamant about them.

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 Christianity Today and the Reality of Enemies

Today, it may be the w rong mindset if w e try to liv e life in a manner that w ould
make us hav e no enemy. I t is futility for “CHRI STI ANI TY” to think someday the w orld
w ill be at peace w ith it. There‟s no place for that to happen and it w ill nev er
happen till CHRI ST comes. This is the reality w e must embrace if w e are to liv e as
CHRI ST in this w orld.

There are certain ENEMI ES you attract not because you are a “bad” person but
because of the „destiny‟ you carry! JESUS attracted enemies in the Jew ish leaders
and scribes not because HE w as a terrible person, but because it w as HI S destiny to
end their reign and w hat they stood for…bringing into place a new system of things!

Christianity and the w orld w ill nev er be at peace! The w orld w ould alw ays seek to
destroy Christianity, not because Christianity is a bad religion (it couldn‟t be) but
because of the destiny Christianity carries! The w orld and its system w ould end
someday on account of Christianity, and Christianity w ould usher in a new system of
things, Daniel 2. This destiny is one reason w hy the w orld hates Christianity so much.

If you attract enemies in certain classes of people, ask yourself if it is your destiny to
bring an end to w hat is important to them and w hat they stand for. Most times it is
not you; it is the destiny you carry!

Hav ing differing ideologies alone and hav ing different political inclination today
hav e made great enemies of family members. I n America for example, families are
tearing apart because of the President, Donald Trump; husbands are div orcing
w ives, fathers disow ning children, and children choosing not to see their Parents
anymore because of their support or disdain for the President.

People are tearing apart relationships built ov er the years for a man w ho can only
be President for 8 years (maximum). I t tells so much about the lev el of hostility
people hav e these days w hen you defy their stance on any subject. Similarly, in

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America, if you are anti-abortion, you automatically become an enemy to those
w ho are pro-abortion.

The div ide is alw ays there and the middle ground is eroding at an alarming rate in
today‟s culture. We can‟t begin to measure the amount of hatred CHRI STI ANI TY is
suffering almost ev eryw here around the w orld. Therefore, w e say it may be the
w rong mindset trying to liv e life w ithout hav ing enemies.

What the Bible teaches is for us to be at peace w ith all men as long as it depends
on us, the Bible did not and does not promise us freedom from enemies. Writing
Timothy, Paul said, “all who desire to live a godly life in CHRIST JESUS will be
persecuted”, 2Timothy 3:12. ALL, not some but ALL, and w ho w ill persecute them?
Friends, brothers, or enemies? You be the judge.

If JESUS knew a better w ay to liv e one‟s life to av oid hav ing enemies, perhaps HE
w ould hav e told us and not only that, HE w ould hav e exemplified it for us by liv ing
that w ay, then instruct us to liv e that w ay instead of teaching us how w e should
treat and handle them. Most likely CHRI ST knew life‟s reality can‟t escape hav ing
enemies because of the fallen nature of man.

HE said, “Woe to you when all men speak well of you, why? For so their fathers did to
the false prophets,” Luke 6:26. JESUS understood liv ing right and speaking the truth
naturally brings enemies in a fallen w orld filled w ith fallen men. So, hav ing enemies
should scare no one or make a person feel something is w rong w ith him/her,
especially w hen they are not „intentionally‟ doing anything w rong to turn people to
enemies.

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 Final Word on the Reality of Enemies

Hav ing said all, w e must state that none of w hat w e hav e said should create fear,
rather it is intended for aw areness. JESUS liv ed in all realities and nev er denied the
existence of any. Concerning the w orld, HE told us “Behold, I am sending you out as
sheep among wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves” Matthew
10:16-17.

Among w olv es is not an encouraging statement but it is realistic. JESUS w ent further
“beware of men”, I w on‟t take this scripture beyond here. CHRI ST is saying to you
and me “bew are of men!” and during HI S time on earth the Scripture noted, “JESUS
did not entrust himself to them, because HE knew all people and needed no one to
bear witness about man, for HE knew what was in man”. I n telling us to be careful of
men, JESUS exemplified it. The only thing good in man is CHRI ST and aside from HI M,
there is no good in man but only ev il.

I n part tw o of this book, w e w ill look at w hat the FATHER w ants from us in dealing
w ith the reality of enemies. JESUS said, “If your enemy should hit you on the right
cheek, turn to the left also”. Does this mean the FATHER has left us at the mercy of
our adv ersaries? Are w e to fight them? Pray for their demise? We know our w arfare
is not against flesh and blood, and the enemies w e just talked about are flesh and
blood? What exactly does GOD w ant us to do? These and many more w ill be the
questions w e w ill answ er.

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 PART 2

Scriptural Perspective

I n the first section of this book, THE VENGEANCE SYSTEM OF GOD-The Reality of
Enemies, w e said, it is hard if not impossible to liv e through life as an effectiv e and
prosperous person w ithout hav ing enemies! We also said, “that you hav e enemies is
not a true test w hether or not you are a good or bad person. All men alike, w hether
good or bad hav e enemies. Some men ev en in the grav e still hav e enemies,
people w ish them death and peril ev en as dead men! This is the ugly reality w e live
in today as humans. The best any man can do here on earth is to be at peace w ith
his enemies.

We cited examples of people w ho suffered at the hands of their enemies to back

up our claims scripturally and how JESUS our Lord accepted the reality of hav ing
enemies. I n conclusion, w e asked ourselv es some questions w hich w e w ould lov e to
answ er in this section.

Now that w e know enemies are real, w hat do you think the FATHER w ants from us as
Christians? I n dealing w ith the reality of enemies, w hat should the believ er do? Are
believ ers at the mercy of their enemies because JESUS said,

“To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other. And from
him, who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either?”
Luke 6:29.
Matthew 5:39 puts it this w ay,
“But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the
right cheek, turn to them the other cheek.”

Look at that statement “do not resist an ev il person”. I n the original text, “person”
w as not included, but know ing the thought JESUS is communicating here, it w as
included. Does this mean the FATHER has left the believ er at the mercy of his

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adv ersaries because w e are told not to resist an ev il person? I s Christianity a religion
of the w eak because of the teachings of JESUS CHRI ST? Why w ould JESUS tell us not
to resist an ev il person? I s HE making w eaklings of Christians?

I n dealing w ith the reality of enemies, truly, the only teaching and instruction w e
receiv ed from Scripture are to be peacemakers. I f the enemies w e are dealing w ith
are flesh and blood, humans w ho became enemies of the Gospel, enemies of
Christianity, or our enemies in our dealings, the instructions w e hav e received is not
one of w arfare but of peace, of lov e and understanding.

Our warfare is not against flesh and blood Scriptures say, there‟s now here in
Scripture w here JESUS or the Apostles made humans the target of our w arfar e Luke
9:54-56, John 3:17, John 12:27, but principalities and pow ers, the dev il and his
demons are the target and w e also receiv ed adequate instructions on how to deal
w ith them, Luke 10:19-20, Mark 16:17-18, Ephesians 6:10-18.

JESUS said and this is important “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be
called sons of God" Matthew 5:9. What does this tell us? One hallmark of the sons of
GOD is peacemaking; this means you cannot separate the sons of GOD from
peacemaking. Remember 1John 3:1 calls us sons of GOD, if w e are the sons of
GOD, then it goes w ithout saying that w e are meant to be know n as peacemakers!

I t is easy to make peace w hen you are not being trampled. But the peace the
Scripture teaches is one you make ev en in the face of great adv ersity. Meditate on
these Scriptures:
Romans 12:18 (NI V) “if it is possible, as far as it depends on you, LIVE AT PEACE WITH
EVERYONE”. Ev eryone here includes the ev il person JESUS told us not to resist.
Hebrew s 12:14 (NI V) reads “Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to

be holy; without holiness, no one will see the Lord”.

A different v ersion puts it this w ay “Pursue peace with all men” so w e hav e “Make
every effort and pursue peace with all men with exception of none regardless of
whom the person is (an enemy or a brother)”.

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If you profess Christianity, this is w hat the scripture teaches, that w e are to be
peaceful people ev en in the face of ev il. How do you reconcile this w ith the fact
that some people deliberately make trouble w ith you and deliberately do things to
harm you?

To back up the teaching of peace ev en in the face of great adv ersity and ev il,
JESUS said, Luke 6:27-36

27 “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those
who hate you,
28 bless those who curse you and pray for those who spitefully use you.
29 To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And
from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either.
30 Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away
your goods, do not ask them back.
31 And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.
32 “But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For
even sinners love those who love them.
33 And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that
to you? For even sinners do the same.
34 And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what
credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much
back.
35 But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in
return; and your reward will be great, AND YOU WILL BE SONS OF THE
MOST HIGH. FOR HE IS KIND TO THE UNTHANKFUL AND EVIL.
36 Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.

KEY POINTS: “but I say to you who hear”, meaning to those w ho care to listen, to
those w ho are not running w ith their ideas but w ant the ideas of CHRI ST; this is w hat I
w ant from you, JESUS is saying, and he instructed us to build our character to reflect
peace. And w hen w e do this, “we will be sons of the Most High”. You cannot

25
separate a Christian from peacemaking. One banner w e carry is the peace nature
found in us.

Matthew 5:38
38 “You have heard that it was said, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for
a tooth.”
39 But I say to you, Do not resist the evil one. But if anyone slaps you on
the right cheek, turn to him the other also.
40 And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your
cloak.
41 And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.
42 Give to the one who begs from you a nd do not refuse the one who
would borrow from you.
43 You have heard that it was said, “You shall love your neighbor and
hate your enemy.”
44 But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who
persecute you,
45 so you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes
his sun rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the just and the
unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you
have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
47 And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than
others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
48 You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

“You hav e heard that it w as said, “An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” But I
say to you, HERE JESUS I S changing the narrativ e 43 “You have heard that it was
said, “You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” 44 But I say to you, Love
your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, WHY? 45 so you may be sons
of your Father who is in heaven. AND WE KNOW THE SONS OF GOD ARE

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PEACEMAKERS. 48 You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenl y Father is
perfect.

One of the striking things about the teachings of JESUS is for ev erything HE taught
and told us to do, HE exemplified it. Unlike the religious leaders, HE berated for
putting a tough yoke on the people, by telling the people to do things they (the
religious leaders) w ere not w illing to do, (Matthew 23:1-4). JESUS exemplified the
peace and the things HE taught. As people w ho are “born again” w ith HI S nature,
being peaceful and making peace in the w orst scenario should not come as a big
deal to any of us. Talking about aggressiv eness and liv ing amongst the v ilest of foes,
JESUS liv ed it all and in it all, HE reflected a character of peace just as HE told us to
do.

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 Answering Valid Questions

At this point, w e know w e are to be peacemakers; w e are to liv e in peace w ith a ll

men including “our enemies”. I n addition, w e are not to resist the ev il person or
render ev il for evil as believ ers, so w e can exemplify the Christian character and be
called the sons of GOD. The Scripture supports these and any believ er w ho is
interested in all JESUS has to say w ould accept and run w ith these.

The question persists, w here does this teaching leav e us? Are w e left at the mercy of
our enemies and does the FATHER deriv e joy and satisfaction w hen our adv ersaries
use HI S instructions as an adv antage to molest and kill us? Or has the FATHER made
other prov isions that shield us from the attacks and plots of our enemies?

When JESUS tells you not to take up the sw ord to defend yourself against your
enemy, is HE allow ing the enemy to destroy you, or has HE made prov isions that
w ould shield you from that enemy w ithout you hav ing to fight? These are v alid
questions w e must prov ide answ ers to scripturally.

Matthew 26:47-56 (ESV)

47 While he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with
him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the
elders of the people.
48 Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss
is the man; seize him.”
49 And he came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And
he kissed him.
50 Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Then they
came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him.
51 And behold, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his
hand and drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest and
cut off his ear.

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 52 Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place. For all
who take the sword will perish by the sword.
53 Do you think I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send
me over twelve legions of angels?
54 But how then should the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must be so?”
55 At that hour Jesus said to the crowds,
“Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to
capture me? Day after day I sat in the temple teaching, and you did
not seize me.
56 But all this has taken place that the Scriptures of the prophets might
be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples left him and fled.

Aggressiv eness is not a Christian v irtue. You can take this to the bank! Look at w hat
JESUS said, “Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish
by the sword.” Do not repay ev il w ith ev il, do not resist the ev il person, do not sw ear,
do not curse, in character be perfect and be peaceful.

But guess w hat? I t didn‟t stop there. JESUS also said, “Do you think I cannot appeal
to my Father, and he will at once send me over twelve legions of angels?”
meaning, that HE is telling us not to be v engeful and not to seek an eye for an eye
does not mean HE is abandoning us at the mercy of our adv ersary! HE said, “I can
appeal to my FATHER and at once HE will send legions of angels!” this giv es a clue
that the FATHER can act in the stead of HI S children w ho are peaceful and seeking
to please HI M BY NOT BEI NG VENGEFUL.

Look at Romans 12, Apostle Paul is dealing w ith the Christian character , and here
are his remarks; Romans 12:9-21(ESV).
9 let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.
10 love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in
showing honor.
11 do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, and serve the Lord.
12 rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.

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 13 contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.
14 bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.
15 rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.
16 live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but as sociate
with the lowly. Never be wise in your sight.
17 repay no one evil for evil but give thought to do what is honorable in
the sight of all.
18 if possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
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.”
20 To the contrary, “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 on his head.”
21 do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Jesus said “put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish
by the sword. Do you think I cannot appeal to my father, and he will at once send
me over twelve legions of angels? Now Apostle Paul is also saying, "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,”

That GOD does not w ant us to av enge ourselv es or repay ev il for ev il: That he w ants
us to liv e in harmony w ith one another and in peace w ith all men including those
w ho deceitfully use us and persecute us, does not in any w ay mean he is leav ing us
at the mercy of our adv ersaries. No! HE is not. I nstead, HE is asking us to allow him to
act!

NI V puts this scripture this w ay, Romans 12:19 “do not take revenge, my dear friends,
but leave room for GOD’S wrath, for it is written 'it is mine to avenge; I will repay,
says the LORD” w e love the statement “leav e room for GOD‟S w rath”. When w e
av enge ourselv es, w e do not leav e room for GOD‟S w rath and HE cannot act, but

30
w hen w e hold our peace and lov e those enemies, w e are in the real sense making
room for GOD to av enge for us!

So Apostle Paul said, “to the contrary, '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 on
his head.

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

These are the instructions w e receiv ed as Christians and the w ay GOD w ould hav e
us treat our enemies. I f truly w e w ant to liv e the Christian w ay, and if pleasing GOD is
w hat our hearts seek then the w ay forw ard is to lov e our enemies, praying for them
and doing good to them, then allow ing GOD to do his part by av enging for us
those unrepentant enemies.

Remember, that w e are not av enging ourselv es does not mean w e are leav ing
those enemies to the forgiv eness of GOD! Scripture says, w e should leav e them to
the w rath of GOD and he w ill repay!

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 Biblical Examples

James 1:19-20 ESV says,

“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.”

If Christians w ere to act out of anger and av enge themselv es of all their enemies like
in the days of Esther and Mordecai, instead of being peacemakers, someone like
Apostle Paul w ould not hav e made it to become the great Apostle w e call him
today. He w as an av ow ed enemy of the Gospel and Christianity. He said it in so
many places in the Scripture. But because of the instructions w e receiv ed, to lov e all
men and liv e in peace w ith all men, including the ev il person w hich Apostle Paul
w as, he stood a chance and CHRI ST later called him to the faith.

The w rath of man can nev er w ork out the righteousness of GOD! When you av enge
yourself, you may not adequately serv e justice in GOD‟S sight. I n serv ing justice, you
may end up a sinner. Just like in the case of Dav id, Nabal, and Abigail 1 Samuel 25,
and also the case of King Saul. These are tw o different stories and circumstances
but sharing the same moral w hich is; w e cannot adequately serv e justice in GOD‟S
sight using our human judgments.

WE RECOMMEND YOU READ 1 SAMUEL 25 BEFORE CONTI NUI NG I F YOU ARE NOT
ACQUAI NTED WI TH THE STORY.

The Scripture in describing Nabal and his w ife Abigail says, “She was a woman of
good understanding, and beautiful. But the man w as rough and evil in his doings;
he was a Calebite,” 1 Samuel 25:25. For Nabal, his serv ants said this of him “For he is
such a wicked man that one cannot speak to him.” His wife Abigail, said of him, “let
not my lord, I pray you, regard this foolish and wicked fellow Nabal, for as his name
is, so is he. Nabal (foolish, wicked) is his name, and folly is with him.” Nabal fits the
description of the ev il person JESUS told us not to resist.

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Dav id told his serv ants to tell Nabal “Your shepherds have been with us and we did
them no harm, and they missed nothing all the time they were in Carmel,” v erse 7.
The serv ants of Nabal also confirmed Dav id‟s story to their master‟s w ife Abigail,
15 “David’s men were very good to us, and we were not harmed, nor
did we miss anything as long as we went with them when we were in
the fields,
16 they were a wall to us night and day, all the time we were with t hem
keeping the sheep,”

So the request Dav id sent to Nabal through his serv ants w as not out of place and
the request also came at a perfect time (He w as shearing his sheep w hich w as
usually accompanied w ith feasting 1Samuel 25). Here w as Dav id‟s request “Your

shepherds have been with us and we did them no harm, and they missed nothing
all the time they were in Carmel. Ask your young men and they will tell you.
Therefore, let my young men find favor in your sight, for we come at an opportune
time. I pray you; give whatever you have at hand to your servants and your son
David.”

Worthy of note is the fact that Dav id‟s serv ants w ho w ere distressed and indebted,
Scripture says could hav e (if they w anted to) seized w hatev er they w anted from the
serv ants of Nabal. They w ere armed men. I nstead, they decided not to but to be of
help to the man and his serv ants, and the request Dav id‟s serv ants tabled before
Nabal w as full of humility “Therefore let my young men find favor in your sight, for we
come at an opportune time. I pray you; give whatever you have at hand to your
servants and your son David”.

Nabal (fool, senseless) as his name implies acted foolishly , inv oking the w rath of
Dav id, and Dav id w as bent on av enging himself by destroying the man and all
males in his house. Verse 21-22

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 21 Now David had said, “Surely in vain have I protected all that this
fellow has in the wilderness so that nothing was missed of all that
belonged to him; and he has repaid me evil for good.
22 May God do so, and more also, to David if I leave of all who belong
to him one male alive by morning.”

I n summary, Abigail acted w isely and w ith discretion, she met Dav id along the w ay,
pleaded he turned from “ bloodguiltiness” and “from av enging himself” w ith his
hand. Dav id agreed that through her discretion and adv ice she has kept him from
bloodguiltiness and from av enging himself w ith his hand.

If he had gone ahead w ith his plan of unleashing mayhem on Nabal and his house,
ev il w ould hav e been found in him and he truly w ould hav e been guilty of blood.
The GOD w e know would hav e demanded their blood from his hand because he
av enged himself instead of leav ing Nabal to the w rath of GOD or creating room for
GOD to act on his behalf.

When he accepted the gift Abigail brought and turned to go his w ay, he created
the room GOD w as looking for to act. About ten days after, Scripture noted, “the
LORD smote Nabal, and he died!” The LORD smote only Laban! He w as the one
guilty, and the LORD did not extend the guilt beyond him to his household. Dav id
planned to destroy Nabal and all the male folks in his house: GOD took only Nabal.

This w as w hat Dav id said w hen he heard Nabal had died, “Blessed be the LORD

that hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath
kept his servant from evil. For the LORD has returned the wickedness of Nabal upon
his head.” I f Dav id had gone ahead w ith his plan to kill all males in Nabal‟s house,
he w ould hav e ended up a w orse sinner and be guiltier than Nabal.

And so the LORD said “v engeance is mine and I w ould repay” and w e say “we
cannot adequately serv e justice in GOD‟S sight using our human judgments”. So as
a Christian, it is best to leav e v engeance to the ONE who judges righteously! HE

34
know s w hat to do, and how best to av enge. HE may not come as w e expect, but
HE w ill surely come.

Apostle Paul w ho penned these w ords “do not take revenge, my dear friends, but
leave room for GOD‟S wrath, for it, is written “It is mine to avenge; I will repay, says
the LORD” told Timothy “Alexander the coppersmith did me much evil: the LORD
reward him according to his works” He left v engeance for the LORD. Praying for
those w ho deserted him during his trial, he said, “I pray GOD that it may not be laid
to their charge.” Apostle Paul understood the v engeance system of GO D, so he
took his place by being peaceful and created room for GOD to do HI S job. As
believ ers, w e all should!

THE BOTTOM LI NE I S; THE LORD HAS NOT ABANDONED US NEI THER HAS HE LEFT US AT
THE MERCY OF OUR ENEMI ES, BECAUSE HE TOLD US TO LOVE THEM AND NOT BE
VENGEFUL.

You may ask w hat about those w ho died at the hands of their enemies and the
LORD did nothing, like w ith Stephen the first martyr? We w ill shed some light on this.

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 GOD is never late

I n the story of Dav id, Nabal, and Abigail, the LORD did the job! Scripture says “the
LORD smote Nabal” 1 Samuel 25:38. How ev er, in the story of King Saul in 1 Samuel
15, although GOD w as the one av enging, HE left the job for a human king to carry
out. Through human judgment, King Saul failed!

Yet again w e say, “w e cannot adequately serv e justice in GOD‟S sight using our
human judgments.” I f w e w ant to play smart and w ise as Christians, the best is to
leav e vengeance completely to GOD so, in serv ing justice, w e may not be found
guilty as w ell. 1 Samuel 15:1-3 reads;

1 Samuel said unto Saul “The Lord sent me to anoint you king over His
people Israel. Now listen and pay close attention to the words of the
Lord.
2 Thus says the Lord of hosts (armies), “I will punish Amalek for what he
did to Israel, how he set himself against him on the way when Israel
came up from Egypt.
3 Now go and strike Amalek and destroy everything that they have; do
not spare them, but kill man and woman, child and infant, o x and
sheep, camel and donkey.”

Keyw ords: “Now listen and pay close attention to the w ords of the Lord” the
instruction came directly from the LORD, the same LORD WHO SAI D, “VENGEANCE
I S MI NE AND I WILL AVENGE”. The v engeance came because of w hat the
Amalekite did. Their actions prompted the mov e GOD w as about to make against
them. They w ere not punished for doing anything or for doing good. The Judgment
that came on them because of the ev il their fathers committed! Let‟s look at
Scriptures and see w here it all started. Exodus 17:8

8 “The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim.

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 9 Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight
the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of
God in my hands.”

Observ e that the Amalekites w ere the ones w ho came to attack the I sraelites and
not only did they attack them, they attacked them in the place they w ere most
v ulnerable and at a time they w ere w eak and exhausted.

Deuteronomy 25:17-18
17 “Never forget what the Amalekites did to you as you came from
Egypt. 18 They attacked you when you were exhausted and weary,
and they struck down those who were straggling behind. They had no
fear of God.

They took adv antage of the circumstances of the children of I srael, but w hat they
failed to include in their military strategy w as the GOD of this people. They did all
their calculations (attack them w hen they are exhausted and w eary and strike
dow n the feeble amongst them w ho are straggling behind) and they w ere right but
they failed to add GOD to the „equation‟ and it became their greatest undoing.

This w as not a w ar based on prov ocation. The children of I srael did not prov oke this
nation, and instead of show ing them pity and fav or like the Kenite, 1 Samuel 15:6,
the Amalek took adv antage of their w eaknesses to w ar against them. After the
battle, GOD told Moses

14 “Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of Joshua

that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.”
15 And Moses built an altar and called the name, The Lord Is My
Banner, 16 saying, “A hand upon the throne of the Lord! The Lord will
have war with Amalek from generation to generation.” Exodus 17.

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When GOD told Moses this, it became registered in the realms of the Spirit! We see
this w hen Balak summoned Balaam to curse I srael for him. Scripture noted that
Balaam (w ho knew nothing about w hat had transpired betw een I srael and the
Amalek), looked to both the Kenith w ho show ed I srael fav or, and Amalek w ho
fought I srael, and prophesied w hat w as ahead of them.
Numbers 24:20
20 Then he looked on Amalek and took up his discourse and said,
“Amalek was the first among the nations, but its end is utter
destruction.”
21 And he looked on the Kenite, and took up his discourse and said,
“Enduring is your dwelling place, and your nest is set in the rock.”

For Amalek, it w as utter destruction! And it w as v ery much in line w ith the instruction
Saul gav e Samuel in 1Samuel 15:3 “Now go and strike Amalek and destroy
everything that they have; do not spare them, but kill both man and woman, child
and infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.” And for the Kenites, just as Balaam
prophesied their place w as spared! 1Samuel 15:6 Then Saul said to the Kenites, “Go,

depart; go down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them. For you
showed kindness to all the people of Israel when they came up out of Egypt.” So the
Kenites departed from among the Amalekites.” Do you see that?

I t is important to note the space of time betw een w hen GOD told Moses HE w ould
av enge the I sraelites for w hat w as done to them, and the time HE finally av enged
them! Look at w hat GOD told Moses “therefore when the LORD your GOD has given
you rest from all your enemies around you, in the land that the LORD your GOD is
giving you for an inheritance to possess, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek
from under heaven; you shall not forget.” Deuteronomy 25:19.

That GOD did not act „on time‟ did not mean HE w ould not act! HE w as committed
to it and in the realms, it w as already registered! I f the chronology is right, then it
took approximately 420 years before GOD finally av enged the cause of the
Israelites against the Amalek. So w hen you ask about those w ho died at the hands

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of their enemies and the LORD seems to hav e done nothing, like w ith Stephen the
first martyr? Just know that because GOD seems not to be doing something now
does not mean HE w ill not do something about it!

Our responsibility is to lov e our enemies and do good to those w ho persecute us

and despitefully use us. HI S is to av enge for us and HE w ill do so in HI S timing. The
bottom line is the LORD AVENGES AND HE WI LL AVENGE!

As prev iously stated “w e cannot adequately serv e justice in GOD‟S sight using our
human judgments,” and that King Saul through his human judgment failed! His story
prov es the point! The instruction he receiv ed w as “strike Amalek and destroy
everything that they have; do not spare them, but kill man and woman, child and
infant, ox and sheep, camel and donkey.” But w hat he did w as “spare Agag the
King and the best of the sheep and the oxen and of the fattened calves and the
lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them. All that was
despised and worthless they devoted to destruction.”

So w hen JESUS CHRI ST and Apostle Paul told us not to av enge ourselv es but to leav e
vengeance to GOD, they w ere helping us av oid the mistake of committing ev il in
carrying out v engeance. Here‟s the concluding part of Romans 12 “Do not be
overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Ev il may ov ercome us w hen we
seek to av enge ourselv es using our human judgment!

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 Laban, the father-in-law

JESUS said, “A man‟s enemy w ill be members of his household!” this describes the
case of the patriarch Jacob and his father-in-law , Laban. Their case is unique but it
explains some v alid points.

Genesis 27:41
41 So Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father
blessed him; and Esau said in his heart, “The days of mourning for my
father are very near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.”
42 When these words of her elder son Esau were repeated to Rebekah,
she sent for Jacob her younger son, and said to him, “Listen carefully,
your brother Esau is comforting himself concerning you by planning to
kill you.
43 So now, my son, listen, and do what I say; go, escape to my brother
Laban in Haran!
44 Stay with him for a while, until your brother’s anger subsides.
45 When your brother’s anger toward you subside, and he forgets what
you did to him, then I will send and bring you back from there. Why
should I be deprived of you both in a single day?”
46 Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am tired of living because of the
daughters of Heth [these insolent wives of Esau]. If Jacob takes a wife
from the daughters of Heth, like these daughters of the land, what good
will my life be to me?” Amplified Bible (AMP)

The tw o chief reasons Jacob w as sent to Laban w as: because of his safety, and
secondly for him to get a w ife! Laban w as family and in times of need, if w e cannot
trust family aside from GOD, w ho else can w e trust? So he w as sent to Laban
because he had offended his brother (Esau), w ho w as already taking solace in
planning Jacob's death.

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Also, going by the opening Scriptures, the plan w as for Jacob to stay w ith Laban for
a w hile. He w as not sent there so he could liv e there all his life. He w as sent there to
relax aw hile till his brother‟s anger had subsided and also to get a w ife then he can
come home to the land of promise he w as to inherit.

1 So Isaac called Jacob and blessed him and charged him, and said to
him, “You shall not marry one of the women of Canaan.
2 Arise, go to Paddan-Aram, to the house of Bethuel your mother’s
father; and take from there as a wife for yourself one of the daughters of
Laban your mother’s brother.
3 May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and multiply you,
so you may become a [great] company of peoples.
4 May He also give the blessing of Abraham to you and your
descendants with you, that you may inherit the [promised] land of your
sojourning, which He gave to Abraham.”
5 Then Isaac sent Jacob away, and he went to Paddan-Aram, to Laban,
son of Bethuel the Aramean, the brother of Rebekah, the mother of
Jacob and Esau. Genesis 28 (AMP)

Jacob reached his uncle‟s house, quickly settled in, and then w ent about his uncle‟s
business. Scripture noted that “he stayed with Laban for a month”. And afterw ard,
Laban called him and said “Because you are my relative, should you, therefore,
serve me for nothing?” Like men his age and keeping his Father‟s instruction in his
heart he already had his eyes on Rachael the daughter of his uncle but for
w hatev er the reason, probably out of high emotions or like Scripture says he w as
seeing “years” as mere numbers, Jacob decided to w ork for his Uncle sev en years
as bride price for a lady he could hav e gotten in probably a w eek if he had sent
w ord to his father I saac.

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When you compare how I saac got his w ife Rebekah and the w ay Jacob w ent
about his, you cannot help but conclude that it w as a mistake on his part. How ev er,
this is not w here w e are going w ith the story.

When sev en years w ere ov er, Jacob demanded his w ife w hich he w as giv en.
How ev er, instead of Rachael, he serv ed for, he w as giv ing Leah the older daughter
because according to Laban his uncle and father-in-law , it must not be done in
their country, to give the younger before the firstborn.

I do not consider this a problem if it is the law of the land and their tradition. As
believ ers, w e must respect others, their law s, and traditions, especially w hen the
law s are not breaking any div ine law of the FATHER. What I consider a problem here
is Laban keeping this key information from Jacob for sev en good years! As
important as this information w as to Jacob and the decision he w as making, Laban
kept it from him for sev en good years. I f w e are to count sev en years by days that
w ould amount to 2,555 days.

Sev en years is a long time to hold key information from someone you call family!
2,555 days is a long time to hold information that giv es you a w indow of opportunity
to exploit and deceiv e someone you call family! Scripture says,
Genesis 29:25
25 And in the morning, behold, it was Leah! And Jacob said to Laban,
“What is this you have done to me? Did I not serve with you for Rachel?
Why then have you deceived me?”
26 Laban said, “It is not so done in our country, to give the younger
before the firstborn.
27 Complete the week of this one, and we will give you the other also in
return for serving me another seven years.”

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 28 Jacob did so and completed her week. Then Laban gave him his
daughter Rachel to be his wife.
29 (Laban gave his female servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel to be
her servant.)
30 So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than
Leah and served Laban for another seven years.

Notice how quick Laban w as to say complete the week for Leah, we will also give
you Rachael. I t seems to me he had been thinking about this a long time and had
already decided that w as w hat he w ould do regardless of w ho gets „burnt‟. All
because he w as seeking to exploit and keep for himself an „adv antage‟ Jacob
had!

Why w as Laban interested in giv ing Jacob his tw o daughters? Was it because
Jacob w as such a great guy w ho knew how to take care of ladies and he w as
seeking the interest of his daughters? Jacob already had Leah, thanks to his
deception but w ithout thinking tw ice, he is offering Rachael w ithin the space of one
w eek for an additional sev en years of “wageless” labor. Why w ould a man make
such a decision concerning his daughters, giv ing them to the same man w hen he
know s it could spark years of Jealousy and bitterness betw een the sisters? We w ould
not find out until years later!

I n Genesis 31, Jacob w as ready to leav e Laban so he could return to the land of
promise he w as to inherit. So he called his tw o w iv es to seek their consent, te lling
them
GOD told him to return to his country. Here is their response to Jacob, “Then Rachel
and Leah answered and said to him, “Is there any portion or inheritance left to us in
our father‟s house? Does he not regard us as foreigners? Not only has he sold us, but
he has used up what was paid for us.”

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They knew their father did not act w ith their interest in his heart w hen he gav e the
both of them to Jacob; he did w hat he did because of the adv antage Jacob had,
an adv antage that w as making him rich.

To put it plainly, the only reason Laban gav e Jacob his tw o daughters instead of
Rachael (w hich w as the initial agreement), w as because he knew he could get rich
doing so. After Jacob serv ed Laban for sev en years, Laban saw the great gain that
serv ice brought to him. So to keep the young man in continuous serv ice, he gave
Leah to Jacob instead of Rachael then requested another sev en years of labor for
Rachael; all to increase his w ealth!

The intent Laban had for Jacob w as serv itude! Complete serv itude! I t didn‟t start so,
it started w ith brotherly lov e but along the w ay, Laban discov ered an adv antage
Jacob had that w as fav ored him, so to keep that adv antage perpetually, he
resorted to deceit! We see this in Scripture, Genesis 30: 25-36

25 As soon as Rachel had borne Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send

me away, that I may go to my home and country.
26 give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you that
I may go, for you know the service that I have given you.”
27 But Laban said to him, “If I have found favor in your sight, I have
learned by divination that the Lord has blessed me because of you.

He told Jacob; “If I have found favor in your eyes, please stay. I have learned by
divination that the LORD has blessed me because of you.” Not hav ing any other
reason to keep this man in serv itude, he resorted to begging and rev ealing the
reason he has kept Jacob in serv itude through deception! That GOD w as blessing
him on account of Jacob w as the only reason he gav e Jacob his tw o daughters
and demanded an extra sev en years of labor as bride price.

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As a w ise businessman w anting to keep his edge in business, Laban finally offered to
pay Jacob w ages for his serv ice! Scripture says,

28 Name your wages, and I will give it.”

29 Jacob said to him, “You know how I have served you, and how your
livestock has fared with me.
30 For you had little before I came, and it has increased abundantly,
and the Lord has blessed you wherever I turned. But now when shall I
provide for my household also?”
31 He said, “What shall I give you?” Jacob said, “You shall not give me
anything. If you will do this for me, I will again pasture your flock and
keep it:
32 let me pass through all your flock today, removing from it every
speckled and spotted sheep and every black lamb, and the spotted
and speckled among the goats, and they shall be my wages.
33 So my honesty will answer for me later when you come to look into
my wages with you. Everyone that is not speckled and spotted among
the goats and black among the lambs, if found with me, shall be
counted stolen.”
34 Laban said, “Good! Let it be as you have said.”
35 But that day Laban removed the male goats that were striped and
spotted, and all the female goats that were speckled and spotted,
everyone that had white on it, and every lamb that was black, and put
them in the charge of his sons.
36 And he set a distance of three days' journey between himself and
Jacob, and Jacob pastured the rest of Laban's flock.

The same day they struck a deal, brokered a business agreement w as the same day
Laban started cheating Jacob! I sn‟t that hilarious? He w as not w illing to let the
young man off the hook, he w anted him in serv itude, and he w ould stop at
anything to keep him there! I f not for GOD, Jacob w ould hav e died not ow ning
anything and as a serv ant in the house of Laban!

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Jacob spoke to his w iv es saying,
5 “I see that your father does not regard me with favor as he did before.
But the God of my father has been with me.
6 You know that I have served your father with all my strength
7 yet your father has cheated me and changed my wages ten times.
But God did not permit him to harm me.
8 If he said, “The spotted shall be your wages,” then all the flock bore
spotted; and if he said, “The striped shall be your wages,” then all the
flock bore striped.
9 Thus God has taken away the livestock of your father and given them
to me.
10 in the breeding season of the flock, I lifted my eyes and saw in a
dream that the goats that mated with the flock were striped, spotted,
and mottled.
11 Then the angel of God said to me in the dream, Jacob, ‟ and I said,
Here I am! ‟
12 And he said, “Lift your eyes and see, all the goats that mate with the
flock are striped, spotted, and mottled, for I have seen all that Laban is
doing to you.
13 I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and made a vow
to me. Now arise, go out from this land and return to the land of your
kindred.”

What can w e learn from this story? JESUS said, “But I tell you, do not resist an evil
person.” Matthew 5:39. Laban w as being an ev il person to Jacob and humanly
speaking, Jacob had ev ery right to resist and fight back especially w hen he w as
giv en Leah instead of Rachael w hom he serv ed sev en years for but he held his
peace and in it all he still said: “ You know that I have served your father with all my
strength.” Apostle Paul said “do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room

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for God’s wrath, for it is written “it is mine to avenge; I will repay, says the lord”
Romans 12:19.

Jacob w as cheated ten times, still, he held his peace and serv ed his father-in-law
dutifully, this gav e GOD room to step in, w hich HE did by taking away the livestock
of Laban and giving them to Jacob. Things got so bad, Laban w as bent on harming
Jacob, but again GOD w ould not hear of it and Jacob ev entually ov ercame Laban
and his ev il intentions w ithout av enging himself physically but leav ing v engeance to
GOD!
Genesis 31:25
25 And Laban overtook Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the
hill country, and Laban with his kinsmen pitched tents in the hill country
of Gilead.
26 And Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done, that you have
tricked me and driven away my daughters like captives of the sword?
27 Why did you flee secretly and trick me, and did not tell me, so I
might have sent you away with mirth and songs, with tambourine and
lyre?
28 And why did you not permit me to kiss my sons and my daughters
farewell? Now you have done foolishly.
29 It is in my power to do you harm. But the God of your father spoke to
me last night, saying, “Be careful not to say anything to Jacob, either
good or bad.”

36 Then Jacob became angry and berated Laban. Jacob said to

Laban, “What is my offense? What is my sin, that you have hotly
pursued me?

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 37 For you have felt through all my goods; what have you found o f all
your household goods? Set it here before my kinsmen and your
kinsmen, that they may decide between us two.
38 These twenty years I have been with you. Your ewes and your
female goats have not miscarried, and I have not eaten the rams of
your flocks. 39 What was torn by wild beasts I did not bring to you. I
bore the loss of it myself. From my hand, you required it, whether st olen
by day or stolen by night.
40 There I was: by day the heat consumed me, and the cold by night
and my sleep fled from my eyes.
41 These twenty years I have been in your house. I served you fourteen
years for your two daughters, and six years for your flock, and you have
changed my wages ten times.
42 If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac,
had not been on my side, surely now you would have sent me away
empty-handed. God saw my affliction and the labor of my hands and
rebuked you last night.”

The goal of this book has been to show us a pattern. A pattern laid out in Scripture
for believ ers to follow in dealing w ith humans w ho for different reasons may become
our adv ersaries. And as Scripture has told us, it is in our interest to alw ays hold our
peace and seek to lov e ev eryone including our enemies, doing good to those w ho
despitefully use and persecute us. Taking no v engeance for ourselv es and leav ing
vengeance for GOD ALMI GHTY! And the GOD w ho av enges w ill surely av enge for us
w hen w e hold our peace and make room for HI M to do so!

I n the next story, our v ery last story, w e w ill take other important lessons as w e bring
this book to a close.

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 Pharaoh and the Children of Israel

Genesis 15:12-16 (ESV)

12 As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And
behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him.
13 Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will
be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and
they will be afflicted for four hundred years.
14 But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward,
they shall come out with great possessions.
15 As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried
in a good old age.
16 And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the
iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”

When GOD speaks to you, it pays to pay attention to ev ery w ord HE speaks. GOD
said to Abraham, “Know for certain” meaning it must surely come to pass. Like the
law of the Medes and Persian, it cannot be changed! Then HE added, “But I will
bring judgment on the nation they serve”

Notice that GOD didn‟t say Moses w ould bring judgment, neither did HE sa y the
children of I srael w ould. HE said “I w ill bring judgment on them” and Moses w ith the
children of I srael w ere to hold their peace. Right here, GOD show ed us HI S pattern
and you cannot talk about how GOD av enges w ithout citing this story of Pharaoh
and the judgment GOD v isited on them noted in the Scripture.

Because of this prophecy, Joseph w as in Egypt and he had become prominent so

he sent for his family to come dow n and join him. Jacob w as skeptical about the
mov e. He w as to leav e the land of promise to a strange land, so GOD appeared to
him on his w ay there and reassure him it w as HI S plan...

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Genesis 46:1-4 (ESV) reads,
1 so Israel took his journey with all that he had and came to Beersheba,
and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac.
2 And God spoke to Israel in visions of the night and said, “Jacob,
Jacob.” And he said, “Here I am.”
3 Then he said, “I am God, the God of your father. Do not be afraid to
go down to Egypt, for there I will make you into a great nation.
4 I myself will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also bring you up
again, and Joseph's hand shall close your eyes.”

This explains so much! GOD told Jacob, “In Egypt, I will make you into a great
nation...” at the time they w ere a large family of sev enty, Genesis 46:27. But GOD
had a plan, a plan of turning them into a great nation and in Egypt, HE said to
Jacob, I w ill make this happen!

Keeping w ith this promise of turning them into a great nation in Egypt, Exodus

1:7 explains that the people of Israel were fruitful and they increased greatly; they
multiplied and grew exceedingly strong so that the land w as filled with them. When
this happened, Pharaoh got scared, so he told his people, “Behold, the people of
Israel are too many and too mighty for us. Come; let us deal shrewdly with them, lest
they multiply, and, if war breaks out, they join our enemies and fight against us and
escape from the land.”

Ironically, the more Pharaoh and his peo ple oppressed the children of I srael, the
more they multiplied, so much so the Egyptians w ere in dread of them. Do you know
w hy it happened this w ay? GOD told Jacob, “In Egypt, I will make you a great
nation.” That WORD of the LORD w as being fulfilled. Therefore, it happened the w ay
it did.

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When Moses came into the picture, after he had grow n up and w as w ielding a lev el
of authority, he killed an Egyptian trying to av enge the cause of his fellow Hebrew
brother. Notice GOD said nothing after the incident w as exposed; GOD did nothing
to protect Moses, and he had to run to escape for his life. Remember, GOD said, “I
will avenge them” not Moses. Exodus 2:11-15.

Finally, w hen it w as time for GOD to av enge, Moses w as only sent as a spokesperson
and instrument GOD used. Both he and the children of I srael did not raise a single
finger in the process of GOD‟S judgment on the Egyptians. They held their peace,
and the FATHER prov ed HIMSELF faithful. This Same pattern w as w hat JESUS taught
us and Apostle Paul built on in Romans 12, from the v ery beginning it has been!
So much can be said about this story. I t w as the first time in the Scripture GOD came
dow n to rev eal and establish HIMSELF as the LORD w ho av enges for HI S people and
not HI MSELF. We discussed the little w e can about this story to rev eal the pattern or
system GOD used. This same LORD, JESUS said, w ill av enge for HI S elect speedily,
Luke 18:8. But in doing so, w e must of necessity follow HI S system by lov ing our
enemies and doing good to those w ho persecute and despitefully use us. When w e
do this, the FATHER w ho is alw ays faithful w ill prov e HI MSELF faithful to us!

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 Final Thoughts

SCRI PTURE says, “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us
so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they
provide we might have hope.” Romans 15:4.

Keyw ord: EVERYTHI NG! Not some things, but ev erything! The end of our learning is so
w e may hav e hope. The hope that GOD has been faithful in the past and HE stays
the same; so HE w ill be faithful to us today, tomorrow , and for all generations!

This Scripture (Romans 15:4) is one reason w hen w e raise a point in any of our
teachings, w e try as much as possible to explain it or prov e it w ith "inspired" stories;
stories inspired by GOD from Scriptures. I f GOD placed them there for our learning,
HE had good reasons and w e cannot be smarter or w iser than HI M!

GOD told us not to av enge ourselv es but leav e v engeance to HIM and w e hav e
seen the result in the story of King Dav id, that of Jacob and Laban, also in the story
of the Children of I srael and the Egyptians, how they created room for GOD to
av enge w hen they stepped aside and GOD did. This giv es us hope that w hen we
do the same, the FATHER w ould av enge for us also! HE is the same yesterday, today,
and forev er!

Lastly, (and this is an important point) GOD gav e Moses laws to set before the
children of I srael, law s that w ould guide their relationship w ith HI M and their
relationship w ith one and another. I n those law s, GOD created a system of justice
that w ould bring balance to all they did. For example, “An eye for an eye” and “a
tooth for a tooth” is a justice system created by GOD for men to bring balance and
justice. I f you take the eye of an enemy, your eyes w ill be taken also and this w ay
justice is sev ered.

JESUS, in Matthew 5:38-42, told us to leav e this system of men by doing good to
those w ho strike us, persecute, and despitefully use us. By doing this, Apostle Paul

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told us in Romans 12 that w e are submitting such an enemy to the justice system of
GOD. And
GOD w ill av enge us. Now , in the justice or v engeance system of GOD, it is not an
eye for an eye. An eye for an eye is for men. I n the justice system of GOD, things
play out differently.

For example, w hen GOD w as av enging for the children of I srael against Pharaoh,
GOD told Pharaoh, “I srael is MY firstborn son, and I told you to let M Y son go so he
may w orship ME. But since you hav e refused to let him go, behold, I w ill kill your
firstborn son!”

If it w ere the system set for men, GOD w ould hav e said, “I srael is MY firstborn son,
and I told you to let M Y son go so he may w orship ME. But since you hav e refused to
let him go, behold, I w ill hold your firstborn son in slav ery too!” Remember the system
of men is created on balance. But that‟s men. For GOD, you hold MI NE in slav ery
and refused to let them go, I w ill kill yours! That of GOD is alw ays higher! HE decides
w hat HE calls “balance” in HI S ow n right as GOD!

Laban humiliated and disgraced Dav id, a man anointed by GOD to be King. He
repaid Dav id ev il for good. GOD could hav e done the same thing to Laban to
create balance, but HE killed Laban and w hen Dav id took the man‟s w ife, HE said
nothing!

I n GOD‟S v engeance system, HE creates w hat HE calls balance and no one can
question HI M!

With this know ledge and w ith this grace, it is my prayer that the FATHER w ill enable
you to w alk in HI S systems and not just HI S v engeance system but in all systems
(w ays) that HE has established for men! May HE cause you to see HI S MI GHTY HAND
new w ays in JESUS NAME, AMEN!

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