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Day 188, or July 7. Revenge is not sweet.

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Our thoughts today are rooted in Proverbs chapter 25, verses 21 and 22. If your enemy

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is hungry, give him food to eat. If he is thirsty, give him water to drink. In doing

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this, you will heap burning coals on his head, and the Lord will reward you.

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What's the big picture surrounding these verses? It seems after his death Solomon's

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Proverbs were still a great influence amongst God's people, and one of the godly kings

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of Judah, who was called Hezekiah, makes strenuous efforts to compile them for posterity. We

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would probably not have today's Proverbs if it were not for the efforts of King Hezekiah.

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Most of them relate to our relationship with other people, many who are not the same as

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us, such as kings and many others, who simply live different lives to ours.

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And now today's action step. Throughout history, evil has been countered by more evil, wars

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producing more wars. Revenge is still a very common reaction when bad things happen, and

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especially when you know who caused the evil deed. Solomon anticipates much of the teaching

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of Jesus when he writes this proverb, Attack evil with good. Look after your enemy, because

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God is the judge and the only one who will give us all a fair trial in the end. The apostle

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Paul quotes this proverb when he writes to the church in Rome, and then he adds a great

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comment in Romans chapter 12 verse 21, which reads, Don't let evil conquer you, but conquer

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evil by doing good. Revenge and the holding of grudges benefit no one, neither the perpetrator

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nor the sufferer. Actually, the major loser is the one seeking revenge. It can colour

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everything and distort all your future judgments. This frame of mind stunts development and

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never produces the satisfaction that it promises. Even if you've been wronged by someone in

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a particularly wicked way, revenge is not the answer. Don't hold on to your resentment

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and bitterness, but forgive with God's help. Then you can move on to enjoy the rest of

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your life.