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"O LORD, the God of vengeance, O God of vengeance, let your glorious justice shine forth!" (Psalm 94:1)

I must confess that I cringed when I first read Psalm 94:1. How could the Lord be a "God of vengeance"? Isn't he a God of mercy, love, and forgiveness? Moreover, if God is truly a God of vengeance, doesn't this lead to people seeking revenge in God's name, fueling the cycle of violence that infects our world? How can I pray to a God of vengeance?

Some people dismiss Psalm 94:1 and similar verses as mistaken remnants of an antiquated view of God. Even some Christians believe that God must not be associated with vengeance. But I take the Bible as God's inspired Word and I cannot endorse this option. Moreover, as I study Psalm 94 more carefully, I realize that dismissing the first verse because it uses the word "vengeance" misunderstands the text.

Admittedly, we tend to associate vengeance with hatred and cruelty. Those who seek revenge are filled with inextinguishable and unreasonable anger. Scripture uses the term neqama, often translated as "vengeance," with a different meaning. You can see this in Psalm 94. After referring to the Lord as "the God of vengeance" in verse 1, the psalmist calls him "judge of the earth," asking him to "give the proud what they deserve" (94:2). These boastful ones "crush" and hurt God's people (94:5). "They kill widows and foreigners and murder orphans," while claiming that God doesn't care (94:6-7). Thus, the vengeance of God is not some irrational burst of divine anger, but rather the exercise of divine justice. God gives sinners what their sin deserves. So, the last verse of Psalm 94 observes: "God will turn the sins of evil people back on them." God's vengeance is, therefore, a righteous expression of his justice.

Whenever we speak of divine justice or vengeance, it's important to remember God's mercy. Yes, he does judge us for our sin. But because God is "rich in mercy," his "mercy triumphs over judgment" (Eph. 2:4; James 2:13, ESV). Thus the triune God did not dismiss our sin as no big deal, but instead bore our sin on the cross in the Son. Take away God's justice or vengeance, and the cross becomes unnecessary.

When we consider God's vengeance, it's also crucial for us to remember Romans 12:19 (and Deut. 32:35, which it quotes): "Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, 'I will take revenge; I will pay them back,' says the LORD." There will be times in our life when people mistreat us and we're tempted to seek revenge. Or, as we see the gross injustice done to millions throughout the world today, we may want to treat the perpetrators with the same measure of evil they have doled out to their victims. The desire for revenge is natural, but it is something we must offer to God. Vengeance is his job, not ours. Yes, we are to "act justly," but also to "love mercy" (Micah 6:8, NIV).

Adapted with permission from the original article "The God of Vengeance?" at TheHighCalling.org. All rights reserved.

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