In the Bible, prayers of "imprecations" are prayers for God to bring justice in the form of retribution. There are many Old Testament passages in which the writers call on God to destroy the writers’ enemies, often someone who has treated him unjustly. When we read these accounts, they seem reasonable to us—it’s right there in the Bible! And yet, it seems to be in conflict with Jesus’ New Testament teaching. Let’s take a few moments and listen to two passages which, on the surface, seem to be in conflict. The first are the words of King David, the second, the words of Jesus. 

Let no one show him kindness, and let no one be gracious to his fatherless children. Let the line of his descendants be cut off; let their name be blotted out in the next generation. (Psa.109:12-13) 

You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.  But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. (Matt.5:44) 

King David’s idea of retribution in prayers seems relevant for today. We want fairness; we cry out for justice. We want things to be made right. People have been unfairly hurt – sometimes hurt very badly. We want to get even when we’ve been wronged, don’t we? In today’s first passage we clearly see what the writer wants; he wants rough justice. He wants the person who wronged him to suffer – and suffer greatly – for the unjust way he treated King David. When you read the entire psalm, you can see that David is asking God for a large list of punishments for his offender. In the second passage, however, Jesus doesn’t deny that we have been treated unfairly, but He tells us to love the one who treated us that way – and pray for him. What connects David’s prayer and Jesus’ admonition? In every psalm of imprecation, the writer eventually leaves the resolution up to God. Jesus says you and I will also have to deal with injustice, but God does not want us to take that justice into our own hands. We must trust God to execute His justice. We may ask for it, but He may respond by saying “No,” or, “I will, but in My own way.” Can you celebrate that answer to your prayer?  

Can you rejoice if God decides, as was the case of Jonah and the people of Nineveh, to bring about His own true justice...by saving your enemy from his sins?