Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God!
O men of blood, depart from me!
Apologies for the violent start. And, in case you’re wondering, it isn’t lost on me that we ought to love our enemies (Matthew 5:43-48). Yet what are we to do with these seeming violent words that are part of Scripture too (Psalm 139:22)? Even more unsettling for some would be to find that the words they find most reassuring in Scripture—I am fearfully and wonderfully made—just so happen to share a passage with the not-so-palatable cry above (Psalm 139:14).
Is it okay to pray curses on those who wrong me?
Can we be loving toward our enemies while also praying that they be punished for their wrongs?
Enough people would probably have been asking themselves such in the wake of the protests that rocked Kenya in both 2024 and 2025, leaving behind a trail of death and destruction. And how bewildering it must have been for many when the wife of a popular commentator in the U.S. forgave her husband’s killer just about a year ago. To some, that felt like betraying her late husband.
There always seems to be a tension between loving our enemies and praying for justice to be meted out. Scripture, however, seems to suggest that the two are mutually inclusive, which is the impression I hope you come away persuaded of, and that you’d see such as only possible in Christ.
A Not-So-Small Difference
Before much is said, it is important to understand the context that surrounds the prayers of the Psalmists. Why would they pray for the destruction of their enemies? Were they right in doing so? The answer to that last question is yes. They were right to do so, largely because they were part of God’s chosen people. Unlike us, they weren’t just part of God’s chosen people in a spiritual sense, but also in a political sense. Israel was God’s chosen nation (Deuteronomy 7:7-11). God had set it apart to be holy (Leviticus 20:26).
Therefore, all other nations surrounding them weren’t just enemies of Israel but also of God. God’s people were mandated to wipe out their geographical enemies (Deuteronomy 20:16-18). The Canaanites were unholy people occupying holy land (Joshua 5:15). That means that David’s prayer for the destruction of Israel’s enemies was, in fact, a prayer for the destruction of God’s enemies. Moreover, he wasn’t just any other king; he was God’s chosen king.
Ours is a totally different context. No particular nation has been set apart the way the Israelites were. There is no single ground that ought to be treated as especially holy, since our holiness stems only from trusting in Jesus (Hebrews 10:14). This means we can’t express our desire for justice in exactly the same way the Psalter did. Instead, our pursuit of justice should be anchored in Christ, who intercedes for us before God (Hebrews 7:25).
Laments, Not Curses
Are there those who have wronged you? Does the desire for vengeance weigh heavily on you? The answer isn’t to seek revenge but to try to live peaceably with all (Romans 12:14-21, Deuteronomy 32:35). Remarkably, the Bible’s imprecatory prayers are a great help in achieving this. Our not being a theocracy by no means renders them useless.
That’s because the Psalmists composed them as laments, and trusted in a just God to deal justly. Asaph in Psalm 73 was jealous of the prosperity of the wicked until he stopped looking inward and turned to God; then he saw their end (Psalm 73:16-17).
Scripture does not gift us with imprecatory prayers to teach us how to settle personal scores, but rather for reminding us to entrust our plight to God. As Scripture states, God isn’t unjust to overlook us (Hebrews 6:10). The Psalmists were, in fact, fulfilling the command to leave vengeance to God. Praying after the pattern they set means, as someone once put it, that instead of unsheathing our swords, we are lifting our voices to the God of justice.
Zeal for God’s Name, Not Ours
By no means do imprecatory prayers go against the command to love our enemies. Jesus, who commands us to love our enemies, pronounced seven woes on the Pharisees for failing to live out what they preached (Matthew 23:13-33). Woe, as used in Scripture, was, in essence, a declaration of judgment against someone. Did Christ himself break his own command? Of course not! And neither did Paul when he prayed a curse on those who proclaim another gospel (Galatians 1:8-9).
Imprecatory prayers were always occasioned by actions that were bent on bringing dishonor to God’s name. Both the Pharisees during Jesus’s time and the heretics during Paul’s time were leading people away from God. The enemies of the Psalmists were trying to inflict pain or destroy God’s chosen people. The vexation was mainly with the overt maligning of God’s name. In stark contrast, when both Jesus and Paul were personally shamed or reviled, they didn’t retaliate (1 Peter 2:23). Instead, they sought the salvation of those who reviled them (Luke 23:34, Acts 26:29) and entrusted themselves to God.
Pray for the Salvation of Your Wrongdoers
When wronged, our prayer should be chiefly for the salvation of those who wronged us. Our desire shouldn’t be their destruction; rather, as with God, it ought to be that they attain eternal life (1 Peter 5:9). Stephen is an example for us to follow. He knew that the people’s stoning of him was a sin (Acts 7:60). Yet he desired that the justice for that sin would not fall upon them. He prayed for their salvation. Jesus was more than glad to answer that prayer, for two chapters later, a man named Saul, who was among the witnesses to the stoning (Acts 7:58), was called by Jesus to be an apostle (Acts 9:1-9). He became God’s greatest evangelist, and, as he wrote, it was all by God’s grace (1 Corinthians 15:8-10; Galatians 1:13-17; 1 Timothy 1:15-16).
That dear saint should be our posture as well. Imprecate though we may, it is only in Christ that our desire for justice and love for our enemies become mutually inclusive. Yearning for justice, we should also joyfully ask that this justice be meted out on the man on the middle cross. Just like he suffered the just punishment due our sin, so should we pray and labour for the same grace to be shown to our enemies.
In imprecating, we do not assume to ourselves the right to avenge, but rather the grace to lament, assured that the just Judge of all the earth shall do right (Genesis 18:25).