Articles
Coals of Fire
“Therefore if your enemy hungers, feed him; if he thirsts, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head” (Romans 12:20).
How do we react to evil that has been done to us? Will we retaliate with evil deeds? Will we squelch evil by responding with good deeds? The admonition emphasizes the latter: “do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
In the Old Testament, coals of fire upon the head is a picture of judgement coming upon the enemy. “[As for] the head of those who surround me, Let the evil of their lips cover them; Let burning coals fall upon them; Let them be cast into the fire, Into deep pits, that they rise not up again” (Psa. 140:9-10). It is an appeal unto God for Him to render justice through judgement upon the evildoer.
But here, Paul says the judgement upon the enemy is coming in the form of good deeds. Heaping coals of fire is the result of “so doing” the kind works. Through kindness, the evil ways of an enemy are not allowed to conquer. Instead, evil is OVERCOME with good.
The passage is not fostering a “get even spirit.” Our satisfaction is not seeing the hungry enemy squirm with remorse when fed from our hand. “If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink: For thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head, and the Lord shall reward thee” (Proverbs 25:21-22). Through kind deeds, we overcome (heap coals of fire upon) the enemy, making it clear that the enemy’s evil ways will not overcome us. The Lord will bless us for our efforts upon the battlefield of evil.
