Romans 12:20
Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.
It forbids taking revenge into one's own hands and repaying wrong with wrong, leaving all vengeance to the Lord without retaliation, hostility, or harsh condemnation. In its place it commands definite, practical kindness in daily life, feeding the hungry enemy and giving drink to the thirsty as the way to overcome evil with good. Heaping coals of fire on his head means that such undeserved good awakens shame and conviction in the wrongdoer, setting his conduct in contrast with kind treatment more powerfully than rebuke. That kindness often softens and subdues the heart and opens it to be convinced of truth, while returning malice for malice only makes enemies more bitter. Living this way marks those truly transformed by the renewing of the mind who prove the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, and it belongs to overcoming as Christ overcame in order to win heaven.
Command and Meaning
The verse forbids avenging the self and repaying evil for evil, leaving vengeance to the Lord. There is to be no retaliation, no withdrawal, and no hostility toward those who are suspicious and unjust, and no reviling, accusation, condemnation, or overbearing harshness. In place of revenge it definitely commands practical kindness in daily life: feed the enemy when hungry and give drink when thirsty. That definite, daily kindness is the way to overcome evil with good.
It belongs to the practical instruction of Romans 12 for Christian conduct as members of the heavenly family, who are to help and strengthen each other. It calls believers to love one another and to love without hypocrisy, with true heavenly courtesy and kindness. It calls them to bless persecutors and to live peaceably with all as far as possible, in humility and honesty. Living it makes true believers transformed by the renewing of the mind, while failure to live it shows by daily character that faith is spurious.
Heaping coals of fire on the head pictures the shame or conviction that returning good brings upon the wrongdoer. Kindness toward those who have acted unjustly awakens a sense of wrong and contrasts their conduct with kind treatment. Treating them with tenderness and special consideration makes them see their own wrong more clearly than direct rebuke would, with genuine concern for their souls. That kindness frequently softens and subdues the opponent's heart and opens it to be convinced of truth. Returning malice for malice only makes enemies more bitter, whereas doing them good can be a blessing to them.
Application and Warning
The principle of feeding a hungry enemy and giving drink to a thirsty one must be carefully studied and obeyed as a doer of the word in small matters as well as large. Those appointed by God will not be sustained unless they are doers of it. Neglect leaves them in positive danger. Satan tries by every device to weaken them through exaltation in their own opinion and thereby gain power over them. God who is high and lifted up uses people as His instruments only as long as they work humbly seeking wisdom from Him.
Living by this rule marks true believers transformed by the renewing of the mind, who prove by experience what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Failure to live it shows by daily character that faith is spurious and not true Christianity. Living by this rule is part of overcoming as Christ overcame in order to win heaven. Such kindness always pays and is not weakness even in the imperfect church militant. It is possible only when the mind is under God's control.
When truth is opposed and Christ is insulted, His messengers must exercise caution, self-control, wisdom, tenderness and special consideration. They must pray silently for those in error and show genuine concern for their souls. Each opposer's soul is as valuable as their own, purchased by Christ's blood and to be dealt with considerately as Christ's property. Returning kind acts for acts of mischief and malice out of love for Jesus and for the souls for whom He died, with Christ as pattern, gives a right and correct influence over others. Words and actions in this will be judged by God and reviewed in the Judgment as having done all that could be done.
This peacemaking permits concessions on points of feeling between person and person. But it never permits surrendering truth, sacrificing principle, or giving up even one iota of principle to prevent discord, ward off division, avoid differences of opinion, or secure harmony by mutual concession. True brotherhood cannot be maintained by compromising principle. Growing purity will still stir the opposition of spiritual darkness.