If you want to hurt your enemy, the apostle Paul suggests heaping burning coals on their head! Well, not literally—but Paul does use this phrase to describe the effect we have on our enemies when we treat them the way Christ calls us to treat them. In his letter to the Romans he writes, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head” (Rom. 12:20). While a little context helps us to see that we should not literally dump flaming charcoal briquettes on our enemies, this image is still startling and a bit confusing. How does helping our enemy “burn” them? Is it right to do something that may cause our enemies pain? To understand Paul’s teaching, we should first consider the broader context.
The Logical Application of the Gospel
Romans 12 begins with an appeal to be a “living sacrifice” because of what Christ has done to save us by dying for our sins and coming back to life on the third day. Viewing our lives as a sacrifice is the logical consequence, or application, of the gospel. Followers of Jesus are called to give their lives, energy, talents, time, and worship to God. In other words, the most logical reaction to the gospel of grace is a life of obedience to God. In the rest of the chapter, Paul describes various ways that Christians are called to be living sacrifices in different areas of life, including the way we treat our enemies.
How Does the Gospel Impact the Way I Treat My Enemies?
Paul is answering a practical question: What does being a living sacrifice look like when we are wronged or hurt by someone? His answer includes both what we should and should not do. It is important to pay attention to both the negative and positive commands of God as we respond to his grace in the gospel. Paul says we should not repay or overcome evil with evil, or avenge ourselves (Rom. 12:17–19). Just because someone has wronged us does not give us the right to wrong them in return. On the other hand, we should do what is honorable, strive to live at peace with others, and serve and provide for the needs of our enemies in order that evil might be overcome with good (Rom. 12:14–21). When we are kind to our enemy in this way we “will heap burning coals on his head.” With that phrase placed in context, let’s consider what it could mean.
“Heap Burning Coals”
It is not an easy phrase to understand. The first thing we should note is that Paul is quoting from Proverbs 25:21–22:
If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink, for you will heap burning coals on his head, and the Lord will reward you.
It is possible this Proverb is referencing an Egyptian practice in which a penitent person displayed their shame and sorrow by carrying a basket of burning coals on their head. Whether or not this is the case, what is particularly interesting to note in Romans is that Paul leaves out the final phrase of the proverb: “and the Lord will reward you.” Paul is not concerned with what God will do, he has already explained that God will avenge the wicked. In his letter, he is focused on the way Christians ought to act towards their enemies, namely by serving and caring for them. The result of doing this is like heaping burning coals on our enemies head. What could that mean? It could mean we:
- Increase our enemies guilt and, therefore, their eternal punishment.
- Cause our enemy to feel shame and guilt for their actions.
- Win them over to Christ.
Number one seems unlike anything Paul or Jesus would tell us to do. We are not called to be kind to our enemies because it will allow us to get an even greater revenge on them. In a similar way, option two is not an appropriate goal for a Christian. In fact, Romans 12:14 says to “bless those who persecute you.” It may be that treating our enemies with kindness makes them feel shame, but it doesn’t seem like that should be our motive. This leaves us with the third possibility. We overcome evil with good by loving our enemy. In the process of loving them, we hope and pray that they would be drawn to Christ, through us.
Why We Burn Our Enemies
In essence, Paul is calling us to treat our enemies the same way God treated us when we were his enemy. Consider Romans 5:6–11:
For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
If we truly understand how amazing it is that we have been reconciled to God, we will apply that same love and forgiveness in our relationships with our enemies. The better we grasp God’s grace to us, the more we will be filled with gratitude and a genuine desire to share that love with others, even with our worst enemies. Yes, it may cause them to burn with shame when we treat them with undeserved kindness—but that cannot be our motive. We must serve our enemies because we love our enemies and truly desire their salvation, knowing they are just as deserving of God’s grace as we are—which is to say, not at all. In doing so we “heap burning coals on their heads.” This is the best way to win our enemies to Christ.
