Exodus 23:4-5 – Showing kindness to our enemies

It is one thing to relate with people we can get along with but it is quite another with people whom we don’t particularly like. Worst still with people whom we are at loggerheads. The natural tendency is to hurt people we intensely dislike. We consider this category of people our enemies. We may find it easy, and even okay, to hurt them. But in verses 4-5 of Exodus 23, God said that we should show grace to them. Instead of seeking to hurt them, God wants us to help them when there’s an opportunity. These two verses state, “If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey wandering away, you shall surely return it to him. If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying helpless under its load, you shall refrain from leaving it to him, you shall surely release it with him.”

Here we see two examples. The first is when a man comes across his enemies’ animal that had strayed away. The temptation, of course, is to do nothing about it and allow that animal to get lost on its merry way. One could easily have reasoned saying "it’s not mine why should I care?" And anyway, no one will ever know. But The right thing to do, of course, is to apprehend the animal and then return it to one’s enemy. The second example that is given shows what one ought to do when he sees his enemy struggling with his donkey. It is easy to be just a spectator and watch nonchalantly, gloating over the misfortune of one’s enemies. Here the Lord gives the instruction that instead of revelling and rejoicing over our enemies’ misfortune, we must seek to help him. To put it bluntly, we are called to show courtesy even to our enemies and to treat them as we would our friends. God would rather that we become friends than foes. It is certainly hard to go on hating someone when he shows kindness that we don’t deserve. Compassion is a great way to disarm any hostility.

The greatest example of one who loves his enemies is the Lord Jesus Christ. While we were His enemies and were hostile toward Him, yet He went to the cross and died in our place. He has laid down an example for us to emulate. Yes, we are to love even those whom we dislike and regard as our enemies. When we sow love and grace instead of hatred and revenge, we can sleep sounder and live happier. Just imagine if everyone makes it his or her business to sow love we will have a community of happy people. The words of the Lord Jesus to us in Matthew 5:43-45 say, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” We must seek to make this an objective in life!