Imaginary enemies...

Imaginary Enemies

 

Romans 12:14 ESV / 7 helpful votes

 

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.

Luke 23:34 ESV / 6 helpful votes

 

And Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” And they cast lots to divide his garments.

Psalm 138:7 ESV / 6 helpful votes

 

Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life; you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and your right hand delivers me.

Romans 12:20 ESV / 5 helpful votes

 

To the contrary, “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.”

Isaiah 41:10 ESV / 5 helpful votes

 

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Psalm 23:1-6 ESV / 5 helpful votes

 

A Psalm of David. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. ...

Acts 7:60 ESV / 4 helpful votes

 

And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

Matthew 5:44 ESV / 4 helpful votes

 

But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

Matthew 5:43-48 ESV / 4 helpful votes

 

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor 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 makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? ...

Proverbs 16:7 ESV / 4 helpful votes

 

When a man's ways please the Lord, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.

Psalm 46:1 ESV / 4 helpful votes

 

To the choirmaster. Of the Sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. A Song. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Deuteronomy 31:6 ESV / 4 helpful votes

 

Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”

Exodus 23:5 ESV / 4 helpful votes

 

If you see the donkey of one who hates you lying down under its burden, you shall refrain from leaving him with it; you shall rescue it with him.

1 Peter 3:9 ESV / 3 helpful votes

 

Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.

Ephesians 4:32 ESV / 3 helpful votes

 

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

Romans 12:19 ESV / 3 helpful votes

 

Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”

Luke 6:27 ESV / 3 helpful votes

 

“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,

Matthew 4:1-25 ESV / 3 helpful votes

 

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple ...

Proverbs 25:21-22 ESV / 3 helpful votes

 

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.

Proverbs 25:21 ESV / 3 helpful votes

 

If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat, and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink,

Proverbs 24:17 ESV / 3 helpful votes

 

Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles,

Psalm 91:1-16 ESV / 3 helpful votes

 

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, ...

Psalm 69:4 ESV / 3 helpful votes

 

More in number than the hairs of my head are those who hate me without cause; mighty are those who would destroy me, those who attack me with lies. What I did not steal must I now restore?

Psalm 35:1-28 ESV / 3 helpful votes

 

Of David. Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me; fight against those who fight against me! Take hold of shield and buckler and rise for my help! Draw the spear and javelin against my pursuers! Say to my soul, “I am your salvation!” Let them be put to shame and dishonor who seek after my life! Let them be turned back and disappointed who devise evil against me! Let them be like chaff before the wind, with the angel of the Lord driving them away! ...

Revelation 20:12-15 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

Revelation 1:1 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,

1 Peter 2:23 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.

James 4:7 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

2 Timothy 3:16 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,

2 Timothy 3:12 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,

2 Thessalonians 3:3 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.

1 Corinthians 4:12-13 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

And we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered, we entreat. We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.

Romans 12:14-21 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. ...

Romans 12:1-2 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

Romans 8:28 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

John 16:33 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

John 3:16-17 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

Luke 10:19 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.

Luke 6:35 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.

Luke 6:27-36 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them. ...

Luke 6:27-28 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.

Mark 11:25 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”

Mark 6:7 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

And he called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits.

Matthew 6:1-34 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. ...

Matthew 5:48 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Matthew 5:45 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

So that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

Matthew 5:43 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’

Matthew 5:9 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Ezekiel 23:19-20 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

Yet she increased her whoring, remembering the days of her youth, when she played the whore in the land of Egypt and lusted after her paramours there, whose members were like those of donkeys, and whose issue was like that of horses.

Jeremiah 29:11 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Isaiah 54:17 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.”

Isaiah 42:13 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

The Lord goes out like a mighty man, like a man of war he stirs up his zeal; he cries out, he shouts aloud, he shows himself mighty against his foes.

Isaiah 8:10 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

Take counsel together, but it will come to nothing; speak a word, but it will not stand, for God is with us.

Proverbs 25:20 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

Whoever sings songs to a heavy heart is like one who takes off a garment on a cold day, and like vinegar on soda.

Proverbs 19:11 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.

Psalm 109:2-5 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me, speaking against me with lying tongues. They encircle me with words of hate, and attack me without cause. In return for my love they accuse me, but I give myself to prayer. So they reward me evil for good, and hatred for my love.

Psalm 109:1-31 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. Be not silent, O God of my praise! For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me, speaking against me with lying tongues. They encircle me with words of hate, and attack me without cause. In return for my love they accuse me, but I give myself to prayer. So they reward me evil for good, and hatred for my love. ...

Psalm 71:10 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

For my enemies speak concerning me; those who watch for my life consult together

Psalm 57:6 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

They set a net for my steps; my soul was bowed down. They dug a pit in my way, but they have fallen into it themselves. Selah

Psalm 55:1-23 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. A Maskil of David. Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy! Attend to me, and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and I moan, because of the noise of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked. For they drop trouble upon me, and in anger they bear a grudge against me. My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death have fallen upon me. Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me. ...

Psalm 40:13-15 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me! O Lord, make haste to help me! Let those be put to shame and disappointed altogether who seek to snatch away my life; let those be turned back and brought to dishonor who delight in my hurt! Let those be appalled because of their shame who say to me, “Aha, Aha!”

Psalm 37:1-5 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

Of David. Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb. Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.

Psalm 23:5 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Psalm 18:2 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

Psalm 12:5 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

“Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan, I will now arise,” says the Lord; “I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”

Job 31:29 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

“If I have rejoiced at the ruin of him who hated me, or exulted when evil overtook him

Job 31:29-30 ESV / 2 helpful votes

 

“If I have rejoiced at the ruin of him who hated me, or exulted when evil overtook him (I have not let my mouth sin by asking for his life with a curse),