Romans 12:20
Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

But if the enemy be hungry, give him to eat; if he thirst, give him to drink. For, doing this, thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head.

if thine.

Exodus 23:4,5 If thou meet thy enemy's ox or ass going astray, bring it back to him. . . .

1 Samuel 24:16-19 And when David had made an end of speaking these words to Saul, Saul said: Is this thy voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his voice, and wept: . . .

1 Samuel 26:21 And Saul said: I have sinned; return, my son David, for I will no more do thee harm, because my life hath been precious in thy eyes this day: for it appeareth that I have done foolishly, and have been ignorant in very many things.

Proverbs 25:21,22 If thy enemy be hungry, give him to eat: if he thirst, give him water to drink: . . .

Matthew 5:44 But I say to you, Love your enemies: do good to them that hate you: and pray for them that persecute and calumniate you:

coals.

Psalm 120:4 The sharp arrows of the mighty, with coals that lay waste.

Psalm 140:10 Burning coals shall fall upon them; thou wilt cast them down into the fire: in miseries they shall not be able to stand.

Songs 8:6,7 Put me as a seal upon thy heart, as a seal upon thy arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy as hard as hell, the lamps thereof are fire and flames. . . .

Context
Forgiveness
19Revenge not yourselves, my dearly beloved; but give place unto wrath, for it is written: Revenge is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord. 20But if the enemy be hungry, give him to eat; if he thirst, give him to drink. For, doing this, thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head. 21Be not overcome by evil: but overcome evil by good.…
Cross References
Genesis 42:25
And taking Simeon, and binding him in their presence, he commanded his servants to fill their sacks with wheat, and to put every man's money again in their sacks, and to give them besides provisions for the way: and they did so.

2 Kings 6:22
And he said: Thou shalt not kill them: for thou didst not take them with thy sword, or thy bow, that thou mayst kill them: but set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, and go to their master.

Proverbs 25:21
If thy enemy be hungry, give him to eat: if he thirst, give him water to drink:

Matthew 5:44
But I say to you, Love your enemies: do good to them that hate you: and pray for them that persecute and calumniate you:

Luke 6:27
But I say to you that hear: Love your enemies. Do good to them that hate you.

Romans 12:21
Be not overcome by evil: but overcome evil by good.

Lexicon
On the contrary,
Ἀλλὰ (Alla)
Conjunction
Strong's Greek 235: But, except, however. Neuter plural of allos; properly, other things, i.e. contrariwise.

“If
Ἐὰν (Ean)
Conjunction
Strong's Greek 1437: If. From ei and an; a conditional particle; in case that, provided, etc.

your
σου (sou)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive 2nd Person Singular
Strong's Greek 4771: You. The person pronoun of the second person singular; thou.

enemy
ἐχθρός (echthros)
Adjective - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's Greek 2190: Hated, hostile; subst: an enemy. From a primary echtho; hateful; usually as a noun, an adversary.

is hungry,
πεινᾷ (peina)
Verb - Present Subjunctive Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's Greek 3983: To be hungry, needy, desire earnestly. From the same as penes; to famish; figuratively, to crave.

feed
ψώμιζε (psōmize)
Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Singular
Strong's Greek 5595: To feed, dole out. From the base of psomion; to supply with bits, i.e. to nourish.

him;
αὐτόν (auton)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Accusative Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's Greek 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

if
ἐὰν (ean)
Conjunction
Strong's Greek 1437: If. From ei and an; a conditional particle; in case that, provided, etc.

he is thirsty,
διψᾷ (dipsa)
Verb - Present Subjunctive Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's Greek 1372: To thirst for, desire earnestly. From a variation of dipsos; to thirst for.

give him a drink.
πότιζε (potize)
Verb - Present Imperative Active - 2nd Person Singular
Strong's Greek 4222: To cause to drink, give to drink; irrigate, water. From a derivative of the alternate of pino; to furnish drink, irrigate.

For
γὰρ (gar)
Conjunction
Strong's Greek 1063: For. A primary particle; properly, assigning a reason.

in so doing,
ποιῶν (poiōn)
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's Greek 4160: (a) I make, manufacture, construct, (b) I do, act, cause. Apparently a prolonged form of an obsolete primary; to make or do.

you will heap
σωρεύσεις (sōreuseis)
Verb - Future Indicative Active - 2nd Person Singular
Strong's Greek 4987: To heap up, load. From another form of soros; to pile up.

burning
πυρὸς (pyros)
Noun - Genitive Neuter Singular
Strong's Greek 4442: Fire; the heat of the sun, lightning; fig: strife, trials; the eternal fire. A primary word; 'fire'.

coals
ἄνθρακας (anthrakas)
Noun - Accusative Masculine Plural
Strong's Greek 440: Coal, charcoal, a burning coal. Of uncertain derivation; a live coal.

on
ἐπὶ (epi)
Preposition
Strong's Greek 1909: On, to, against, on the basis of, at.

his
αὐτοῦ (autou)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's Greek 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

head.”
κεφαλὴν (kephalēn)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's Greek 2776: From the primary kapto; the head, literally or figuratively.


Additional Translations
On the contrary, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink. For in so doing, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

On the contrary, "If your enemy should hunger, feed him; if he should thirst, give him to drink; for doing this, you will heap coals of fire upon his head."

Therefore if your enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing you shall heap coals of fire on his head.

But if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him to drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head.

If therefore thine enemy should hunger, feed him; if he should thirst, give him drink; for, so doing, thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head.

But if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him to drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head.

Therefore if thy enemy hungereth, feed him; if he thirsteth, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.

On the contrary, therefore, if your enemy is hungry, give him food; if he is thirsty, quench his thirst. For by doing this you will be heaping burning coals upon his head.

Therefore "If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in doing so, you will heap coals of fire on his head."

I will recompense again, saith the Lord;' if, then, thine enemy doth hunger, feed him; if he doth thirst, give him drink; for this doing, coals of fire thou shalt heap upon his head;
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