Is It EVER Right to Pronounce a Curse?

Mark Virkler's picture

When it comes to taking personal vengeance on a person who has hurt you, the Bible is clear: Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse (Rom. 12:14).


Not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing. For, "THE ONE WHO DESIRES LIFE, TO LOVE AND SEE GOOD DAYS, MUST KEEP HIS TONGUE FROM EVIL AND HIS LIPS FROM SPEAKING DECEIT. "HE MUST TURN AWAY FROM EVIL AND DO GOOD; HE MUST SEEK PEACE AND PURSUE IT. "FOR THE EYES OF THE LORD ARE TOWARD THE RIGHTEOUS, AND HIS EARS ATTEND TO THEIR PRAYER, BUT THE FACE OF THE LORD IS AGAINST THOSE WHO DO EVIL" (1 Pet. 3:9-12).

When it is right to administer a curse

In the Old Testament curses from the Lord were administered through his servants. God sovereignly chose human channels through whom to administer His justice. There is no suggestion in Scripture that God has ever renounced His right to do this. In the New Testament, however, God has chosen to use His servants primarily as instruments of mercy and not of judgment. Note this new emphasis in Luke 9:51-56. “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?” (Lk. 9:54).

Jesus responded: “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them” (Lk. 9:55-56).

On the other hand, Jesus Himself pronounced a curse on a fig tree: “Let no fruit grow on you ever again” (Matt. 21:19) and it withered within a day. Jesus gave this authority to His disciples: “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree...” (Matt. 21:21). In other words, He gave them authority to pronounce curses.

In Matthew 10:14-15, when Jesus sent out the first apostles to preach the Gospel, He gave them authority of a similar kind to deal with those who rejected them and their message: And as for those who do not receive you, as you go out from that city, shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them" (Lk. 9:5). By this act of shaking off the dust from their feet, the apostles would, in effect, hand over those who rejected them to the judgment of God, which would ultimately be more severe than that on the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah (Matt. 10:15).

In Acts 13:51 the apostles shook the dust off their feet concerning those who lived in Pisidian. When blessings are offered, but rejected, curses almost inevitably follow in their place. 

Curses spoken from the Spirit of God

We see, that Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 13:9), when he pronounced the curse of blindness. So this was not a personal vendetta, but the mouth of the Lord speaking. A modern day example includes cursing a bar which promoted prostitution, drugs and fighting, and then seeing it burn to the ground within weeks. Sometimes I curse the roots of an infirmity as I am praying for people for healing.

Obviously one needs to be extremely careful to not be overcome with evil, and speak curses from the anger of his flesh. Probably the multitude of counselors would be helpful to determine if it is your own anger or the anger of the Lord. In any case, be very cautious before you utter a curse!

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