ἐκδίκησις expresses “vengeance,” appearing in contexts of divine action, human restraint, and public governance. Across its New Testament uses it ranges from God’s response to the cries of the oppressed to the outworking of judgment and punishment.
Occurrences
“Won’t God avenge his chosen ones who are crying out to him day and night, and yet he exercises patience with them?” (Luke 18:7)
Here ἐκδίκησις is framed as God’s response to sustained, urgent appeal: the “chosen ones” cry out “day and night.” The question assumes that vengeance is properly located with God, even when his response is experienced alongside “patience.” The word therefore contributes the idea of a decisive righting of wrongs that belongs to God’s own timing and character.
“I tell you that he will avenge them quickly. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8)
In the continuation, vengeance is promised with speed—“quickly”—and is set next to the searching question about “faith.” ἐκδίκησις stands as the expected outcome of persevering appeal, while the verse presses the reader to consider whether trust will endure until the promised act of vengeance arrives. The term carries the weight of an intervention that vindicates those who have been wronged.
“For these are days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.” (Luke 21:22)
In this eschatological-sounding announcement, ἐκδίκησις names a span of time—“days of vengeance.” The word contributes a public, historical dimension: vengeance is not merely a private settling of accounts, but a marked period in which written purposes reach “fulfillment.” The verse associates vengeance with the unfolding of events that carry a sense of necessity (“may be fulfilled”).
“Seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him who was oppressed, striking the Egyptian.” (Acts 7:24)
Here ἐκδίκησις is enacted at the human level in response to visible injustice: one “suffer wrong,” another is “oppressed.” The avenging is described with concrete action—“striking the Egyptian”—and is paired with “defended him.” The word therefore contributes the notion of vengeance as a forceful answer to oppression, presented in a narrative where the wrong is immediate and the response is physical and swift.
“Don’t seek revenge yourselves, beloved, but give place to God’s wrath. For it is written, “Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord.”” (Romans 12:19)
In this exhortation, ἐκδίκησις is explicitly removed from the believer’s grasp: “Don’t seek revenge yourselves.” Vengeance is located with the Lord—“Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay”—and is set in parallel with “God’s wrath,” which is to be given room. The word thus functions to draw a boundary: human desire to retaliate is checked by the conviction that repayment is God’s prerogative.
“For behold, this same thing, that you were grieved in a godly way, what earnest care it worked in you. Yes, what defense, indignation, fear, longing, zeal, and vengeance! In everything you demonstrated yourselves to be pure in the matter.” (2 Corinthians 7:11)
Here ἐκδίκησις is listed among the effects of “godly” grief. The word sits alongside moral and emotional responses—“defense, indignation, fear, longing, zeal”—and is tied to a practical outcome: “you demonstrated yourselves to be pure in the matter.” In this setting, vengeance contributes the idea of a forceful moral reaction against what has been wrong, expressed not as personal payback but as part of earnest effort toward integrity.
“punishing those who don’t know God, and to those who don’t obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus,” (2 Thessalonians 1:8)
In this line, ἐκδίκησις is expressed as “punishing” directed toward two groups defined by their stance toward God and the gospel: those who “don’t know God” and those who “don’t obey the Good News.” The word contributes a judicial cast: vengeance is not portrayed as uncontrolled anger, but as punishment with a defined target shaped by relationship and response.
“For we know him who said, “Vengeance belongs to me;” says the Lord, “I will repay.” Again, “The Lord will judge his people.”” (Hebrews 10:30)
This verse anchors ἐκδίκησις in God’s own declared commitment: “Vengeance belongs to me… I will repay.” The added line, “The Lord will judge his people,” places vengeance within an evaluative framework of judgment. The word contributes assurance that repayment is neither forgotten nor outsourced; it is an act bound up with the Lord’s judging activity.
“or to governors, as sent by him for vengeance on evildoers and for praise to those who do well.” (1 Peter 2:14)
Here ἐκδίκησις is associated with civil authority: “governors” are “sent by him” with a dual role—“for vengeance on evildoers and for praise to those who do well.” The word contributes the punitive side of governance, set in balance with public commendation. Vengeance is portrayed as a function that restrains wrongdoing and distinguishes between “evildoers” and those who “do well.”
Sense and Usage
Across these passages, ἐκδίκησις consistently names vengeance as a response to wrongdoing, but the settings highlight different dimensions of how vengeance is understood and located.
First, vengeance is repeatedly presented as God’s prerogative. In Luke 18:7–8, God’s vengeance answers the “crying out… day and night” of his “chosen ones,” holding together patience and promised speed: patience is experienced in the waiting, but the avenging itself is described as quick when it comes. Romans 12:19 and Hebrews 10:30 press the same conviction into ethical instruction and warning: the Lord claims vengeance as his own (“Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay”), and this claim establishes the posture expected of others—restraint rather than self-directed retaliation.
Second, vengeance can characterize a period of events with a fulfillment horizon. Luke 21:22 speaks of “days of vengeance” in which “all things which are written may be fulfilled.” The phrase frames vengeance not merely as a momentary act but as a season in which consequences unfold in a way that is bound to what is “written.” In this usage the word carries public weight: vengeance is large enough to name a time recognized by its outcomes.
Third, the word can describe human action, but the texts treat such action with moral and narrative nuance. Acts 7:24 depicts a particular case: seeing oppression, one “defended” and “avenged” by striking an Egyptian. The narrative locates vengeance in immediate, forceful intervention on behalf of someone suffering wrong. By contrast, 2 Corinthians 7:11 uses vengeance in the aftermath of “godly” grief, grouped with responses that aim at clearing and proving purity “in the matter.” Vengeance here functions within communal moral seriousness, as part of a determined stance against wrong that seeks a clean resolution rather than personal satisfaction.
Fourth, ἐκδίκησις can be exercised through delegated authority. In 1 Peter 2:14, governors are “sent by him” and their role includes vengeance “on evildoers,” paired with “praise” for those who do well. This setting places vengeance within social order: it is a recognized function of governance, operating toward wrongdoing as wrongdoing, not as a personal vendetta.
Finally, vengeance is linked with punishment and judgment. 2 Thessalonians 1:8 expresses vengeance as “punishing” tied to knowing God and obeying the gospel. Hebrews 10:30 joins vengeance with the Lord’s judging activity. These uses keep vengeance in a judicial sphere: it is repayment and punishment that corresponds to accountability.
Imagery
The passages provide several concrete images that color ἐκδίκησις. It can be pictured as a judge’s repayment (“I will repay”), as a time marked by fulfillment (“days of vengeance”), as force used to stop oppression (“striking the Egyptian”), and as the ordinary work of public authority (“governors… for vengeance on evildoers”). Together these scenes keep vengeance tethered to wrongdoing, accountability, and the expectation that wrong does not have the final word.
Sources:
Lexical data from Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance and the Translators Brief Lexicon of Extended Strongs for Greek (STEPBible, CC BY). Occurrence data from the Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament (STEPBible, CC BY). Scripture quotations from the World English Bible (public domain).
