Acts 16:35-40 NKJV

[35] And when it was day, the magistrates sent the officers, saying, “Let those men go.” [36] So the keeper of the prison reported these words to Paul, saying, “The magistrates have sent to let you go. Now therefore depart, and go in peace.” [37] But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us openly, uncondemned Romans, and have thrown us into prison. And now do they put us out secretly? No indeed! Let them come themselves and get us out.” [38] And the officers told these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Romans. [39] Then they came and pleaded with them and brought them out, and asked them to depart from the city. [40] So they went out of the prison and entered the house of Lydia; and when they had seen the brethren, they encouraged them and departed.

Paul and Silas were served a grave injustice with the beating and imprisonment they received. They had every right to pursue just punishment for the magistrates responsible for this misconduct. If they had made a spectacle of their mistreatment, the men responsible would have faced beatings, imprisonment, and potentially a death sentence for their mistakes. Paul chose mercy over justice.

How often do we seek pardon for those who accuse, offend, or condemn us? I have never been wrongfully beaten or thrown in jail. In most cases, our definition of injustice lies within the confines of petty matters... not grave mistakes that can cost another person their freedom or their life. I am quick to quote scripture in defense of my righteous position...

Exodus 21:23 - But if any harm follows, then you shall give life for life, 24. eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25. burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

Paul didn't turn to the Old Testament for justice. Instead, he chose to extend a level of mercy and grace the magistrates had never seen. He chose love over the law. Paul demonstrated what it looks like to live out what Jesus taught in His sermon on the Mount.

Matthew 5:38 - “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39. But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.