Romans 12:21
“Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.”
King James Version (KJV)
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Concluding Romans 12's instruction on responding to enemies and persecutors, Paul states the governing principle: overcome evil with good rather than retaliation.
What Does Romans 12:21 Mean?
Paul gathers his teaching on how to treat enemies into one memorable line. The danger is that evil might "overcome" us -- not only by harming us outwardly, but by drawing us into its own logic, so that we answer cruelty with cruelty and become what we hate. To be overcome of evil is to let it win twice: once in what it does to us, and again in what it makes of us.
Paul's strategy is striking. The way to defeat evil is not to match it but to overwhelm it with good. Returning evil for evil only multiplies it; returning good can break its power. This is not weakness or passivity -- it is an active, deliberate campaign of goodness that refuses to surrender the moral high ground. The previous verses speak of feeding a hungry enemy and giving drink to the thirsty; here Paul names the principle behind such acts. Good is the stronger force. For the reader, this verse is both a warning and a weapon: guard against becoming hardened by the wrongs done to you, and respond instead with a goodness so persistent that it disarms evil at its root.
In the Original Language
The verb nikao, "overcome," is the language of victory and conquest; Paul uses it twice to contrast being defeated by evil with conquering it through good.
Cross References
“See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.”
- 1 Thessalonians 5:15
“But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;”
- Matthew 5:44
“If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink:”
- Proverbs 25:21
Application
When wronged, refuse to let bitterness turn you into what hurt you; choose instead a deliberate, active goodness that can break the cycle of evil.