(Amplified)
For it is not an enemy who reproaches and taunts me--then I might bear it; nor is it one who has hated me who insolently vaunts himself against me--then I might hide from him.
But it was you, a man my equal, my companion and my familiar friend.
We had sweet fellowship together and used to walk to the house of God in company.
The pain of betrayal is difficult, but betrayal by one close to your heart seems unbearable. It feels like we will never trust anyone ever again.
Jesus knows the pain of betrayal at the hands of "familiar friends..." Judas, Peter, the crowd of people who shouted "Hosanna," then a few days later, "Crucify Him."
Jesus intimately knows the pain of betrayal yet, He said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." (Luke 23:34)
Forgiveness is the key! Forgiveness is an action (not necessarily a feeling) that releases the offender, while simultaneously healing the offended.
Whether we've been betrayed by a "familiar friend" or by an enemy doesn't matter. What matters is forgiveness. Grace, the undeserved favor of God, is extended to us for our sinful failures. How could we not extend that same grace to others?
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