One day, a shepherd deeply offended a man. Instead of letting the insult go, the man held on to his anger until it turned into a desire for revenge.
He knew the shepherd often took his animals to graze in a remote area where hardly anyone ever passed by. So he came up with a plan: he would dig a deep pit along the path and wait for the shepherd to fall into it.
Late that night, under the cover of darkness, the man began digging.
With every shovel of dirt, he imagined what might happen. Maybe the shepherd would fall into the pit and break a leg. Maybe he would be badly injured and unable to climb out. In his darkest thoughts, the man even wondered whether his enemy might die there before anyone could find him. And if the shepherd himself did not fall in, perhaps one of his cows, sheep, or goats would.
The man kept digging, fueled by resentment. He became so consumed by thoughts of revenge that he failed to notice how deep the hole had become.
Hours passed.
When the first light of dawn appeared, he finally stopped and looked around. Only then did he realize what he had done.
The pit was now so deep that he himself could no longer climb out.
In trying to create a trap for someone else, he had trapped himself first.
And that is often what resentment does. We think we are preparing punishment for another person, but all the while we are the ones spending our time, energy, and peace digging deeper into anger.
Before you dig a pit for someone else—even in your thoughts—remember this: the first person who has to stand inside that pit is the one digging it.
Revenge may feel like a way to hurt someone who hurt you, but very often it harms you long before it ever reaches them.