Analects 14:34
Someone said: "How is repaying resentment with virtue possible?" Confucius said: "What then will you repay virtue? Repay resentment (or harm) with justice (lit. 'straightforwardness'). Repay virtue with virtue" (trans. by Yung Suk Kim).
My comments:
Repaying harm (resentment) with justice (straightforwardness) sounds contrary to Jesus's teaching that one must love one's enemy. But Confucius's teaching is practical and necessary because wrongs must be dealt with rather than condoned. Injustices cannot go unpunished or unchecked. So, we must consider the enemy situation and the nature of love. Otherwise, we cannot use Jesus's love command of the enemy apart from the context. Some might even ask: Is loving an enemy psychologically or morally salutary? Is it possible at all?