The Three Types of Bitterness

See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble. (Hebrews 12:15 NIV)

I once read an article that said there are three types of bitterness.

The first is against God. This type of bitterness can come from situations where you don’t understand why something bad happened: the loss of a loved one, a natural disaster, or anything that you feel is unfair. It’s getting angry at God for not having stopped it and figuring that He didn’t hear you when you prayed—or maybe that He doesn’t care.

The second type is toward others. Maybe someone treated you wrongly, did something dishonest, or talked badly about you behind your back. You feel that you can never really forgive them—and that even if you could, they don’t deserve it, and it certainly wouldn’t be fair.

The last one—which we don’t always realize is a form of bitterness—is bitterness toward yourself! You may know in your heart that God has forgiven you for some mistake you’ve made, but you can’t forgive yourself, and you hang on to those negative feelings.

I think everyone is affected by bitterness toward others at some time. Everyone gets hurt, and it’s hard to handle tough people and situations. The secret lies in how you deal with that hurt.

Bitterness can make you miss out on the grace that God wishes to give you. And like the example of the root, at first it’s difficult to notice bitterness, but as that “weed” sprouts, there will be symptoms. And if you let it continue to grow without uprooting it, it can take over your life. —Nina Kole [1]

To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you. —Lewis B. Smedes (1921–2002)

[1] Activated Preserved or Pickled?