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Pastor Scott L. Harris
Grace Bible Church, NY
December 2, 2012
Proverbs on Anger
Selected Scriptures
Introduction
This morning we continue in looking at what Proverbs has to say about the various vices. Remember that a vice is simply a moral fault or failing. A vice can range from trivial imperfections to serious or even lethal wicked habits. Improper manners could be a trivial rudeness or escalate into something serious such as passing on your illness by coughing and sneezing on others. It can become lethal in things such as road rage that places others in danger of serious injury or death.
Societies develop moral customs, and while such mores determine what is acceptable and not acceptable in a group, they do not determine what is actually good or bad, right or wrong. Only God can do that. Social mores may guide societal response to a vice, but they cannot determine the natural consequences. Tobacco products may be welcomed by a particular group, but usage still increases the risk of cancer. Of even more serious consequence is the fact that God is the judge and will hold us accountable for all our vices.
We have already examined vices related to communication such as gossip, seduction, flattery, deceit and lying. (See: Proverbs on the Tongue). Last week we examined pride. There can be proper pride when it is related to that which is good and reflects God and godliness. It is proper for God to be proud. It is proper for humans to delight in God, their relationship to Him and all that He does for them. Taking pleasure and having satisfaction in what the Lord does through you is proper. This can and should be expressed to others that do what is good and right. It is also proper to have self-confidence in what you know you can and should do while recognizing at the same time that it is God that is working through you.
However, for the most part, human pride is very negative. It is an evil that God hates for it is at the root of so many other sins. It was the first sin of Lucifer in thinking he could rise up and usurp God and His position (Isaiah 14). Mankind has followed suit in pride and its various expressions of arrogance, haughtiness, pomposity, insolence, superciliousness and disdain. Man thinks of himself more highly than he ought, then looks down on others he thinks are beneath him. Whenever a man magnifies himself, there is a corresponding diminishing of God in his eyes. I think it is safe to say that most of man’s problems both with God and other people will trace back to this issue of pride. That is why God is opposed to the proud (James 4:6).
Man’s only hope is to do the opposite and magnify God while diminishing himself. Man must humble himself and think rightly. It actually is not that difficult to humble yourself. All you have to do is recognize the truth, but that is the problem for most people. People do not want to acknowledge that they are but finite, mortal creatures that have fatally disobeyed their Creator and therefore are under His just condemnation while being completely incapable of making restitution, payment or absolving their own sins in anyway shape or form. Without divine intervention all men are condemned and will be cast into the eternal lake of fire. Yet, that is exactly what God has done for us in Jesus Christ. He has intervened to pay the price of sin so that we can be forgiven, redeemed and adopted into His family. The offer of salvation is a gift of His grace, and grace is exactly what the Lord gives to the humble (1 Peter 5:5, Ephesians 2:8-9).
Human relationships are also resolved when there is humility. Philippians 2:3-4 explains that the means to living in harmony is to “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.” This was the attitude of the Lord Jesus which we are also to have in ourselves (Philippians 2:5-8).
The next vice I want to look at has a close association with pride and has the same cure.
Anger
Anger is an emotion, a strong feeling of displeasure which is often accompanied by annoyance, antagonism or hostility. There are different levels of anger which range from the Lord’s burning and consuming wrath all the way down to vexation. These levels are expressed in many Hebrew synonyms. Because anger is an emotion, it is in itself neither good nor evil. Its moral quality is determined by its cause and the actions resulting from it. The anger of God is always righteous. When the anger of man reflects godliness, it can be righteous. However, man’s anger does not often reflect godliness and so is usually unrighteous. Even when man’s anger is righteous there must be great caution for as James 1:19-20 warns, “This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.”
As I prepared this sermon I soon realized that the subject of anger is large and the study of this subject would not be easy. There are many levels of anger with many different synonyms used. And even though I am limiting this study to only the various Hebrew synonyms since our study is focused on Proverbs, it became complex because the same Hebrew word can be translated as anger, wrath, fury, indignant or vexed depending on context while the same English word is also used for several different Hebrew words depending on context.
I will be giving fairly brief overviews of these Hebrew synonyms in broad categories that are descriptive of anger. I will also point out when that type of anger is righteous and when it is evil. I want you to have some idea about these various words and the levels of anger for that will give you a better understanding of the various Proverbs that use these them or their cognates. Since my goal is to help you practically apply the truth of God’s word to your life, this study will not be thorough and detailed. That would require writing a book and many weeks to go through it.
Anger that is Hot
The first broad category includes various words that describe anger in terms of being hot to some degree, or something that is being warmed including kindling a fire, or the smoke that rises from such a fire.
חֵמָה / hēmâ. This is the word for the most serious type of anger. The word is derived from either yāham, “be hot,” or hāmam “be or become warm,” “become hot. In the Old Testament it is only used in reference to heat within a person. It is used for both physical heat such as a fever (Deuteronomy 32:24), or the emotional heat of anger, hot displeasure, indignation, wrath, rage or fury.
Moses uses this term in Deuteronomy 9:19 to describe God’s reaction as “hot displeasure” alongside His anger and wrath over the unfaithfulness of His people concerning the incident regarding the idolatry of the Golden Calf (Exodus 32). In Jeremiah 42:18 it is translated as “wrath” that had been poured out on the inhabitants of Jerusalem for their sins. In Jeremiah 10:25 the prophet calls upon God to pour out His wrath, His fury on the evil nations that do not know the Lord and had laid waste Jacob. In 2 Kings 22:13-17 we find that while sorrow and repentance might delay it, it would not avert it. However, in Numbers 25:11 we find that the actions of Phinehas against those playing the harlot with the Midianite women did turn away God’s wrath from destroying the sons of Israel in His jealousy. It would seem then that once the Lord has become hot with this type of anger, it will have to either be poured out or some kind of execution of justice against its cause will have to be carried out. That makes this the most serious type of anger.
Hēmâ is also used in the Old Testament to describe this kind of anger in men – some righteously and some unrighteously. When Esau had this type of hot fury toward his brother because of his deception, Jacob had to flee to Haran (Genesis 27). It would be two decades before he could return and even then he was very fearful of Esau (Genesis 32-33). Naaman was unrighteous in his rage when Elisha told him he could get rid of his leprosy by washing in the Jordan river seven times (2 Kings 5:12). Naaman considered the rivers of Damascus to be superior and was leaving until his servants convinced him to at least try it. His attitude changed abruptly when he was cleansed as Elisha said would happen.
This was the righteous kind of anger that Ahasuareus had when he found out from Esther the evil plot Haman had to annihilate the Jews. The king’s anger subsided only after Haman was hanged on the very gallows Haman had prepared for executing righteous Mordecai. In this case the truth of Proverbs 16:14 was carried out in reality, “The fury (hēmâ) of a king is like messengers of death, But a wise man will appease it.” Haman was not wise and so was executed.
This word is translated as “enrage” in Proverbs 6:34-35 which is a warning to those that would go in to his neighbor’s wife, for whoever touches her will not go unpunished. “For jealousy enrages a man, And he will not spare in the day of vengeance. He will not accept any ransom, Nor will he be satisfied though you give many gifts.” The inability to appease brings out the seriousness of this type of anger. Proverbs 27:4 adds, “Wrath (hēmâ) is fierce and anger (ʾap) is a flood, But who can stand before jealousy?”
The Scriptures warn the righteous about getting caught up in this type of anger. Proverbs 19:19, “A man of great anger (hēmâ). will bear the penalty, For if you rescue him, you will only have to do it again.” Psalm 37:7-11, “Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes. Cease from anger and forsake wrath; Do not fret; it leads only to evildoing. For evildoers will be cut off, But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land. Yet a little while and the wicked man will be no more; And you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there. But the humble will inherit the land And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.”
חָרוֹן / hārôn is the next word and it has a similar meaning and is also one of the strongest words for anger in the Old Testament. According to the Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (TWOT – which I used a lot for this study), this word is related to an Aramaic root meaning “to cause fire to burn,” and to an Arabic root meaning “burning sensation.” However, the Hebrew word is used metaphorically in reference to an extreme anger or wrath that is hot or burning. This noun form is used only in reference to God and often joined with another Hebrew word for anger, אַף /ʾap. Together they are translated as “burning anger” (Exodus 32:12), “fierce anger” (Numbers 25:4), “fierce wrath” (1 Samuel 28:18).
This idea that God has such burning wrath both surprises and repels some people because they have thought of God as a doting grandfather who only gives good gifts to His grandchildren and never corrects them. That is a false God and not fitting for our Holy Creator who is righteous, just and loving. He will carry out justice because it is part of protecting His holy nature and interests. The Lord is righteous and sovereign and so will carry out His divine order. He has an infinite passion toward the objects of His love and so has a corresponding holy jealousy. (Take note that while we often use the word jealously to describe envy, another meaning of jealously is “fierce protection of one’s rights and possessions”). These demand that He respond in the various levels of anger toward anyone or anything that profanes, tries to block or rejects that love or His order. We naturally understand this when it comes to what rightfully belongs to us. There is a proper and holy jealousy that a husband and wife are to have toward each other and their children. They will seek to protect those family relationships from both external and internal dangers. Multiply that by infinity and you will have some idea about the nature of God’s holy jealousy and His burning anger that arises from it.
Moses warned the Israelites in Deuteronomy 4:23-24 that they would need to be careful to keep their covenant with God and not fall into idolatry for “For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.” They had already seen this carried out when Nadab and Abihu offered “strange fire” before the Lord in their incense pans. Because of their irreverence, fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them (Leviticus 10:1-3). They had also seen this in the matter of the sin at Peor when the people played harlotry with the Midianite women resulting in 23,000 being killed by a plague from the Lord and another 1,000 executed by the judges of Israel (Number 25, 1 Corinthians 10:8).
This type of righteous burning anger that is consuming to this degree belongs only to God. There is no hint of anything evil within it. In addition, it is tempered by God’s other attributes otherwise we would all be consumed by it immediately. 2 Peter 3:9 tells us the Lord is patient, not willing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance. That is the Lord’ present mercy, yet this burning anger is still present and will be unleashed in consuming the wicked in the future. Isaiah 13:13 says of that future day, “Therefore I will make the heavens tremble, And the earth will be shaken from its place At the fury of the Lord of hosts In the day of His burning anger.”
Man can and does have something similar at times for there is a related word, חֳרִי / hŏrî, that is used of both God and man. It was in the Lord’s “fierce anger” that He cut off Judah and let Nebuchadnezzar destroy Jerusalem (Lamentations 2:3). Jonathan was justified in having “fierce anger” after his father, King Saul, had hurled his spear at him for questioning his father’s desire to kill David (1 Samuel 20:34). When your own father attempts to kill you for defending a friend, displeasure that is extreme to the point of feeling it burn is appropriate. However, such emotion by the Ephraimites against Judah in 2 Chronicles 25:7 was completely wrong. King Amaziah had hired and paid them to go into battle with him, but the Lord directed him to send them home before the battle began. The Ephraimites returned home in “fierce anger” because they selfishly wanted the opportunity to gain even more by collecting from the spoil from the attack on Seir. Their utter unrighteousness is seen in such a strong term being used to describe their anger. No wonder God told Amaziah to send them home. The Lord would not be with them in the coming battle if they were present.
The related verb form of this same word, חָרָה / hārâ, is also used for both God and man, and is a very strong term describing anger being kindled as would a fire. It is used in reference to both the source causing the anger and the object such anger was against. When used in reference to the Lord, it is a righteous anger that is generated and His anger toward anything is always righteous. For example, in Numbers 11, the Lord responded to the complaining of the people about lacking meat by sending them an abundance of quail, but they were so greedy in gathering the quail that “the anger of the Lord was kindled against the people, and the Lord struck the people with a severe plague
When this word is used in reference to man, it could be a righteous or unrighteous anger. In Job 32:2-3, Elihu had his anger kindled because Job sought to justify himself before God and his three friends found no answer to Job’s dilemma, yet condemned him. This is an example of a righteous anger being kindled because it reflects God’s own reaction. In Job 42:7 the Lord rebuked Job’s three sorry counselors saying“to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is kindled against you and against your two friends, because you have not spoken of Me what is right as My servant Job has.” Their arrogance, and self-righteousness prompted the Lord’s great disapproval.
The same person can have a righteous anger kindled some times and an unrighteous anger at other times. In 1 Samuel 11, Saul was told about the Ammonites besieging the city of Jabesh-gilead and he became angry after the Spirit of the Lord came upon him. This was righteous anger that was kindled. Saul is also an example of a man who became unrighteously angry. I mentioned Jonathan having righteous anger toward his father earlier for trying to kill him. That was preceded by Saul becoming angry because Jonathan had given David permission to be away when it was Saul’s plan to murder him.
Genesis 39:19 is an example of a man’s anger kindled for right reason and yet he was still wrong. Potiphar’s wife accused Joseph of trying to seduce her. It was right for him to become angry because a husband should be jealous in protecting his wife. But in this case, he was still wrong for his wife lied and Joseph was innocent. That is always one of the great dangers of man’s anger. We can think ourselves justified and yet be unrighteous because we did not know the truth. This is one of the reasons Proverbs gives many warnings about being slow to anger. Proverbs 15:18, “A hot-tempered man (hēmâ) stirs up strife, But the slow to anger (ʾap) calms a dispute.”
For the most part, man’s anger is kindled for sinful reasons and is therefore unrighteous. Jonah became angry because a plant that had been giving him shade from the hot sun was killed by a worm. While any of us can understand the displeasure that would come from losing something so pleasant, Jonah’s anger was selfish. It was not his plant and even more so, the reason he was sitting on the hill overlooking Ninevah was because he was hoping to see the Lord destroy the city and its people that he despised so much. They repented and God granted them mercy instead and that upset Jonah. More obvious examples of unrighteous anger include Cain’s anger due to envy of his brother, Abel (Genesis 4); Balak’s anger against Balaam because he would not curse Israel for him (Numbers 24); Saul’s envy of the praise being given to David (1 Samuel 18); Sanballat’s anger that Nehemiah was rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem (Nehemiah 3 & 4);
Proverbs 24:19-20 uses this term saying, “Do not fret (hārâ) because of evildoers Or be envious of the wicked; For there will be no future for the evil man; The lamp of the wicked will be put out.”The idea here is that you should do not let anger be kindled in you because of evildoers for God will deal with them in justice.
כָעַס / kāʿas. This word is similar to חָרָה / hārâ, but not as strong as the idea of kindling a fire. This word means “to provoke the heart to a heated condition which in turn leads to specific actions” (TWOT), and so is translated as vex, agitate and stir up. Moses warned the people in Deuteronomy 4:25 that they would provoke God when they did evil in His sight. When these provocations continue long enough they kindle the fire of God’s fierce wrath. 2 Kings 23:26 is an example of this. “However, the Lord did not turn from the fierceness (hārôn) of His great wrath (ʾap) with which His anger (ʾap) burned against Judah, because of all the provocations (kāʿas) with which Manasseh had provoked (kāʿas) Him.” However, if the provocation has not reached the level of burning anger, then it can be calmed. Ezekiel 16:42 is such an example, “So I will calm My fury against you and My jealousy will depart from you, and I will be pacified and angry no more.”
People can also have their hearts provoked to a hot condition. The godly are vexed and brought to grief by the sin of the wicked. Hannah’s rival, Peninnah, provoked her to grief (1 Samuel 1:6,16). Psalm 6 describes the vexation caused to the righteous by their adversaries. There are two Proverbs that use this word in this sense translating it as either grief or vexed.
Proverbs 17:25, “A foolish son is a grief (kāʿas) to his father And bitterness to her who bore him.” A father’s heart will become hot with distress at the foolishness of a son while the mother’s pain and despondency is even stronger. Proverbs 21:19 describes the consequence of having an ungodly spouse. “It is better to live in a desert land Than with a contentious and vexing (kāʿas) woman.” In this Proverb it is the wife that is ungodly, but the same principle applies if it is the husband. Either of these can lead to separation or divorce, and if it is both husband and wife, it is unlikely the marriage will last long. When I was a pastor southern California, I actually had a man who was a new Christian come in to see me because he wanted to know if this verse meant he could leave his very contentious wife and move out to the Mojave desert.
In the opposite direction, the wicked are provoked to vexation and anger by the actions and lives of the godly. Psalm 112:10 describes this in general terms. Ecclesiastes 7:9 teaches that such provoking of the wicked is a sign of their foolishness. Proverbs 12:16 uses this word in the same sense, “A fool’s anger is known at once, But a prudent man conceals dishonor.” A fool cannot hide his displeasure when anything provokes him. Proverbs 27:3, describes the burden such fools are to everyone else. “A stone is heavy and the sand weighty, But the provocation of a fool is heavier than both of them.”
עָשַן /ʿāšan. This word and its cognates are the last in this broad category related to anger as heat and it refers to the smoke that rises from a fire. It is used both literally and figuratively. Smoke and fire are often physical aspects of a theophany, a physical manifestation of the presence of God such as the smoking oven and flaming torch that appeared when God made His covenant with Abraham (Genesis 15:17), or the fire and smoke on Mount Sinai when God met with Moses and manifested Himself to His people (Exodus 19:18, etc.). The word is used in a figurative sense of God’s anger in passages such as Deuteronomy 29:20 and Psalm 74:1 which says, “O God, why have You rejected us forever? Why does Your anger smoke against the sheep of Your pasture?”
The only usage of this word in Proverbs is in 10:26 which uses the characteristics of physical smoke to describe the irritation caused to others by those who are lazy. “Like vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, So is the lazy one to those who send him.” Those who are irresponsible prod to anger those who are depending on them.
Anger that Splinters
The next word, קָצַף / qāsap, and its cognates do not appear in Proverbs, but I want to briefly mention it just to give a fuller idea about the consequences of anger. It is used to describe a splintered or snapped off branch, and when used metaphorically it refers to the fracturing of relationships. It is used of God and people and variously translated as angry, furious, wrathful and enraged. Anger is dangerous because it can result in fractured and destroyed relationships with others.
Anger that Storms
זָעַף / zāʿap refers to the raging of a storm as in Jonah 1:15 and so is used to describe a storm in the heart that could result in a troubled appearance (Daniel 1:10), dejection (Genesis 40:6), or rage (2 Chronicles 26:19). Proverbs 19:3 describes the cause and storm within a foolish man. “The foolishness of man ruins his way, And his heart rages (zāʿap) against the Lord.” His own folly brought him to destruction. King Uzziah is an example of this. He decided to take on the priestly role in the Temple, and when opposed by the legitimate priests, he became enraged (zāʿap) against them much as described in the first part of Proverbs 19:12, “The king’s wrath (zāʿap) is like the roaring of a lion . . .” The Lord smote him with leprosy and he remained a leper to the day of his death.
Anger of Indignation
זָעַם (zāʿam) refers to experiencing or expressing intense anger especially in denunciation or scolding. It is a characteristic of God for Psalm 7:11 states, “God is a righteous judge, And a God who has indignation every day.” The Psalm goes on to speak of God’s judgment of the wicked. Isaiah 66:14 states that God is “indignant toward His enemies” and will execute His judgment upon them.
This word occurs three times in Proverbs. It is first used in Proverbs 22:14 in the sense of a person who is denounced or cursed, “The mouth of an adulteress is a deep pit; He who is cursed (zāʿam) of the Lord will fall into it.” Those who have been declared to be evil are easy prey for the seductions of the adulteress.
In Proverbs 24:24 this is a reaction to the perversion of the wicked, “He who says to the wicked, “You are righteous,” Peoples will curse him, nations will abhor (zāʿam) him.” God pronounces a woe upon those who would do this in Isaiah 5:20, so it is no wonder that such people bring on an intense anger against them.
In Proverbs 25:23 this is the natural reaction toward those who are malicious in what they say, “The north wind brings forth rain, And a backbiting tongue, an angry (zāʿam) countenance.” Talebearers and slanders should not be surprised when others become angry with them.
Anger that Overflows
עָבַר / ʿābar. This word group has a primary meaning to pass over, by or through, but is also used metaphorically for anger that overflows. It is used of God in several places to describe the Lord’s burning anger that overflows to judge and destroy the wicked. An example of this is Isaiah 13:9, “Behold, the day of the Lord is coming, Cruel, with fury and burning anger, To make the land a desolation; And He will exterminate its sinners from it.”
It is used of a king toward those who dishonor him in Proverbs 14:35, “The king’s favor is toward a servant who acts wisely, But his anger (ābar) is toward him who acts shamefully.” It is also used of the wicked in Proverbs 22:8, “He who sows iniquity will reap vanity, And the rod of his fury (ābar) will perish.” When it is combined with pride it is an anger of arrogance and insolence. “Proud,” “Haughty,” “Scoffer,” are his names, Who acts with insolent (ābar) pride,” (Proverbs 21:24). Proverbs 11:4 & 23 use this word for the doom awaiting the wicked because God’s wrath will overflow upon them. “Riches do not profit in the day of wrath (ābar), But righteousness delivers from death” (Proverbs 11:4) and “The desire of the righteous is only good, But the expectation of the wicked is wrath (ābar)” (Proverbs 11:23).
Anger that Trembles
רָגַז / rāgaz. The primary meaning of this word group is to shake or quake and includes the trembling that may come with anger, fear or anticipation. Its only usage in Proverbs is in 29:9 describing the extreme reactions of the foolish man, “When a wise man has a controversy with a foolish man, The foolish man either rages (rāgaz) or laughs, and there is no rest.”
Anger of Face
אַף /ʾap is used to refer to the physical nose, nostril or face. However, it is mainly used as a metaphor for anger. This seems to be due to way a person who is angry will change their breathing pattern and flare their nostrils. This word emphasizes the emotional elements of wrath and anger compared to other terms which focus more on the particular expression of anger. This term is used of both the anger of God and the anger of men and is the most common word in the Hebrew Scriptures for anger.
As with the other terms we have already looked at, this divine anger is God’s emotional response to sin which is an offense to His holiness and also His love. The Lord’s anger is always righteous and just and in keeping with and prompted by all of His other attributes.
It is possible for man’s anger to be righteous, and there are things the righteous should be angry about as a reflection of godliness. There should be anger over sin and its consequences both in dishonoring God and its destructive force on man. Yet, even godly men must be very careful lest their anger be for the wrong reason or they allow it to control them. This is why Ephesians 4:26–27 admonishes, “Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity.” This is why Proverbs gives so many encouragements to be slow to anger and warnings about being quick to become angry. Proverbs 14:29, “He who is slow to anger has great understanding, But he who is quick-tempered exalts folly.” Proverbs 15:18, “A hot-tempered man (hēmâ) stirs up strife, But the slow to anger (ʾap) calms a dispute.” Proverbs 19:11, “A man’s discretion makes him slow to anger, And it is his glory to overlook a transgression.” Proverbs 16:32, “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, And he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city.” The slow to anger show discretion, great wisdom and are better than the mighty being able to calm a dispute. Those who are quick tempered exalt folly and stir up trouble.
The anger of man, however, is generally unrighteous due to man’s innate selfishness and sinfulness. Man becomes angry because he does not get what he wants and what he wants is usually sinful to some degree. This is why Proverbs has such warnings about anger. Proverbs 29:22, “An angry man stirs up strife, And a hot-tempered man abounds in transgression. ” Proverbs 29:8, “Scorners set a city aflame, But wise men turn away anger.”
You want to avoid becoming a person who becomes angry. Proverbs 22:24–25 strongly advises, “Do not associate with a man given to anger; Or go with a hot-tempered man, Or you will learn his ways And find a snare for yourself.” Frankly, a lot of people want to blame their ethnic heritage for being hot-tempered, but the truth is that its only blood tie is that it is a sinful behavior learned it from their parents. Proverbs 30:33 points out, “For the churning of milk produces butter, And pressing the nose brings forth blood; So the churning of anger produces strife.” This is an obvious truth, yet people prone to fighting either do not seem to recognize it or they enjoy the strife. If you are prone to being hot tempered, then break the cycle, learn how do deal with anger and save your children and your friends some anguish.
How do you diminish anger? Proverbs 15:1, “A gentle answer turns away wrath (hēmâ), But a harsh word stirs up anger (ʾap).” Learn to be gentle instead of harsh. That requires you to be humble, which takes us back to where we finished last week. Learn the fear of the Lord and turn from your pride to humble yourself before Him. Recognize that God’s ways are always better than your own and commit yourself to learning about Him and how He wants you to live and following it. Ask Him to forgive you of your sins because of Jesus’ sacrifice for you and change you into being a true follower of Christ. Make it your goal to be able to say as did Paul in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.”
Sermon Notes – 12/1/2012
Proverbs on Vices, Part 2 – Anger
Introduction
A vice is a moral fault or failing that can range from the trivial to the ____________
Only _________ can set the standard of what is good or bad, right or wrong
Pride is thinking more highly than you ought – it magnifies ________ while diminishing God
Man’s only hope is __________- for God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble
Anger is an emotion, a strong feeling of ___________which is often accompanied by annoyance or hostility
Anger is an emotion and therefore neither good nor evil in _____________
Anger is righteous when it reflects _______________ and unrighteous when it does not James 1:19-20
Anger that is Hot
חֵמָה / hēmâ – __________within a person – physical or emotional
Deuteronomy 9:19 – God’s “________displeasure” Jeremiah 10:25; 42:18 – God’s “wrath,” “fury”
2 Kings 22:13-17 – sorrow & repentance ____________it, but did not avert it
Numbers 25:11 – God’s _____________ turned away
When God has this type of anger there must be some execution of ____________or it will be poured out
Men with unrighteous hot fury – Esau (Genesis 27); _________________(2 Kings 5:12)
______________ hot fury – Ahasuareus (Esther 7) (see Prov. 16:14)
Righteous jealousy _____________ – Proverbs 6:34-35; 27:4
Be _____________ of hot fury – Proverbs 19:19; Psalm 37:7-11
חָרוֹן / hārôn – cause fire to burn, ____________. Combined with anger = burning anger / fierce wrath
God’s burning wrath is ___________and righteous arising out of His many attributes including love
Jealousy – “fierce ________________ of one’s rights and possessions”
Deuteronomy 4:23-24 “For the Lord your God is a ___________________ fire, a jealous God.”
This particular anger belongs only to _________and it is tempered with His longsuffering – 2 Peter 3:9
חֳרִי / hŏrî – “fierce anger” in a man. Justified in ______________ – 1 Samuel 20:34
Unrighteous in the ________________ (2 Chronicles 25:7)
חָרָה / hārâ – Righteous in the _______ Numbers 11. Righteous in ___________- Job 32:2-3
Righteous in _______in 1 Samuel 11 Unrighteous in __________in 1 Samuel 20
_______had a righteous motive to be angry, but was unrighteous because it was based on a lie (Gen. 39)
Man’s anger is usually unrighteous because it is kindled for _____________ and sinful reasons
כָעַס / kā’as – to provoke to the heart to a ____________condition (not as strong a “kindle a fire”)
God’s anger _______________- Deuteronomy 4:25; 2 Kings 23:26, Ezekiel 16:42
Evil people provoking others to ____________- 1 Samuel 1:6,16 – Peninnah provoked Hannah. Psalm 6
Proverbs 17:25_________________________ Proverbs 21:19_________________________
The unrighteous provoked by the ___________- Psalm 112 Eccl. 7:9 Prov. 12:16 27:3
עָשַן /ʿāšan – _______that rises from a fire – often associated with theophanies – Gen. 15:17; Exod. 19:18
Figurative of _______ – Deut. 29:20; Psalm 74:1 _________________- Proverbs 10:26
Anger that Splinters – קָצַף / qāsap
Physically, a ________________ branch. Metaphorically – a fractured relationship
Anger that Storms – זָעַף / zāʿap
Physically, a storm of weather. Metophorically – a ____________within the heart.
Proverbs 19:3_________________________ Proverbs 19:12_________________________
Anger of Indignation – זָעַם / zāʿam – experiencing or expressing ____________anger esp. in denunciation
A characteristic of ____________- Psalm 7:11; Isaiah 66:14
Proverbs 22:14 Proverbs 24:24 Proverbs 25:23
Anger that Overflows – עָבַר / ʿābar – to _____________over, by or through.
Metaphorically – anger that ______________. Isaiah 13:9
Proverbs 14:35_________________________ Proverbs 22:8 _________________________
Proverbs 21:24_________________________ Proverbs 11:4 & 23_________________________ Anger that Trembles – רָגַז / rāgaz – ____________, quake, tremble with anger, fear or anticipation
Proverbs 29:9_________________________________________
Anger of Face אַף /ʾap – physical: nose, _____________, face
Metaphorically – anger emphasizing the ________________elements compared to angers expression
The Lord’s anger is always _________& just in keeping with and prompted by all of His other attributes
Man’s anger can be righteous, but there must be _____________: Ephesians 4:26-27
Be __________to anger: Proverbs 14:29; 15:18; 19:11; 16:32
Man becomes angry because he does not get what he wants and what he wants is usually ___________
Proverbs 29:22_________________________ Proverbs 29:8,_________________________
____________ learning to become angry – Proverbs 22:24–25
Angry people produce ____________- Proverbs 30:33
Diminish anger through _____________ – Proverbs 15:1
Learn the fear of the Lord and ____________ yourself before Him
KIDS CORNER
Young Children – draw a picture about something you hear during the sermon. Explain your picture(s) to your parents at lunch. Older Children – Do one or more of the following: 1) Count how many times the words “anger” said. 2) Discuss with your parents how to be gentle instead of angry
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