Patience (Part 1)

This is the first study in a series of studies on the topic of patience.

Gal 5:22 ESV - But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience (G3115 – μακροθυμια – makrothymia), kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

The word patience in this text translates the Greek word makrothymia (G3115), a noun in a family of words that include a related verb, adjective and adverb.

• G3114 – μακροθυμεω – makrothymeo – verb – Be lenient
• G3115 – μακροθυμια – makrothymia – noun – Leniency
• G3115.1 – μακροθυμος – makrothymos – adjective – Lenient
  
• G3116 – μακροθυμως – makrothymos – adverb – Leniently
  

One of the definitions given in Thayer's Lexicon for this word is "slowness in avenging wrongs."  The Apostolic Bible Polyglot uses the word leniency to define makrothymia.  Many of the Old Testament uses of this family of words are describing the slowness to anger, forebearance, tolerance, endurance, restraint and clemency of God over our disobedience.  For this reason, I would like to focus on leniency— the restraint of a parent with a wayward child— when looking at some of these Old Testament texts.

In the texts below, key points are highlighted in yellow.  The English words that translate one of these Greek words (makrothymeo, makrothymia, makrothymos, makrothymos) in the Septuagint are in bold and are followed by a Strong's number and the Hebrew text (in Hebrew script and English transliteration) that the Greek word translates.  I will discuss the Hebrew words that these Greek words translate in a future post. 


The first use of these words in the Septuagint is in Exodus 34:6.  It is the well known passage that begins "The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger..."  Notice in this passage the connection between slow to anger and "forgiving iniquity and transgression."

Exod 34:5 ESV - The Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. 6 The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, "The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger (G3115.1 / ארך אפים – erekh apayim), and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, 7 keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation."

Later, when the people rebel at the border of Canaan, Moses intercedes with God and reminds Him of His own words.  Moses than adds: "Please pardon the iniquity of this people" and God responds "I have pardoned, according to your word."

Num 14:2 ESV - And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, "Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness!... 4 And they said to one another, "Let us choose a leader and go back to Egypt." 5 Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the people of Israel.... 10 Then all the congregation said to stone them with stones. But the glory of the Lord appeared at the tent of meeting to all the people of Israel. 11 And the Lord said to Moses, "How long will this people despise me? And how long will they not believe in me, in spite of all the signs that I have done among them? 12 I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they." 13 But Moses said to the Lord , "Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for you brought up this people in your might from among them,... 15 Now if you kill this people as one man, then the nations who have heard your fame will say, 'It is because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land that he swore to give to them that he has killed them in the wilderness.'... 17 And now, please let the power of the Lord be great as you have promised, saying, 18 'The Lord is slow to anger (G3115.1 / ארך אפים – erekh apayim) and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but he will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, to the third and the fourth generation.' 19 Please pardon the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of your steadfast love, just as you have forgiven this people, from Egypt until now." 20 Then the Lord said, "I have pardoned, according to your word.

We can read an account in the book of Nehemiah where the people confess their sin and recall God's leniency with their ancestors.

Neh 9:16 ESV - But they and our fathers acted presumptuously and stiffened their neck and did not obey your commandments. 17 They refused to obey and were not mindful of the wonders that you performed among them, but they stiffened their neck and appointed a leader to return to their slavery in Egypt. But you are a God ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger (G3115.1 / ארך אפים – erekh apayim) and abounding in steadfast love, and did not forsake them. 18 Even when they had made for themselves a golden calf and said, 'This is your God who brought you up out of Egypt,' and had committed great blasphemies, 19 you in your great mercies did not forsake them in the wilderness. The pillar of cloud to lead them in the way did not depart from them by day, nor the pillar of fire by night to light for them the way by which they should go.

In the Psalms, we Bless the Lord for his tolerance and restraint for "He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities."

Psa 103:2 ESV - Bless the Lord , O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, 3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, 5 who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.... 8 The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger (G3115.1 / ארך אפים – erekh apayim) and abounding in steadfast love. 9 He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. 10 He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities.

In the book of Proverbs there are several verses that make comparisons or contrasts with this concept.  The contrasts are highlighted in green.  In these texts we are encouraged to imitate the patience of God.

Pro 14:29 ESV - Whoever is slow to anger (G3115.1 / ארך אפים – erekh apayim) has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.

Pro 15:18 ESV - A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger (G3115.1 / ארך אפים – erekh apayim) quiets contention.

Pro 17:27 ESV - Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit (G3115.1 / קר רוח – qar ruach) is a man of understanding.

Pro 19:11 ESV - Good sense makes one slow to anger (G3114 / ‏האריך אפו – he'erikh apo), and it is his glory to overlook an offense.

Ecc 7:8 ESV - Better is the end of a thing than its beginning, and the patient in spirit (G3115.1 / ‏ארך רוח – erekh ruach) is better than the proud in spirit.

God's tolerance and restraint should lead us to return to him, to "rend our hearts."

Joe 2:12 ESV - "Yet even now," declares the Lord , "return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; 13 and rend your hearts and not your garments." Return to the Lord , your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger (G3115.1 / ארך אפים – erekh apayim), and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster.
(NKJV – ... relents from doing harm. / CEV – The LORD said... I don't easily lose my temper, and I don't like to punish.)

Paul cautions us not to "presume" (NASB: think lightly of,  NIV: show contempt for) on the patience of God over our waywardness for "God's kindness" is meant to lead us to repentance.

Rom 2:4 ESV – Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience (G3115), not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?