Longsuffering

LONGSUFFERING.—In the OT the RV [Note: Revised Version.] uses this word only in Jer 15:15, where it is the translation of a phrase usually rendered ‘slow to anger’ (cf. Exo 34:6, Num 14:18, Psa 86:15, in which passages AV [Note: Authorized Version.] has ‘longsuffering’).

In the NT ‘longsuffering’ is the usual tr. [Note: translate or translation.] of makrothumia and the corresponding verb. (The only exceptions are ‘patience,’ Heb 6:12, Jas 5:10; cf. vh. in Mat 18:25; Mat 18:29, Jas 5:7 f.; and adv. in Act 26:3). The RV [Note: Revised Version.] improves on AV [Note: Authorized Version.] by using ‘longsuffering’ in Luk 18:7, 1Th 5:14. The Gr. word means ‘a long holding out of the mind before it gives room to action or passion—generally to passion.’ (Trench, Synonyms of NT, § liii.); it implies the opposite of short temper; cf. Old Eng. ‘longanimity.’ In the NT the longsuffering of God is regarded as a proof of His ‘goodness’ (Rom 2:4; here and elsewhere ‘longsuffering,’ || ‘forbearance’ [arochç]) and of his faithfulness (2Pe 3:9; 2Pe 3:15); it is manifested in the gracious restraint which characterizes His attitude towards those who deserve His wrath (Rom 9:22, 1Pe 3:20). The Divine longsuffering is perfectly exemplified in Christ’s dealings with sinners (1Ti 1:16). Longsuffering is, therefore, a conspicuous grace in the ideal Christian character (2Co 6:5, Eph 4:2, Col 3:12, 1Th 5:14, 2Ti 3:10; 2Ti 4:2); it is viewed as an evidence of Divine strengthening (Col 1:11), as a manifestation of love (1Co 13:4), and as a fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22).

J. G. Tasker.

long-suf´ẽr-ing (אפּים ארך, ’erekh ’appayim; μακροθυηία, makrothumı́a): The words ’erekh ’appayim, translated longsuffering, mean literally, “long of nose” (or “breathing”), and, as anger was indicated by rapid, violent breathing through the nostrils, “long of anger,” or “slow to wrath.” The adjective is applied to God (Exo 34:6 the King James Version, in the name of Yahweh as proclaimed to Moses; Num 14:18 the King James Version; Psa 86:15 the King James Version; the Revised Version (British and American) “slow to anger,” which is also the translation in other places; the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American) Neh 9:17; Psa 103:8; Psa 145:8; Pro 15:18; Pro 16:32; Joe 2:13; Jon 4:2; Nah 1:3); it is associated with “great kindness” and “plenteous in mercy.” The substantive occurs in Jer 15:15: “Take me not away in thy longsuffering.” In Ecc 7:8, we have ’erekh rū^aḥ, the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American) “patient in spirit.”

The word in the New Testament rendered “longsuffering,” makrothumia (once makrothuméō, “to be longsuffering”), which is the rendering of ’erekh ’appayim in the Septuagint, is literally, “long of mind or soul” (regarded as the seat of the emotions), opposed to shortness of mind or soul, irascibility, impatience, intolerance. It is attributed to God (Rom 2:4; Rom 9:22; 2Pe 3:9), of His bearing long with sinners and slowness to execute judgment on them. It is, therefore, one of “the fruits of the Spirit” in man (Gal 5:22) which Christians are frequently exhorted to cherish and show one toward the other (Eph 4:2; Col 1:11; Col 3:12, etc.); it belongs, Paul says, to the love, without which all else is nothing: “Love suffereth long (makrothumeı́), and is kind” (1Co 13:4); The verb makrothumeō is sometimes translated by “patience” (Mat 18:26, Mat 18:29, “Have patience with me”). Luk 18:7 has been variously rendered; the King James Version has “And shall not God avenge his own elect ... though he bear long with them”; the Revised Version (British and American) “and yet he is longsuffering over them,” the American Revised Version margin “and is he slow to punish on their behalf?” Weymouth (New Testament in Modern Speech) has “although he seems slow in taking action on their behalf,” which most probably gives the sense of the passage; in Jas 5:7, Jas 5:8 the verb occurs thrice, the King James Version “be patient,” “hath long patience”; the Revised Version (British and American) also translates by “patient”; this, however, as in Mat 18:26, Mat 18:29, seems to lose the full force of the Greek word. According to Trench (Synonyms of the New Testament, 189), the difference between hupomonḗ (“patience”) and makrothumia is that the latter word expresses patience in respect to persons, and the former in respect to things; hence, hupomonē is never ascribed to God; where He is called “the God of patience,” it is as He gives it to His servants and saints. But in Jas 5:7 it is used with reference to things, and in Col 1:11 it is associated with patience (compare Heb 6:12, Heb 6:15), suggesting patient endurance of trials and sufferings. In Col 1:11 it is also associated with “joy,” indicating that it is not a mere submissiveness, but a joyful acceptance of the will of God, whatever it may be. In The Wisdom of Solomon 15:1; Ecclesiasticus 5:4, we have “longsuffering” (makróthumos) ascribed to God; also in Ecclesiasticus 2:11, the Revised Version (British and American) “mercy.”

The word ‘longsuffering’ occurs in the English NT in Luk_18:7 (Revised Version only; Authorized Version ‘bear long with’), Rom_2:4; Rom_9:22, 1Co_13:4, 2Co_6:6, Gal_5:22, Eph_4:2, Col_1:11; Col_3:12, 1Th_5:14 (Revised Version only; Authorized Version ‘patient’), 1Ti_1:16, 2Ti_3:10; 2Ti_4:2, 1Pe_3:20, 2Pe_3:9; 2Pe_3:15. The Greek words corresponding to this are ìáêñüèõìïò, ìáêñïèõìßá, ìáêñïèõìåῖí. These forms, however, occur in the original in a number of passages, where the English Bible (both Authorized Version and Revised Version ) has as their rendering ‘patient,’ ‘patiently,’ ‘patience’ (Mat_18:26, Act_26:3, Heb_6:12; Heb_6:15, Jam_5:7-8; Jam_5:10). In the Septuagint the word occurs in the following passages: Exo_34:6, Num_14:18, Neh_9:17, Psa_86:15; Psa_103:8; Psa_145:8, Pro_14:29; Pro_15:18; Pro_16:32; Pro_19:11; Pro_25:15, Ecc_7:8, Jer_15:15, Joe_2:13, Jon_4:2, Nah_1:3. In all these passages the Hebrew has àֶøָêְ àַôַéִí, or the noun-form of the same word. Besides these there are four instances where the Septuagint renders by ìáêñïèõìßá other Hebrew words, or is based on a different Hebrew text, so that the conception does not occur in the English Bible. These are Job_7:18, Pro_17:27, Isa_57:15, Dan_4:24. ìáêñïèõìßá, is a word belonging to the later Greek.

The Hebrew àֶøָêְ àַôַéִí and the Greek ìáêñüèõìïò absolutely coincide in their verbal structure. None the less there is to be noted a difference in the basic figure underlying each, which will explain the difference in usage. The Hebrew àַôַּéִí specifically means ‘anger,’ ‘wrath,’ and accordingly the àָøֶêְ àַ× is one who is ‘long,’ in the sense of ‘long-delaying’ his anger; hence in many cases the word is rendered by ‘slow to anger’ in the English Bible. On the other hand, èõìüò in ìáêñüèõìïò does not specifically denote ‘anger,’ but has the general meaning of ‘temper,’ although it can also have the former specialized sense. A ìáêñüèõìïò is therefore he who keeps his temper long, and this can be understood with reference to wilful provocation by man, in which case it will mean the exercise of restraint from anger; or with reference to trying circumstances and persons, in which case it will mean the exercise of patience. The Greek term thus comes to have a double meaning whilst the Hebrew equivalent has only one, never being used in the sense of ‘patience.’ Jer_15:15 is no exception to this, for when the prophet here prays, ‘Take me not away in thy longsuffering,’ he relates the longsuffering to his persecutors, and expresses the fear that God’s deferring their punishment may result in his own death.

ìáêñïèõìßá is in the NT employed in both senses-that of ‘longsuffering’ and that of ‘patience’-with reference to both God and man. The only instance of the meaning ‘patience’ in its application to God seems to be Luk_18:7. Here it is said that God will ‘avenge his elect that cry to him day and night (êáὶ ìáêñïèõìåῖ ἐðʼ áὐôïῖò) although he is longsuffering over them.’ The áὐôïῖò does not have for its antecedent the persecutors of the elect, but the elect themselves. The meaning is that God proceeds slowly and patiently in attending to their case (cf. 2Pe_3:9 : âñáäýíåé, ‘the Lord is not slack concerning his promise’). In all other cases the word when used of God denotes specifically the restraint of His anger and the deferring of the execution thereof (= ὀñãÞ); thus Rom_2:4; Rom_9:22, 1Ti_1:16, 1Pe_3:20.

This Divine longsuffering is exercised with a two-fold purpose: (a) to give its objects time for repentance (Rom_2:4, 2Pe_3:9; 2Pe_3:15); (b) to gain time and prepare the opportunity for the execution of His purpose in other respects (Rom_9:22; here the ‘enduring with longsuffering of the vessels of wrath’ is placed side by side with the purpose of God [èÝëåéí] to show His wrath, and the ìáêñïèõìßá does not imply a reversal or suspense of this purpose [so Weiss], but simply a delay in its execution, among other things for the reason stated in Rom_9:23, ‘that he might make known the riches of his glory upon vessels of mercy’).

ìáêñïèõìßá as exercised by men towards men may be both ‘longsuffering’ and ‘patience.’ It is not always easy to tell with certainty which of the two is in the mind of the writer, but in a case like Col_1:11, where ὑðïìïíÞ, ‘patience,’ and ìáêñïèõìßá, ‘longsuffering,’ occur, together, the meaning is plain. Trench (NT Synonyms3, 1876, p. 191) observes that ìáêñïèõìßá always refers to persons, never to things. This is not quite correct, for Heb_6:12; Heb_6:15 proves that it can be used in respect to circumstances or things as well as to persons. Patience can be exercised with reference to trying persons as well as to trying circumstances; and, from the nature of the case, where the former happens the distinction between ‘longsuffering’ and ‘patience’ will become more or less a flecting one and the line will be hard to draw (cf. Gal_5:22, Eph_4:2, Col_1:11; Col_3:12, 1Th_5:14, 2Ti_3:10, 2Pe_3:15 on the one hand with Jam_5:7-8; Jam_5:10 on the other).

ìáêñïèõìßá in the sense of ‘longsuffering’ has for its synonym ἀíï÷Þ; in the sense of ‘patience,’ ὑðïìïíÞ. The difference between ìáêñïèõìßá and ἀíï÷Þ (Rom_2:4; Rom_3:26) seems to be that in ἀíï÷Þ the idea of the temporariness of the suspension of punishment is given with the word as such, whereas ìáêñïèõìßá, so far as the word is concerned, might be never exhausted. As to ὑðïìïíÞ, this differs from ìáêñïèõìßá in having an element of positive heroic endurance in it, whilst the patience called ìáêñïèõìßá is a more negative conception which denotes the absence of a spirit of resistance and rebellion. As stated above, ìáêñïèõìßá occurs of God at least once in the sense of ‘patience’; ὑðïìïíÞ is nowhere ascribed to God. èåὸò ôῆò ὑðïìïíῆò (Rom_15:5) is not ‘the God who shows patience,’ but ‘the God who gives patience’ (cf. Rom_15:13, Heb_13:20, 1Pe_5:10). It is predicated of Jesus in 2Th_3:5, Heb_12:1-2.

Geerhardus Vos.

See PATIENCE.