The God Who Is Slow to Anger

THE GOD WHO IS…

Slow To Anger

INTRODUCTION — WHEN GOD DIDN’T REACT LIKE YOU EXPECTED

Have you ever looked back on a moment in your life—a season, a decision, a rebellion—and thought: “I’m shocked God didn’t give up on me.”

Maybe it was a failure you repeated more times than you want to admit.

Maybe it was a habit you just couldn’t break. Maybe it was a time you knew better… but didn’t do better. Maybe it was a moment where you assumed God must be frustrated, disappointed, even angry.

But instead of God reacting in hot anger… He responded with patience.

Instead of the “strike you down” version of God that some of us grew up hearing about… You found a God who slowed His steps, softened His tone, and continued to walk with you.

That is not weakness.

That is not God overlooking sin.

That is not God compromising His holiness.

That is the character of God as revealed by God Himself.

Today we come to the third phrase in the most repeated self-description God gives in the entire Bible:

FOUNDATIONAL SCRIPTURE

Exodus 34:6–7 (NIV) The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God,

slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet He does not leave the guilty unpunished; He punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.

[FOR SO MANY PEOPLE…] this is the phrase that surprises them most: “Slow to anger.” Let’s dive in to what God really means when He says this.

I. THE HEBREW PHRASE — ’EREK ’APPAYIM (“LONG OF NOSE”)

The Hebrew phrase translated “slow to anger” is: ’erekh ’appayim (אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם)

Literally: “long of nostrils” or “long-nosed.”

Now, before you picture God with an exaggerated cartoon nose… This is a Hebrew idiom built on the physical experience of anger.

In Hebrew:

“angry” = “nose burns hot”

“deep anger” = “hot nostrils”

When Potiphar believed Joseph tried to sleep with his wife, Scripture says:

“his nose burned hot.”

When someone’s anger flares, their face gets hot.

[SO IN THE HEBREW IMAGINATION…] A patient person is “long-nosed.” It takes a very long time for their anger to heat up.

This is why Proverbs 19:11 says: Proverbs 19:11 (NIV) A person’s wisdom yields patience; it is to one’s glory to overlook an offense.”

Hebrew: “A person’s wisdom makes them long of nose.”

Wisdom lengthens your fuse.

And God—according to God—is THE MOST “LONG-NOSED,” PATIENT, SLOW-TO-ANGER BEING IN THE UNIVERSE.

II. GOD DOES GET ANGRY — BUT NOT LIKE WE DO

Let’s hit this misconception about God head-on: God is not an angry deity waiting for people to mess up. But the Bible does talk about God getting angry.

[SO HOW DO WE…] hold these two truthful statements together?

1. GOD’S ANGER IS A METAPHOR, not a mood swing.

God doesn’t literally have a nose. He doesn’t flare His nostrils or turn red. 

Hebrew uses human body language to communicate divine emotion.

2. God’s anger is HIS RESPONSE TO HUMAN EVIL, not human inconvenience.

God is not irritated. He is not moody. He does not lash out because He lost His temper.

God’s anger is HIS JUSTICE AND HIS COMPASSION WORKING TOGETHER against anything that destroys His creation.

[THINK ABOUT IT…]

If you saw a child being bullied and didn’t feel anger— something would be wrong with your heart.

God feels anger when His world is vandalized by human evil.

BUT— God is slow to anger. God gives people an enormous amount of time to change.

III. GOD’S PATIENCE IN THE EXODUS STORY

Let’s look at Exodus 3 and the Ten Plagues

Pharaoh enslaves Israel. Pharaoh orders Hebrew baby boys to be thrown into the Nile. Pharaoh crushes God’s people under violence and oppression.

God sees it; God hears it; God feels it; And God sends Moses. But notice what God does: God gives Pharaoh ten opportunities to repent. TEN.

God could have judged him instantly… Instead—God delays judgment.

But when Pharaoh continues to harden his heart and finally rides out with his chariots to destroy Israel… God allows Pharaoh’s own evil to rebound onto him.

The waters that drowned Hebrew children now drown Pharaoh’s army.

The Bible calls this an act of God’s “hot anger.”

[BUT DON’T MISS THIS VERY IMPORTANT KEY POINT…] God’s anger ARRIVES ONLY AFTER ABUNDANT PATIENCE.

And God’s judgment is not arbitrary— It is God handing Pharaoh over to the consequences of his own choices.

IV. “HANDING OVER” IS THE PRIMARY EXPRESSION OF GOD’S ANGER

This is one of the most important insights in Scripture: **God’s anger is not God exploding. God’s anger is God withdrawing.**

God steps back. God removes Himself as the buffer. God allows people to experience the full weight of their own decisions.

You see this pattern everywhere throughout scripture…

[IN THE BOOK OF JUDGES…] For hundreds of years Israel repeatedly turns from God, worships idols, oppresses the vulnerable, and abandons the covenant.

Scripture repeatedly says things like: Judges 2:14 (ESV) The anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and He gave them over to plunderers…”

Not because God abandoned His people— but because God allowed them to taste where their choices were leading.

[IN ROMANS 1…] Paul says the same thing three times: “God gave them over…” “God handed them over…” “God turned them over…”

This is DIVINE JUDGMENT— not lightning bolts, BUT consequences.

God lets people walk the path they insist on walking, even when that path leads to their ruin.

BUT… and this is crucial that we understand… Even in judgment, GOD IS PATIENT, LONGING FOR REPENTANCE.

[SO LET’S LOOK AT SOME…] KEY TRUTHS ABOUT GOD’S ANGER

1. God’s anger is ALWAYS A RESPONSE TO HUMAN EVIL.

Never to inconvenience. Never to annoyance. Never because He’s just “had enough.”

2. God’s anger FLOWS FROM HIS COMPASSION AND LOYAL LOVE.

If God didn’t care, He wouldn’t get angry.

INDIFFERENCE IS THE OPPOSITE OF LOVE, not anger.

3. God’s anger is HIS REFUSAL TO LET HUMANS SIT FOREVER IN SELF-DESTRUCTION.

He will not allow sin to reign unchallenged. He will confront evil because He is good.

4. God’s anger SERVES HIS MISSION TO RESCUE.

Anger is not the end… Restoration is.

God’s justice CLEARS THE WAY FOR GOD’S MERCY.

[AND THIS IS WHERE WE FIND JESUS…]

JESUS IS WHERE GOD’S ANGER AND GOD’S LOVE MEET PERFECTLY

Jesus reveals the heart of God more clearly than anyone.

In John 3:16, Jesus says He is going to Jerusalem to die as the expression of God’s love for His enemies.

That means Jesus does not simply teach about God’s patience—

JESUS EMBODIES PATIENCE.

Jesus stands in the place of people choosing self-destruction and absorbs the consequences of their choices into Himself.

On the cross:

We see God’s anger against sin.

On the cross, We see God’s love for sinners.

On the cross, We see justice and mercy come together.

On the cross, We see wrath swallowed by grace.

On the cross, We see sinners rescued instead of ruined.

THE CROSS is THE ULTIMATE ACT OF THE GOD WHO IS SLOW TO ANGER.

[SO THE QUESTION IS…] WHAT DOES “SLOW TO ANGER” MEAN FOR US?

1. SLOW TO ANGER MEANS, GOD’S PATIENCE IS FAR GREATER THAN OUR FAILURES.

If He wasn’t done with Pharaoh after nine chances, He isn’t done with you after your mistakes.

2. SLOW TO ANGER MEANS, GOD GIVES TIME FOR REPENTANCE.

Every delay in judgment is an invitation to return.

3. SLOW TO ANGER MEANS, GOD CONFRONTS EVIL, but NEVER IN A WAY THAT CONTRADICTS HIS COMPASSION.

Divine anger is always aimed at restoration.

4. SLOW TO ANGER MEANS, GOD WILL NOT FORCE YOU TO CHOOSE LIFE, but HE WILL LET YOU FEEL WHERE DEATH LEADS.

Not because He doesn’t love you— but because He loves you too much to lie to you.

5. SLOW TO ANGER MEANS, YOU CAN ALWAYS COME HOME, ALWAYS!

If you are still breathing, God is still inviting.

[SO…] WHAT SHOULD WE DO WITH THIS (How do we apply it to our lives)?

Allow God to CONFRONT YOUR DESTRUCTIVE PATTERNS.

He is slow to anger… not absent of anger.

DON’T MISTAKE GOD’S PATIENCE FOR PERMISSION.

Delayed consequences are not divine approval. They are divine mercy.

SURRENDER WHAT KEEPS LEADING YOU TO RUIN.

Sin always promises life but delivers death. God always promises truth and delivers freedom.

Trust the GOD WHOSE ANGER AND LOVE WORK TOGETHER TO SAVE.

He is not trying to destroy you. He is trying to rescue you.

CONCLUSION

GOD’S PATIENCE IS PART OF GOD’S LOVE

When God describes Himself as “slow to anger,” He is not saying He never gets angry. He is not saying He doesn’t take sin seriously. He is not saying He ignores evil.

He is saying: “My anger is PATIENT, PURPOSEFUL, and AIMED AT REDEMPTION.”

God delays judgment so He can extend mercy.

God holds back wrath so He can offer grace.

God gives space for repentance because He loves His creation.

This is the heart of THE GOD WHO IS SLOW TO ANGER.

And this is THE GOD JESUS REVEALS… the God who takes our self-destructive choices upon Himself so we can receive forgiveness, life, and restoration.