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Anger

Does Jesus get angry and upset? Jesus the Messiah shows controlled emotion arising from his unswerving opposition to evil and his determination to eradicate it.

Note the following observations about Jesus’ displays of anger:

  • His anger had the proper motivation. In other words, He was angry for the right reasons. Jesus’ anger did not arise from petty arguments or personal slights against Him. There was no selfishness involved.
  • His anger had the proper focus. He was not angry at God or at the “weaknesses” of others. His anger targeted sinful behavior and true injustice.
  • His anger had the proper supplement. Mark 3:5 says that His anger was attended by grief over the Pharisees’ lack of faith. Jesus’ anger stemmed from love for the Pharisees and concern for their spiritual condition. It had nothing to do with hatred or ill will.
  • His anger had the proper control. Jesus was never out of control, even in His wrath. The temple leaders did not like His cleansing of the temple (Luke 19:47), but He had done nothing sinful. He controlled His emotions; His emotions did not control Him.
  • His anger had the proper duration. He did not allow His anger to turn into bitterness; He did not hold grudges. He dealt with each situation properly, and He handled anger in good time.
  • His anger had the proper result. Jesus’ anger had the inevitable consequence of godly action. Jesus’ anger, as with all His emotions, was held in check by the Word of God; thus, Jesus’ response was always to accomplish God’s will.

Jesus reflects the anger of God with evil. The good news is that Jesus died for us so we won’t see the wrath of God. We have faith that the penalty for our missing God’s goal has been wiped out by the death of Jesus on the cross.

  • John 3:36 — 36 “He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”
  • Matthew 5:21–22 — 21 “You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘You shall not commit murder’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ 22 “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.
  • Matthew 5:29 — 29 “If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.
  • Matthew 22:7 — 7 “But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire.”
  • Matthew 22:13 — 13 “Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
  • Matthew 25:30 — 30 “Throw out the worthless slave into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
  • Matthew 25:46 — 46 “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
  • Luke 21:23 — 23 “Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days; for there will be great distress upon the land and wrath to this people.”
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