The BEMA Podcast | Episode 479: Vice & Virtue — Wrath
Release Date: October 23, 2025
Hosts: Marty Solomon (A), Brent Billings (A), Reed Dent (B)

Overview

This episode of The BEMA Podcast focuses on "wrath" as part of the ongoing Vice & Virtue series. The hosts, with special guest Reed Dent, explore the biblical context, theological nuances, and personal implications of wrath/anger. They discuss the complexities of this emotion, particularly because it is attributed both to God and humans in Scripture, but with different implications. The overarching aim is to seek a deeper understanding of God’s anger versus human anger, the transformative and restorative intent of divine wrath, and practical disciplines for handling anger as individuals and in community.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Defining & Framing Wrath (00:12–06:55)

• Wrath & Anger: The terms are used interchangeably throughout.
• Cultural example: Reed shares a humorous story about performing “Goodbye Earl” by The Chicks at a banquet, reflecting on society’s delight in revenge narratives.
  • "Oftentimes, revenge is just really delightful." (02:09, B)
• Daily Buechner quote: "Of the seven deadly sins, anger is possibly the most fun... The skeleton at the feast is you." (02:36, B, citing Frederick Buechner)

2. Scriptural Context: Is Anger Always a Vice? (06:55–21:05)

• God’s Anger vs. Human Anger: Unique among vices, anger is both something God experiences and something humans are warned about.
• Foundational text: Exodus 34:6–7 — "The Lord…the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love…" (06:55)
• Key Insights:
  • Hebrew idiom for anger: "nose burned hot," literally long-nosed; God is “slow to anger.”
  • God gets angry, rather than being perpetually angry.
  • God’s anger is rare and not as prevalent in Scripture as commonly thought.
  • What provokes God’s anger? Two major causes in the Hebrew Bible:
    1. Ongoing failure to trust God.
    2. Injustice, specifically exploitation or neglect of the vulnerable.
• Divine Anger is Different:
  • God’s anger is slow, short-lived, and designed for restoration rather than retribution (Isaiah 57:14–19; Hosea 11:8–11).
  • God’s “holiness” is shown in his willingness to show compassion and not destruction: "For I am God and not a man…the Holy One among you. I will not come against their cities." (21:05, B, Hosea 11:9)

3. Divine vs. Human Wrath: Restoration vs. Retaliation (21:05–28:10)

• Distinction: God’s wrath destroys what destroys the beloved, but human wrath often destroys the beloved themselves.
  • "God's wrath destroys what destroys the beloved. Our wrath just destroys the beloved." (27:41, B)
• Sin as Captivity: Emphasis on seeing sin as something we are held captive by, rather than merely “bad deeds” requiring punishment.

4. Example of Anger in Jesus (28:10–33:55)

• Mark 3:1–6 – Angry Jesus:
  • Jesus is described as both "angry and deeply distressed" by the hardened hearts of the Pharisees.
  • His anger motivates a restorative act: healing a man’s hand completely.
  • "Jesus's anger made him do more than he needed to do...the righteous anger brings about total restoration." (31:25, A)
  • The root is compassion; true biblical anger is rooted in compassion and aims at justice and healing, not just punishment.

5. Human Anger as Vice: Anatomy and Misuses (33:55–50:05)

• Healthy Desire Distorted: The genuine desire for justice gets warped into the desire for revenge or punishment.
  • "Anger as a vice makes you care more about punishment for the wrongdoer, than you care about justice for the victim." (36:09, B)
• Manifestations:
  • Not all anger is outburst; can be quiet, inward, or passive-aggressive.
  • Self-examination: Are you angry for the right reasons, at the right people, and to the right degree?
  • Danger signs: Irritability, misdirected anger (e.g., at customer service reps), inability to let go.
• Cultural Reflection: Our society relishes revenge narratives (movies, TV), reflecting how “delicious” we find wrath.

6. Practical Application, Self-Examination & Community (46:51–56:32)

• Community is Key: Accountability and being in community helps deal with anger constructively.
  • "The times when I am most angry and get in the most trouble because of my anger are when I am by myself, left to my own devices." (49:47, A)
• Self-examination questions: Do I get angry mostly for personal offense, or for true injustice? Do I exaggerate wrongs or assign blame to unsympathetic targets?
• Societal Justice: Even pop culture's obsession with revenge highlights both the danger and allure of wrath.
• Imaging God: The aim is not to be emotionless, but to channel our anger toward the restoration and well-being of all, including our so-called enemies.
  • "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness...maybe good anger is like hunger pangs. As long as that compels me to justice, not vengeance, it's good." (53:53, B)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the seductiveness of anger:

  • "Of the seven deadly sins, anger is possibly the most fun...The skeleton at the feast is you." (02:36, B, quoting Buechner)

• On God's anger:

  • "It's not that God is angry. It's that God gets angry...God is not just walking around as an angry God just waiting to go off at whatever happens to irritate him." (07:39, B)
  • "God is slow to be aroused to anger, and when he is...it's a failure to trust God and a failure to do justice for the vulnerable." (10:05, B)
  • "For I am God and not a man, the Holy One among you. I will not come against their cities." (Hosea 11:9, 21:05)

• On divine restoration:

  • "God’s aim is restoration. God's anger...is not to punish for the sake of punishment, but to heal." (16:18, B)

• On human anger:

  • "God's wrath destroys what destroys the beloved. Our wrath just destroys the beloved." (27:41, B)
  • "Anger as a vice makes you care more about punishment for the wrongdoer than you care about justice for the victim." (36:09, B)
  • "If we find ourselves being angry all the time, I think it's worth asking if that's kind of how I see the world deep down." (43:18, B)

• On Jesus’s restorative anger:

  • "He looked around at them in anger and deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts..." (Mark 3:5, 29:44, A)
  • "Jesus's anger made him do more than he needed to do...the righteous anger brings about total restoration." (31:25, A)

• On pop culture and revenge:

  • "There is, like, a release and a satisfaction where we're, like, indulging. We're like, yeah..." (51:27, B)

• Self-examination advice:

  • "Be in community about this, wrestle through it...try to be as honest as possible as you examine this. It's not comfortable, I can say from experience." (56:14, A)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• 00:12 – Introduction & opening stories about revenge and anger.
• 03:54 – Introducing the biblical conversation on wrath’s complexity.
• 06:55 – Exodus 34:6–7 and analysis of the anger of God.
• 10:44 – What specifically arouses God’s anger – trust & justice.
• 13:10 – Short duration and disproportionality of God’s anger (Psalms, Isaiah, Hosea).
• 20:39 – Hosea’s poignant view of God’s inner struggle toward compassion over anger.
• 25:27 – George MacDonald quote: God destroys sin, not sinners.
• 28:10 – Jesus’s anger in Mark 3: grieved and angry for restorative purpose.
• 33:55 – Transition to practical implications: how or when anger becomes a vice.
• 36:09 – The anatomy of misdirected, habitual, or prideful anger.
• 39:46 – Examples: waiting in line, road rage, customer service.
• 43:18 – Self-examination for anger as an ingrained disposition.
• 46:51 – The value of community in restraining and healing anger.
• 51:27 – Pop culture and the allure of revenge stories.
• 53:53 – Imaging God: compassion for both victims and perpetrators.
• 56:32 – Wrap up: Self-examination and encouragement to engage these issues in community.

Final Reflections

Main Takeaway:
Divine anger is restorative, rare, slow, and rooted in compassion; human wrath, left unchecked, is destructive, self-centered, and often directed at the wrong things or people. Christlike living means transforming the impulse toward anger into a longing and action for true justice and restoration, not revenge or punishment.

Recommended Self-Examination Questions:

• Do I get angry primarily for personal offense or genuine injustice?
• Am I too quick to perceive or exaggerate offense?
• Do I hold onto anger longer than is healthy or justified?
• Do I seek restoration for both victims and perpetrators, or simply punishment?
• How does being in community help check and transform my experience of anger?

For further resources and deeper study, check the show notes at bema discipleship.com.