ANIMADVERSIONES A Brief Discussion of the Difference between Human and Divine hmj Biblical hmj is an expression of displeasure that has the potential to precipitate punitive acts of violence 1. Though hmj is ascribed to both man and God in the Bible, its syntactic behavior differs depending on whether it is used to describe man’s anger or the anger of God. When hmj describes human anger, its context highlights the experience of being aggrieved. By contrast, when hmj describes divine anger, its context emphasizes God’s reprisal. We suggest that the distinctive focus of divine hmj on the consequences of provocation instead of on God’s own e x p e r i e n c e of anger reflects a biblical struggle to reconcile the anthropomorphic idea of an emotional God with an omnipotent and invulnerable deity. We begin by discussing human hmj, and our observations about human hmj will serve as the backdrop against which we examine divine hmj. I. Human hmj The noun, hmj, denotes human anger (or excitement) 25 times in the Hebrew Bible 2. Whether human hmj appears in post-exilic texts, as it most frequently does or, texts from an earlier period, its grammatical c o n t e x t highlights the experience of being angry instead of the consequences of anger 3. Thus, we see that human hmj occurs as the D. GRANT, Divine Anger in Biblical Literature (PhD diss. New York 1 University ; New York 2009) 1-126. See also B. BALOIAN, Anger in the Old Testament (American University Studies; New York 1992). Other terms that fit this definition of anger include hrb[, s[k, π[z, μ[z, πa and πxq. Gen 27,44; 2 Sam 11,20; 2 Kgs 5,12; Esth 1,12.2,1.3,5.5,9.7,7.10; Pss 2 37,8.76,10 ; Pro 6,34.15,1.18. 16,14.19,19.21,14.22,24.27,4.29,22; Isa 51,13 (2x); Ezek 3,14; Dan 8,6. This list excludes Job 13,13 which requires an emendation, and includes Jer 6,11 which describes Jeremiah as “filled” with God’s hmj. Other meanings of hmj in the Bible include poison and fiery wine Deut 32,24; Ps 58,5. hmj is especially common in post-exilic texts, only occasionally 3 appearing in earlier texts such as Gen 27,44; 2 Sam 11,20; 2 Kgs 5,12.