How does God feel sad and angry

[savedbychrist]

The Scriptures record God being grieved and angry at times (not just in the person of Jesus, but the Triune God as a whole). But heaven is a place of complete happiness, without sadness and sufferings. How does God, who is in heaven (and is perpectually there, as by definition heaven is the presence of God), feel sad and angry?

I know He feels in a different way than our human emotions, but still God is feeling something unpleasant. Happiness and unpleasant feelings can coexist, yet heaven is more than happiness, but also free from suffering and distress.

 

[tagtotaloffice]

It is not literal, God is not a passionate being like us, and even when it talks of Him willing something, it is not like us. Neither can He be reminded of things or change His mind like some verses say, neither can He literally repent.

 

[tagtotaloffice]

Here are some words from an early father explaining it:

1. And now, if, on account of those expressions which occur in the Old Testament, as when God is said to be angry or to repent, or when any other human affection or passion is described, (our opponents) think that they are furnished with grounds for refuting us, who maintain that God is altogether impassible, and is to be regarded as wholly free from all affections of that kind, we have to show them that similar statements are found even in the parables of the Gospel; as when it is said, that he who planted a vineyard, and let it out to husbandmen, who slew the servants that were sent to them, and at last put to death even the son, is said in anger to have taken away the vineyard from them, and to have delivered over the wicked husbandmen to destruction, and to have handed over the vineyard to others, who would yield him the fruit in its season. And so also with regard to those citizens who, when the head of the household had set out to receive for himself a kingdom, sent messengers after him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us; for the head of the household having obtained the kingdom, returned, and in anger commanded them to be put to death before him, and burned their city with fire. But when we read either in the Old Testament or in the New of the anger of God, we do not take such expressions literally, but seek in them a spiritual meaning, that we may think of God as He deserves to be thought of. And on these points, when expounding the verse in the second Psalm, Then shall He speak to them in His anger, and trouble them in His fury, we showed, to the best of our poor ability, how such an expression ought to be understood.

From: http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/04122.htm

 

[JerryZ]

The Scriptures often attribute characteristics to GOD that reflect our human understanding of a sentient being, the only example of which we currently have direct knowledge of, is us. It is not coincidence then that when a Prophet wants to warn his people about bad behavior he would use language a father would use with his children.
However when we see that the true nature of GOD both from the reason (Philosophy / Theology) and the Revelation perspectives we know that GOD does not have “emotions” those are driven by our physiology (hormones).
Now on the other hand GOD the SON can experience emotions since HE is fully human. Obviously what the SON knows, the Father knows. So yes GOD knows the human feelings but HE does not go from a state of happiness to sadness, see, that would require CHANGE.
And GOD, we know does NOT change there is no past / present / future for HIM only the eternal NOW.
Yes it is not easy to understand this, one needs to ruminate on these topics for a long time to begin to accept them, never mind fully understand them as they are so foreign to us. Hope this helps.
Peace!!

 

[0Scarlett_nidiyilii]

God is holy and good, and doesn’t depend on us for anything.

So, His “emotions” wouldn’t be experienced in quite the same way as our emotions are, being interdependent on each other.

Just to give an insight, imagine the emotion of anger.
If somebody does you wrong, your experience of anger feels different than the anger you feel when you hear of a gross injustice done between two people you don’t know.

Or the way sadness feels different if you’re comparing death of a loved one from natural causes versus death from murder.

God is free from needing us, He does, however, love us, and He has all the knowledge, is motivated only by good, etc, so His experience of emotion isn’t ours.