The Pain of God — Philology

Kazoh Kitamori explores the theology of the pain of God in his exceptionally well-titled book, Theology of the Pain of God. While I eventually intend to explore his book's theological arguments and ramifications, this article will focus on the philological and exegetical background that led to Kitamori’s insight that fueled his theology, along with some relevant commentary from John Calvin.

Kitamori’s exegesis concerning the pain of God arose from his reading of Jeremiah 31:20 and Isaiah 63:15. For reference, I will quote their RSV translations in full here:

Jeremiah 31:20 — Is Ephraim my dear son? Is he my darling child? For as often as I speak against him, I do remember him still. Therefore my heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy on him, says the Lord.

Isaiah 63:15 — Look down from heaven and see, from thy holy and glorious habitation. Where are thy zeal and thy might? The yearning of thy heart and thy compassion are withheld from me.

Note that the RSV (and the ESV) translate the last sentence in Jeremiah 31:20 as “Therefore, my heart yearns for him.” Kitamori mentions similar translations in the Japanese RSV. In the Isaiah verse, there is a similar sentence, “The yearning of thy heart and thy compassion are withheld from me.”

However, the Hebrew in the Masoretic text for Jeremiah is, “על-כן המו מעי לו”. Literally, “Therefore, my belly roars for him.” The important root here is המה, used as a Qal Perfect verb in its 3rd person, masculine, singular conjugation. Holladay’s lexicon defines this verb as “1. make noise, uproar. 2. roar. 3. give a sound. 4. be unsteady, restless.” The same root is used in Isaiah 63:15 as a noun, “המן מעיך”, literally, “stirring/roaring of your belly.”

We see the line from Jeremiah translated faithfully in the RVR95, “Por eso mis entrañas se conmovieron por el.” Literally, “Because of that, my entrails shook for him.” Likewise, the KJV maintains the allusion to roaring guts. The Vulgate interprets Jer 31:20 as “conturbata sunt viscera mea”. Once again, the focus is on pain of the bowels.

Comparing translations does offer one way to get a sense of the translation and interpretation possibilities of a verse. However, to understand how this root is to be interpreted, it is best to compare it to other Biblical verses and determine nuance from context. Here are a few from the RSV, with instances of המה bolded.

Jer 48:36 — Therefore, my heart moans for Moab like a flute . . .

Ps. 38:8 — I groan because of the tumult in my heart . . .

Ps. 55:17 — Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan . . .

Ps. 39:6 — . . . for naught are they in turmoil . . .

Song 5:4 — . . . my heart was thrilled within me.

These verses convey the idea that המה is a primarily negative word associated with strife or pain. The Song of Solomon offers a secondary usage focusing on love, but it is an exception. Thus, we can deduce that the original text of Jeremiah 31:20 intends to relate pain using the very visceral metaphor of bowel issues.

The reason for so much emphasis on this word's meaning is that Kitamori makes the stunning observation that Jeremiah uses it to describe God. Jeremiah uses המה to describe a condition of God reflecting the condition of the Psalmists and prophets when they utter this word. In short, this word conveys the pain of God. (Kitamori, 153) We cannot comprehend the pain of God, but we understand human pain and suffering. Thus, God has revealed something of what He has felt towards his wayward children through the revelation of His word. In particular, God’s love towards sinners is pain or results in pain. (Kitamori, 153)

John Calvin’s commentary on the passage:

And he enhances the benefit of this reconciliation, and says, Therefore sounded have my bowels for him, pitying I will pity him Here God ascribes to himself human feelings; for the bowels are moved and make a noise under immoderate grief; and we sigh and groan deeply, when we are pressed down by great sorrow. So also when God expresses the feelings of a tender father, he says that his bowels made a noise, because he wished to receive his people again into favor. This, indeed, does not properly belong to God; but as he could not otherwise express the greatness of his love towards us, he thus speaks in condescension to our capacities.

In this passage, Calvin agrees with Kitamori’s exegesis. Israel and its children have rebelled, causing God great pain, yet His love and desire for reconciliation remain. And while bowel pain cannot be properly ascribed to God, the metaphor is used to communicate in relatable terms. Kitamori states that this verse is the source of the pain of God as an idea separate from the love of God. The pain of God is God’s love which has been “poured on us by canceling our sin of rejecting God’s love.” (Kitamori, 156)

Now we move to Isaiah 63:15. Unlike the other uses of המה, which convey pain or strife, the context suggests the word conveys something different. Instead of pain, it conveys an outpouring of love. Thus, the ESV’s translation “the stirring of your inner parts” is appropriate. In this instance, the meaning is more akin to that used in the Song of Solomon, as demonstrated above. As further evidence for this assertion, Kitamori references the LXX, which uses the word ελεους (mercy) to communicate this meaning.

Luther translate this sentence as, “Deine große, herzliche Barmherzigkeit hält sich hart gegen mich.” Thus, Luther interprets this phrase as an outpouring of God’s barmherzigkeit, His compassion or mercy.

Referencing John Calvin again, he says of the verse:

The multitude of bowels and of compassions denotes God’s vast goodness; for God displays and opens up his bowels, so to speak, when he exercises toward us bounty and kindness, which truly is so great that we cannot praise it in adequate language. Nor is it a new thing that believers, when oppressed by grief, expostulated familiarly with God for shutting up his bowels. They do indeed hold by this principle, that God is always compassionate . . .

Calvin keeps the literal meaning of the Hebrew, but it is also clear that his interpretation of the verse focuses on God’s compassion and kindness. While these esteemed commentators and translators support Kitamori’s argument for the meaning of המה in Isaiah 63:15, I believe this is one of the weaknesses of his exegesis. Kitamori spends very little time dealing with Isaiah 63:15. Instead, he accepts that the consensus concerning Isaiah 63:15 is sufficient for him to proceed. This is not the same attitude he applied to Jeremiah 31:20. However, I can’t find a reason to doubt his acceptance.

Thus, המה conveys two things about God in one word. It describes His pain and also His love. Kitamori insists this double meaning communicates a sublime mystery of grace concerning God’s wrath, love, and pain.

Jeremiah 31:20 and Isaiah 63:15 are the only two verses where the word המה is used to describe God’s state of being. When drawn from the entire Biblical corpus, the word more often indicates moaning, rumbling, or the tumult from strife and pain. The Song of Solomon offers one example where it is used to indicate love, in that verse, romantic love.

In Jeremiah, Kitamori makes a strong argument for why the proper interpretation indicates pain. His reasoning draws from the philological study of the verse but also draws from commentaries by Calvin, Luther, and others. In many ways, Luther and Calvin arrived at similar interpretations as Kitamori, but they failed to take their interpretation to finality. Kitamori’s innovation was to realize that Jeremiah 31:20 was communicating God’s pain as something resulting from His rejected love by His people. Additionally, the use of המה in Isaiah 63:15, where it communicates God’s love, together with Jeremiah 31:20, contributes to understanding the mystery of grace. Thus, Kitamori sees God’s pain arising from His love of what cannot or should not be embraced. It is a pain resulting from the embrace of those who reject Him. (Kitamori, 120) It is a pain rooted in love.

How great that our pain and suffering allow us to witness the pain of God. May we always see our pain as an instrument bringing us further understanding of the mysteries of faith and grace. And may our pain help us identify with the crucified God, Jesus Christ.

אמן

This article makes use of the following works:

Kazoh Kitamori. Theology of the Pain of God. Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2005.

John Calvin’s Complete Commentaries available at https://ccel.org/ccel/calvin/commentaries/commentaries.i.html

Bible Translations — ESV, RSV, Luther 1912, Latin Vulgate, RVR1995, BHS, KJV, LXX.

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