Answer
The Bible occasionally ascribes human characteristics to God using metaphorical language. Such poetic descriptions, though not literal, make certain stories more relatable for readers. Scholars call these figures of speech anthropomorphisms, meaning “human form.” One type of anthropomorphism the Bible uses is anthropopathism, meaning “human feeling.” Specifically, anthropopathism ascribes human emotion to God.
To understand anthropopathic descriptions in the Bible, it’s helpful to know the literal meaning of these figures of speech. To start, God’s fundamental nature is spirit (John 4:24; 1 Timothy 1:17). This means passages describing Him with arms (e.g. Isaiah 40:10) or sitting down (e.g., Psalm 47:8), suggesting He has a physical body, are anthropomorphic. Moreover, verses that describe Him as experiencing human emotions are communicating truth about Him in non-literal ways so people can understand Him better.
The Bible attributes a range of emotions to God. Emotions that solicit positive responses from readers include rejoicing (Isaiah 62:5; cf. Zephaniah 3:17), compassion (Exodus 34:6; Joel 2:13), and yearning (Jeremiah 31:20; Hosea 11:8). Such descriptions are consistent with God’s love and goodness. However, some readers wrestle with the attributing of emotions like regret or repentance to God, inferring that He is remorseful over His own sin. Such an implication would contradict God’s holy and righteous nature (Psalm 18:30; James 1:13).
For instance, Moses, the author of the book of Genesis, describes God using human emotion in the flood story. He writes that, in the days of Noah, God was displeased with how wickedness increased greatly on the earth (Genesis 6:5). Yet, before He externally judged the world with water, God internally mourned over humanity’s transgressions. Bible translations render the key word in different ways. The ESV reads, “And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart” (Genesis 6:6, emphasis added). The NASB says God “was sorry He had made man.” The KJV says “it repented the Lord that he made man.” Each translation suggests God felt remorse over His creation of humanity.
Another passage that describes God repenting or regretting is 1 Samuel 15:11. In the ESV, the verse reads, “I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned back from following me and has not performed my commandments.” The NIV also uses the word regret, while the KJV says, “It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king.”
Despite Bible translations using words like regret and repent, anthropopathism doesn’t teach that God grieved over His own sin. Instead, such descriptions use words associated with human emotion to convey God’s reaction to human sin. Confirming this explanation, the same passage that says God “regretted” making Saul king unambiguously states that God doesn’t experience regret and repentance like people do: “And also the Glory of Israel will not lie or have regret, for he is not a man, that he should have regret” (1 Samuel 15:29, ESV). Thus, descriptions of God regretting and repenting are anthropopathic, expressing His sorrow over humanity’s sinful behaviors—not His own.
Furthermore, while descriptions of God regretting and repenting are anthropopathic, it will also help readers to consider how Bible translations use certain words with nuanced meanings, words whose connotations can change over time. For instance, the word sorry has more than one connotation in English. It doesn’t always imply an admission of wrongdoing, e.g., “I’m sorry for acting selfishly.” It can also express sorrow without implying confessing moral irresponsibility, e.g., “I’m sorry to hear your grandmother passed away.”
Likewise, the word repent has multiple connotations. Expressing grief over the sin of others, rather than guilt over one’s own wrongdoing, is within its semantic range. In fact, the KJV uses the “expression of grief” meaning of the word. The KJV uses the word repented in Judges 21:6 to describe people’s sorrow without the connotation of guilt. In the story, Israel sorrowed over the tribe of Benjamin’s sin: “And the children of Israel repented them for Benjamin their brother, and said, There is one tribe cut off from Israel this day” (KJV). According to the KJV, the children of Israel “repented,” yet they hadn’t done anything wrong—only Benjamin had.
Anthropopathic descriptions of God in the Bible convey truth about Him. Using figurative language, anthropopathism reveals God’s nature and character in emotional terms to people who feel similar emotions. While these figures of speech convey important truths, the chief expression of God’s communication to humanity isn’t found in metaphors but in Jesus of Nazareth. As truly God and truly man, Jesus experienced human emotions like anger (Mark 3:5), grief (John 11:35), and joy (Luke 10:21), giving full, non-metaphorical expression to God’s sympathy and care for people and their choices.
