Patience

Patience - (Webster's 1828 Dictionary)

PATIENCE, n. pa'shens. [L. patientia, from patior, to suffer.]

1. The suffering of afflictions, pain, toil, calamity, provocation or other evil, with a calm, unruffled temper; endurance without murmuring or fretfulness. Patience may spring from constitutional fortitude, from a kind of heroic pride, or from christian submission to the divine will.

2. A calm temper which bears evils without murmuring or discontent.

3. The act or quality of waiting long for justice or expected good without discontent.

Have patience with me,and I will pay thee all. Mat 18.

4. Perseverance; constancy in labor or exertion.

He learnt with patience, and with meekness taught.

5. The quality of bearing offenses and injuries without anger or revenge.

His rage was kindled and his patience gone.

6. Sufferance; permission. [Not used.]

7. A plant, a species of rumex of dock.

Patient - (Webster's 1828 Dictionary)

PATIENT, a. pa'shent. [L. patiens.]

1. Having the quality of enduring evils without murmuring or fretfulness; sustaining afflictions of body or mind with fortitude, calmness or christian submission to the divine will; as a patient person, or a person of patient temper. It is followed by of before the evil endured; as patient of labor or pain; patient of heat or cold.

2. Not easily provoked; calm under the sufferance of injuries or offenses; not revengeful.

Be patient towards all men. 1 Th 5.

3. Persevering; constant in pursuit or exertion; calmly diligent.

Whatever I have done is due to patient thought.

4. Not hasty; not over eager or impetuous; waiting or expecting with calmness or without discontent.

Not patient to expect the turns of fate.

PA'TIENT, n. A person or thing that received impressions from external agents; he or that which is passively affected.

Malice is a passion so impetuous and precipitate, that it often involves the agent and the patient.

1. A person diseased or suffering bodily indisposition. It is used in relation to the physician; as, the physician visits his patient morning and evening.

2. It is sometimes used absolutely for a sick person.

It is wonderful to observe how inapprehensive these patients are of their disease.

PA'TIENT,v.t. To compose one's self. [Not used.]

pa'-shens (hupomone, makrothumia): "Patience" implies suffering, enduring or waiting, as a determination of the will and not simply under necessity. As such it is an essential Christian virtue to the exercise of which there are many exhortations. We need to "wait patiently" for God, to endure uncomplainingly the various forms of sufferings, wrongs and evils that we meet with, and to bear patiently injustices which we cannot remedy and provocations we cannot remove.

The word "patience" does not occur in the Old Testament, but we have "patiently" in Ps 40:1 as the translation of qawah, "to wait," "to expect," which word frequently expresses the idea, especially that of waiting on God; in Ps 37:7, "patiently" ("wait patiently") is the translation of qul, one of the meanings of which is "to wait" or "to hope for" or "to expect" (of Job 35:14); "patient" occurs (Ec 7:8) as the translation of 'erekh ruach, "long of spirit," and (Job 6:11) "that I should be patient" (ha'arikh nephesh). Compare "impatient" (Job 21:4).

"Patience" occurs frequently in the Apocrypha, especially in Ecclesiasticus, e.g. 2:14; 16:13; 17:24; 41:2 (hupomone); 5:11 (makrothumia); 29:8 (makrothumeo, the Revised Version (British and American) "long suffering"); in The Wisdom of Solomon 2:19, the Greek word is anexikakia.

In the New Testament hupomone carries in it the ideas of endurance, continuance (Lu 8:15; 21:19; Ro 5:3,4, the American Standard Revised Version "stedfastness"; Ro 8:25, etc.).

In all places the American Revised Version margin has "stedfastness," except Jas 5:11, where it has "endurance"; makrothumia is translated "patience" (Heb 6:12; Jas 5:10); makrothumeo, "to bear long" (Mt 18:26,29; Jas 5:7; See LONGSUFFERING); the same verb is translated "be patient" (1Th 5:14, the Revised Version (British and American) "longsuffering"; Jas 5:7,8, the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American) "patient"); makrothumos, "patiently" (Ac 26:3); hupomeno (1Pe 2:20); anexikakos is translated "patient" (2Ti 2:4, the Revised Version (British and American), the King James Version margin, "forbearing"); epieikes, "gentle" (1Ti 3:3, the Revised Version (British and American) "gentle"); hupomeno (Ro 12:12, "patient in tribulation"). For "the patient waiting for Christ" (2Th 3:5), the Revised Version (British and American) has "the patience of Christ."

Patience is often hard to gain and to maintain, but, in Ro 15:5, God is called "the God of patience" (the American Revised Version margin "stedfastness") as being able to grant that grace to those who look to Him and depend on Him for it. It is in reliance on God and acceptance of His will, with trust in His goodness, wisdom and faithfulness, that we are enabled to endure and to hope stedfastly.

See also GOD.

W. L. Walker

Definition

The terms “patient” and “patience” refer to persevering through difficult circumstances. Often patience involves waiting.

• When people are patient with someone, it means they are loving that person and forgiving whatever faults that person has.
• The Bible teaches God’s people to be patient when facing difficulties and to be patient with each other.
• Because of his mercy, God is patient with people, even though they are sinners who deserve to be punished.

(See also: endure, forgive, persevere)

Bible References

• 1 Peter 3:20
• 2 Peter 3:8-9
• Hebrews 6:11-12
• Matthew 18:28-29
• Psalms 37:7
• Revelation 2:2

Word Data

• Strong’s: H0750, H0753, H2342, H3811, H6960, H7114, G04200, G04630, G19330, G31140, G31150, G31160, G52780, G52810