Provocation

Provocation - (Webster's 1828 Dictionary)

PROVOCA'TION, n. [L.provacatio. See Provoke.]

1. Any thing that excites anger; the cause of resentment.

1 Ki 21.

2. The act of exciting anger.

3. An appeal to a court or judge. [A Latinism, not now used.]

4. Incitement. [Not used.]

Provoke - (Webster's 1828 Dictionary)

PROVO'KE, v.t. [L.provoco, to call forth; pro and voco, to call.]

1. To call into action; to arouse; to excite; as, to provoke anger or wrath by offensive words or by injury; to provoke war.

2. To make angry; to offend; to incense; to enrage.

Ye fathers,provoke not your children to wrath. Eph 6.

Often provoked by the insolence of some of the bishops--

3. To excite; to cause; as, to provoke perspiration; to provoke a smile.

4. To excite; to stimulate; to increase.

The taste of pleasure provokes the appetite, and every successive indulgence of vice which is to form a habit, is easier than the last.

5. To challenge.

He now provokes the sea-gods from the shore.

6. To move; to incite; to stir up; to induce by motives. Rom 10.

Let us consider one another to provoke to love and to good works. Heb 10.

7. To incite; to rouse; as, to provoke one to anger. Deu 32.

PROVO'KE, v.i. To appeal. [A Latinism,not used.]

Provoked - (Webster's 1828 Dictionary)

PROVO'KED, pp. Excited; roused; incited; made angry; incensed.

prov-o-ka'-shun, pro-vok': "Provoke," literally, "to call forth," hence, to excite or stir up, whether in a good or bad sense, appears frequently in the Old Testament as the translation of Piel, or Hiphil of ka`ac (noun, ka`ac), in the sense of "to make angry" (De 4:25; 9:18; 1Ki 14:9,15, etc.); sometimes of marah (Isa 3:8), and of other words. In the New Testament we have parazeloo, "to make jealous" (Ro 10:19; 11:11,14); parorgizo, "to make angry" (Eph 6:4; compare Col 3:21); with parapikraino, "to embitter" (Heb 3:16; compare in /RAPC 1Es 6:15), and other Greek words. "Provocation" in Heb 3:8,15 (quoting Ps 95:8) is parapikrasmos, the Septuagint for the Hebrew meribhah. An example of the good sense of the word is in Heb 10:24, "Consider one another to provoke (literally, "to the provoking," here paroxusmos) unto love and good works."

For "provoke" the Revised Version (British and American) has "despise" (Nu 14:11; 31:20), "rebel against" (Ps 78:40); for "provoked," "despised" (Nu 14:23; 16:30; Isa 1:4), "moved" (De 32:16; 1Ch 21:1), "rebelled against" (Ps 78:56), "were rebellious" (106:33,43); for "provoking" (Ps 78:17), "to rebel against"; for "provoked" (2Co 9:2), "stirred up"; "provoked within" for "stirred in" (Ac 17:16); "provoked" for "limited" (Ps 78:41 margin, "limited"); "provoketh" for "emboldeneth" (Job 16:3); instead of "Provoke not your children to anger" (Col 3:21), "Provoke not your children."

W. L. Walker

Definition

The term “provoke” means to cause someone to experience a negative reaction or feeling.

• To provoke someone to anger means to do something that causes that person to be angry. This could also be translated as to “cause to become angry” or to “anger.”
• When used in a phrase such as, “do not provoke him,” this could be translated as “do not anger him” or “do not cause him to be angry” or “do not make him angry with you.”

Bible References

• Ezekiel 20:27-29

Word Data

• Strong’s: H3707, H3708, H4784, H4843, H5006, H7065, H7069, H7107, H7264, G20420, G38630, G39470, G39490, G42920