Proverbs 27:4

Wrath is cruel and anger is overwhelming, ¹  but who can stand before jealousy? ² 

Ge 26:14; Ge 37:11; Job 5:2; Pr 6:34; Pr 14:30; So 8:6; Mt 27:18; Ac 5:17; Ac 7:9; Ac 17:5; Ro 1:29; Jas 1:19-21; Jas 3:14-16; Jas 4:5,6; 1Jo 3:12

¹ tn Heb “fierceness of wrath and outpouring [= flood] of anger.” A number of English versions use “flood” here (e.g., NASB, NCV, NLT).

² tn The Hebrew term translated “jealousy” here probably has the negative sense of “envy” rather than the positive sense of “zeal.” It is a raging emotion (like “anger” and “wrath,” this word has nuances of heat, intensity) that defies reason at times and can be destructive like a consuming fire (e.g., 6:32-35; Song 8:6-7). The rhetorical question is intended to affirm that no one can survive a jealous rage. (Whether one is the subject who is jealous or the object of the jealousy of someone else is not so clear.)