Aph, Chemah, and Charah: Three Hebrew Pictures of Anger
During my pre-studies, I came across Psalm 37:8:
“Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it leads only to evil” (Psalm 37:8, NIV).
I have read this Bible verse many times. God has used it greatly to call me down and to teach me how to deal with anger. Sometimes I just need to run away and distract myself from the thing that was just making me mad until I can tackle the problem more objectively.
Those things I already knew, but what struck me about this passage was the different uses for the word anger. This plays very heavily into my Hebrew studies as they are three different words all meaning the same thing in essence, anger. So I got to thinking what do these three words mean how are they different and it seems God wanted to cover many types of anger to refrain from. Let's take a look at the words that Yahweh used.
Three Hebrew Pictures of Anger
The Hebrew text of this verse uses three vivid expressions connected with anger.
The first is aph (אַף), a word that literally means “nose” or “nostril” but is also commonly used for anger. It pictures the flaring nostrils and heavy breathing that can accompany anger.
The second is chemah (חֵמָה), meaning “heat,” “fury,” or “wrath.” It describes anger as something hot and powerful.
The third expression is titchar (תִּתְחַר), a form of the Hebrew verb charah (חָרָה), meaning “to become hot,” “to burn,” or “to grow angry.” Although the English word char is not derived from the Hebrew word charah, the similarity gives us a helpful play on words: just as something becomes charred when it burns, anger can burn within us and leave damage behind.
Together, these Hebrew expressions portray anger as flaring nostrils, increasing heat, and a fire beginning to burn within us.
Do Not Let Anger Lead to Evil
Psalm 37 addresses the frustration we may feel when people do evil and still appear to prosper. David warns us not to keep feeding that frustration until it turns into anger and leads us toward evil.
Instead, we are told to be still before Yahweh, wait patiently for Him, continue doing good, and trust Him to act justly.
Anger can make us believe that we must settle the matter ourselves. However, Scripture says, “Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath” (Romans 12:19, NIV).
Yahweh’s judgment is righteous and controlled. Our anger can easily become distorted by pride, fear, impatience, or woundedness. Therefore, when anger begins to heat us, we should bring it to Yahweh, refuse to retaliate, and entrust justice to Him.
Yahweh can judge rightly without sin. Our calling is to remain faithful, peaceful, and obedient while we wait for Him.
Much love,
Chris
Written by Christopher Comer with editorial assistance from ChatGPT.
© 2026 Christopher Comer. All rights reserved for the original written content published on Anointed for Christ.