1. to persevere patiently and bravely (equivalent to καρτέρω, so Plutarch, de gen. Socrates c. 21, p. 593 f.; Artemidorus Daldianus, oneir. 4, 11) in enduring misfortunes and troubles: absolutely, Hebrews 6:15; James 5:8; with the addition of ἕως and a genitive of the desired event, James 5:7; with ἐπί and a dative of the thing hoped for, ibid.; add, Sir. 2:4.

2. "to be patient in bearing the offences and injuries of others; to be mild and slow in avenging; to be long-suffering, slow to anger, slow to punish" (for אַף הֶאֱרִיך, to defer anger, Proverbs 19:11): absolutely, 1 Corinthians 13:4; πρός τινα, 1 Thessalonians 5:14; ἐπί with the dative of person (see ἐπί, B. 2 a. δ.), Matthew 18:26, 29 (here L Tr with the accusative, so Tr in 26; see ἐπί, C. I. 2 g. β'.); Sir. 18:11 Sir. 29:8; hence, spoken of God deferring the punishment of sin: εἰς τινα, toward one, 2 Peter 3:9 (here L T Tr marginal reading διά (which see B. II. 2 b. under the end)); ἐπί with the dative of person, Luke 18:7; in this difficult passage we shall neither preserve the constant usage of μακροθύμειν (see just before) nor get a reasonable sense, unless we regard the words ἐπ' αὐτοῖς as negligently (see αὐτός, II. 6) referring to the enemies of the ἐκλεκτῶν, and translate καί μακροθυμῶν ἐπ' αὐτοῖς even though he is long-suffering, indulgent, to them; — this negligence being occasioned by the circumstance that Luke seems to represent Jesus as speaking with Sir. 32:22 (Sir. 35:18) in mind, where ἐπ' αὐτοῖς must be referred to ἀνελεημόνων. The reading (of L T Tr WH) καί μακροθυμεῖ ἐπ' αὐτοῖς; by which τό μακροθύμειν is denied to God (cf. Winer's Grammar, § 55, 7) cannot be accepted, because the preceding parable certainly demands the notion of slowness on God's part in avenging the right; cf. DeWette at the passage; (but to this it is replied, that the denial of actual delay is not inconsistent with the assumption of apparent delay; cf. Meyer (edited by Weiss) at the passage).