“provoke” (KJV, NRSV; Luther has Reizen, “irritation”). The noun paroxysmos, as well as its cognate verb paroxynō (“to sharpen”), are typically used in a negative sense, indicating irritation, exasperation, provocation, or wrath (LSJ, 1342–43; BDAG, 780). The noun’s only other occurrence in the NT refers to Paul and Barnabas’s “sharp disagreement” (Acts 15:39; see also Deut 29:17 and Jer 39:37 LXX). The verb only rarely refers to stimulation toward positive goals or actions (see Attridge 1989, 290