“But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved).”
Ephesians 2:4-5
Depending on the translation, “mercy” appears more than 200 times in the Old Testament. The Hebrew word chesed (or hesed) is often translated as mercy, though in some verses it is also rendered lovingkindness or kindness. The word “mercy” can be difficult to define. Thankfully, the Lord not only tells us about mercy in words but also illustrates it in His teachings.
Relieving Misery
Mercy often conveys strong feelings of compassion, pity, and sympathy. When God looks upon suffering people, He feels love, tenderness, kindness, and compassion toward them in their need. The true essence of mercy is clearly seen in the Lord’s parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30–37). Beaten, robbed, and left for dead, the victim in the story was in a miserable condition. A priest and a Levite merely looked at him and passed by. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion on him (Luke 10:33). Yet mercy does not stop with tender feelings. The Samaritan acted on his compassion by caring for the man and his needs, relieving his misery. His compassion moved him to do so.
Humanity’s greatest misery is caused by sin. To relieve that misery, God must deal with sin. In our salvation, both grace and mercy are at work. Richard L. Strauss explains the distinction between grace and mercy in this way:
“Grace describes God’s attitude toward guilty lawbreakers and rebels, while mercy describes His attitude toward those who are suffering and distressed. The first letter of each word helps us remember the distinction: grace for the guilty, mercy for the miserable … Mercy comes first in the mind of God. He loved us so much and cared about us so intensely in our miserable condition that in grace He sent His Son to die in our place. Mercy motivates His actions. But in the application of salvation to our lives the order is reversed. Only after we receive God’s gracious gift of salvation does He begin to alleviate the misery which our sin has caused us. We receive His grace, then we enjoy His mercy. That explains why grace precedes mercy in every one of the apostolic salutations where both words appear (cf. 1 Timothy 1:2; 2 Timothy 1:2; Titus 1:4; 2 John 3).”1
Withholding Judgment
God’s grace has often been described as giving us favor that we do not deserve, while His mercy holds back the judgment that we do deserve. The Psalmist declares, “The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy” (Ps. 103:8). Notice how His abundant mercy causes Him to act toward us: “He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities” (Ps. 103:10).
God’s mercy means that He withholds from us the judgment we deserve. Yet His gracious dealings with us are not grounded in sentiment alone. He does not repay us according to our iniquities because His Son bore our sins and suffered in our place (1 Pet. 2:24; 3:18). Christ paid the penalty we deserved, making it possible for God to deal with us in both grace and mercy.
Magnanimous Mercy
One magnificent example of mercy in the Old Testament is found in the life of Joseph. Wronged and mistreated by his brothers, sold into slavery, and carried off to a foreign land, Joseph eventually rose to the most prominent position in the land under Pharaoh. Many years later, his brothers stood before him. Though they did not recognize him, Joseph knew exactly who they were. Now he had the chance to exact revenge. Who could have blamed him? After all, they deserved what was coming to them.
But, moved with compassion, Joseph withheld judgment. Once his brothers were brought to confession for their wrongdoing, he embraced them and kissed them. He also gave them land and food during the famine (Gen. 45:10–15). What a remarkable demonstration of mercy toward the undeserving!
Another great example is found in David’s dealings with Mephibosheth (2 Sam. 9:1–13). David asks, “Is there yet any that is left of the house of Saul…” (2 Sam. 9:1). In that context, the implications were obvious and ominous. A king who had recently risen to power would ordinarily seek to eliminate any potential threat from his enemies. Yet David continues, “…that I may shew him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” (v.1). Kindness toward the family of one’s enemies? Here the word kindness is the same as mercy. David’s compassion extended to the family of his enemies, and he brought Mephibosheth in and treated him as a son of the king. It is not difficult to hear in this story a beautiful foreshadowing of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. One hymnwriter writes:
He saw me ruined by the fall,
Yet loved me notwithstanding all;
He saved me from my lost estate,
His lovingkindness, oh, how great!2
New Mercies
Jeremiah had been focused on the misery and failure all around him. Everywhere he looked, he saw bleakness, bitterness, and hopelessness. The failure and ruin were real; there was no point in denying it. But then his focus shifts: “This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope” (Lam. 3:21). He begins to look not inward or outward, but to the character of God: “It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness” (Lam. 3:22–23). Strauss illustrates:
“Even better than waking up to the delectable aroma of fresh pastries hot out of the oven, accompanied by the tantalizing smell of fresh coffee brewing, we wake up to a fresh supply of God’s mercy when we open our eyes to greet each new day. He is there to meet us and to help us through our difficult times.”3
The New Testament echoes this by pointing us to the source of mercies: “Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God” (2 Cor. 1:3-4). Here we find the fountainhead of mercy, the Father and source of all mercies. Whatever our distress or need, there is mercy available to meet it.
Mercy’s Appeal
The incredible depth of God’s mercies is seen in Romans 1–11. We were all under sin and had no claim on God. We all deserved judgment. Then, “…the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us…” (Titus 3:4-5). What has been done by Jesus Christ to save us is gathered up here and summarized as the mercy of God. The Bible therefore directs our hearts and wills to the mercies of God by pleading with us to dedicate our lives as living sacrifices to Him: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service” (Rom. 12:1).
We must ask ourselves how we have responded to God’s appeal. In magnificent mercy, God has looked upon hell-deserving sinners with compassion, seen our condition, and provided His Son to die for our sins. On that basis, God now appeals to believers to yield their lives to Him.
He will not force the unbeliever to receive His mercy. If a person chooses to resist Him, He will permit that person to receive justice instead. He calls such a one to acknowledge his need and to cast himself, in simple faith, upon the divine mercy made available only through Christ (John 3:16).
Endnotes
- Richard L. Strauss, “Chapter 16: Rich in Mercy,” in The Joy of Knowing God, (originally published in 1984 by Loizeaux Brothers, Inc.), https://bible.org/series/joy-knowing-god.
- Samuel Medley, Loving-Kindness, 1782.
- Strauss, “Rich in Mercy.”