What is God’s Mercy?

We are a mixed up people, wanting justice and mercy at the same time. When a friend suffers at the hands of another, we demand the offender pay for what they did. But when our mistakes surface or we’re caught when we hoped to get away with something, we plead for pardon by the ones we hurt.

Thankfully our God is both just and merciful. “What is God’s mercy?” you may ask. He saw our many sins and didn’t give us what we deserved, yet still, He fulfilled His perfect justice. It was Jesus who took His wrath which was meant for the wicked. And somehow we took the Innocent’s place as a child of the righteous and holy King.

He sees our wrongdoings and still exercises blessings in our lives over and over. He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, great in lovingkindness, and good to all.

For the Lord your God is a merciful God; He will not abandon you or destroy you or forget the solemn covenant He made with your ancestors. —Deuteronomy 4:31 (NLT)

Because the ancient Hebrew king, David, recognized God’s goodness and mercy in every area of life, he wrote this song:

I will extol You, my God, O King,
And I will bless Your name forever and ever.
Every day I will bless You,
And I will praise Your name forever and ever.
Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised,
And His greatness is unsearchable.
One generation shall praise Your works to another,
And shall declare Your mighty acts.
On the glorious splendor of Your majesty
And on Your wonderful works, I will meditate.
Men shall speak of the power of Your awesome acts,
And I will tell of Your greatness.
They shall eagerly utter the memory of Your abundant goodness
And will shout joyfully of Your righteousness.
The Lord is gracious and merciful;
Slow to anger and great in lovingkindness.
The Lord is good to all,
And His mercies are over all His works.
All Your works shall give thanks to You, O Lord,
And Your godly ones shall bless You.
They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom
And talk of Your power;
To make known to the sons of men Your mighty acts
And the glory of the majesty of Your kingdom.
Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
And Your dominion endures throughout all generations.
The Lord sustains all who fall
And raises up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to You,
And You give them their food in due time.
You open Your hand
And satisfy the desire of every living thing.
The Lord is righteous in all His ways
And kind in all His deeds.
The Lord is near to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him in truth.
He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;
He will also hear their cry and will save them.
The Lord keeps all who love Him,
But all the wicked He will destroy.
My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord,
And all flesh will bless His holy name forever and ever.

—Psalm 145:1-21 (NASB)