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Mercy in the Bible

The mystery of the Divine Mercy belongs to the most fundamental truths of faith which God revealed to man in the Old and the New Covenant. The Holy Scripture emphasizes that the whole world reveals God whose “home is the inaccessible light” (1 Tm 6:16) and who at the same time speaks to the people through the cosmos, its order and harmony. God Himself reveals His might and His invisible attributes which become visible through His works (c.f. Rm 1:20). The only Triune God reveals before man all His mysteries and allows man to get to know Him through His love for people. His invisible attributes become visible in Christ, through His deeds and words and ultimately they became revealed to the world through His death and resurrection.

In the history of the world, in the lives of the individual biblical persons and in the history of the chosen People, God revealed His merciful love which not only lifts man up from sin, but also remedies all human weaknesses and shortcomings and endows man with life. Mercy is revealed in all external activities of God: both the creative and the salvific ones. Everything that God does for man is an expression of His merciful love.

Mercy in the Old Testament

In the Old Testament, the concept of “mercy” appeared when the chosen People became aware of their infidelity towards God. In order to describe the extremely complex reality of God’s mercy, the inspired authors use many terms, each of which emphasizes a different aspect of the great mystery of God’s love for man. Mercy always appears in the context of the covenant which God made with His people. For the first time, God revealed His mercy during the Israelites’ march through the wilderness. By appearing to Moses in the shape of a blazing bush, He revealed His name – “Yahweh – I Am who I Am” (Ex 3:14). During the next meeting, God revealed to Moses the mystery of His name: “Yahweh, Yahweh, a God of tenderness and compassion, slow to anger, rich in kindness and faithfulness; for thousands, He maintains his kindness, forgives faults, transgressions, sin” (Ex 34:6). This revelation of God became the basis of the relation of the chosen people with their Creator and Savior.

In the course of centuries, Israel became more and more aware of its unfaithfulness towards God and then the Prophets began to refer more and more often to mercy; thus king Solomon prayed for mercy for his people during the blessing of the temple (1 K 8: 22-53); prophet Micah also referred to mercy while entreating God for forgiveness (Mi 7:18-20); prophet Isaiah presented mercy as a source of comfort (Is 1:18; 51:4-16). In the teaching of the prophets, mercy signifies love which is greater than sin and infidelity of the chosen people.

The basis of the Israelites’ faith in mercy had always been the first revelation on the Mount of Sinai, where God introduced Himself to Moses as “merciful, compassionate, slow to anger, rich in kindness and faithfulness” (Ex 34:6). In his encyclical letter Dives in Misericordia, the Holy Father John Paul II emphasizes that the Old Testament revelation manifests a wealth of God’s merciful love in the context of the covenant made with the chosen people. This love comprises the “grace and fidelity” (in Hebrew: hesed) of God who never goes back on the once given word. Another trait of this love is tenderness which is reminiscent of motherly love (in Hebrew: rahamim); the latter comprises the ability to forgive, be patient, tender and understanding. Another characteristic trait of merciful love is generosity, friendliness and benevolence (Hebrew: hanan). Yet another characteristic element of the love revealed on the Mount of Sinai is sympathy and compassion (Hebrew: hamal)which God shows to sinners.

The truth about God’s love for man is expressed most profoundly by the author of the Book of Hosea in the form of God’s confession of love for the unfaithful Ephraim: “Ephraim, how could I part with you? Israel, how could I give you up? My heart recoils from it, my whole being trembles at the thought. I will not give rein to my fierce anger, I will not destroy Ephraim again, for I am God, not man: I am the Holy One in your midst, and have no wish to destroy” (Ho 11: 8).

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In the New Testament

In the New Testament, God’s mercy was manifested most fully in the activity of God’s Son, Jesus Christ upon the earth and particularly, in His death and Resurrection. Jesus Christ is Mercy Incarnate. Through His Incarnation, His life, miracles and teaching, and above all, through His passion, death and resurrection, the mystery of God’s mercy came to shine with its full brightness.

The truth about the God of mercy was revealed most fully by the Lord Jesus in His activity and teaching. The Lord Jesus proclaimed mercy by taking pity on the sick and the hungry (Lu 4:18). He showed mercy to the sinners and those who were rejected because of leprosy (Mt 8:1-4; Jn 8:1-11). He proclaimed the truth about God’s Mercy through parables: the one about the lost sheep (Lu 15:1-7) and about the lost drachma (Lu15:8-10), about the prodigal son (Lu 15:11-32) and about the Good Samaritan (Lu 10:30-37). He revealed fully the Father’s love for the people when He accepted the cross and died for the sins of the world. Through His death and Resurrection, He showed that the power of love is stronger than death. God’s merciful love makes itself particularly noticed in contact with suffering, injustice, and poverty which reveal man’s limitations and frailty, both physical and moral (DM 3). The Paschal Mystery is the culmination of this revealing and effecting of mercy, which is able to justify man, to restore justice in the sense of that salvific order which God willed from the very beginning in man and, through man, in the world (DM 7).

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