Introduction
Mercy is one of the tenderest words in the Bible. It describes the compassion that bends down toward someone who suffers or who has failed, and that acts on their behalf. God presents himself this way at Sinai, as a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger. Jesus made this mercy visible by touching lepers, by weeping with a widow, by being moved before the weary crowd. These 20 verses, quoted from the World English Bible, are read in five stages: the heart of God as he reveals himself, his tenderness even when he corrects, the mercy that saved us, the mercy Jesus lived out, and the call to become merciful in our turn. You can read this page as an answer to shame or to the fear of being judged: it shows the face of God that the Bible wants you to know.
The heart of God as he reveals himself
1. Exodus 34:6
"Yahweh passed by before him, and proclaimed, “Yahweh! Yahweh, a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness and truth,"
Moses has just begged God to show him his glory. Yahweh passes before him and proclaims his own name: "a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger." Before his power, it is his tenderness that he chooses to make known. Read all of Exodus 34.
2. Psalm 103:8-10
"Yahweh is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness. He will not always accuse; neither will he stay angry forever. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor repaid us for our iniquities."
David takes up the words of Exodus to celebrate what God has done for him. He adds a precious consequence: "He has not dealt with us according to our sins." If God paid us back according to our faults, no one would stand. His mercy sets aside the bill we deserve. Read all of Psalm 103.
3. Nehemiah 9:17
"and refused to obey. They weren’t mindful of your wonders that you did among them, but hardened their neck, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage. But you are a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in loving kindness, and didn’t forsake them."
In a communal prayer, the Israelites revisit their history. They admit their rebellion, then God's response: "a God ready to pardon, gracious and merciful." Even when the people wanted to return to slavery, God did not forsake them. Read all of Nehemiah 9.
4. Psalm 145:8-9
"Yahweh is gracious, merciful, slow to anger, and of great loving kindness. Yahweh is good to all. His tender mercies are over all his works."
This psalm of praise takes up the Sinai formula in turn, then widens it: Yahweh is good to all, and "His tender mercies are over all his works." God's mercy is not reserved for one group. It surrounds his entire creation. Read all of Psalm 145.
His tenderness even in hardship
5. Lamentations 3:31-33
"For the Lord will not cast off forever. For though he causes grief, yet he will have compassion according to the multitude of his loving kindnesses. For he does not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men."
Jeremiah has just described the devastation of Jerusalem. Yet he clings to this: the Lord does not cast off forever. If he causes grief, he will have compassion according to his great loving kindness, for "he does not afflict willingly." God's correction is never a pleasure to him. Read all of Lamentations 3.
6. Isaiah 54:7-8
"For a small moment I have forsaken you, but I will gather you with great mercies. In overflowing wrath I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting loving kindness I will have mercy on you,” says Yahweh your Redeemer."
God speaks to Jerusalem, compared to an abandoned wife. He admits to having hidden his face for a moment, then he promises: "with everlasting loving kindness I will have mercy on you." Moments of silence, even long ones, are not definitive abandonment. Everlasting love always wins in the end. Read all of Isaiah 54.
7. Micah 7:18
"Who is a God like you, who pardons iniquity, and passes over the disobedience of the remnant of his heritage? He doesn’t retain his anger forever, because he delights in loving kindness."
The prophet Micah ends his book with an admiring question: "Who is a God like you?" He explains why none can match him: he pardons and does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in loving kindness. God loves to show mercy. Read all of Micah 7.
8. Psalm 86:5
"For you, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive, abundant in loving kindness to all those who call on you."
David is in distress and prays by relying on God's character rather than on his own merits. He declares: "abundant in loving kindness to all those who call on you." You do not need to be perfect to cry out to God, you only need to call on him. Read all of Psalm 86.
The mercy that saved us
9. Luke 18:13-14
"But the tax collector, standing far away, wouldn’t even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted."
Jesus tells of two men at the temple: a self-assured Pharisee and a tax collector who does not dare lift his eyes. The latter prays: "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" He is the one who goes home justified. Mercy belongs to those who ask for it. Read all of Luke 18.
10. 1 Timothy 1:13
"although I used to be a blasphemer, a persecutor, and insolent. However, I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief."
Paul remembers what he was before his conversion: a blasphemer, a persecutor, a violent man. He does not look for an excuse, he simply says: "I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief." His past was not too heavy. The one who showed him mercy made him an apostle. Read all of 1 Timothy 1.
11. 1 Peter 2:10
"In the past, you were not a people, but now are God’s people, who had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy."
Peter addresses believers of every background, who had no special status. He reminds them of their new identity: "who had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy." Mercy takes people from outside to inside the people of God. Read all of 1 Peter 2.
12. Romans 11:30-32
"For as you in time past were disobedient to God, but now have obtained mercy by their disobedience, even so these also have now been disobedient, that by the mercy shown to you they may also obtain mercy. For God has bound all to disobedience, that he might have mercy on all."
Paul concludes here a long reflection on the fate of Israel and the nations. He observes that everyone has been affected by disobedience. He concludes that God allowed it "that he might have mercy on all." No one enters the kingdom by their credentials: everyone goes through the door of mercy. Read all of Romans 11.
The compassion of Jesus
13. Matthew 9:36
"But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and scattered, like sheep without a shepherd."
Jesus travels through towns and villages, teaching and healing. He sees the crowd and describes it as sheep without a shepherd. He does not turn away: "he was moved with compassion for them." The Gospels show a God whose first reflex before distress is compassion. Read all of Matthew 9.
14. Luke 7:13
"When the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said to her, “Don’t cry."
At Nain, Jesus meets the funeral procession of a widow's only son. She has asked for nothing. The Lord sees her, has compassion and tells her not to cry, then gives her son back alive. Jesus's mercy often takes the initiative. Read all of Luke 7.
15. Mark 1:41
"Being moved with compassion, he stretched out his hand, and touched him, and said to him, “I want to. Be made clean."
A leper begs Jesus: if you are willing, you can make me clean. At that time, touching a leper made you unclean. Jesus, moved with compassion, stretches out his hand, touches him and replies: "I want to. Be made clean." His mercy goes beyond social barriers. Read all of Mark 1.
16. Matthew 20:34
"Jesus, being moved with compassion, touched their eyes; and immediately their eyes received their sight, and they followed him."
Two blind men cry out as Jesus passes, and the crowd tells them to be quiet. Jesus stops, calls them and asks what they want. Then, says the text, he was "being moved with compassion" and touched their eyes: he heals them and they follow him. Those whom others want to silence, he listens to. Read all of Matthew 20.
Becoming merciful in our turn
17. Luke 6:36
"Therefore be merciful, even as your Father is also merciful."
In the Sermon on the Plain, Jesus asks us to love our enemies, to lend without expecting anything, and he gives a model: "be merciful, even as your Father is also merciful." Our mercy does not have to be invented, it is a reflection of the mercy we have received. Read all of Luke 6.
18. Matthew 5:7
"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy."
The fifth beatitude is part of the Sermon on the Mount: "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy." This does not mean God's mercy can be bought. Whoever truly knows it spreads it, and by spreading it, receives it again. Read all of Matthew 5.
19. James 2:13
"For judgment is without mercy to him who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment."
James addresses a church that favors the rich. He warns that judgment is without mercy for the one who has shown no mercy, before proclaiming: "Mercy triumphs over judgment." God prefers the way of compassion to that of the sentence. Read all of James 2.
20. Matthew 9:13
"But you go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ for I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."
The Pharisees reproach Jesus for eating with tax collectors. He sends back to them a word from the prophet Hosea: "I desire mercy, and not sacrifice." For God, a rite without compassion has no value, and mercy is the best way to serve him. Read all of Matthew 9.
Further reading
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between mercy and grace?
Mercy is not receiving the punishment you deserve. Grace is receiving what you do not deserve. Both come from God's love and go together, as in Ephesians 2:4-5. In Exodus, God is presented as both merciful and gracious.
What does the Bible say about God's mercy toward sinners?
The Bible affirms that God is rich in mercy and does not treat us according to our sins (Psalm 103:10). Jesus came to call sinners, not the righteous. Anyone who asks for forgiveness sincerely, like the tax collector in the parable, receives it.
How can you show mercy in everyday life?
Start by listening without judging, forgiving an offense, helping someone who has failed without reminding them of it. Jesus touched, listened to and helped those whom others avoided. Luke 6:36 gives the model: be merciful as your Father is merciful, through simple and concrete actions.