“Lord have mercy.” 

If you live in the south, this is a common phrase for annoyance, pity, genuine compassion, or judgment. But it is also a pointer to something God has much of: mercy.

This phrase is interesting because although we see cries for mercy in the Bible (Psalm 51:1; Psalm 116:4), God already has abundant mercy. As we will see, it is a characteristic that flows readily from Him. For many, this is well known. I think next to God’s love, mercy is frequently talked about. But what is mercy? And how does God display it?

What is Mercy

The Bible makes it clear that mercy is a vital concept to know about God. As cited in an article by Bible Study Tools, mercy is “mentioned 262 times in the King James Version, 157 times in the English Standard Version, 99 times in the New American Standard Bible, 170 times in the Amplified Bible, and 146 in the New English Translation.” Even when describing Himself to Moses in Exodus 34:6, God first says He is “merciful and gracious.” The very first word God uses to describe Himself – as He reveals His full glory to Moses – is mercy. 

Okay, so we now know that mercy is a really important characteristic of God. Now, let’s look at what mercy actually means. Several Greek and Hebrew words are used to describe the depths of the term “mercy” such as ἐλεέω, ἔλεος, רַחוּם, רַחֲמִים, כַּפֹּ֫רֶת. The various words hold meanings related to compassion, pity, forgiveness, and atonement, all aspects of mercy. GotQuestions defines mercy as, “benevolent or compassionate treatment of someone suffering or in need… an attitude that moves us to act on behalf of the unfortunate… the foundation of forgiveness expressed in God’s pardon of human sin.” Mercy then is a withholding of just condemnation of an individual. It is a movement of compassion towards  those less fortunate and even the undeserving. Mercy chooses not to be offended when it has every right to be. Mercy forgives in the face of hurt. Mercy extends a hand to those sitting broken on the ground.

If it sounds too good to be true, all we must do is turn to the Bible. Story upon story shows God’s mercy on display. But one in particular, I believe, perfectly illustrates God’s heart of mercy.

Lord Has Mercy

“When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God

relented of the disaster that He had said He would do to them, and

He did not do it.”

(Jonah 3:10)

At first glance, this seems like a normal, kind-of-God thing to do. But who He was having mercy on was radical. Those He was sparing were the people of Assyria . If you know anything about the Assyrian empire, it should be that the nation held a legacy of ruthless violence . Enslavement, slaughter, and oppression were not uncommon happenings within the nation. Torture of their enemies was as common as was violence amongst each other. One of its emperors – Shalmaneser III – is well-known for depicting the torture, dismembering, and decapitations of his enemies in great detail. They would often cut off the legs and one arm of their enemies so they could shake their other hand as they died. Yikes feels like a severe understatement.

How then could a good God forgive them? What’s more, before this verse, we do not see the people of Nineveh – the capital of Assyria –committing to worship God. They don’t necessarily turn from their idols. They fast and commit to not being violent anymore (3:7-8), but don’t commit to being followers of Yahweh. So again, why is God not sending disaster anymore? Why is He having mercy?

That’s a question Jonah himself asked. In fact, we see he is pretty upset that God relented from the disaster on Nineveh (4:2). But when we start to ask this question, it reveals a blind spot in ourselves. 

You see, the story continues with God commanding Jonah  to preach this warning of His wrath to the people of Nineveh. But instead, Jonah ran away. He hopped on a boat and attempted to sail far from where he was called (2:3). Why? Well, because Jonah was highly patriotic. During his ministry in 2 Kings 14:25, we see Jonah support Jeroboam’s (the king of Israel at the time) aggressive military policy to extend the nation’s power (2 Kings 4:23-25 ). The thought of aiding another nation – especially one that oppressed his own – was unfathomable to Jonah. He would rather preserve his own people than to see others receive mercy. 

This becomes glaringly obvious in chapter 1 of the book of Jonah. When a great storm overtakes the very boat Jonah is on to avoid God’s command to go to Nineveh, Jonah fails to confess or admit that the storm sent directly because of his choice to run away from God’s call. Instead, the sailors on the boat have to figure it out on their own (Jonah 1:7). Even when they realize Jonah is the source of the wrath they face, they are reluctant to throw him overboard (Jonah 1:13). These “pagan” men – the men Jonah had no compassion towards – are showing great mercy to Jonah that he himself did not want God to extend to them. Finally, Jonah convinces them to throw him overboard, which immediately stops the storm. So, here is Jonah – self-centered, self-pitying Jonah – valuing his nation and own comfort over the benefit of others. Another yikes.

And yet, when Jonah cries out to God in prayer, God  listens (Jonah 2:2). And yet, when Jonah is tossed into the sea, the Lord saves his life through the giant fish. And yet, God still desires to use Jonah for His mission. Now, the question becomes why would a good God show mercy on him? 

Psalm 40:11 might be able to answer this. 

God does not restrain His mercy. He is so full of mercy that it overflows to each of us. Yes, He by no means absolves the wicked (Deuteronomy 32:35 ), but His great mercies abound. Remember, He started His self-description with mercy (Exodus 34:6). 

God’s mercies then, do not ebb and flow based on circumstances or even our actions. Mercy is constant because He is constant (Lamentations 3:22). Jonah provides prime examples of those undeserving of answered prayers and abundant mercy. Yet, God extended His hand of mercy to them…will He not do the same with us?

Can I let you in on a secret? He already has. The greatest display of mercy from God is through the death of His Son on the cross. Jesus’s final action was to extend mercy. He cried for those torturing, mocking, and killing Him to not be punished by the Father because “they know not what they are doing” (Luke 23:24). Wow. What great mercy. And that same mercy is given to us  everyday as a free, unmerited gift. May we reflect on the beauty of God’s mercy for us.

Resources

• What does it mean that God is merciful by GotQuestions
• The Prodigal Prophet by Timothy Keller
• What is Mercy and Why Do We Need It? by Bible Study Tools
• What is the definition of mercy? by GotQuestions
• He Will Not Restrain His Mercy by Tanner Kay Swanson

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