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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadInternational Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Mercy; Merciful
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muÌ‚r´si, muÌ‚r´si-fool (חסר, hÌ£esÌ£edh, רח×, raÌ„hÌ£am, ×—× ×Ÿ, hÌ£aÌ„nan; ἐÌλεος, eÌleos, ἐλεεÌω, eleeÌoÌ„, οἰκτιÏμοÌÏ‚, oiktirmoÌs): “Mercy†is a distinctive Bible word characterizing God as revealed to men.
In the Old Testament it is most often the translation of hÌ£esÌ£edh, “kindness,†“loving-kindness†(see LOVINGKINDNESS), but rahÌ£ămı̄m, literally, “bowels†(the sympathetic region), and hÌ£aÌ„nan, “to be inclined to,†“to be gracious,†are also frequently translated “mercyâ€; eleos, “kindness,†“beneficence,†and eleeÌoÌ„, “to show kindness,†are the chief words rendering “mercy†in the New Testament; oiktirmos, “pity,†“compassion,†occurs a few times, also oiktıÌrmoÌ„n, “pitiful,†eleeÌ„ÌmoÌ„n, “kind,†“compassionate,†twice; hıÌleoÌ„s, “forgiving,†and anıÌleoÌ„s, “not forgiving,†“without mercy,†once each (; ).
(1) Mercy is (a) an essential quality of God (, ; ; , etc.); it is His delight (, ; ); He is “the Father of mercies†(), “rich in mercy†(), “full of pity, and merciful†(); (b) it is associated with forgiveness (; ; , ); (c) with His forbearance (, “Yahweh is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great lovingkindnessâ€; compare Roman ; -7 :32); (d) with His covenant (; ), with His justice (), with His faithfulness (), with His truth (); mercy and truth are united in ; , etc. (in we have “Mercy and truth are met togetherâ€); (e) it goes forth to all (, “Yahweh is good to all; and his tender mercies are over all his worksâ€; compare , “Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing,†the Revised Version margin “satisfiest every living thing with favorâ€); (f) it shows itself in pitying help (; f), supremely in Christ and His salvation (, , ; ); (g) it is abundant, practically infinite (, ; ); (h) it is everlasting (, ; ; ; 136 repeatedly).
(2) “Mercy†is used of man as well as of God, and is required on man's part toward man and beast (; ; ; ; ; ; , “Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercyâ€; 25:31-46; , “Be ye merciful, even as your Father is mercifulâ€; f, the Good Samaritan; -16; ).
(3) In the New Testament “mercy†(eleos, usually the Septuagint translation of hÌ£esÌ£edh) is associated with “grace†(chaÌris) in the apostolical greetings and elsewhere. Trench points out that the difference between them is that the freeness of God's love is the central point of charis, while eleos has in view misery and its relief; charis is His free grace and gift displayed in the forgiveness of sins - extended to men as they are guilty; His eleos (is extended to them) as they are miserable. The lower creation may be the object of His mercy (eleos), but man alone of His grace (charis); he alone needs it and is capable of receiving it (Synonyms of the New Testament, 163 f).
(4) From all the foregoing it will be seen that mercy in God is not merely His pardon of offenders, but His attitude to man, and to the world generally, from which His pardoning mercy proceeds. The frequency with which mercy is enjoined on men is specially deserving of notice, with the exclusion of the unmerciful from sonship to the all-merciful Father and from the benefits of His mercifulness. Shakespeare's question, “How canst thou hope for mercy rendering none?†is fully warranted by our Lord's teaching and by Scripture in general; compare especially the parable of the Unmerciful Servant (-35).
(5) As the rule, the American Standard Revised Version has “lovingkindness†for “mercy†when ḥeṣedh is used of God, and “kindness†when it is used of men in relation to each other. “Compassion†(translation of rāḥam) is also in several instances substituted for “mercy†(; ; ; ; ), also “goodness†(translation of ḥeṣedh referring to man) (; ).