bible verses about gods mercy

Bible Verses About God's Mercy: 12

Bible verses about God's mercy: 12 Scriptures on the chesed and eleos of the Lord.

Illustrated portrait of Christopher McAllister

By Christopher McAllister

Founder of theBibleand.Love

Published September 30, 20265 min readPsalm 103:8 (NIV)

A person bends to help someone seated in the dust beside a road.

"The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love."

— Psalm 103:8 (NIV)

People who search bible verses about God's mercy want Scripture on the mercy of YHWH himself — not only the broader mercy list, the compassion list, or the grace list alone. This page is a numbered list of twelve passages with the NIV text and a short note on each. Related lists: Bible verses about mercy, Bible verses about compassion, Bible verses about grace, Bible verses about God's love, Bible verses about forgiveness, and Bible verse of the day. God's mercy here means chesed / eleos — the Lord's own steadfast pity and kindness — distinct from general mercy themes alone.

Word study (lead theme). In Hebrew, "mercy" / steadfast love is often חֶסֶד chesed (Strong's H2617; Bible Hub H2617) — lovingkindness, steadfast love, mercy. In Greek it is ἔλεος eleos (Strong's G1656; Bible Hub G1656) — mercy, pity, compassion. Psalm 103:8 pairs compassion and grace; Ephesians 2:4 names God rich in mercy. God's mercy is his character toward the needy — not a mood we manufacture.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Psalm 103 presses the Lord as merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy (Bible Hub MHC Psalm 103; Blue Letter Bible, Matthew Henry on Psalm 103). On Romans 9 he marks that mercy belongs to God, who has mercy on whom he will have mercy (Bible Hub MHC Romans 9; Blue Letter Bible, Matthew Henry on Romans 9). (Broader mercy and compassion lists live on those pages; this list centers God's own chesed / eleos.)

12 Bible verses about God's mercy

  1. Exodus 34:6. "And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, 'The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness…'" Name of God proclaimed as mercy. See Bible verses about God's love.

  2. Numbers 14:18. "The Lord is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion…" Moses pleads the same name — mercy that forgives. See Bible verses about mercy.

  3. Psalm 86:15. "But you, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness." David repeats the name. See Bible verses about compassion.

  4. Nehemiah 9:31. "But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God." Great mercy refuses a full end. See Bible verses about forgiveness.

  5. Daniel 9:9. "The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him." Mercy and forgiveness meet rebellion. See Bible verses about grace.

  6. Psalm 51:1. "Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions." Plea for mercy grounded in chesed. See Bible verses about forgiveness.

  7. Micah 7:18. "Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy." God delights to show mercy. See Bible verses about mercy.

  8. Luke 6:36. "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." Mercy learned from the Father. See Bible verses about compassion.

  9. Romans 9:15-16. "For he says to Moses, 'I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.' It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God's mercy." Mercy belongs to God. See Bible verses about grace.

  10. Hebrews 4:16. "Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Throne of grace — receive mercy. See Bible verses about grace.

  11. 1 Peter 1:3. "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…" New birth from great mercy. See Bible verses about God's love.

  12. Jude 1:21. "keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life." Waiting for the mercy of Christ. See Bible verses about God's love.

How to use these verses

Pick one verse when you need God's mercy — not twelve as a grind. If you need God's character, start with Exodus 34:6. If you need mercy that belongs to God, open Romans 9:15-16. If you need a plea for cleansing, open Psalm 51:1. For the broader mercy list, open Bible verses about mercy. For compassion, open Bible verses about compassion. For grace, open Bible verses about grace. For a daily verse, open Bible verse of the day.

Questions people ask

What is a good Bible verse about God's mercy?

Exodus 34:6 (the compassionate and gracious God), Romans 9:15-16 (I will have mercy on whom I have mercy), and Micah 7:18 (he delights to show mercy) are clear starting places.

How do Bible verses about God's mercy differ from mercy or grace?

The live mercy page can cover mercy themes broadly. Grace pages center undeserved favor. A God's-mercy page centers chesed / eleos as God's own steadfast pity — then cross-links mercy, compassion, grace, and God's love. See Bible verses about mercy and Bible verses about grace.

What do chesed and eleos mean?

Hebrew chesed (H2617) means lovingkindness, steadfast love, or mercy. Greek eleos (G1656) means mercy or pity. Together they name God's kindness toward the needy.

Is God's mercy only for the Old Testament?

Exodus and the Psalms proclaim it; Ephesians, Titus, Hebrews, and Jude show it fulfilled and applied in Christ. See Bible verses about forgiveness.

Where can I read more about compassion, grace, and God's love?

Start with Bible verses about compassion, then Bible verses about grace, Bible verses about God's love, and Bible verses about mercy.

Sources

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