bible verses about mercy

Bible Verses About Mercy: 15 Scriptures

Bible verses about mercy: 15 Scriptures on being merciful as the Father is merciful, love that withholds deserved harm, and God's steadfast kindness, with plain notes and links.

Illustrated portrait of Christopher McAllister

By Christopher McAllister

Founder of theBibleand.Love

Published September 28, 2026Updated October 7, 20265 min readLuke 6:36 (NIV)

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

"Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful."

— Luke 6:36 (NIV)

People who search bible verses about mercy want Scripture for a soft answer and a second chance — withholding harm you could inflict, kindness toward the undeserving, and love that looks like the Father's. This page is a numbered list of fifteen passages with the NIV text and a short note on each. The wider essay sits under Love and mercy. For the Hebrew word behind God's loyal love, see What does hesed mean?. Related lists: Bible verses about compassion, Bible verses about kindness, Bible verses about forgiveness, and Bible verses about God's love. For chesed and eleos as the Lord's own character, see Bible verses about God's mercy. The 2 Corinthians 1:3 title is Bible verses about Father of mercies.

Word study (lead verse). In Luke 6:36 Jesus says to be oiktirmones — merciful — from the same family as oiktirmos (Strong's G1656 for eleos, mercy / pity / compassion): kindness that withholds deserved harm and gives undeserved help. See also Bible Hub G1656. For the Old Testament cousin hesed (loyal love / steadfast kindness), see Strong's H2617 and What does hesed mean?.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Luke 6:27-36 aims mercy at the Father's pattern: "Let us then aim to be merciful, even according to the mercy of our heavenly Father to us" (Bible Hub commentaries on Luke 6:36; fuller MHC on the chapter at Blue Letter Bible, Matthew Henry on Luke 6 and Bible Hub MHC Luke 6).

15 Bible verses about mercy

  1. Luke 6:36. "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." Mercy has a pattern — the Father — not only a preference.

  2. Micah 6:8. "…To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Loving mercy is required alongside justice and humility. See Bible verses about justice.

  3. Matthew 5:7. "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy." Mercy received and mercy given form a circle.

  4. Psalm 103:8. "The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love." Slow anger and abounding love are mercy's soundtrack. See Bible verses about God's love.

  5. Ephesians 2:4-5. "But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions…" Mercy is rich — and it raises the dead in sin.

  6. James 2:13. "…Mercy triumphs over judgment." Mercy is not soft-headed; it is stronger than a harsh scorekeeping spirit.

  7. Lamentations 3:22-23. "Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail…" Mercy keeps us from being consumed. See What does hesed mean?.

  8. Hosea 6:6. "For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings." God wants mercy in relationships more than empty ritual.

  9. Psalm 23:6. "Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life…" Mercy/love pursues — it is not only a one-time pardon.

  10. Titus 3:5. "he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy…" Salvation rests on mercy, not a resume.

  11. Matthew 9:13. "But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice.' For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners." Jesus quotes Hosea against cold religion that skips mercy.

  12. Psalm 86:5. "You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you." Forgiving and abounding in love — mercy toward callers. See Bible verses about forgiveness.

  13. Luke 1:50. "His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation." Mercy has a long horizon across generations.

  14. 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…" New birth is mercy's gift. See Bible verses about hope.

  15. 1 Corinthians 13:4-5. "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs." Love that keeps no record of wrongs is mercy in practice. See Love keeps no record of wrongs and Love and mercy.

How to use these verses

Pick one verse for a conflict, a confession, or a habit of scorekeeping — not fifteen. Read it out loud. If you need the Father's pattern, start with Luke 6:36. If you need God's character first, start with Psalm 103:8 or Ephesians 2:4-5. If you need the Hebrew word study behind loyal love, read What does hesed mean?. For the essay, see Love and mercy. For compassion and kindness lists, see Bible verses about compassion and Bible verses about kindness. For Jonah who ran toward Tarshish, prayed from inside the fish, and named the Lord gracious and compassionate, open Bible verses about Jonah. For a daily verse, open Bible verse of the day. The Mercy Seat list is on Bible verses about Mercy Seat. For chesed praise the KJV calls lovingkindness, see Bible verses about lovingkindness.

Questions people ask

What is a good Bible verse about mercy?

Luke 6:36 ("Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful") and Matthew 5:7 ("Blessed are the merciful") are clear starting places. Ephesians 2:4-5 names God as rich in mercy.

What does the Bible say about God's mercy?

Scripture says God is rich in mercy (Ephesians 2:4), slow to anger and abounding in love (Psalm 103:8), and that his compassions never fail (Lamentations 3:22-23). See What does hesed mean? and Bible verses about God's love.

How is mercy different from grace?

They overlap. Mercy often stresses not getting the harm you deserve; grace stresses getting the gift you do not deserve. Both appear together in God's saving work (Ephesians 2:4-5; Titus 3:5).

What Bible verse helps when I need a second chance?

Psalm 86:5, Lamentations 3:22-23, and Titus 3:5 are often used. Mercy is new in the morning and rich enough for sinners. See Bible verses about forgiveness.

Read Love and mercy, What does hesed mean?, and Bible verses about compassion. For kindness and forgiveness, see Bible verses about kindness and Bible verses about forgiveness.

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Sources

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