This week · Week 50 of 52
Judgment and Mercy
The same God who judges sin without exception is the God who delights in mercy.
Built on Exodus 34:6-7. God's own self-description to Moses, merciful and gracious, forgiving iniquity, yet by no means clearing the guilty. Both truths spoken in one breath.
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Day 1
Merciful and Just in the Same Breath
Loading Exodus 34:6-7…
This is God's own answer when Moses asks to see his glory. The description does not separate mercy from justice into two moods; it states both as one connected character in a single proclamation.
Abundant in loving kindness sits beside will by no means leave the guilty unpunished without any hint of contradiction in the text. Scripture asks the reader to hold both together rather than choosing the one that feels more comfortable.
- Mercy and justice are named together as one character, not two.
- God's self-description here was requested, not merely observed.
- Loving kindness for thousands is stated before the warning about guilt.
Lord, You are merciful and just at once. Do not let me flatten who You are into only the half that is easier for me to accept. Amen.