“...thou, O Lord, art…plenteous in mercy and truth.” (Psalm 86:15)"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son…” (John 3:16)
What is the Bible about? I may be oversimplifying, but it appears to be about mercy and love. Mercy may summarize the Old Testament, and love may summarize the New. Some have a stereotypical view of the Old Testament and say it is filled only with violence and judgment. While those elements are found in the Old Testament, the character of God also comes through in mercy. How so? Humankind is marked by sin, and when God is merciful to us, we see His amazing character. He offers us a pardon and even a loving relationship with Himself, though our sin means we deserve neither.
The Old Testament word (khesed) that is often translated “mercy” is a rich word that expresses love, mercy, kindness, grace, favor, and more. As God delivers the ten commandments, He refers to Himself as the One who shows “mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments” (Exodus 20:6). This mercy is powerfully illustrated in the mercy Ruth shows Naomi (Ruth 3:10), the kindness David shows Mephibosheth (2 Samuel 9:1), and the care Rahab extends to the spies (Joshua 2:12).
The New Testament heavily emphasizes love. It is, however, a unique love. The New Testament Greek word (agape) that is usually translated “love” has some features that are found only in Scripture. John 3:16 captures it well. God loved, and His love is manifested in His giving. The depth of this love is stupendous, and the objects of it are undeserving.This theme is illustrated by Paul the Apostle in his letter to the Romans. He gives us two aspects of this special love, for example, in Romans 5. First, a few might volunteer to die for a good man, says Paul (5:7). God, however, commissioned Christ to die for us while we were still sinners (5:8). Second, God did so because of His love for us. That came at tremendous cost to God–the life of His sinless, beloved, one-of-a-kind Son! (5:8).
Countless instances of the mercy and love of God are found throughout Scripture. The common thread in the Old and New Testaments is that those receiving such mercy and love do not deserve it. Another thread reveals that it is the very nature and character of God to show mercy and love. Do these unique forms of biblical mercy and love summarize the entire Word of God? They do not give the whole message, but they serve as a wonderful thumbnail sketch until we master the rest. Grasp the concepts of (and the action behind) biblical mercy and love, and you are on your way to summarizing the Bible.
