The Other Shoe
“YHWH, Elohey Yisrael, there is none like You, Elohim, in the heavens or in the earth, keeping covenant and mercy with Your servants who walk before You with all their hearts.” 2 Chronicles 6:14 (Darby)
Mercy – God is faithful. He keeps His promises. He is the covenant-keeping God. That is critically important for us. Imagine what life would be like if God didn’t keep His word? We might as well worship the gods of Olympus whose actions were affected by all sorts of circumstances and feelings. Life would be a constant contest and an exercise in appeasement. YHWH is not that kind of God. He does what He says He will do – without wavering.
That sounds great, doesn’t it? Who wouldn’t want stability, reliability and faithfulness? That’s the kind of God who makes life worthwhile. Oh, but that kind of continuity is also a terrible curse. If God always does what He says He will do, what does that mean for unrighteous men and women? It means death! God’s covenant keeping is a double-edged sword. Yes, it provides a firm foundation, but at the same time, it demands holiness and punishes disobedience. Now what do we do? We want a God we can trust but that means we get a God who is Judge. Our desire for reliability becomes the very vehicle of our judgment.
Solomon was a wise man. He realized that you don’t have one without the other. That means you and I need a God who not only keeps His promises but who is also the epitome of hesed – mercy, lovingkindness and steadfast grace. Without mercy, covenant keeping is condemnation. The rabbis pray that God’s mercy will outweigh His wrath, for wrath is the other side of the covenant. Hesed is much more than mercy. In fact, it would take many pages to attempt to explain the full sense of hesed. In this prayer, Solomon probably focuses his attention on this one facet of the word. “Lord, there is none like you. You keep all your promises and, at the same time, you treat us with mercy.” How God can do such a thing is wrapped in the mystery of His love. That He does such a thing is the basis of our very existence.
The Hebrew text is a bit more emphatic than the English. The word in Hebrew includes the definite article. It is not simply hesed as a general noun. It is ha-hesed, “the” mercy. This is mercy specifically tailored to the needs of His people. This is mercy that rests on His covenant faithfulness. If a Jew without Torah is obsolete, then a follower without hesed is extinct.
Today is a great day for praising the God who is faithful and merciful. Today is a great day for acknowledging that without unwavering mercy you and I would long ago have met our end. Thank God for His mercy. Thank Him again. We draw breath because His mercy outweighs the demands of His covenant keeping.
Topical Index: mercy, hesed, covenant, 2 Chronicles 6:14, lovingkindness
May I mention the Messiah? It was Yashua Himself who said, “this is the new covenant in my blood.” Apart from the second Adam, our blessed Redeemer, the LORD Jesus (who is the) Christ, we all stand condemned before G-d. Why? “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of G-d.” “All,” my friends, includes “all.” From Adam to Zechariach, Jew, Gentile, male or female- “all have sinned.”
The words of Rabbi Sha’ul- (whose former name was Saul): “Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners–of whom I am the worst.” (1 Timothy 1.15). “For there is only one G-d and one Mediator who can reconcile God and humanity–the man Christ Jesus.” (1 Timothy 2.5)
“Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.” (1 Timothy 3.16) My question this morning to all who read these words is this:- Who is the “he” spoken of here? -It is ADONAI. “It is the LORD.” “G-d will provide Himself the Lamb..” were the words spoken by Abraham (whose former name was Abram..)- and did YHWH provide?- Yes, He did. “Behold, the Lamb of G-d which taketh away the sins of the world” were the words spoken by John the Immerser.
“Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people” (Hebrews 2:17).
Here we have the verb form of the same word, ‛ιλάσκομαι, defined as ‘to atone for (sin) or to make reconciliation’. Notice that this ‘making amends for sin’ relates to the activity of a priest and that the Messiah had to be a man to accomplish this task. Another word in the same family is ‛ιλαστήρον that refers to the ‘mercy seat’, a place of atonement in the Old Testament temple (Hebrews 9:5) or to an atoning victim, an expiatory sacrifice. -Behold, the “Passover” Lamb, -“it is the LORD.”
Thank you Father for your Mercy, Grace and Unconditional Love, but most of all thank you for Jesus who provided a way (through his death/resurrection) for sinners such as I to approach an unapproachable Holy God. We deserve Death but you gave us Life.
Hi Skip,
I’ve noticed that you seldom mention Yeshua these days. Why is that?
Keep reading. And stop worrying. He is still Lord.
Actually, that first reply might have been taken as harsh. Sorry. It just depends on where the road is going. You will find plenty to satisfy your appetite in the coming weeks. Don’t worry about it. Just enjoy the ride.
“Yeshua had every right to wish judgment and destruction upon His enemies. In fact, He is the only human being who ever lived who would have been justified in His desire. But He wept over their fate and forgave them in His suffering.”
Hi Robin,
Please bear with me while I give you a hard time.
Skip’s comment about Yeshua above came the day before yesterday 🙂
A great one today. My response? Thank you Father & YAHOO!!!