Mercy is a word with a spiritual connotation and I have always known what it meant on some level but recently our Sunday School teacher shared a definition with the class that she found in a Wall Street Journal article. (April 14, 2011, A Definitive American Life by Barton Swain) This definition came from an 1828 Webster Dictionary. It made me realize how much dictionaries have changed.
Mercy: “That benevolence, mildness or tenderness of heart which disposes a person to overlook injuries, or to treat an offender better than he deserves; the disposition that tempers justice, and induces an injured person to forgive trespass and injuries, and to forbear punishment, or inflict less than law or justice will warrant. In this sense, there is perhaps no word in our language precisely synonymous with mercy. That which comes nearest to it is grace. It implies benevolence, tenderness, mildness, pity or compassion, and clemency, but exercised only towards offenders. Mercy is a distinguishing attribute of the Supreme Being.”
This is a beautiful concept. No wonder we plead for mercy from God in our undeserving state. And I am completely amazed that he is willing to give it so freely. I have a scripture that I say to myself after I have gone through the veil during my weekly temple visits.
Be merciful unto me O God
Be merciful unto me.
For My soul trusteth in thee
Yea in the shadow of thy Wings
Will I make my refuge,
Until these calamities be overpast. Psalms 57:1
Be merciful unto me.
For My soul trusteth in thee
Yea in the shadow of thy Wings
Will I make my refuge,
Until these calamities be overpast. Psalms 57:1
There are 4 winged vases in the Celestial room of the Bountiful Temple and they have become a symbol of hope to me for my 4 children. “….in the shadow of thy Wings will I make my refuge…” (see Wings of Hope) I cherish this definition of Mercy because it paints a picture of all that I am pleading for as an offender. I want to be better than I am and I need more consideration than I can ever earn. I plead for the benevolence, tenderness, mildness, pity and clemency promised in this definition. But can I give Mercy as I beg for it. It is not easy. Only with God’s help can I learn to give Mercy when I am offended.