“The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished." Exodus 34:6-7a
This is a text that provides a profound insight into the nature of God's mercy. In these verses, we see a tension that exists between God's mercy and His justice. On the one hand, God is described as compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin. On the other hand, we are told that God does not leave the guilty unpunished. This tension may have been puzzling to some of the ancient Hebrews, but it is a tension that has been resolved in the person of Jesus Christ.
The first thing to note is that the description of God in Exodus 34:6-7a is a revelation of God's character. This passage was given to Moses after he had shattered the first set of tablets containing the Ten Commandments in anger at the Israelites' worship of the golden calf. Moses pleaded with God to show him His glory, and it was in response to this request that God revealed Himself in this way. The description of God as compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion, and sin is a reflection of who God is and how He acts towards His people.
However, we also see in this passage that God does not leave the guilty unpunished. This means that there are consequences for sin, and that God's justice demands that sin be punished. This tension between mercy and justice is something that has puzzled people throughout the ages. How can a loving God also be a just God? How can He forgive sin and yet still punish it?
The answer to this tension is ultimately found in the person of Jesus Christ. In Christ, we see both the mercy and the justice of God perfectly displayed. On the cross, Jesus took upon Himself the punishment that we deserved for our sins. He satisfied the demands of God's justice by dying in the place of sinners. At the same time, Jesus also demonstrated the mercy of God by taking our sins upon Himself and granting forgiveness to all who trust in Him.
The Apostle Paul explains this in Romans 3:23-26: "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished—he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus."
In Christ, we see the perfect balance between God's justice and mercy. He is both the one who punishes sin and the one who offers forgiveness. This means that we can approach God with confidence, knowing that He is both just and merciful. As the writer of Hebrews explains, "Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).
In conclusion, Exodus 34:6-7a provides a profound insight into the nature of God's mercy. We see a tension between God's mercy and justice, but this tension is resolved in the person of Jesus Christ. Through His death and resurrection, Jesus demonstrated both the justice and mercy of God, and in Him, we find forgiveness and salvation. As Christians, we can approach God with confidence, knowing that He is both just and merciful, and that in Christ, we have received the fullness of His mercy and grace.