Dives in Misericordia: “He Who Sees Me Sees the Father” (4, continued)

Chapter 4 of “Dives in Misericordia” (“Rich in Mercy”) is entitled “The Concept of ‘Mercy’ in the Old Testament.” It continues as follows:

“4. . . . In this broad ‘social’ context, mercy appears as a correlative to the interior experience of individuals languishing in a state of guilt or enduring every kind of suffering and misfortune. Both physical evil and moral evil, namely sin, cause the sons and daughters of Israel to turn to the Lord and beseech His mercy. In this way David turns to Him, conscious of the seriousness of his guilt³⁹; Job too, after his rebellion, turns to Him in his tremendous misfortune⁴⁰; so also does Esther, knowing the mortal threat to her own people.⁴¹ And we find still other examples in the books of the Old Testament.⁴²

At the root of this many-sided conviction, which is both communal and personal, and which is demonstrated by the whole of the Old Testament down the centuries, is the basic experience of the chosen people at the Exodus: the Lord saw the affliction of His people reduced to slavery, heard their cry, knew their sufferings and decided to deliver them.⁴³ In this act of salvation by the Lord, the prophet perceived his love and compassion.⁴⁴ This is precisely the grounds upon which the people and each of its members based their certainty of the mercy of God, which can be invoked whenever tragedy strikes.”

39. Cf. 2 Samuel 11; 12; 24:10.
40. Job passim.
41. Esther 4:17k ff.
42. Cf. e.g. Nehemiah 9:30-32; Tobit 3:2-3, 11-12; 8:16-17; 1 Maccabees 4:24.
43. Cf. Exodus 3:7f.
44. Cf. Isaiah 63:9.

 

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Pope John Paul II: “Dives in Misericordia”