“The most common Hebrew word translated as forgiveness in the Bible is salah, and it is used only with respect to God’s activity. This term is usually rendered by the Greek phrase hileōs einai (to be merciful, gracious) in the Septuagint. The other popular term for forgiveness is nasa, which denotes “carrying” or “taking away.” Occasionally humans are said to forgive another person in this sense,[41] but for the most part the Israelites are concerned about divine forgiveness. God is usually the agent of forgiveness, and the object of this agency is either the people (when the meaning is “showing mercy”) or sin (when the meaning is “taking away”). Many people imagine the God of the Hebrew Bible as a God of wrath, while the God of the New Testament is seen as a God of forgiveness. Although a cursory reading of the texts may appear to support this distinction, a closer look reveals a clear development in Israel’s understanding of God’s justice and mercy—a trajectory that continues in the New Testament. We must view the various stories about divine judgment and forgiveness in their appropriate context within the history of Israel’s testimony about its ongoing experience of the LORD from the call of Abraham to the return from exile. In the early chapters of Genesis, the possibility of divine forgiveness is hardly considered. When Adam and Eve eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, God is concerned that these beings might live forever, so they are cast out of Eden (3:22–24). Regret is identified as the primary emotion that provokes God to send the great flood to “blot out” (6:7) human beings who had turned to evil and wickedness. Noah alone is righteous before the LORD (7:1) but in contrast to later spiritual leaders, he apparently does not even think to ask God to forgive the people. The story of the tower of Babel (11:1–9) does not indicate that God had any hesitation once the attempt of the people to “make a name for [them]selves” was perceived. The LORD “came down to see” and expresses concern that “nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them.” To keep this from happening, the people are immediately confused and scattered without any warning or opportunity to repent. These early anthropomorphic pictures of God are similar to the view of the gods among Israel’s ancient neighbors: anxious, regretful, destructive, but not at all forgiving. It is important to recognize that these stories were written in the context of an ancient worldview in which divine forces were part of nature and geographically limited. Israel’s experience of YHWH over time challenged these presuppositions. With the call of Abram (later called Abraham) in Genesis 12, we have a radical new development. The covenant with Abraham is couched in the legal language of that era, but the material promise of faithfulness to the covenant introduces a new understanding of God. In several different genres of the Hebrew Bible, the LORD’s grace and compassion toward the people of Israel (despite their sins) are explicitly connected to God’s promise of covenant faithfulness (e.g., Micah 7:18, 20; 2 Kings 13:23; Deuteronomy 9:27). Later in the story of Abraham, we read that the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah led the LORD to move toward them with punishment and destruction. But Abraham comes near and intercedes for the city, urging forgiveness. He appeals to a sense of justice to which God ought to be obliged; “what is just” should outweigh the divine anger. “Suppose there are fifty righteous within the city; will you then sweep away the place and not forgive it for the fifty righteous who are in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked. . . . Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?” (Genesis 18:24–25). Abraham holds God morally accountable, and eventually the LORD agrees not to destroy the city if ten righteous persons are found in it.”
The Faces of Forgiveness
© 2003 by F. LeRon Shults and Steven J. Sandage Published by Baker Academic
a division of Baker Publishing Group
P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
The mercy of God is His deep, unfailing compassion toward us, even when we don’t deserve it. He sees our weaknesses, our failures, and our sins, yet He offers forgiveness and grace instead of judgment. His mercy is new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23), giving us endless chances to turn back to Him. Through Jesus Christ, God showed the ultimate act of mercy, taking the punishment for our sins so that we could receive eternal life. No matter how far we’ve fallen, His mercy is always greater, ready to restore and redeem. -Elving Ellis
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