Joel 2 - "The Lord is merciful
and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love." (See also Psalm
103:8 & Psalm 145:8)
Jonah 4
This change of plans greatly upset
Jonah, and he became very angry. So he
complained to the Lord about it: “Didn’t I say before I left home that you
would do this, Lord? That is why I ran away to Tarshish! I knew that you are a
merciful and compassionate God, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing
love. You are eager to turn back from destroying people. Just kill me now,
Lord! I’d rather be dead than alive if what I predicted will not happen.”
The Lord replied, “Is it right for
you to be angry about this?”
Then Jonah went out to the east side
of the city and made a shelter to sit under as he waited to see what would
happen to the city. And the Lord God arranged for a leafy plant to grow there,
and soon it spread its broad leaves over Jonah’s head, shading him from the
sun. This eased his discomfort, and Jonah was very grateful for the plant.
But God also arranged for a worm!
The next morning at dawn the worm ate through the stem of the plant so that it
withered away. And as the sun grew hot,
God arranged for a scorching east wind to blow on Jonah. The sun beat down on
his head until he grew faint and wished to die. “Death is certainly better than
living like this!” he exclaimed.
Then God said to Jonah, “Is it right
for you to be angry because the plant died?”
“Yes,” Jonah retorted, “even angry
enough to die!”
Then the Lord said, “You feel sorry
about the plant, though you did nothing to put it there. It came quickly and
died quickly. But Nineveh has more than
120,000 people living in spiritual darkness, not to mention all the animals.
Shouldn’t I feel sorry for such a great city?”
Romans 9:15-24 For God said
to Moses, “I will show mercy to anyone I choose, and I will show compassion to
anyone I choose.” So it is God who decides to show mercy. We can neither choose
it nor work for it. For the Scriptures say that God told Pharaoh, “I have
appointed you for the very purpose of displaying my power in you and to spread
my fame throughout the earth.” So you see, God chooses to show mercy to some,
and he chooses to harden the hearts of others so they refuse to listen. Well then, you might say, “Why does God blame
people for not responding? Haven’t they simply done what he makes them
do?” No, don’t say that. Who are you, a
mere human being, to argue with God? Should the thing that was created say to
the one who created it, “Why have you made me like this?” When a potter makes jars out of clay, doesn’t
he have a right to use the same lump of clay to make one jar for decoration and
another to throw garbage into? In the
same way, even though God has the right to show his anger and his power, he is
very patient with those on whom his anger falls, who are destined for
destruction. He does this to make the
riches of his glory shine even brighter on those to whom he shows mercy, who
were prepared in advance for glory. And
we are among those whom he selected, both from the Jews and from the Gentiles.
Luke 15:25-32 “Meanwhile,
the older son was in the fields working. When he returned home, he heard music
and dancing in the house, and he asked one of the servants what was going on.
‘Your brother is back,’ he was told, ‘and your father has killed the fattened
calf. We are celebrating because of his safe return.’ “The older brother was angry and wouldn’t go
in. His father came out and begged him, but he replied, ‘All these years I’ve
slaved for you and never once refused to do a single thing you told me to. And
in all that time you never gave me even one young goat for a feast with my
friends. Yet when this son of yours comes back after squandering your money on
prostitutes, you celebrate by killing the fattened calf!’ “His father said to him, ‘Look, dear son, you
have always stayed by me, and everything I have is yours. We had to celebrate
this happy day. For your brother was dead and has come back to life! He was
lost, but now he is found!’”
Matthew 7:1-2 “Do not
judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat
others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be
judged.
James 2:12-13 So whatever
you say or whatever you do, remember that you will be judged by the law that
sets you free. There will be no mercy for those who have not shown mercy to
others. But if you have been merciful, God will be merciful when he judges you. ("Mercy triumphs over judgment."
ESV)
Matthew 10:8b NIV "Freely you have received; freely
give."
1 Timothy 2:1-6 I urge you,
first of all, to pray for all people. Ask God to help them; intercede on their
behalf, and give thanks for them. Pray
this way for kings and all who are in authority so that we can live peaceful
and quiet lives marked by godliness and dignity. This is good and pleases God our Savior, who
wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth. For there is only one God and one Mediator
who can reconcile God and humanity—the man Christ Jesus. He gave his life to purchase freedom for
everyone. This is the message God gave to the world at just the right time.
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