Introduction
God, as revealed in the Old Testament, gets misunderstood and slandered by church goers and non-church goers alike. He’s often depicted as one filled with wrath and vengeance. This stems from a poor and inadequate reading of the Bible.
When you pay attention, you find God to be a God of hesed. This Hebrew word is used some 250 times in the Old Testament to describe the character of God. It is often translated “loving-kindness,” “faithful love,” “steadfast love,” and “unfailing love.” It is the most-used, and perhaps most powerful, description of the character of God.
Exodus 34:6 is God’s assessment of his own character. God describes himself as “the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.” God describes his own character and then it is quoted in various places throughout the Old Testament. We find the description in Numbers 14:18; Nehemiah 9:17; Psalm 86:15; Psalm 103:8; Psalm 145:8; Joel 2:13; and Jonah 4:2.
The early church faced inaccurate characterizations of God. Marcion was excommunicated from the church in 144 for he denied that the God of the Old Testament was the same God presented in the New Testament. Thus, he believed that the Old Testament Scriptures were not authoritative for Christians. Marcion was loudly called a heretic.
The church today faces similar voices. Some attempt to contrast Jesus of the New Testament with God the Father in the Old Testament. Some depict of the Old Testament God as merely one of wrath and vengeance, but God describes himself as compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in love. The people of God who lived the stories we find in the Old Testament described God as compassionate, gracious, slow to anger and abounding in love. Let’s take a deeper look.
The LORD is compassionate
Any relationship between the Creator and his creatures is a demonstration of his compassion.
He sees our ignorance – and has compassion nonetheless.
He see our foolishness – and has compassion nonetheless.
He sees our stubbornness – and has compassion nonetheless.
He sees our rebellion – and has compassion nonetheless.
In the New Testament we see this clearly portrayed in Jesus. We see lines like Mark 6:34 sprinkled throughout the gospels:
When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.
The LORD is gracious
When we talk about God’s grace, it’s easy to focus on the example and teachings of Jesus. And rightfully so! Throughout his life, Jesus demonstrated grace. This is clearly seen when Jesus died for the sins of the world.
Yet, God didn’t suddenly become gracious in the person of Jesus Christ. God’s grace-filled relationship with creation is visible all throughout the Bible. This is evident in the fact that “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love” is repeated throughout the Old Testament. It is also evident in countless narratives when God showers unmerited favor upon his people.
In Genesis God shows grace to a sinful world as he enters into relationship with a sinful family and promises to bless the world through them.
In Exodus God shows grace to his enslaved people in bringing them out of slavery.
In Leviticus God’s shows grace by providing his people with a sacrificial system to atone for their sins.
In Numbers God shows grace by sustaining his grumbling people in the wilderness and bringing them to the border of the promised land.
In Deuteronomy God shows grace by giving the people the promised land not because of their goodness but in spite of their sinfulness.
In Joshua God shows grace by giving his stiff-necked people victory after victory.
That’s the first six book of the Old Testament! As the old hymn declares:
Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost, but now am found
Was blind but now I see
The LORD is slow to anger
God’s slowness to anger is shown to sinners like Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The Israelites constantly doubted God’s care and kindness. They outright rebelled. Nevertheless, God provided the Promised Land where they continued to test his patience.
God showed his slowness to anger to kings Saul, David, and Solomon. They disobeyed and adopted worship practices of false gods. Generations of faithlessness and idolatry led the people into exile. Yet, God brought them home after 70 years.
God showed his slowness to anger when the people of Israel ignored prophet after prophet after prophet.
The Bible does show that God punishes sin – but its not because he’s full of wrath and vengeance. The punishment of sin is a reflection of our guilt and God’s holiness. When God punishes it is not done in haste. It is done after demonstration of compassion and grace.
The LORD is abounding in love
This phrase states that God is abounding in hesed. Hesed occurs some 250 in the Old Testament throughout all of the three major divisions – the Law, the Prophets, and the writings. The descriptor occurs 127 times in the Psalms alone.
It is often translated “loving-kindness,” “faithful love,” “steadfast love,” and “unfailing love.” A single word is rarely enough to describe hesed, so translators are forced to pile on adjectives. Afterall, we are trying to put into mere human words the greatness and goodness of God.
Hesed is the defining characteristic of the One True God Almighty. It expresses his willingness to forgive sin, rebellion, and ignorance. It expresses his compassion, grace, and patience.
Conclusion
As it did for Moses in Exodus 34, the character of God should drive us to worship. You can approach God with confidence knowing that you will find open arms and the open arms of God are big enough to embrace us all.
Reading this post are those struggling with loneliness, addiction, depression, anxiety, pride, jealousy, anger, lust
Reading this post are those struggling in marriage, parenting, faith.
Reading this post are those who feel close to God and those who feel miles away from him.
For all of us – run to God and find him to be compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in love.
Jeff Gravens 
Very good pastor…..
Sent from my iPhone…TJ
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