✟ The Lord is Merciful and Compassionate

Psalm 145:8–9 NLT
“The Lord is merciful and compassionate, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. The Lord is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all his creation.”

The Psalms often serve as windows into the heart of God, and Psalm 145 is no exception. Here, David lifts up a hymn of praise, declaring the greatness and majesty of the Lord. Yet within this psalm, we also find a tender portrait of God’s character. Verses 8 and 9 reveal to us a God who is not distant, harsh, or quick to condemn, but One who is merciful, compassionate, patient, and overflowing with love. These verses stand as a comforting reminder that our God is both powerful and kind, mighty and gentle.

In a world where tempers flare quickly, where compassion often seems in short supply, these words stand in sharp contrast. They invite us to pause and reflect: If this is the nature of our God, how should His attributes shape our lives and our interactions with others?

“The Lord is merciful and compassionate.” Mercy and compassion are at the very heart of who God is. Mercy is God’s act of withholding the punishment we deserve, while compassion is His willingness to enter into our struggles, to care for us in our suffering. Time and again throughout Scripture, we see these attributes on display. Israel wandered and rebelled, yet God extended mercy. The prophets cried out for judgment, yet God responded with compassion and hope.

This same mercy and compassion flow into our lives. How many times have we stumbled, only to find that God lifted us up instead of casting us aside? His mercies, as Lamentations 3:22–23 reminds us, are new every morning. The challenge for us is this: if God has so freely poured out mercy and compassion on us, are we extending those same qualities to others? Do we forgive, or do we hold grudges? Do we comfort, or do we turn away? To walk in the likeness of our Lord is to be merciful and compassionate.

The verse continues: “slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.” What a profound description of our Lord! In human relationships, patience often runs thin, and anger often comes quickly. But God is not like us. He is slow to anger, patiently waiting, calling, and drawing us back to Himself. He is filled with unfailing love—a love that does not change with circumstances, a love that does not diminish when we fall short.

I can testify to this truth in my own life. There were seasons when I resisted God’s call, making excuses, running in the opposite direction. Yet He did not abandon me. With great patience and love, He brought me to the place where I could no longer deny His hand at work in my life. His love remained constant even when my faith wavered. That same unfailing love surrounds you today. You may feel unworthy, but His love never depends on your worthiness—it rests entirely on His faithfulness.

“The Lord is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all his creation.” Here, David widens the scope. God’s goodness is not confined to a chosen few—it extends to everyone. Even those who deny Him, even those who despise Him, still live beneath the canopy of His goodness. Jesus echoes this truth in Matthew 5:45 when He says that the Father “gives His sunlight to both the evil and the good, and He sends rain on the just and the unjust alike.”

Creation itself testifies to His goodness. The sunrise each morning, the air we breathe, the food that nourishes us, the beauty of nature—all these are constant reminders that we live in a world sustained by the hand of a good God. As recipients of His goodness, we are called to be agents of His goodness. To the hungry, we offer bread. To the lonely, we offer companionship. To the weary, we offer encouragement. In so doing, we reflect the compassion of our Creator.

If God is merciful, compassionate, patient, loving, and good, how should we respond?

• Worship – Like David, we are to lift up our voices in praise. Gratitude should be the natural outflow of recognizing who God is.
• Trust – Knowing that He is slow to anger and filled with love allows us to rest in His goodness instead of succumbing to fear or despair.
• Imitation – We are called to reflect His character in our own lives. When we forgive, when we show compassion, when we extend patience, we are imitating our Lord and giving the world a glimpse of His heart.

This week, consider a tangible way to reflect God’s compassion. Perhaps it is forgiving someone who wronged you. Perhaps it is lending a hand to a neighbor in need. Perhaps it is offering encouragement to someone weighed down with burdens. Each act of mercy and compassion becomes a testimony to the God we serve.

Psalm 145:8–9 is more than a description of God—it is an invitation. It invites us to know Him as He truly is: merciful, compassionate, patient, loving, and good. It invites us to rest in His love, to trust in His mercy, and to walk in His compassion. It invites us to mirror His character in our dealings with others, so that the world may see His light shining through us.

Let us, then, join David in proclaiming the greatness of our Lord. Let us lift up our hearts and voices in praise, for the Lord is indeed good to everyone, showering compassion on all His creation. May we live in such a way that others, too, come to know the One who is merciful and compassionate, slow to anger, and rich in unfailing love.

So, I say to you, “May the Lord strengthen your faith and use it for His glory, as you walk humbly in His presence.”