All the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies.
In the Jesus prayer, we ask for God to "have mercy" on us. What is this mercy that we ask for? Mercy is a major theme in the Old Testament, the New Testament, and the hymns, prayers, and worship services of Christians for the last 2,000 years. The definition given in Strong's Concordance for the hebrew and greek words for mercy are kindness and compassion, and can also be found translated as kindness, lovingkindness, and compassion. So when we ask the Lord to have mercy, we are asking Him to be kind, have compassion, and to be good to us.
In the Old Testament, mercy is used to describe the rescue of Lot and his family from the destruction of Sodom, how Rahab was spared from the destruction of Jericho, and letting go of the man who showed the way into the city in Judges 1:22-26. It was mercy that Joseph was delivered from the Pharoah's prison. It was a mercy to be buried after dieing. Abraham's servant called it a mercy of God that he met Rebekah at the well. It was mercy that God delivered the children of Israel out of Egypt as sung in the Song of Moses and Psalm 136, and anytime they were victorious over their adversaries in battle. It was the Lord's mercy that Israel was able to endure the Babylonian captivity, and a mercy that they were freed from it. It was God's great mercy that he promised to send a Messiah from the Seed of David to rule on His throne forever, which is fulfilled in Jesus Christ.
The Old Testament scriptures tell us that it is the Lord's mercy that holds us up when our foot slips. It is the Lord's mercy that delivers us from our enemies that seek after our soul. It is mercy that we find pardon for our iniquity and our transgressions are blotted out and no longer remembered. It is God's mercy that our prayers and supplications are heard. It is in His mercy that our repentence is accepted and the Lord gives us good when we had evil coming to us. It is a mercy when we are corrected by a righteous man. And it is a mercy that we are granted salvation.
While we are told that God's mercy is everlasting and endures forever, our reception of that mercy is not unconditional. We are told that His mercy is as great as the height of heaven from earth and is everlasting upon them that fear Him. The Lord shows mercy to those that love Him and keep His commandments. The proverbs tell us that mercy is to them that devise good and he that follows after mercy shall find life, righteousness, and honor. Upon finishing the Temple, Solomon acknowledged that God's mercy is on His servants who walk before Him with all their heart. We are told that we must show mercy and compassions every man to his brother. This is why the Lord said that He desires mercy and not sacrifice and that He has controversy with those who show no mercy. This is not a condemnation of following religious observances, only that they be made with the right heart, as Jesus would later tell his disciples to be reconciled to their brother before making their offering on the altar. The prophet Jonah said that they that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy. But Psalm 147:11 says that the Lord takes pleasure in them that fear Him and hope in His mercy, so keeping that in mind, let us all strive to please the Lord in this way.
May God have mercy on me and according to His lovingkindness and according unto the multitude of His tender mercies blot out my transgressions.
