Psalms 86:15
But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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This verse isn't just a list of God's attributes; it's a direct contrast to the psalmist's enemies. While they are driven by pride and violence, God is characterized by His tender compassion, His grace that extends favor, His patience that delays wrath, and His overflowing faithfulness. This highlights that God's very nature is the ultimate safeguard against all who threaten His people.
In this psalm, the psalmist is crying out to God in distress, facing enemies who are rising against him. He's poured out his troubles and pleas, and here in verse 15, he shifts from his own needs to focus on the very character of God. He grounds his hope and cries for help not in his own worthiness, but in the revealed nature of God, which he knows from past declarations and experiences.
We often use words like 'compassionate' and 'gracious' casually. But in this verse, they point to the very essence of God's being.
The Psalmist doesn't just list God's positive traits; he uses powerful Hebrew words that reveal the depth and nature of God's character.
The Psalmist isn't just admiring God; he's using God's own revealed character as the reason for his prayer.
This verse isn't a theological treatise; it's part of a prayer. The Psalmist is crying out to God in distress, and he grounds his plea in who God is.
Understand the original words
rachum · Hebrew Adjective
God’s deep compassion and sympathetic love; it emphasizes God’s pity and tenderness toward those who are suffering or in need.
channun · Hebrew Adjective
The unmerited favor and kindness of God; it emphasizes God’s readiness to bless and provide for His people apart from any work of their own.
erek appayim · Hebrew Phrase
Patience and self-restraint; it denotes God’s longsuffering nature, showing that He does not act in haste to punish but grants time for repentance.
emunah · Hebrew Noun
Reliability, stability, and integrity. It speaks to the truthfulness of God’s words and the trustworthiness of His character in maintaining His covenant.
This verse directly echoes God's own self-declaration to Moses on Mount Sinai after the Exodus. The psalmist, likely David, is drawing on this foundational revelation of God's character to affirm his trust amidst enemies and distress, reminding himself and us that God's enduring love and faithfulness are the bedrock of His relationship with His people.
c. 1440 BC
God's Covenant with Abraham
God establishes an enduring covenant with Abraham, promising numerous descendants and blessings, laying the foundation for Israel's identity and God's faithfulness.
c. 1406 BC
Exodus and the Ten Commandments
God delivers Israel from slavery in Egypt and reveals His character and law on Mount Sinai, including the foundational declaration of His merciful nature.
c. 1406 BC— this verse
God's Self-Revelation at Sinai
Following the giving of the Law, God declares His name and attributes to Moses, emphasizing His compassion, grace, long-suffering, and abundant mercy and faithfulness (Exodus 34:6-7). This is the primary backdrop for Psalm 86:15.
c. 1000 BC
David's Reign as King
David, the traditional author of this Psalm, experiences periods of great distress due to enemies and his own sin, but consistently turns to God's character for refuge.
This is the foundational self-revelation of God that the Psalmist is echoing, detailing His core character: compassionate, gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in love and faithfulness.
Numbers 14:18This verse directly quotes or closely parallels the description of God's character found in our verse, emphasizing His patience and abundant love despite human rebellion.
Nehemiah 9:17This passage reiterates God's character as 'slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love,' showing how this attribute was a central theme in Israel's understanding of God throughout their history.
Joel 2:13This prophetic call to repentance highlights God's inherent nature as 'gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love,' urging His people to return to Him.
1 Corinthians 1:3While from the New Testament, this verse frames Paul's greeting in terms of 'grace and peace,' concepts deeply rooted in the steadfast love and faithfulness that God reveals in Psalms 86:15.
clarkePsalms 86:15: "But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth."
But thou, O Lord - What a wonderful character of God is given in this verse! אדני Adonai, the Director, Judge, and Support; - but instead of אדני Adonai, thirty-four of Kennicott's MSS. have יהוה Jehovah, the self-existent and eternal Being; - אל El, the strong God; רחום rachum, tenderly compassionate; חנון channun, the Dispenser of grace or favor; ארך אפים erech…
pulpitPsalms 86:15: "But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth."
Verse 15. - But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion. The appeal is to God's own revelation of himself. He had declared that he was "merciful and gracious, long suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin" (Exodus 34:6, 7); he could not, therefore, desert the psalmist in his need. And gra…
This verse isn't just a list of God's attributes; it's a direct contrast to the psalmist's enemies. While they are driven by pride and violence, God is characterized by His tender compassion, His grace that extends favor, His patience that delays wrath, and His overflowing faithfulness. This highlights that God's very nature is the ultimate safeguard against all who threaten His people.
In this psalm, the psalmist is crying out to God in distress, facing enemies who are rising against him. He's poured out his troubles and pleas, and here in verse 15, he shifts from his own needs to focus on the very character of God. He grounds his hope and cries for help not in his own worthiness, but in the revealed nature of God, which he knows from past declarations and experiences.
In this psalm, the psalmist is crying out to God in distress, facing enemies who are rising against him. He's poured out his troubles and pleas, and here in verse 15, he shifts from his own needs to focus on the very character of God. He grounds his hope and cries for help not in his own worthiness, but in the revealed nature of God, which he knows from past declarations and experiences.
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c. 970 BC
Dedication of the Temple
Solomon dedicates the Temple, praying for God's forgiveness and steadfast love for Israel, echoing the divine attributes revealed at Sinai.
c. 722 BC
Fall of the Northern Kingdom
The Assyrian conquest of the Northern Kingdom of Israel serves as a stark reminder of the consequences of unfaithfulness, yet prophets continue to call Israel back to God's merciful nature.
"But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness." — This verse isn't just a list of God's attributes; it's a direct contrast to the psalmist's enemies. While they are driven by pride and violence, God is characterized by His tender compassion, His gra…
