Who Can Measure God’s Compassion?

“Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of His inheritance? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in steadfast love. He will again have compassion on us; He will tread our iniquities under foot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. You will show faithfulness to Jacob and steadfast love to Abraham, as you have sworn to our fathers from the days of old.” –Micah 7:18-20 (ESV).

Who can measure God’s compassion? Of course the answer to the question is that God’s compassion is limitless, His mercy is unfathomable, and His patience is boundless. But, knowing this, we His people should not expect favors when we know to do right and still keep going astray.

Micah lived and prophesied in the eighth century BC. His prophecies were directed against Samaria, capital of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, and against Jerusalem, capital of the Southern Kingdom of Judah. Historically, the Assyrians had begun to be the dominant power in the ancient Near East about 740 BC. Micah warns of God’s judgment because of idolatry, leaving the one true God for idols worshiped in “high places,” shrines scattered in many groves. Some of the blatant sins Micah condemned were religious infidelity, economic injustice, false preaching, and self-serving leaders. Is it that the evils and rebellion of any age paint the same grim picture? Reading Micah reminds one of our current dilemmas, with terrorism, injustice and rebellion against what is right and good. Is there any hope for gaining God’s forgiveness? Is His heart of compassion still beating for such a depraved people as our fallen nation?

Far be it from us to follow the practice of continuing in sin so that God’s grace and compassion can be expanded. That seemed to be the reasoning of some in the early church era when Paul had to reprimand them, asking them these rhetorical questions: “What shall we say then? Are we to continuie in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?” (Romans 6:1-2, ESV). Likewise, back in the eighth century, Micah strongly pointed out the heinous sins of the people. They were not to think that because God was in the business of forgiveness that they could continue in sin. They could not merely say, “Is not the KLord in the midst of us? No disaster shall come upon us.” (Micah 3:11b). There is a means of dealing with the coming judgment. It is called a turning-back-to-God. Micah recommended strongly that “they beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not life us sword against nationk, neither shall they learn war anymore” (Micah 4:3, ESV). Indeed, who is a God like our God? When His people turn again to Him, He is compassionate and delights in steadfast love. Scott Langston, in commenting on Micah 7:18-20, wrote: “The incomparable God of patience, mercy, compassion and faithfulness will forgive and renew His people” (“Micah,” Holman Bible Dictionary, 1991, p. 959).

To experience again the measureless compassion and forgiveness of God, may we, like the old Shaker song implores, “Turn, turn…so we’ll come out right.” That is God’s plan for us, and His compassion is large enough to forgive us and restore us. Let us pray for our individual turning, for our church and community’s turning, for our nation’s turning. God stands ready with compassion, but we must return to Him.