"For thou Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee."
Psalm 86:5
“For thou, Lord, art good,”
David had learned from his years of walking with the Lord, that He is good. In fact, he is opening his heart to the Lord here, “O Lord, do I lift up my soul. For thou, Lord, art good,” (Psalm 86:4b-5a). David saw God’s goodness in at least two ways. First God met his needs because He is a giving God. Jesus reminded His disciples how to pray, He taught, “Give us this day our daily bread,” “Lord, please meet my needs today with your great supply!” God loves for His child to bare his soul and ask his Father to meet his needs. He does this because He is good.
“And ready to forgive;”
The second way David knew that God is good is that He is always ready to forgive. The Hebrew word that was translated as “and ready to forgive,” means just that, “ready to forgive, forgiving.”1 Perhaps you have heard of situations where someone was so hurt or abused by another that they have said, “I will never forgive that person!” This kind of arrogant, unforgiving reaction is so sad. How unlike God this type of response is. God is “ready to forgive!” You come to Him and confess your sin, and He is “ready to forgive” you! How blessed we are as His children.
“And plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.”
Have you ever been in line for food only to step up to the server who said, “I’m sorry, we’re out of food now.” What a disappointment, especially if you are hungry. One thing that can never happen to you is that when you step toward God and ask for mercy that He will say, “I’m sorry, I’m fresh out of mercy, come back later….” No, He is the God of mercy, and He will never run out of it.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,” (1 Peter 1:3).
“For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell,” (Psalm 86:13).
“The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy,” (Psalm 145:8).
David gives us the “key” to receiving God’s mercy. “And plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.” Out of hearts that genuinely are seeking to confess and forsake sin, we ask God to forgive us and He grants us His mercy. It’s not hard to understand this, but sometimes our pride makes it difficult for us to handle our sin His way, and not our own. Don’t let your pride complicate your obedience in this. Just come to the Lord, humbly confessing your sin and ask Him to forgive you. He has plenty of mercy, even for you!
1. Brown, Driver, Briggs. Brown-Driver-Briggs’ Hebrew Definitions, the electronic version in eSword.