Is God Both Just and Merciful?

Many people have tended to pit God’s attributes against one another. Perhaps you’ve heard someone claim that the Old and New Testaments are describing different gods: one of justice and one of mercy. But God is not made up of competing qualities. He is both just and merciful.

In today’s message from his video teaching series Dust to Glory, R.C. Sproul explores God’s justice and mercy through the eyes of Amos and Hosea. Together, these “twin prophets” of the eighth century BC help us gain a rich perspective on God’s character.

In Amos, God reveals His wrath against idolatry and injustice. When the Israelites worshiped false gods and oppressed the poor, God sent warnings through famine, plague, and military defeat. Then when the people refused to repent, He sent Amos visions of wholesale destruction and exile.

But in Hosea, we see God’s justice tempered with His mercy. God commanded Hosea to marry a harlot who would be unfaithful to him, just as Israel had been unfaithful to God. Yet in Hosea’s final message, we discover that God’s faithfulness far surpasses the people’s lack of it. He promises to “heal their apostasy” and “love them freely” (Hosea 14:4), taking the initiative to draw His people back to Him.

Watch today’s message, or for a limited time, request your copy of the full teaching series Dust to Glory for a donation of any amount. You can also dig deeper into the Scriptures with the Reformation Study Bible.