Nehemiah 9:19 “Yet in Your manifold mercies You did not forsake them in the wilderness. The pillar of the cloud did not depart from them by day, to lead them on the road; Nor the pillar of fire by night, to show them light, and the way they should go.”
I find God’s greatest promise is His promise of His continual presence with us. He stated over and over throughout the pages of Scripture that He will never forsake us. That means even when we resist His guidance, He stays with us. We see this with the Israelites, as instead of walking away from them, He continued to walk and work with them. Though they were committing awful blasphemies (Nehemiah 9:18), God never deserted His people.
We might ask what brought Him to do this level of commitment to those who were not fully committed to Him. Nehemiah 9:19 tells us it was His manifold MERCIES.
I don’t know about you, but the word MANIFOLD grabs my attention as much as mercy does. It was not just His mercy but His MANIFOLD MERCIES. What a word to describe God’s mercies – they are MANIFOLD! To be manifold is to say there was abundant mercy. To say manifold is to say it exceeded the amount needed. To say manifold is to say it was a GREAT mercy, and a great mercy was needed because great sins were being committed. His MANIFOLD MERCIES kept God from giving them what they deserved, and being gracious, He continued to walk and work with them as their guide, LEADING them!
Here are a few quick thoughts on God’s mercy. From Nehemiah 9:19, we are told about there being manifold mercies.
Ephesians 2:4 tells us that God is RICH in mercy.
Psalm 119:156 proclaims “Great are Your tender mercies.”
1 Peter 1:3 tells of His abundant mercy!
Psalm 23:6 tells us that “surely goodness and MERCY follow us all the day long.”
In several places in the Psalms, David wrote that he would sing, especially singing of God’s mercy.
Ps 59:16 But I will sing of Your power; Yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; For You have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble.
Ps 89:1 I will sing of the mercies of the LORD forever; With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations.
Ps 101:1 A Psalm of David. I will sing of mercy and justice; To You, O LORD, I will sing praises.
May we, like David, sing of His mercy that is renewed day by day to us, as Lamentations 3:22 says, “Through the LORD’S mercies we are not consumed,”
Hymn writer James Filmore wrote and put to music I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever, I will sing, I will sing,
Continue Strong, being grateful for the mercy of God,
And remember to DATE the Word