God’s Goodness, Mercy, Faithfulness, and Lovingkindness Endures Forever!

God abounds in mercy, love, kindness, faithfulness, and goodness. 

This word in the Hebrew is “Hesed” and showcases the grandeur and greatness of our God’s character and nature. 

Rich in meaning, this word (Hesed) is hard to translate yet best understood as “when the person from whom I have a right to expect nothing gives me everything.”

And our God, who abounds in Hesed, whose Hesed endures forever – wants to fill our lives via His Spirit and produce Hesed in and through us.

In this episode, we discuss the Hebrew word Hesed and how God’s goodness, mercy, faithfulness, and lovingkindness endures forever!

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Show Notes / Additional Resources

Interested in winning a copy of Michael’s Card’s book Inexpressible: Hesed and the Mystery of God’s Lovingkindness … Winners of the Deeper Christian monthly book giveaway are picked randomly from those who enter.

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This amazing and powerful Hebrew word (Hesed) occurs nearly 250 times throughout all the major divisions of the Old Testament (Law, Prophets, and Writings), 127 of which are in the Psalms (with 26 of those in Psalm 136 alone).

Though this is a simple Hebrew word, its translation is quite complex. The translation into English is often rendered:

• love
• kindness
• loving-kindness
• steadfast love (or faithful love)
• loyalty (or unswervingly loyal)
• favor
• mercy
• beauty
• righteous
• devotion
• faithfulness
• favor
• gracious covenant (or covenant loyalty)
• grace
• goodness
• loving instruction
• covenant friendship

Though Hesed is translated in a variety of ways throughout the Old Testament, the best definition I’ve found comes from a book by Michael Card, where he translated Hesed as “when the person from whom I have a right to expect nothing gives me everything.”

Exodus 34:6-7 declares: “And the LORD passed before [Moses] and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in Hesed and truth, keeping Hesed for thousands [of generations], forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.’”

Psalm 136 – The Hesed of the LORD endures forever! … also see 1 Chronicles 16:34; 2 Chronicles 5:13; 7:3,6; 20:21; Ezra 3:11

Lamentations 3:21-23 – This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. Through the LORD’s Hesed we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness” 

• People in Scripture whose names were “Hesed” – see 1 Kings 4:10 and 1 Chronicles 3:20
• Josiah is known for “Hesed” at his death – see 2 Chronicles 35:26

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About NRJohnson & the Deeper Christian Podcast

NRJohnson (Nathan Johnson) is a Christian who has an overwhelming passion for Jesus, the Gospel, and Studying God’s Word. He is a writer, teacher, and communicator who helps other believers understand and apply the Bible as they grow and mature in their faith—desiring that they gain greater intimacy with Christ, experience the victorious Christian life, and transform the world through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Read more about him here.

The Deeper Christian Podcast is the podcast to help you study God’s Word, know Jesus intimately, and discover how you can build your life around Jesus Christ. This weekly audio program, hosted by NRJohnson, dives into Scripture and encourages Christians to keep their focus upon Jesus Christ—equipping believers in how to study the Bible and know God’s Word, grow in their spiritual lives, and change the world. Main discussion topics center around practical advice on Christian living, Bible study, prayer, the Gospel, freedom from sin, evangelism and how to share your faith, the Christian disciplines, and the lives and messages from the Christian heroes from yesteryear such as A.W. Tozer, Charles Spurgeon, Major Ian Thomas, Oswald Chambers, Hudson Taylor, Amy Carmichael, Corrie Ten Boom, C.T. Studd, George Müller, Andrew Murray, Leonard Ravenhill, E.M. Bounds, and others. Learn more about the deeper Christian life.