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mercy

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Dictionary: mer·cy   (mûr') pronunciation
 
mercy

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n., pl. -cies.
  1. Compassionate treatment, especially of those under one's power; clemency.
  2. A disposition to be kind and forgiving: a heart full of mercy.
  3. Something for which to be thankful; a blessing: It was a mercy that no one was hurt.
  4. Alleviation of distress; relief: Taking in the refugees was an act of mercy.
idiom:

at the mercy of

  1. Without any protection against; helpless before: drifting in an open boat, at the mercy of the elements.

[Middle English, from Old French merci, from Medieval Latin mercēs, from Latin, reward.]

SYNONYMS  mercy, leniency, lenity, clemency, charity. These nouns mean humane and kind, sympathetic, or forgiving treatment of or disposition toward others. Mercy is compassionate forbearance: “We hand folks over to God's mercy, and show none ourselves” (George Eliot). Leniency and lenity imply mildness, gentleness, and often a tendency to reduce punishment: “When you have gone too far to recede, do not sue [appeal] to me for leniency” (Charles Dickens). “His Majesty gave many marks of his great lenity, often . . . endeavoring to extenuate your crimes” (Jonathan Swift). Clemency is mercy shown by someone with judicial authority: The judge believed in clemency for youthful offenders. Charity is goodwill and benevolence in judging others: “But how shall we expect charity towards others, when we are uncharitable to ourselves?” (Thomas Browne).


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Thesaurus: mercy
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noun

    Kind, forgiving, or compassionate treatment of or disposition toward others: charity, clemency, grace, lenience, leniency, lenity, mercifulness. See forgiveness/vindictiveness.

 
Antonyms: mercy
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n

Definition: kindness, compassion
Antonyms: cruelty, intolerance, meanness, ruthlessness, uncompassion


 

An attribute of God which is to inspire man in general and the Jews in particular. The Hebrew word for mercy or compassion, raḥamim, is derived from the same root as reḥem, "womb," so that mercy is related to the mother's feeling for her child. Judaism places great emphasis on the importance of mercy, and ideally the three distinguishing characteristics of the Jewish people are that they be "merciful, modest, and perform deeds of lovingkindness" (Yev. 79a). Since God is merciful, as in Psalms 145:9, "His mercy extends to all His creatures," man, too, must assume this quality: "Just as God is merciful, so must you, too, be merciful" (Sifré Ekev 89; see Imitation of God). One of the Names of God is Ha-Raḥaman---the Merciful One. However, God weighs His attribute of mercy against His attribute of Justice and a similar tension poses a continual challenge to man.

Numerous laws of the Pentateuch are based on the quality of mercy. Thus, a lender who takes a poor man's cloak as a pledge against his loan is required to return the cloak at night, so that the poor man can sleep in it (Ex. 22:26-27). Mercy extends to other creatures as well as man and various laws are directed at the merciful treatment of Animals.

Unlimited mercy is considered to be inappropriate and "He that spares his rod hates his son" (Prov. 13:24). In the prayer following the blowing of the Shofar (ram's horn) in the cantor's repetition of the additional Amidah on Rosh Ha-Shanah, the Jew appeals to God to "have mercy on us as a father has mercy on his children," the implication being that the father's mercy is tempered by the broader consideration for what is best for the child.

On verse Deuteronomy 13:18, "He will show you mercy, and have compassion," Rabban Gamaliel elaborated: "He who shows mercy to his fellow creatures will be dealt with in a merciful fashion from Heaven, whereas he who is not merciful to his fellow creatures will not be dealt with in a merciful fashion from Heaven."


 
Bible Guide: Mercy
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It is an attribute of God to show mercy both to the deserving as well as to the undeserving. While his wrath extends to the third and fourth generations of the sinful, his mercy extends to the thousandth generation of those who love him and keep his commandments (Ex 20:5-6). The attribute of mercy is proclaimed to Moses by God when he declares himself to be "merciful and gracious, long-suffering and abounding in goodness" (Ex 34:6).

Frequent appeals to God's mercy are expressed, especially on the part of penitent sinners (e.g., Ps 51:1, 3; 78:38; cf also Neh 1:5; 9:17; Ps 25:6; 103:8; 145:8-9; Is 63:9; Joel 2:17). The theme of God's mercy and compassion appears frequently in the Prophets (e.g., Jonah 4:2; Mic 7:18-19).

The quality of "long-suffering" attributed to God in some of the passages cited above is recommended to man (Prov 14:29; Ecc 7:8). However, God alone is called "gracious", a term connoting generosity of spirit and free giving (Gen 33:5, 11). Only God is called the Merciful One and bears the epithet "abundant in kindness" (Ex 34:6). The exact nuances of meaning between the latter term and its synonyms such as "mercy" and "pity" are difficult to establish. The nuances of meaning of the term "mercy" can only be approximated from the similes in which they occur. The invocation of familial relationships to express God's "kindness", "mercy" and "compassion" indicates that the mood in which they are cast is one of love.

The kindness of God, like that of man, is not mere feeling. It is manifested in deeds: by his repeated forgiveness, both to the individual and the community, by the restoration of Israel to its former relationship with God (Deut 13:17; II Sam 24:14; II Kgs 13:23), by his deliverance of Israel from its enemies (Neh 9:27-28), and by his future gathering of his exiled people and their restoration to their land (Deut 30:3; Is 14:1; 49:13; Jer 12:15; 33:26; Ezek 39:25). All these and their like are manifestations of God's mercy.

Two Greek words underline the English word for mercy in the NT writings. The first, eleeo, means to receive something not earned and so the people who meet Jesus cry out for assistance from him (Matt 9:27; 15:22; 17:15; 20:30; 30-31; Mark 10:47-48; Luke 16:24; 17:13; 18:38-39). The ultimate origin of mercy is God himself and he dispenses it solely through his sovereignty, "I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy" (Rom 9:15). The phrase "obtain mercy" denotes that people have been redeemed by God (Rom 11:30-32) or saved (cf I Pet 2:19) and Paul concludes his discussion of the salvation and special role of Israel with the words: "For God has committed them all to disobedience, that he might have mercy on all" (Rom 11:32). Paul in fact speaks of himself in his relationship to Christ as having received mercy (I Cor 7:25; II Cor 4:1; I Tim 1:13, 16). Since God has been merciful to the believers they in turn are urged to show "mercy with cheerfulness" (Rom 12:8) and the merciful are congratulated "for they shall obtain mercy" (Matt 5:7).

The second word, oiktirmoi, means tenderness and is used to describe God in James 5:11; the Lord is full of pity and compassion. The word comes from another realm, the cult. When the tax collector in the parable cries. "God, be merciful to me a sinner" (Luke 18:13) the word for mercy is related to expectation or propiation and may have been linked to the mercy – seat in the Temple. Fundamentally, Christians shared with Judaism the conviction that God's throne is a throne of grace where "we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need" (Heb 4:16).


 
A cynical view of the world by Ambrose Bierce


n.

An attribute beloved of detected offenders.


 
Word Tutor: mercy
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pronunciation

IN BRIEF: n. - Alleviation of distress; A disposition to be kind and forgiving.

pronunciation If you are going to err, err on the side of mercy. — Spencer W. Kimball

 
Quotes About: Mercy
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Quotes:

"It is easy to condemn, it is better to pity." - Lyman Abbott

"The merciful shall obtain mercy." - Bible

"Blessed are the merciful; for they shall obtain mercy. [Mathew]" - Bible

"A merciful person is merciful to their animals." - Bible

"Of all the characters of cruelty, I consider the most despicable the one that cloaks himself in a garb of mercy." - Fox

"Religion and education are no match for evil without the grace of God." - B. R. Hayden

See more famous quotes about Mercy

 
Wikipedia: Mercy
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Pierre Montallier: The Works of Mercy, c. 1680

Mercy (Middle English, from Anglo-French merci, from Medieval Latin merced-, merces, from Latin, "price paid, wages", from merc-, merx "merchandise") can refer both to compassionate behaviour on the part of those in power (e.g. mercy shown by a judge toward a convict), on the part of a humanitarian third party (e.g. a mission of mercy aiming to treat war victims) or divine mercy shown to the penitent.[1] Mercy is a word used to describe compassion shown by one person to another, or a request from one person to another to be shown such leniency or unwarranted compassion for a crime or wrongdoing. Some of the earliest recorded expressions of divine mercy are found in Ancient Egyptian literature.[2] One of the basic virtues of chivalry, Christian ethics and Judaism, it is also related to concepts of justice and morality in behaviour between people.

In a legal sense, a defendant having been found guilty of a capital crime may ask for clemency from being executed.

To be "mercy", the behavior generally can not be compelled by outside forces. (A famous literary example is from The Merchant of Venice when Portia asks Shylock to show mercy. He asks, On what compulsion, must I? She responds:

The quality of mercy is not strained. It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest: It blesseth him that gives and him that takes. Tis mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes The throned monarch better than his crown. His scepter shows the force of temporal power, The attribute to awe and majesty, Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings. But mercy is above this sceptered sway; It is enthroned in the hearts of kings; It is an attribute of God himself; And earthly power doth then show like God's When mercy seasons justice.

A number of organizations (e.g. the Mercy Corps, the Sisters of Mercy, Mercyful Fate and the Temple of Mercy and Charity) use the word "mercy" in their name to describe their work.

References

  • Ralf van Bühren: Die Werke der Barmherzigkeit in der Kunst des 12.–18. Jahrhunderts. Zum Wandel eines Bildmotivs vor dem Hintergrund neuzeitlicher Rhetorikrezeption (Studien zur Kunstgeschichte, vol. 115), Hildesheim / Zürich / New York: Verlag Georg Olms 1998. ISBN 3-487-10319-2
  • Sterling Harwood, "Is Mercy Inherently Unjust?," in Michael J. Gorr and Sterling Harwood, eds., Crime and Punishment: Philosophic Explorations (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Co., 2000, formerly Boston, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 1996), pp. 464–470.
  • Jeffrie G. Murphy, "Mercy and Legal Justice," in Michael J. Gorr and Sterling Harwood, eds., Crime and Punishment: Philosophic Explorations (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Co., 2000, formerly Boston, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 1996), pp. 454–463.
  • Lampert, K.(2005); Traditions of Compassion: From Religious Duty to Social Activism. Palgrave-Macmillan
  • Witt, David (2008); "Mercy"

Notes

  1. ^ "Magic in ancient Egypt", Geraldine Pinch, p. 44, University of Texas Press, 1995, ISBN 0292765592
  2. ^ "The pyramid builders of ancient Egypt: a modern investigation of pharaoh's workforce", Ann Rosalie David, p86, Routledge, 1996, ISBN 0415152925

 
Translations: Mercy
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Dansk (Danish)
n. - barmhjertighed, nåde
int. - du godeste!

idioms:

  • be at the mercy of    være i nogens/nogets magt
  • be grateful for small mercies    være taknemmelig for lidt
  • mercy killing    medlidenhedsdrab
  • throw oneself on the mercy of    overgive sig på nåde og unåde

Nederlands (Dutch)
genade, barmhartigheid, zegen, geluk, genadig, barmhartig, gelukkig

Français (French)
n. - clémence, miséricorde, pitié, compassion, à la merci, chance que, (Jur) en grâce
int. - pitié (excl)

idioms:

  • at the mercy of    être à la merci de
  • be grateful for small mercies    savoir apprécier sa chance
  • have mercy on    avoir pitié de (qn)
  • mercy killing    euthanasie, acte d'euthanasie
  • throw oneself on the mercy of    s'en remettre au bon vouloir de

Deutsch (German)
n. - Erbarmen, Gnade, glückliche Fügung
int. - Gnade! Erbarmen!

idioms:

  • at the mercy of    ausgeliefert sein
  • be grateful for small mercies    zufrieden mit dem (wenigen), was man hat
  • have mercy on    (Rel.) Herr, erbarme Dich [unser]
  • mercy killing    aktive Sterbehilfe
  • throw oneself on the mercy of    sich jmdm. ausliefern

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - έλεος, οίκτος, ευσπλαχνία, λύπηση, ευλογία

idioms:

  • be at the mercy of    είμαι στο έλεος κάποιου
  • be grateful for small mercies    είμαι ευγνώμων και για τις μικρότερες ευεργεσίες
  • mercy killing    ευθανασία
  • throw oneself on the mercy of    εγκαταλείπομαι στο έλεος κάποιου

Italiano (Italian)
misericordia, grazia, compassione

idioms:

  • be at the mercy of    essere alla mercé di
  • grateful for small mercies    grato di ogni beneficio
  • mercy killing    eutanasia
  • throw oneself on someone's mercy    mettersi alla mercè di qualcuno

Português (Portuguese)
n. - mercê (f), discrição, perdão (m)

idioms:

  • be at the mercy of    estar à mercê de
  • grateful for small mercies    dos males o menor
  • mercy killing    eutanásia (m)
  • throw oneself on the mercy of    pedir clemência

Русский (Russian)
милосердие, сострадание, помилование

idioms:

  • be at the mercy of    быть во власти чего-л.
  • grateful for small mercies    всякое деяние есть благо
  • mercy killing    умерщвление при неизлечимой болезни
  • throw oneself on the mercy of    отдаться на милость кого-л.

Español (Spanish)
n. - misericordia, clemencia, compasión
int. - Clemencia!

idioms:

  • at the mercy of    estar a merced de, estar en manos de, bajo el control de, en poder de
  • be grateful for small mercies    tener que agradecer por algo, agradecer los pequeños favores
  • have mercy on    tener compasión
  • mercy killing    eutanasia
  • throw oneself on the mercy of    abandonarse a la merced de alguien, quedar a merced de

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - barmhärtighet, lycka, tur

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
仁慈, 慈悲, 宽恕, 嗳呀!

idioms:

  • be at the mercy of    任凭...摆布, 完全受...的支配
  • be grateful for small mercies    对一点小恩惠很感激
  • mercy killing    无痛致死, 安乐死
  • throw oneself on the mercy of    请求某人宽恕

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 仁慈, 慈悲, 寬恕
int. - 噯呀!

idioms:

  • be at the mercy of    任憑...擺布, 完全受...的支配
  • be grateful for small mercies    對一點小恩惠很感激
  • mercy killing    無痛致死, 安樂死
  • throw oneself on the mercy of    請求某人寬恕

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 인정, 은혜
int. - 저런!

idioms:

  • be at the mercy of    마음대로 하는
  • be grateful for small mercies    안 좋은 상황이 조금은 경감되다
  • throw oneself on the mercy of    자비를 빌다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 慈悲, 寛大さ, ありがたいこと

idioms:

  • be at the mercy of    …のなすがままに
  • mercy killing    安楽死

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) رحمه, رأفه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮רחמים, רחמנות, מזל, הקלה, טוב-לב, סלחנות‬
int. - ‮קריאת הפתעה או פחד‬


 
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