The God of Justice & Grace

And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished. -Exodus 34:6-7 As we continue our journey through the Bible, we find the people of Israel have just been delivered from slavery in Egypt and they are making their way to the land of promise. Things are looking good. The people of Israel have been freed from their bondage to slavery, and they’ve committed themselves to the Lord. But then everything appears to come to a crashing halt due to their sin and rebellion against God (Exodus 32-34). Yet in the midst of this awful situation, Moses is given some of the most important words contained in the Bible (Exodus 34:6-7). But there is a tension in these verses. How can God not leave the guilty unpunished, but also be gracious and forgiving of wickedness? Jason