“Of all things God’s mercy is His glory.
And while you look upon the face of Jesus Christ, you there behold nothing but grace and mercy shine in the gospel.
‘We behold,’ saith he, ‘the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ,’ (2 Cor. 4:6) that as in the face of a man you behold His disposition toward you, so you see the disposition of God in the face of Christ, you see His mercy, you see His glory.
Not a whit of this did shine in the law, not a whit of mercy or free grace, and yet that is the glory of God.
In Exod. 33:18-20, Moses there desired to see the glory of God: ‘I beseech thee,’ saith he, ‘shew me Thy glory.’
Saith God, Exod. 33:19, ‘I will make all My goodness pass before thee.’
But how should all His goodness appear? Clothed all in mercy; for it follows:
‘I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee, and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.’
The law speaks not such a word; no, my brethren, this is the very bottom of the gospel, the bottom of God’s heart.
Here is His glory, ‘I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.’
It is the glorious gospel of the blessed God, that being blessed in Himself, thus resolveth to be gracious and good to poor creatures, to such sinners as we are.
Moses had seen the glory of God upon the mount; he had seen the glory of God in delivering the law in a great deal of state; after all this, ‘Lord,’ saith He, ‘let me see Thy glory.’
What is God’s answer?
‘I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious.
Here is my glory.
And this glory shineth in the gospel, and if you will see it, look upon the face of Jesus Christ.
You may see Jesus Christ’s face in the glass of the gospel, and in that face you may see all this grace and mercy shine.’”
–Thomas Goodwin, The Works of Thomas Goodwin, Volume 4 (Grand Rapids, MI: Reformation Heritage, 1861/2006), 4: 325-326.
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