Covenant Reformed News – July 2016 • Volume XVI, Issue 3
This article from Covenant Reformed News explores God's longsuffering as revealed in Exodus 34:6-7, examining how this divine attribute demonstrates both God's merciful election of the saints and His sovereign reprobation of the non-elect. The author traces the first biblical use of "longsuffering" in the context of Israel's golden calf apostasy and Moses' intercession, arguing that God's longsuffering is fundamentally rooted in His absolute sovereignty and unconditional grace.
God’s Longsuffering in the Old Testament Historical Books The very first use of the word “longsuffering” in Holy Scripture is found in the book of Exodus and on Mount Sinai. In this first biblical reference to longsuffering, God speaks of His own (not man’s) longsuffering: “And the Lord passed by before him [i.e., Moses], and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and...