Genesis 43:29

43:29 When Joseph looked up ¹  and saw his brother Benjamin, his mother’s son, he said, “Is this your youngest brother, whom you told me about?” Then he said, “May God be gracious to you, my son.” ² 

Exodus 33:19

33:19 And the Lord ³  said, “I will make all my goodness ⁴  pass before your face, and I will proclaim the Lord by name ⁵  before you; I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, I will show mercy to whom I will show mercy.” ⁶ 

Malachi 1:9

1:9 But now plead for God’s favor ⁷  that he might be gracious to us. ⁸  “With this kind of offering in your hands, how can he be pleased with you?” asks the Lord who rules over all.

John 1:17

1:17 For the law was given through Moses, but ⁹  grace and truth came about through Jesus Christ.

¹ tn Heb “and he lifted his eyes.” The referent of “he” (Joseph) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

² sn Joseph’s language here becomes warmer and more personal, culminating in calling Benjamin my son.

³ tn Heb “and he said”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴ sn The word “goodness” refers to the divine appearance in summary fashion.

⁵ tn The expression “make proclamation in the name of Yahweh” (here a perfect tense with vav [ו] consecutive for future) means to declare, reveal, or otherwise make proclamation of who Yahweh is. The “name of Yahweh” (rendered “the name of the Lord” throughout) refers to his divine attributes revealed to his people, either in word or deed. What will be focused on first will be his grace and compassion.

⁶ sn God declares his mercy and grace in similar terms to his earlier self-revelation (“I am that I am”): “I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious.” In other words, the grace and mercy of God are bound up in his own will. Obviously, in this passage the recipients of that favor are the penitent Israelites who were forgiven through Moses’ intercession. The two words are at the heart of God’s dealings with people. The first is חָנַן (khanan, “to be gracious, show favor”). It means to grant favor or grace to someone, grace meaning unmerited favor. All of God’s dealings are gracious, but especially in forgiving sins and granting salvation it is critical. Parallel to this is רָחַם (rakham), a word that means “show compassion, tender mercy.” It is a word that is related to the noun “womb,” the connection being in providing care and protection for that which is helpless and dependent – a motherly quality. In both of these constructions the verbs simply express what God will do, without explaining why. See further, J. R. Lundbom, “God’s Use of the Idem per idem to Terminate Debate,” HTR 71 (1978): 193-201; and J. Piper, “Prolegomena to Understanding Romans 9:14-15: An Interpretation of Exodus 33:19,” JETS 22 (1979): 203-16.

⁷ tn Heb “seek the face of God.”

⁸ tn After the imperative, the prefixed verbal form with vav conjunction indicates purpose (cf. NASB, NRSV).

⁹ tn “But” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the implied contrast between the Mosaic law and grace through Jesus Christ. John 1:17 seems to indicate clearly that the Old Covenant (Sinai) was being contrasted with the New. In Jewish sources the Law was regarded as a gift from God (Josephus, Ant. 3.8.10 [3.223]; Pirqe Avot 1.1; Sifre Deut 31:4 §305). Further information can be found in T. F. Glasson, Moses in the Fourth Gospel (SBT).