How would you be, if he, who is the top of judgment, should but judge you as you are?—O, think on that, and mercy then will breathe within your lips, like man new made.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
Mercifulness makes us equal to the gods.
—Claudian (c.370–c.404 CE) Roman Poet
Who will not mercy unto others show, how can he mercy ever hope to have?
—Edmund Spenser (1552–99) English Poet
He who has compassion on his fellow man is accounted of the true seed of Abraham.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
Mercy turns her back to the unmerciful.
—Francis Quarles (1592–1644) English Religious Poet
Blessed are those who show mercy.
They will be treated mercifully.
—The Holy Bible Scripture in the Christian Faith
Do not let mercy and truth leave you. Fasten them around your neck. Write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will find favor and much success in the sight of God and humanity.
—The Holy Bible Scripture in the Christian Faith
Mercy among the virtues is like the moon among the stars,—not so sparkling and vivid as many, but dispensing a calm radiance that hallows the whole. It is the bow that rests upon the bosom of the cloud when the storm is past. It is the light that hovers above the judgment seat.
—Edwin Hubbell Chapin (1814–80) American Preacher, Poet
Take the gentle path.
—George Herbert (1593–1633) Welsh Anglican Poet, Orator, Clergyman
Rats and roaches live by competition under the laws of supply and demand; it is the privilege of human beings to live under the laws of justice and mercy.
—Wendell Berry (b.1934) American Poet, Novelist, Environmentalist
And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
—The Holy Bible Scripture in the Christian Faith
Mercy to him that shows it, is the rule.
—William Cowper (1731–1800) English Anglican Poet, Hymn writer
The just is close to the people’s heart, but the merciful is close to the heart of God.
—Kahlil Gibran (1883–1931) Lebanese-born American Philosopher, Poet, Painter, Theologian, Sculptor
To deserve mercy, practise mercy.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
We shall show mercy, but we shall not ask for it.
—Winston Churchill (1874–1965) British Head of State, Political leader, Historian, Journalist, Author
Nothing emboldens sin so much as mercy.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
The greatest attribute of heaven is mercy.
—Francis Beaumont (1584–1616) English Dramatist
A merciful person is merciful to their animals.
—The Holy Bible Scripture in the Christian Faith
To sin because mercy abounds is the devil’s logic; he that sins because of God’s mercy, shall have judgment without mercy.—Mercy is not for them that sin and fear not, but for them that fear and sin not.
—Thomas J. Watson, Sr. (1874–1956) American Business Executive
We hand folks over to God’s mercy, and show none ourselves.
—George Eliot (Mary Anne Evans) (1819–80) English Novelist
Mercy is like the rainbow, which God hath set in the clouds; it never shines after it is night.—If we refuse mercy here, we shall have justice in eternity.
—Jeremy Taylor
The merciful shall obtain mercy.
—The Holy Bible Scripture in the Christian Faith
A God all mercy, were a God unjust.
—Edward Young (1683–1765) English Poet
We may imitate the Deity in all his moral attributes, but mercy is the only one in which we can pretend to equal him.—We cannot, indeed, give like God, but surely we may forgive like him.
—Laurence Sterne (1713–68) Irish Anglican Novelist, Clergyman
The mercy we to others show, Heaven will show to us.
—The Talmud Sacred Text of the Jewish Faith
Children are innocent and love justice, while most adults are wicked and prefer mercy.
—G. K. Chesterton (1874–1936) English Journalist, Novelist, Essayist, Poet
A gentleman has his eyes on all those present; he is tender toward the bashful, gentle toward the distant, and merciful toward the absent.
—Lawrence G. Lovasik
Clemency is the support of justice.
—Russian Proverb
When strong, be merciful, if you would have the respect, not the fear of your neighbors.
—Chilon of Sparta (c.556 BCE) Spartan Magistrate
Religion and education are no match for evil without the grace of God.
—Benjamin Haydon (1786–1846) English Painter, Writer