if they pray to me and repent and turn away from the evil they have been doing, then I will hear them in heaven, forgive their sins, and make their land prosperous again.

"But your descendants will confess their sins and the sins of their ancestors, who resisted me and rebelled against me,

I will remember my covenant with Jacob and with Isaac and with Abraham, and I will renew my promise to give my people the land.

If you and your descendants will turn back to the LORD and with all your heart obey his commands that I am giving you today,

Even if you are scattered to the farthest corners of the earth, the LORD your God will gather you together and bring you back,

Forgive all their sins and their rebellion against you, and make their enemies treat them with kindness.

He made all their oppressors feel sorry for them.

Then you will call to me. You will come and pray to me, and I will answer you.

Yes, I say, you will find me, and I will restore you to your land. I will gather you from every country and from every place to which I have scattered you, and I will bring you back to the land from which I had sent you away into exile. I, the LORD, have spoken.'

"I, the LORD, say that the time is coming when I will fill the land of Israel and Judah with people and animals.

And just as I took care to uproot, to pull down, to overthrow, to destroy, and to demolish them, so I will take care to plant them and to build them up.

The LORD then passed in front of him and called out, "I, the LORD, am a God who is full of compassion and pity, who is not easily angered and who shows great love and faithfulness.

I keep my promise for thousands of generations and forgive evil and sin; but I will not fail to punish children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generation for the sins of their parents."

They refused to obey; they forgot all you did; they forgot the miracles you had performed. In their pride they chose a leader to take them back to slavery in Egypt. But you are a God who forgives; you are gracious and loving, slow to be angry. Your mercy is great; you did not forsake them.

And yet, because your mercy is great, you did not forsake or destroy them. You are a gracious and merciful God!

You are good to us and forgiving, full of constant love for all who pray to you.

But you, O Lord, are a merciful and loving God, always patient, always kind and faithful.

The LORD does not let us forget his wonderful actions; he is kind and merciful.

They will tell about all your goodness and sing about your kindness.

The LORD is loving and merciful, slow to become angry and full of constant love.

So he prayed, " LORD, didn't I say before I left home that this is just what you would do? That's why I did my best to run away to Spain! I knew that you are a loving and merciful God, always patient, always kind, and always ready to change your mind and not punish.

There is no other god like you, O LORD; you forgive the sins of your people who have survived. You do not stay angry forever, but you take pleasure in showing us your constant love.

and he went to meet King Asa. He called out, "Listen to me, King Asa, and all you people of Judah and Benjamin! The LORD is with you as long as you are with him. If you look for him, he will let you find him, but if you turn away, he will abandon you.

You will never succeed in life if you try to hide your sins. Confess them and give them up; then God will show mercy to you.

Let the wicked leave their way of life and change their way of thinking. Let them turn to the LORD, our God; he is merciful and quick to forgive.

"Now I, the Sovereign LORD, am telling you Israelites that I will judge each of you by what you have done. Turn away from all the evil you are doing, and don't let your sin destroy you.

I do not want anyone to die," says the Sovereign LORD. "Turn away from your sins and live."

I will scatter my people before their enemies, like dust blown by the east wind. I will turn my back on them; I will not help them when the disaster comes."