who is both Father and God. Οἰκτιρμός, usually found in the plural, means “pity” or “mercy.” It is the love of God as it manifests itself over against misery. It occurs only six times in the New Testament, twice coupled with σπλάγχνα, the intestines, the heart. (Once in the genitive: σπλάγχνα οἰκτιρμῶν, Col 3:12; and once as united by καί: σπλάγχνα καὶ οἰκτιρμοί, Php 2:1.) The genitive in our text is best read as qualifying: the Father who is characterized by compassion, compassionate
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