Is God omnibenevolent? What does it mean to be omnibenevolent?

from the old testament

• Psalm 100:5 declares, “For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting and His faithfulness is to all generations.” By saying He “is good,” the psalmist is saying that God’s nature is goodness. It’s who He is.
• Moses asked God to reveal Himself. As God passed in front of Moses, He declared, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” (Exodus 34:6). .” These qualities are foundational to who God is. He is, at His core, good.
• Because He is good, all of creation feels His goodness. David said, “The LORD is good to all, and His mercy is over all he has made” (Psalm 145:9). God’s omnibenevolence means that He shows kindness to all creation, which includes those who do not acknowledge Him.
• However, though God is perfectly all good, that doesn’t mean that He ignores sin. He is also all just and all holy. Therefore, God can display both mercy and justice at the same time, being all good in both. For example, Deuteronomy 10:18 says,“He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing.”” His goodness leads Him to both mercifully defend vulnerable people and judge their oppressors.
• Indeed, because God is good, we can run to Him for protection. Nahum 1:7 reminds us, “The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him.” His goodness means that God’s people can trust Him to do right to and for them.

from the new testament

• Jesus said, “no one is good except God alone” (Mark 10:18).
• God extends His goodness even to those who do deserve it. Matthew 5:45b says that God “causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” His benevolence extends even to those who reject Him.
• Why would God be good to the unrighteous? Paul said, “Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?” ” (Romans 2:4). God is good towards His enemies so that, by His kindness, they would be drawn to Him.
• Indeed, salvation has come only because God is good. Romans 5:8 proclaims, “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” God’s love, an extension of His goodness, was demonstrated through the death of Jesus. In the highest proof of His benevolence, He gave the greatest gift to we who deserved nothing but wrath.
• Because God is the source of goodness, James can say, “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights” (James 1:17a).
• In Revelation 20 we read about the final judgement. Books of everyone’s sins are opened, and those not forgiven through Christ will be cast into hell to be judged for eternity: “And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:13-15).
• Not only will God judge, but delaying His judgment has allowed Him to more fully show us His mercy and justice. Paul said, “What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory” (Romans 9:22-23). God may endure those who deserve wrath for a time so that, while He endures, He can show mercy to others. Therefore, the existence of darkness (evil) magnifies the brilliance of the light (God’s glory).

implications for today

God’s omnibenevolence is not just a theological term; it is a truth that we must think about often. It means that He is not capricious or cruel. He never acts in spite, and He never does evil. Instead, His every command, act, and decision are perfectly good. They flow from His omnibenevolence.

This has deep implications for how we trust Him. When we do not understand His ways—and we often do not!—, we can still cling to His goodness. He may discipline, delay, or deny something we feel we need, but never without a wise and loving reason. Even when life seems harsh, God is not harsh. He is holy and good. What feels harsh may be to bring an unrepentant sinner to repentance, a disobeying believer back to obedience, or even a spiritually undeveloped believer to maturity .

God’s omnibenevolence also shows us how we are to imitate Him. As those redeemed by His grace, we are called to show others His goodness (Ephesians 5:1-2). That means loving what is good, hating what is evil, and showing mercy, justice, and humility in our dealings with others.

God’s omnibenevolence also refutes worldly caricatures of God. He is not an angry tyrant or an indulgent grandfather. He is the righteous and merciful King who does what is right—always.