The themes of judgment and salvation, in which the vast majority of humankind are condemned to destruction, while God finds favor on a few (Noah and his family), reoccurs often in connection with the idea of grace. Noah is then described as having found favor in the eyes of the Lord. This statement about the Lord's antipathy toward man is followed by his promise that he will wipe humankind from the face of the earth, that is, completely destroy him, because of his anger at their condition. Noah finds "favor in the eyes of the Lord." The context is that the Lord was grieved at "how great man's wickedness on the earth had become" ( Gen 6:5 ). The term occurs most often in the phrase favor "in your (i.e., God's) sight" or "in the eyes of the Lord." This assumes the notion of God as a watchful master or king, with the one who is finding favor, a servant, an employee, or perhaps a soldier. There are examples of man's favor to man, but the theological concept of importance to us is the grace of God demonstrated toward man. The word hen occurs around sixty times in the Old Testament. In the Old Testament, the term that most often is translated "grace, " is hen in the New Testament, it is charis. An accurate, common definition describes grace as the unmerited favor of God toward man. The word "grace" in biblical parlance can, like forgiveness, repentance, regeneration, and salvation, mean something as broad as describing the whole of God's activity toward man or as narrow as describing one segment of that activity.
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