God’s goodness is but the inclination and resolve of His nature to promote the welfare and happiness of His creatures. This more general attribute of goodness may be manifested in the delay of penal judgment, in which case we speak of God’s longsuffering. God’s goodness as manifested in the restoration of the wretched is what the Bible calls mercy. Likewise, God’s goodness as manifested toward the guilty and undeserving is referred to in Scripture as grace.