For behold, justice exerciseth all his demands, and also mercy claimeth all which is her own; and thus, none but the truly penitent are saved.
I came across this scripture in Alma 42:24 today while searching for something else, and it caught my attention.
The scriptures often use a feminine singular possessive pronoun (her) when referring to cities, objects (such as boats and fig trees) and even abstract concepts (such as charity and wisdom). That is not so strange since I hear people implement that usage all the time (?¢‚Ǩ?ìWow. That is a fast boat. Look at her go.?¢‚Ǩ¬ù).
What did catch my attention, however, in this case was the usage of a masculine singular possessive pronoun. In particular, its usage alongside the female singular possessive pronoun made me very intrigued.
Why would Alma the Younger in speaking to Corianton assign a masculine gender to justice and a feminine gender to mercy? Is justice viewed as a masculine trait, while mercy is a female trait? What does this say about God whom is both just and merciful?
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Justice is stern, hard and unyielding. Mercy is soft, comforting and nurturing. It’s natural to associate those qualities with male and female bodies and personalities.