I think you’ve been drinking the Kool-Aid. There is no room for mercy or forgiveness in the Old Testament in terms of how real people were treated as opposed to the ideal imagery we sometimes see in books like Psalms. You just refuse to see the inconsistencies. The old testament should be relegated to the dust bins of history. It is the primary source of justification for the judgmentalism, hate, vitriol and bigotry typical of too many supposed Christians.