الرحيم
al-Raḥīm
Topic
A divine name: the One who is always merciful.
What it means
Al-Raḥīm is a divine name meaning the One who is constantly merciful. It comes from the same root as al-Raḥmān, and the two stand together in the opening phrase of every chapter of the Quran but one: bismillāh al-Raḥmān al-Raḥīm (1:1). Where al-Raḥmān is usually read as describing the breadth of God’s mercy, al-Raḥīm is read as describing its constancy toward those who believe and turn to Him. Muslims say the phrase at the beginning of their acts, and use the name in prayer to ask for His mercy.
Often misunderstood as
That God is only a stern judge, when His mercy is stated at the head of the Quran.
Term and Arabic as listed in Ismail al Faruqi, Toward Islamic English (International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1995), p. 33, listed as AL RAḤĪM. The definition is restated here.