O great sage, we are all eager to know the cause for this mercy of the Lord. I have heard that formerly a king named Vena blasphemed the Supreme Personality of Godhead and that all the brāhmaṇas consequently obliged him to go to hell. Śiśupāla should also have been sent to hell. How then did he merge into the Lord’s existence?
Srimad Bhagavata Purana
श्रीमद्भागवतमहापुराणम्
मूल श्लोकः
दमघोषसुतः पाप आरभ्य कलभाषणात् । सम्प्रत्यमर्षी गोविन्दे दन्तवक्त्रश्च दुर्मतिः
damaghoṣasutaḥ pāpa ārabhya kalabhāṣaṇāt | sampratyamarṣī govinde dantavaktraśca durmatiḥ
SB 7.1.17