Bible Strands
Luke 1:72
to show mercy to our fathers and to remember His holy covenant,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Zechariah delivers this declaration immediately after John’s birth, linking God’s rescue from hostile forces to the activation of ancient promises.
The words — ἔλεος (eleos) translates directly to mercy, and μνησθῆναι (mnēsthēnai) means to remember or bring to mind.
The thread — The motif of divine covenant remembrance appears in Leviticus 26:42, Psalms 106:45, and Hebrews 6:13, consistently connecting God’s past oaths to present intervention.
Why it lands — The text states that God’s mercy toward the ancestors is activated through deliberate covenant remembrance, requiring readers to trace present deliverance back to specific, sworn promises rather than general benevolence.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant;
Cross-references
- Leviticus 26:42 then I will remember My covenant with Jacob and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham, and I will remember the land.
- Hebrews 6:13 When God made His promise to Abraham, since He had no one greater to swear by, He swore by Himself,
- Psalms 106:45 And He remembered His covenant with them, and relented by the abundance of His loving devotion.
- Micah 7:20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob and loving devotion to Abraham, as You swore to our fathers from the days of old.
- Genesis 26:4 I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and I will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations of the earth will be blessed,
- Genesis 28:14 Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and east and north and south. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your offspring.
- Ezekiel 16:60 But I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you.
- Luke 1:54 He has helped His servant Israel, remembering to be merciful,
- Romans 11:28 Regarding the gospel, they are enemies on your account; but regarding election, they are loved on account of the patriarchs.
- Genesis 22:18 And through your offspring all nations of the earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”