Bible Strands
Luke 10:37
“The one who showed him mercy,” replied the expert in the law. Then Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The expert in the law answers Jesus’s question about which traveler proved to be a neighbor to the robbed man. Jesus then addresses him directly with a command to replicate that action.
The words — The phrase ποιήσας τὸ ἔλεος (poiēsas to eleos) literally translates to “having shown compassion.” This aorist participle captures the completed, active nature of the mercy demonstrated.
The thread — The theme of active mercy connects to 1 John 3:16, which ties love to laying down one’s life for others; Micah 6:8, which requires loving mercy and acting justly; and 1 Peter 2:21, which calls readers to follow Christ’s example of suffering.
Why it lands — The text shifts the focus from defining who qualifies as a neighbor to commanding the listener to become one through action. It demands practical replication of mercy rather than theoretical debate.
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
And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.
Cross-references
- 1 John 3:16 By this we know what love is: Jesus laid down His life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.
- Micah 6:8 He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?
- 1 Peter 2:21 For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His footsteps:
- 2 Corinthians 8:9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.
- 1 John 4:10 And love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins.
- Luke 6:32 If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.
- Hosea 6:6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.
- John 13:15 I have set you an example so that you should do as I have done for you.
- Matthew 23:23 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You pay tithes of mint, dill, and cumin. But you have disregarded the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.
- Ephesians 5:2 and walk in love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant sacrificial offering to God.