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As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and to his seed forever.”
Luke 1:55 · New King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB As he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and his offspring forever.”
  • KJV As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever.
  • BSB as He promised to our fathers, to Abraham and his descendants forever.”
  • NASB Just as He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and his descendants forever.”
  • NLT For he made this promise to our ancestors, to Abraham and his children forever.”

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

This mercy fulfills God's promise to Abraham and his descendants forever. God keeps his ancient covenant.

Overview

Mary roots God's present mercy in his promises to Abraham, recalling the covenant of blessing. The coming of the Messiah is the fulfillment of those promises. Through Abraham's offspring, ultimately Christ, blessing comes to all who believe.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 9

  • Ps 105:6–10you offspring of Abraham, his servant, you children of Jacob, his chosen ones.
  • Gen 17:19God said, “No, but Sarah, your wife, will bear you a son. You shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him.
  • Ps 132:11–17Yahweh has sworn to David in truth. He will not turn from it: “I will set the fruit of your body on your throne.
  • Gal 3:16–17Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his offspring. He doesn’t say, “To descendants ”, as of many, but as of one, “To your offspring ”, which is Christ.
  • Rom 11:28–29Concerning the Good News, they are enemies for your sake. But concerning the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sake.
  • Gen 22:18All the nations of the earth will be blessed by your offspring, because you have obeyed my voice.”
  • Gen 26:4I will multiply your offspring as the stars of the sky, and will give all these lands to your offspring. In your offspring will all the nations of the earth be blessed,
  • Gen 28:14Your offspring will be as the dust of the earth, and you will spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south. In you and in your offspring will all the families of the earth be blessed.
  • Gen 12:3I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you.”

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (8)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Luke videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Luke 1:55YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on LukeMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.

How Luke 1:55 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.