My Notes
What Does Psalms 105:42 Mean?
"For he remembered his holy promise, and Abraham his servant." The reason behind every act of divine provision in Psalm 105 — the plagues, the exodus, the wilderness miracles, the conquest — reduces to this: God remembered his promise. He remembered Abraham. The word "remembered" (zakar) doesn't mean God forgot and then recalled. It means God acted on what he had always known. His memory isn't retrieval. It's activation. He remembered — and therefore he moved.
The phrase "holy promise" (davar qodsho — his holy word) elevates the promise to the level of the sacred. God's word to Abraham isn't just a commitment. It's holy — set apart, inviolable, carrying the same weight as his own holiness. Breaking the promise would violate his holiness.
Reflection Questions
- 1.What promise has God made to you that he might be 'remembering' (activating) right now?
- 2.How does knowing God's promise is 'holy' (bound to his character) increase your confidence in it?
- 3.What provision in your life can only be explained by 'he remembered'?
- 4.How does the connection between God remembering Abraham and God providing for you change your prayer life?
Devotional
He remembered. That's why. Every miracle in the psalm — every plague, every parted sea, every rock-river, every quail from the sky — traces back to this: God remembered his holy promise to Abraham.
Not that he forgot. God doesn't forget. But the word "remembered" means he acted. He activated what he'd been holding. The promise to Abraham wasn't dormant during the four hundred years of Egyptian slavery. It was waiting. And when the time came, God remembered — which means God moved.
His holy promise. The word to Abraham wasn't just any word. It was holy — qodesh — set apart, sacred, carrying the weight of God's own character. Breaking the promise to Abraham would be the same as violating his own holiness. The promise and the holiness are bound together. As long as God is holy — which is forever — the promise stands.
And Abraham his servant. God remembered a person. Not just a policy. A man. The promise wasn't made to a concept. It was made to a person named Abraham. And when God remembered the promise, he remembered the person behind it. Abraham. His servant. The friend of God whose faith was counted as righteousness.
Every provision in your life traces back to a promise God made and a God who remembers. The check that arrived when you were broke. The door that opened when everything was closed. The healing that came when the diagnosis was terminal. God remembered his holy promise. And the promise activated provision you didn't earn, couldn't manufacture, and can't explain except by saying: he remembered.
He's remembering right now. Whatever promise he made — to you, to your spiritual ancestors, to the covenant community you belong to — he remembers. And remembering, for God, means moving.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
And he brought forth his people with joy,.... Or "therefore" (f), in consequence of his promise, and the remembrance of…
For he remembered ... - He was faithful to his promise made to Abraham, and did not forget his descendants in the hour…
After the history of the patriarchs follows here the history of the people of Israel, when they grew into a nation.
I.…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture