Then will I remember. — That is, perform the covenant God made. The expression “remember” frequently denotes “to be mindful,” “to perform,” especially when used with regard to God; as, for instance, “I have remembered my covenant,” &c. (Exodus 6:5-6); “He remembered for them his covenant” (Psalms 106:45).
My covenant with Jacob, and also my covenant with Isaac, and also my covenant with Abraham. — When thus brought to repentance, the Lord will perform towards them the covenant which He made with their ancestors, and in which He not only promised that the Israelites are to be a numerous people, but that they are to possess the land for ever (Exodus 32:13). From the fact that the expression “covenant” is here exceptionally repeated before the name of each patriarch, the authorities during the second Temple rightly concluded that it refers to three distinct covenants made respectively with the patriarchs. Hence the Chaldee Versions render it, “And I will remember in mercy the covenant which I covenanted with Jacob at Bethel [Genesis 35:9-15], and also the covenant which I covenanted with Isaac at Mount Moriah [Genesis 22], and the covenant which I covenanted with Abraham between the divided pieces [of the sacrifices (Genesis 15:18-21)].” The ancients also call attention to the fact that whilst in all other passages where the three patriarchs are mentioned together, the order is according to their seniority, viz., Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Genesis 1:24; Exodus 2:24; Exodus 6:8; Exodus 32:13; Deuteronomy 29:13; Deuteronomy 34:4; 2 Kings 13:23; Psalms 105:8-10; 1 Chronicles 16:16-17), this is the solitary instance where the regular order is inverted.