Eleos is the Greek noun for mercy or compassion, appearing 27 times in the New Testament as one of its richest theological terms. In the Septuagint it regularly translates the Hebrew chesed ('covenant lovingkindness'), and much of its New Testament weight carries that covenantal resonance. Luke's infancy narrative is saturated with it: Mary's Magnificat celebrates that God's eleos extends 'from generation to generation' (Luke 1:50), Zechariah praises the Lord for 'performing mercy with our fathers' (Luke 1:72), and the birth of John signals that God has 'shown great mercy' to Elizabeth (Luke 1:58). Jesus twice quotes Hosea 6:6 — 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice' (Matt 9:13; 12:7) — redefining what God requires. In the epistles, eleos becomes part of the greeting formula 'grace, mercy, and peace' (1 Tim 1:2; 2 Tim 1:2; 2 John 3; Jude 2), and Paul grounds the entire Gentile mission in God's mercy (Rom 9:23; 11:31; 15:9). James insists that 'mercy triumphs over judgment' (Jas 2:13). Hebrews invites believers to the throne of grace to 'receive mercy' (Heb 4:16). Spanish 'misericordia,' French 'misericorde,' and German 'Erbarmen' all reflect its weight.