'Merits' in the Bible
‘You shall not do injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor show a preference for the great, but judge your neighbor fairly.
“Remind Me [of your merits with a thorough report], let us plead and argue our case together;State your position, that you may be proved right.
O my God, incline Your ear and hear! Open Your eyes and see our desolations and the city which is called by Your name; for we are not presenting our supplications before You on account of any merits of our own, but on account of Your great compassion.
until [the time when] there arose another king over egypt who did not know joseph [nor his history and the merit of his service to Egypt].