Advent: 12 Days to Go

In this installment of our Christmas adventure, Simeon and Anna meet God’s Messiah...

21 And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb.

22 And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord;

23 (As it is written in the law of the LORD, Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord;)

24 And to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.

25 And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him.

26 And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ.

27 And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law,

28 Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said,

29 Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word:

30 For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,

31 Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people;

32 A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.

33 And Joseph and his mother marvelled at those things which were spoken of him.

34 And Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel; and for a sign which shall be spoken against;

35 (Yea, a sword shall pierce through thy own soul also,) that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.

36 And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser: she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity;

37 And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.

38 And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.
--Luke 2:21-38 KJV Bible

In obedience with Jewish law, the child was circumcised on the eighth day and formally presented with his name. The circumcision also confirmed Jesus as an heir to the promises of Abraham. As the angel had instructed, Mary and Joseph named the child Jesus.

According to the law (Leviticus 12), a mother observed a period of purification following the circumcision of her son, lasting thirty-three days. After this was completed, forty days from the birth of the boy, the firstborn child was presented in the temple by the parents and dedicated to the Lord God (Exodus 13:2, 12; Numbers 18:15).

Simeon was a faithful and devoted servant of God who had wished for many years that before he died he would see God’s promised Messiah. God promised Simeon he would not die before his wish was fulfilled. Though God chose John to prepare the way for His Messiah, Simeon, through the Holy Spirit, was the first to actually declare that the Messiah--the “Light”--had come. Simeon foretells the calling to God of the Gentiles, the redemption of Israel, the death of the Messiah, the casting out of most of the inhabitance of the Kingdom of Israel.

Anna was a prophetess of the Lord God. Widowed after seven years of marriage, she served the eighty-four years that followed in the temple. Like Simeon, Anna became the second to declare the coming of God’s Messiah, speaking through the Holy Spirit.

Next time, Mary and Joseph return to Nazareth...

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