of the Messias, the Holy Spirit having revealed to him that he should not die till he had seen the Christ of the Lord. Led by the Spirit, he came that day to the Temple, and seeing the Child brought in by Mary and Joseph, he took Him in his arms, and blessed God, saying:
“Now Thou dost dismiss Thy servant[1], O Lord, according to Thy word [2], in peace [3]: because my eyes have seen Thy salvation [4], which Thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples; a light to the revelation [5] of the Gentiles and the glory of Thy people Israel.” [6]
He then blessed [7] Joseph and Mary, who wondered [8] at these things, and to Mary he said: “Behold, this Child is set for the fall and for the resurrection of many in Israel[9], and for a sign which shall be contradicted [10]. And thy own soul a sword shall pierce[11], that out of many hearts thoughts may be revealed.”
- ↑ Thy servant, i. e. me.
- ↑ Thy word. i. e. according to Thy promise.
- ↑ In peace. Now I can leave this world in peace, I can die contentedly and joyfully.
- ↑ Thy salvation . The Saviour promised by Thee, whom Thou hast sent for all nations.
- ↑ The revelation. That He may, by His divine teaching, enlighten the heathen who are living in the darkness of unbelief.
- ↑ Israel. Being the people of whose race the Redeemer was born, and the place where He worked miracles and founded His Church.
- ↑ Blessed. Or congratulated them on having received the Divine Child. Then the inspired old man turned especially to Mary, the Mother of the Child, and foretold how much she would have to suffer on His account.
- ↑ Wondered. Joseph and Mary had indeed been taught by the angel that the Child was the Son of the Highest, and the promised Redeemer, but it filled them with astonishment that God should have revealed to Simeon the secret He had confided to them, and revealed it just at the moment when Jesus had been presented in the Temple and redeemed with money like an ordinary Israelite child. It astonished them, also, that Simeon should extol Him not only as the glory of Israel, but also as the light for the revelation of the Gentiles. The words which Simeon uttered by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost gave Mary and Joseph a deeper insight into the plan of Redemption than they had before possessed.
- ↑ Many in Israel. The people of Israel would be forced to come to a decision about our Lord. Those who rejected Him and refused to believe in Him would fall by reason of their unbelief, as did most of the Pharisees. But, on the other hand, those who did believe in Him would receive salvation, as did, for instance, the apostles, Nicodemus &c.
- ↑ Contradicted. He will be the mark against which will be levelled the hatred and persecution of the enemies of God, and of truth and virtue. How far this hatred would be carried is hinted in Simeon’s next words.
- ↑ Pierce. This word is not to be understood in a literal sense; the term rather signifies the violent pain which would pierce Mary’s heart like a dagger. This pain was suffered by Mary at the foot of the Cross. There the love of three hearts (thoughts of many hearts) was revealed: the love of God and man in the Heart of Jesus and the love of Mary, His and our mother.
