Daily Bible Reading 2nd April 2026 // Luke 2:21-40
21 And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
22 And when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”) 24 and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the Law of the Lord, “a pair of turtle-doves, or two young pigeons”. 25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, 28 he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,
29 “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace,
according to your word;
30 for my eyes have seen your salvation
31 that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and for glory to your people Israel.”
33 And his father and his mother marvelled at what was said about him. 34 And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed 35 (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”
36 And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, 37 and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshipping with fasting and prayer night and day. 38 And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.
39 And when they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. 40 And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favour of God was upon him.
But there is another way also of looking at Simeon's words. Christ sometimes brings low in order that He might raise up again - indeed, that is always the pattern. He humbles us that He might exalt us. The being brought low can have a gracious issue in a man's life. It is an experience fraught with opportunity. If in being brought low a man is brought to an end of himself, there is hope that he may rise again. The apostle Paul is a case in point. When he came into contact with the living Christ, the result was one of characteristic disturbance. The gospel stuck like a barb in his soul, and it so wrought in him that he was finally brought down, humbled to the place of abject capitulation and surrender at the feet of the risen Lord on the Damascus Road. The wonderful word in Acts 26:16, 'Rise, and stand upon thy feet' shows us the outcome of that humbling. Blessed humbling, indeed, when we recall just how much it was to mean in the forward movement of the gospel in the early Church! But it is salutary for us to remember that, in the process, the very worst in him - all that was ugly and evil - was brought to the surface by the challenge of the gospel he was resisting. The thoughts of his heart were surely revealed!
The prophetess Anna is mentioned only here in the New Testament, but what a testimony she has left us, in her love for the house of God, the discipline that marked her life, and the prayers she offered! She was numbered among those that 'looked for redemption in Jerusalem'. With what joy they must have received her glad and eager witness at this time!