Pierced by A Sword


After eight days had passed, it was time to circumcise the child; and he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
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 (as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord”), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”


Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying,
“Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.”


And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

We get a glimpse of three Jewish ceremonies from today’s passage. The first is circumcision, which was performed on the eighth day for male children. The second is purification from childbirth, which took place 40 days after a child’s birth. This was, of course, for Mary. And the third is the consecration of the firstborn, recognizing that the firstborn son belonged to the Lord. When the time came for the purification, Mary and Joseph took Jesus to the temple, where they met Simeon, a man filled by the Holy Spirit.


He blessed them, then said to Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.” What did the prophecy mean? There are four elements to it. One: he said Jesus was destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel. How people responded to Jesus would determine their destiny. As Mark wrote: “The one who believes and is baptized will be saved, but the one who does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:16).


Two, Simeon said that Jesus would be a sign that would be spoken against. Jesus is God’s sign to his people, but instead of accepting him, people would speak against him. There are several instances when Scripture describes this happening. The gospel writer John wrote: “Many of them said, “He is demon-possessed and raving mad. Why listen to him?”” (John 10:20). However, he adds, “But others said, “These are not the sayings of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?” (John 10:21).


Three, Simeon said this would reveal the thoughts of many hearts. How we speak about Jesus reveals the truth of our hearts and whether we live in the light or in the darkness. John said, “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed” (John 3:19-20). If our hearts are evil, our words will be evil too, ya?


And then, finally, Simeon said that a sword would pierce Mary’s soul. The Holy Spirit has shown Simeon the deep anguish that Mary will feel as her son is rejected. He was rejected first by the rulers — King Herod had all baby boys in the country murdered to kill Jesus. He was rejected then by the nation’s religious leaders — the scribes and the Pharisees did not recognize who Jesus was.  Finally, he was rejected by the mob, who goaded by the Pharisees, howled for his death. And then, Mary would watch her son being crucified by the people he came to save.


Pierced by the sword. That describes Mary’s soul very well.


Watch the video of this reflection by Aneel Aranha here: https://youtu.be/gL3i5uU59j


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