Song of Simeon (Nunc Dimittis) – Simeon

 

²⁹ “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; ³⁰ for my eyes have seen your salvation ³¹that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, ³² a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”

 

You could say it was Simeon’s exclamation, and not just the mark one might make at the end of a sentence. This one was worth a whole life’s wait. (See here the 19^th Century artwork Simeon the Righteous by Aleksey Yegorov.) The story of Joseph, Mary and their unique son Jesus began before He was even born, and four songs marked this unique occasion. Three other songs had already been sung because of events surrounding Jesus and his relatives. The first one was Mary’s song called the Magnificat (Glorifies, in Latin) when she visited her aged relative Elizabeth, and the baby inside Elizabeth rejoiced because he recognized Jesus even when He was still in the womb; the second one was the song of Zechariah (Elizabeth’s husband) and was called Benedictus (Praise Be, in Latin) and celebrated his son John the Baptist’s role as a prophet heralding/announcing the Messiah’s coming ministry and salvation; the third was the song Gloria in Excelsis Deo (Glory to God in the Highest, in Latin), which was the angels’ song announcing Jesus’ birth to shepherds; and the fourth was the song sung by this old man named Simeon. All four of those songs are in the first 2 chapters of Luke.

 

Joseph and Mary, though poor commoners, were doing what the Jewish law dictated, but also what the angel had told them to do, and they named the baby Jesus (Luke 1:31/Matthew 1:21; Jesus is the Greek form of the name that means Joshua [the Lord saves]). They traveled the five or six miles or so from Bethlehem north to Jerusalem to do what was required. Three distinct Jewish legal requirements they performed after naming Him were these: first, they had Him circumcised (the eighth day after birth, according to the law [Genesis 17:12; Leviticus 12:3); second, they waited until 40 days after Jesus’ birth (so, 33 days more), so that Mary could make an offering at the temple for her purification (Leviticus 12:4); and third, they had to offer Jesus, as the firstborn son, as a dedication to the Lord – what is known still today as Pidyon Haben (redemption of the firstborn son) – according to the ancient law (Exodus 13:2,12-15; Numbers 18:15-16). It was probably just before this Pidyon Haben that Joseph and Mary encountered the man named Simeon. Simeon was apparently a ‘devout’ man (Luke 2:25) whom the Spirit had moved to come into the temple courts (verses 26-27).  And he said something that he must have been wanting to say his whole life – that this baby was the source of salvation for all. That’s very important, because it is so strikingly reminiscent of what the prophet Isaiah had said about a servant centuries earlier (see Isaiah passages – 42:6 and 49:6). To be clear, Isaiah wasn’t necessarily looking ahead to a Messiah, but this Simeon was looking backward to what Isaiah had said, and through the Spirit that moved him, projected that that servant who would be a light and offer salvation for the Gentiles, and would be a glory to the Jews, would in fact be this baby he was holding. When Simeon said he was satisfied that he could now be dismissed and feel at peace, would it be too much of a stretch to say he was singing his own funeral’s song? What a way to conclude one’s life, not with a dirge, but with an exclamation of utter delight! Nunc Dimittis (in Latin) – Lord, you now dismiss!

 

 After Simeon had sung his song, Joseph and Mary marveled at what he’d said (verse 33) – very similar to Mary’s treasuring up things in her heart (verse 19) earlier, on the night Jesus was born. But then, Simeon told them some things that must have made them cringe, too – that Jesus was to be a source of clashes and controversy, and some heartache for them too (verses 34-35). Aren’t all children, even occasionally, sources of some anguish for parents? Where would an exceptional child from God rank on that heartache spectrum? An old prophetess named Anna, who stayed at the temple all the time, also was moved by Jesus’ presence, and told others about the redemption of the city. And so, no parents in history had more to ponder, nor felt more responsibility for a child in their care, than those two from Nazareth.

 

The above story details are all obtained via the NIV Study Bible and notes for the Luke 2 account of this episode.

 

See a well-done, pretty moving rendition of Simeon’s Exclamation here: Nunc Dimittis by Peter Wilkinson

 

See information on the artwork here: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Yegorov-Simeon_the_Righteous.jpg …This work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer. This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1930.

Jesus, We Love You -- Paul and Hannah McClure, Kalley Heiligenthal

 

It must have helped them feel more confident, as they approached parenthood for the first time. That’s what you might say, when you hear what Paul McClure remembers about how he felt -- and the comforting resolution he also experienced -- when he and his wife Hannah were pregnant in November 2013. This approaching fatherhood was a bit scary for him, and then he thought that if he and his family could just say “Jesus, We Love You”, things would be OK; he could handle being a dad, and Hannah would feel no anxiety at being a mom. This Redding, California couple dwelt on, and finally rested in the assurance that the presence of God’s Son would undergird their role as parents to their own son. Things were going to be different for them in one respect, but in another way, the unchanging nature of their most important relationship was something that gave them a firm foundation – a cornerstone (v.1). As they pondered their situation, and the circular nature of Him and what He provides, and how that gets reflected back and forth between us and Him – these thoughts really made these new parents feel His security anew.    

 

You can hear the McClures song story, in their own words (see the YouTube link below), a story that unfolds all the different reactions they had to bringing a new life into the world; it was a time when they were praying even as they made the music. Kalley Heiligenthal evidently also had some thoughts that translated into lyrics for the song the McClures initially crafted; Kalley’s own heartbreaking loss as a parent (she lost her daughter in 2019), and her expression of trust in Him while in the midst of her loss, suggests she and the McClures had voiced something unshakeable in 2013-2014 that was from deep inside all three of them. (See also Kalley’s video interview on another YouTube link below.) In short, to whom else can anyone turn for instructions about life, except to the One who creates life? The McClures felt their son’s (Ezra’s) life would be OK if he was nurtured with the love that both Paul and Hannah had first received from Him. Paul calls it ‘the big…explosive moment’ he wanted to capture in the song, when they would sing the song’s title words. Hannah adds that His love, and how we receive it and redirect it back to Him, was what gave her the lyrics for the song’s bridge section; ‘our affection…devotion’ is given back to Him who first gave it to us --‘for all that you’ve done…’ here’s the appreciation, our anthem to say we are beholden to You. Paul declares that his response to Him ultimately is not only thankfulness, but also adoration and surrender. In Paul’s estimation, realizing and appreciating all that Jesus is makes it easy to follow Him, even when life is hard. The simplicity of loving Jesus…that’s what Paul says is at the heart of the song.

 

Hear some parents talk about the birth of a child…maybe that’s when it hits the human most, that there must be a God who loves. This intricate, little, living person is His idea. ‘Be fruitful and multiply’ – that’s a pretty common phrase that God issues at various points in His creative enterprise on earth (from Genesis to Hosea, in the Old Testament). Where would I be if two people had ignored these words (in the early 1960s)? Is it an accident that living emerges from loving? Change just one letter in either word, and the meaning is transformed. But, is the source changed? What do you think Paul and Hannah thought? Did Kalley change her basic beliefs when her youngster died? These three spoke their answers, and also sang them. You and I can, too.            

   

 

See/hear the story of the song shared here (appx two-minute video) by the songwriters: Jesus We Love You (Song Story) - Paul McClure | We Will Not Be Shaken (youtube.com)

 

Read about two of the songwriters here: The McClures - Wikipedia

 

See a potent video re: a heartbreaking episode in one of the songwriter’s lives here: Kalley Heiligenthal: Learning to Live After Heartbreaking Loss | Better Together TV (youtube.com)

 

See information on the image of the Redding seal here: File:Seal of Redding, California.png - Wikimedia Commons. This work was created by a government unit (including state, county, city, and municipal government agencies) that derives its powers from the laws of the State of California and is subject to disclosure under the California Public Records Act (Government Code § 6250 et seq.). It is a public record that was not created by an agency which state law has allowed to claim copyright, and is therefore in the public domain in the United States.

Magnificat – Mary

 

Other teenagers have authored songs, but this one and its various circumstances would be unique. And, the divine subject of Mary’s poetry – “Magnificat”, meaning ‘Glorious’ in Latin -- has had such everlasting significance, that His import cannot be overstated. Did her words begin to form from the moment she was visited by the angel, and then grow as certainly as did the holy child inside her when she visited her relative Elizabeth and received still more inspiration from this encounter (shown here in this masterpiece artwork of Raphael from the early 16^th Century)? Did the miraculous babes from the seemingly barren wombs of Elizabeth and Hannah, a centuries-old character who would likewise sing a song about her child (1 Samuel 2:1-10), further swell Mary’s heart? The divine nature and the mission of this unborn child, and the details of His conception reverberate forever, right into eternity.

 

You could say that Mary had experienced all three characters of the Triune God at once when the ‘God-with-us’ – Immanuel (Isaiah 7:14) – came into her to prepare for entry into the human world. It’s something we can ask her in eternity: ‘Did the interaction you had with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit make your poetic words – the Magnificat -- flow so especially well on that occasion?’ Gabriel’s message from the Father (Luke 1:26-38) might have been electric, all on its own, and yet within a short time, the Holy Spirit overshadowed and conceived in her the Son. And, an angel also appeared to Joseph, to reassure him that this awkward situation for Mary and himself was a divinely inspired one, so ‘take Mary home as your wife.’ Do you really think that Joseph would have kept this bit of news to himself, or would he have shared it with his betrothed, to substantiate his decision to do the culturally unthinkable – take a pregnant single teenage girl as his wife? Can you hear the conversation between this couple, when Joseph says ‘Mary, wait’ll you hear about the dream I had!’ (Matthew 1:20-21) ‘Joseph, honey, I know all about it! He told me the baby will be King, forever, following in your family’s line of David!’ (Luke 1: 32-33) Is it too tame to speculate that these two were dumbfounded? Mary might have also considered other supposedly infertile women in her history, including Sarah (Genesis 21: 1-2); Rebekah (Gen. 25:21); Rachel (Gen. 30:22-23); Samson’s mother (Judges 13:2-24); Hannah (1 Samuel 1:2-20); the Shunammite woman (2 Kings 4:8-37); and of course, Elizabeth (Luke 1). What a club, that Mary had just joined! And yet, the child she would bear was holy, unlike all the others. He would be God (Matt. 1:23; Luke 1:32,35). That proclamation from the angels needs no further elaboration. Astonished? Excited? No adjectives suffice to describe how this young girl felt, so maybe the song she wrote was her way of telling family and friends her rationale for proceeding in a situation that, by all outward appearances, was pretty untenable.

 

For three months, Mary stayed with Elizabeth (Luke 1:56), perhaps the first person to hear Mary’s exaltation to God. While Zechariah’s tongue was stilled until Elizabeth’s child was born (Luke 1:64), Mary’s and Elizabeth’s tongues were excited to tell the startling news of God’s impending arrival. Mary’s voice and her complex feelings cannot be adequately described; perhaps hearing her multifaceted outpouring, her contact with God so personally, is what one musical composer has reasoned should be the response to more closely mimic all that Mary must have been feeling. Randy Gill’s Magnificat round has some of Mary’s feelings emerging bit-by-bit, so that one can sense -- just a little bit, but certainly not completely – what it must have been like for Mary to express what was going on inside, as her spirit cohabitated with this holy unborn God. Miracles are enough to strike anyone dumb (like Zechariah). Blessed be Mary that she was a servant and a poetess, but not silent!  

 

 

See photos here of the Visitation:  https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Visitaci%C3%B3n_de_Rafael.jpg (Rafael in 16^th Century)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:DARET_Jacques_Visitation.jpg

 

Hear the Magnificat, as arranged by Randy Gill, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6F33Y7OgXzM