The Compassion of the Lord

55 (A)“Come, everyone who thirsts,
    come to the waters;
and he who has no money,
    (B)come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
    without money and without price.
(C)Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
    and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,
    and delight yourselves in rich food.
Incline your ear, and come to me;
    (D)hear, that your soul may live;
(E)and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
    (F)my steadfast, sure love for (G)David.
(H)Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,
    (I)a leader and commander for the peoples.
(J)Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,
    and (K)a nation that did not know you shall run to you,
because of the Lord your God, and of the Holy One of Israel,
    (L)for he has glorified you.

(M)“Seek the Lord while he may be found;
    call upon him while he is near;
let the wicked forsake his way,
    and the unrighteous man his thoughts;
let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him,
    and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
    neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.
(N)For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so are my ways higher than your ways
    and my thoughts than your thoughts.

10 (O)“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven
    and do not return there but water the earth,
making it bring forth and sprout,
    (P)giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater,
11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
    it shall not return to me empty,
but (Q)it shall accomplish that which I purpose,
    and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

12 (R)“For you shall go out in joy
    and be led forth in peace;
(S)the mountains and the hills before you
    shall break forth into singing,
    and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
13 (T)Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress;
    instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;
and it shall make a name for the Lord,
    an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”

Jesus Presented at the Temple

22 And (A)when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem (B)to present him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in (C)the Law of the Lord, (D)“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 (E)the Law of the Lord, (F)“a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.” 25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was (G)righteous and (H)devout, (I)waiting for (J)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 (K)see death before he had seen (L)the Lord's Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when (M)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 (N)blessed God and said,

29 “Lord, now you are letting your servant[a] depart (O)in peace,
    (P)according to your word;
30 for (Q)my eyes have seen your (R)salvation
31     (S)that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32 (T)a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
    and (U)for glory to (V)your people Israel.”

33 And (W)his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. 34 And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed (X)for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign (Y)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 (Z)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.[b] She did not depart from the temple, (AA)worshiping with (AB)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 (AC)waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.

The Return to Nazareth

39 And when they had performed everything according to (AD)the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of (AE)Nazareth. 40 (AF)And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.

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Footnotes

  1. Luke 2:29 Or bondservant
  2. Luke 2:37 Or as a widow for eighty-four years

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