The Messiah Simeon Waited For

Day 7, Blessing to Nations

When Simeon said that salvation was prepared for all peoples and that the Messiah would be a light for the Gentiles, he was reaching back to Genesis. In the promises God gave to Abraham, the Lord said time and time again that all nations of the earth would be blessed through him. All. Not some. Not just Israel or the nations Israel liked. All.

Genesis 18: 18: “Abraham is to become a great and powerful nation and all the nations of the earth will be blessed through him.”

Genesis 22:18: “And all the nations of the earth will be blessed by your offspring because you have obeyed My command.”

Those were not the only such promises God made to Abraham. Other verses such as 26:4 and 28:14 say similar things.

When I was thinking about this post, it brought to mind an old song I learned in Sunday School.

Father Abraham

Had many sons

Many sons had Father Abraham.

I am one of them.

But so are you.

So let’s all praise the Lord.

It was fun and we sang it as a round, leaving out more and more words and including hand gestures. But these behaviors detracted from the importance of the message. We enjoy faith in Christ because of God’s many promises to Abraham. Because of the patriarch’s faith, and his eventual offspring—Jesus Christ—every tongue, people and nation will be represented in heaven.

A Sixty-Day Countdown to Christmas


More Days

Introduction to The Messiah Simeon Waited For

Holding Jesus

Day 3, A Sketch of Simeon

Simeon Was a Godly Man

Day 5, Simeon's Testimony

Day 6, Prophecies for the Gentiles

Day 7, Blessing to Nations

Day 8, A Holy People

Day 9, Welcoming God's Firstborn

Day 10, The Name of Simeon

Day 11, Staying Alive

Day 12, Following the Spirit

Day 13, Taking Up Jesus

Day 14, God's Slave

Day 15, True Peace

Day 16, Seeing Reality

Day 17, The Intent of the Law

Day 18, For All Peoples

Day 19, Making Mary and Joseph Marvel

Day 20, A Blessing

Day 21, Hinting at the Rest of the Story

Day 22, Mary Will Grieve

Day 23, Making Simeon into Simeon

Day 24, Prophet to the Prophets

Day 25, A Priest Like Melchizedek

Day 26, Destined for Sacrifice

Day 27, Jesus and the Passover Lamb, part 1

Day 28, Jesus and the Passover Lamb, part 2

Day 29, Jesus and the Passover Lamb, Part 3

Day 30, Jesus as the Lamb (con.)

Day 31, Simeon as a Man of Gratitude

Day 32, Sacrificing Lambs in the Old Testament

Day 33, The Silent Lamb

Day 34, The Messiah as Light

Day 35, Jesus the Stumbling Block

Day 36, Jesus as the Rock

Day 37, The Precious Cornerstone

Day 38, The Stone in Zion

Day 39, The Cornerstone and the Gate

Day 40, The Stone of Judgment

Day 41, Into Zion First

Day 42, Restoring the Booth of David

Day 43, Forgotten Stones

Day 44, Blessed to Receive

Day 45, Crown Him with Many Crowns

Day 46, Identifying the Son of God

Day 47, The Best Storyteller Ever

Day 48, In Bethlehem, the City of David

Day 49, Born a King

Day 50, The Living Jesus

Day 51, The Mountain Tree (Part 1)

Day 52, The Mountain Tree (Part 2)

Day 53, The Root of Jesse

Day 54, David's Branch

Day 55, The Cursed Tree

Day 56, Time Fulfilled

Day 58 through 60

Day 57, Born David's King