Christ the Firstborn

Mary presented Christ the Firstborn in the temple, offering humanity’s renewal to God.

When the days were completed for their purification according to the law of Moses, they took him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord, just as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male that opens the womb shall be consecrated to the Lord,” and to offer the sacrifice of “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons,” in accordance with the dictate in the law of the Lord.

Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. This man was righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Messiah of the Lord. He came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to perform the custom of the law in regard to him, he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying:

“Now, Master, you may let your servant go
in peace, according to your word,
for my eyes have seen your salvation, 
which you prepared in sight of all the peoples,
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and glory for your people Israel.”

The child’s father and mother were amazed at what was said about him; and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage, and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer. And coming forward at that very time, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.

When they had fulfilled all the prescriptions of the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.

Luke 2:22-40

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The Firstfruits and the Firstborn Belong to God

Mary and Joseph, fulfilling the Jewish law, presented their firstborn son to God in the temple for consecration. By consecrating the firstborn, the Israelites acknowledged the primacy of God’s fatherhood over their offspring, family, nation, and the earth. 

God’s sovereignty encompasses the firstborn of both “man and beast” (Exodus 13:2, 12) and the firstfruits of the harvest (Exodus 23:19). The firstfruits and the firstborn represented the beginning of God’s bountiful providence; by offering them, Israel entrusted their land, harvest, flocks, and family to their creator and owner.

God’s Covenant with Israel, His Firstborn Son

The presentation of Jesus in the temple, “the firstborn of all creation” (Colossians 1:15), also recalls the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt, where the firstborn of the Egyptians were slain by the angel of death, while the Israelites were spared due to the blood on their doorposts. “Israel is my son, my firstborn,” God charged Moses to tell Pharaoh. “Let my son go, that he may serve me” (Exodus 4:22-23). 

Simeon recognized Mary’s firstborn as the liberator not only of Israel but the entire human family—“a light for revelation to the Gentiles” (Luke 2:32). God’s covenant with Israel, his firstborn son, expanded to the worldwide, spiritual offspring of Mary, the new Eve. 

Deification Through Jesus and Mary

Though a pure virgin, Mary received the rite of purification in the temple like all Jewish mothers after childbirth (Leviticus 12). At the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry, the sinless Lamb of God will also receive baptism on behalf of all humanity. The All-Holy Mother of God and her Son, through their purification and consecration, offer the earth and the whole human family to God for recreation and deification. 

Traditional Chinese Translation

《長子基督》
馬利亞將她的長子獻給創造的主—
初熟的果子和麈土的重新創造。