JESUS' CIRCUMCISION AND PRESENTATION

Luke 2:21-24 And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, His name was called Jesus, which was so named of the angel before He was conceived in the womb. And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought Him to Jerusalem, to present Him to the Lord; (as it is written in the law of the Lord, Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord;) and to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.

Jesus, born under the Law of Moses to a Jewish mother, a descendant of the tribe of Judah and of the family of David, was required, as were all Jewish male children, to submit to the rite of circumcision. Although this rite was established during the days of Abraham, and required of all his descendants, it was also carried over into the Mosaic Law with the same requirements as given by God to Abraham. The law reads: And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed. He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant (Gen. 17:12-13). This was God's law. It became a Mosaic Law under which Jesus was born. Submission to this law was required by all newborn Jewish male children on the eighth day after their birth.

At the same time the rite of circumcision was administered all male children were also to be named. Certainly the prophecy of Isaiah was fulfilled on this day: Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel (which means God is with us), (Isa. 7:14b).And how true this was, because this child that was born, and on the eighth day after birth, He was given the name Jesus, as instructed by the angel of God (Matt. 1:21), who came to earth in the form of God "to be with us." Indeed, God is constantly and forever with His children of all ages that have obeyed His will, accepted and submitted to His plan of salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ, the Savior.

According to the Mosaic Law, the Jewish mother, after delivery of a child, was considered to be impure and was not permitted to enter into the temple and engage in religious services. This period of impurity was forty days after the birth of a male child and eighty days after delivering a female child (See Lev. 12:4-5). Jesus was circumcised on the eighth day after His birth. Obedient to the Jewish law, Mary had to continue her days of purification for an additional thirty-two days after Jesus' circumcision.

Then, according to the Law of Moses, on the forty-first day after the birth of Jesus, Mary was considered to be pure. It was at this time that Joseph and Mary brought Jesus to Jerusalem, to present Him to the Lord. Verse 23 tells us the necessity of this Jewish religious rite: As it is written in the law of the Lord, Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord (See Ex. 13:2 & 12). Although in Numbers 3:11-38, we learn that the dedication of the entire tribe of Levi to the service of the Lord set aside this commandment, it was still customarily observed by bringing the first born male child to the temple and presenting him to the Lord.

Reading the same reference to the Numbers' scripture noted above, an atonement sacrifice of a lamb was necessary in order to abrogate the initial commandment of God regarding the first born male child. However, if a sacrificial lamb could not be afforded, a substitution could be made. The last verse of the lesson text tells us that, instead of a lamb, it was appropriate to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons. The fact that these sin and burnt offerings were used instead of the lamb, assures us that our Savior, Jesus Christ did not come from an affluent family, but from one that was poor and lower in social rank. Although Jesus was the Son of God, He was circumcised and presented to the Lord according to Old Testament Law, and although Mary experienced a miraculous conception, she was required to be obedient to the Mosaic Law, which required her days of purification. Both were subject to, and obeyed the Law of God given to Moses on Mount Sinai. Just as Jesus was obedient to the Law of Moses, so, by example, we are to obey His New Testament Law.