The Circumcision & Naming of Yeshua
The Eighth Day
Before the Presentation in the Temple, Luke records a brief but important event:
“And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus...” — Luke 2:21, RSV
According to the covenant given to Abraham, a male child was circumcised on the eighth day (Genesis 17; Leviticus 12:3). Yeshua therefore enters Israel’s covenant life from infancy.
This detail matters because the Incarnation does not place him outside the Hebrew tradition. He is born within the covenant, receives its sign in his body, and later lives, teaches, worships, and argues from within Israel’s sacred world.
The Naming
Luke explicitly joins circumcision and naming.
The child receives the name announced by Gabriel before his conception:
“you shall call his name Jesus.” — Luke 1:31, RSV
The Hebrew/Aramaic form Yeshua is related to the Hebrew root for salvation and carries the sense “YHWH saves” / “the LORD is salvation.”
Matthew gives the theological interpretation:
“you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” — Matthew 1:21, RSV
The name is therefore already mission.
Before Yeshua teaches a word, the name itself announces:
salvation.
The First Blood
Later Christian devotion sometimes contemplated the circumcision as the first shedding of Christ’s blood.
The infant who will later bleed in the Passion is already marked bodily by covenant.
This does not appear as a developed theology in Luke itself, but it became part of medieval and devotional reflection on the continuity between:
Incarnation → covenant → Passion.
The Eighth Day and New Creation
The eighth day later becomes a major Christian symbol.
The seven-day week represents completed creation.
The eighth day becomes:
- the day beyond the old cycle,
- Resurrection,
- new creation,
- eternity breaking into time.
Yeshua receives his covenantal name on the eighth day; later the Resurrection will occur on the first day of a new week, traditionally interpreted also as the eighth day.
The Feast
Western Christianity historically observed the Feast of the Circumcision of Christ on January 1, eight days after Christmas.
Later Roman Catholic calendars emphasize the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, while the Holy Name of Jesus developed its own devotional feast and tradition.
Eastern Christianity continues to commemorate the Circumcision of the Lord on January 1/14 depending on calendar usage.
The Holy Name
The name of Jesus itself became a major Christian devotion.
The invocation of the Holy Name appears throughout Christian prayer:
- Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me.”
- Western devotion to the Holy Name of Jesus
- the monogram IHS
- prayer “in the name” of Yeshua.
The infancy story therefore moves:
Birth → covenant → naming → manifestation → Temple.
The Child is not simply given a personal label. His name becomes one of Christianity’s most enduring forms of prayer.
Jesus is presented in the Temple (according to Jewish law). Encounter with Simeon and Anna, who recognize Him as the Messiah.
The Presentation and the Meeting of the Lord
Forty Days After the Birth
Luke 2 places the Presentation after the period prescribed by the Law.
The scene joins two related Jewish practices:
- purification after childbirth,
- presentation/redemption of the firstborn.
Yeshua is therefore brought into the Temple not outside Israel’s sacred tradition but within it.
The Offering of the Poor
Luke says Mary and Joseph offer “a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.”
This is the offering permitted in Leviticus for families unable to afford a lamb.
The detail quietly locates the Holy Family among the poor.
Simeon
Simeon is described as righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, with the Holy Spirit upon him.
He has received an inner promise that he will not die before seeing the Messiah.
When the Child enters the Temple, Simeon takes him into his arms.
The entire history of expectation is condensed into an old man holding an infant.
The Nunc Dimittis
Simeon’s hymn is traditionally called the Nunc Dimittis, from its Latin opening:
“Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace...” — Luke 2:29, RSV
He calls Yeshua:
“a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to thy people Israel.” — Luke 2:32, RSV
The Child belongs to Israel and simultaneously opens toward the nations.
The hymn became part of the Church’s daily night prayer because Simeon models the soul ready to die in peace after beholding salvation.
“A Sign That Is Spoken Against”
Simeon’s blessing immediately introduces shadow into the infancy story.
Yeshua will be:
- cause of falling and rising,
- a sign opposed,
- a revealer of hearts.
The peaceful scene already anticipates conflict.
The Sword Through Mary’s Soul
Simeon tells Mary:
“a sword will pierce through your own soul also.” — Luke 2:35, RSV
This verse became foundational for the Christian image of Mary as Mother of Sorrows.
It reaches forward toward:
- the flight into Egypt,
- loss of the twelve-year-old Yeshua,
- rejection during the ministry,
- the Passion,
- standing near the Cross.
The Nativity cycle already contains the Cross in prophecy.
Anna the Prophetess
Luke also introduces Anna, an elderly prophetess who worships with fasting and prayer in the Temple.
She recognizes the Child and speaks about him to those awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.
Simeon and Anna therefore form a pair:
male and female, old and faithful, Israel waiting and recognizing.
Candlemas
In Western Christianity the feast became known as Candlemas.
Candles are blessed and carried because Simeon calls Christ the Light to enlighten the Gentiles.
The liturgy turns the prophecy into visible symbolism:
the faithful carry light because Simeon carried the Light.
The Meeting of the Lord — Eastern Christianity
Eastern Christianity commonly calls the feast the Meeting of the Lord (Hypapante).
The emphasis is relational:
- Old Covenant meets New,
- age meets infancy,
- expectation meets fulfillment,
- Temple meets living Temple,
- humanity receives Christ into its arms.
The feast is one of the great bridges between Christmas and the later Christic mission.
Iconography
Presentation icons often show:
- Mary carrying the Child,
- Joseph with the offering,
- Simeon receiving Yeshua,
- Anna nearby,
- Temple architecture,
- an altar or canopy suggesting the sanctuary.
The visual center is the exchange of the Child from Mary’s arms into Simeon’s.
Mystical Reading
Simeon represents the soul that has waited long enough to recognize the divine when it finally appears in humble form.
His prayer expresses completion: I have seen what I was waiting for; now I can release my life in peace.