“Now, Lord, You are letting Your bond-servant depart in peace, According to Your word;
Parallel translations
- WEB “Now you are releasing your servant, Master, according to your word, in peace;
- KJV Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word:
- BSB “Sovereign Lord, as You have promised, You now dismiss Your servant in peace.
- NKJV “Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, According to Your word;
- NLT “Sovereign Lord, now let your servant die in peace, as you have promised.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Simeon asks God to let him depart in peace, his promise now fulfilled. It matters because seeing Christ brings settled peace, even in facing death.
Overview
In words known as the Nunc Dimittis, Simeon, calling himself God's servant, says he can now die in peace according to God's word. Having seen the Messiah, he is fully satisfied. Christ gives such assurance that even death loses its dread for those who trust in Him.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- Rev 14:13I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write, ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.’” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors; for their works follow with them.”
- Gen 15:15but you will go to your fathers in peace. You will be buried at a good old age.
- Gen 46:30Israel said to Joseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face, that you are still alive.”
- Phil 1:23But I am in a dilemma between the two, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.
- Luke 2:26It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he should not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
- Isa 57:1–2The righteous perish, and no one lays it to heart. Merciful men are taken away, and no one considers that the righteous is taken away from the evil.
- Ps 37:37Mark the perfect man, and see the upright, for there is a future for the man of peace.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 2:29 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.