God provided a second witness to confirm Simeon’s prophecy. This came in the form of a faithful widow, Anna. Scripture doesn’t tell us what Anna said, but she joined to praise God for what Simeon said.
Luke 2: 36 Anna, a prophet, was also there in the Temple. She was the daughter of Phanuel from the tribe of Asher, and she was very old. Her husband died when they had been married only seven years. 37 Then she lived as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the Temple but stayed there day and night, worshiping God with fasting and prayer. 38 She came along just as Simeon was talking with Mary and Joseph, and she began praising God. She talked about the child to everyone who had been waiting expectantly for God to rescue Jerusalem. [1]
The Importance of a Second Witness
A second witness was important in Jewish thought. Deuteronomy 19: 15 “You must not convict anyone of a crime on the testimony of only one witness. The facts of the case must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses. [2]Two witnesses were a standard rule in Jewish criminal court.
When Jewish leadership was trying to convict Jesus of blasphemy, they had trouble getting the lying witnesses to agree. Matthew 26: 59 Inside, the leading priests and the entire high council were trying to find witnesses who would lie about Jesus, so they could put him to death. 60 But even though they found many who agreed to give false witness, they could not use anyone’s testimony. Finally, two men came forward 61 who declared, “This man said, ‘I am able to destroy the Temple of God and rebuild it in three days.’ ” [3]
As we can see, even though the leadership acted unjustly, they did follow the rule of two witnesses. This is how important the rule was.
The Character of Anna
In many ways, Anna has a similar character to Simeon. She is older but expected God to send Messiah to deliver the nation. Anna led a highly faithful devotional life, fasting and worshipping God at the Temple. Because she spent so much time at the Temple, many devout Jews would have recognized her. The Jewish culture respected elders, and because of Simeon and Anna’s age, their prophecies carried more weight.
Luke classified Anna as a prophet. Prophets did not necessarily predict the future. Their primary role was to speak for God, proclaiming his truth.[4] Thus, Anna made an ideal second witness. God provided a second witness because He knew people would not accept Simeon’s statements without one.
Today, we need a second witness or confirmation when hearing modern prophets. The Holy Spirit continues to speak God’s truth to people today, and God will still confirm His truth through a second witness. To learn more, listen here:
https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/more-prophecy-of-jesus
[1-3] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation . Tyndale House Publishers.
[4] Barton, B. B., Veerman, D., Taylor, L. C., & Osborne, G. R. (1997). Luke (p. 52). Tyndale House Publishers.