“Praise the Lord, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples. For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.” Psalm 117
Jewish families performed several ceremonies after the birth of a baby. Luke 2:21 says, “On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived.” God required circumcision: as a sign of obedience; a sign of belonging to his covenant people which identified a male as a Jew forever; a symbol of cutting off the old life of sin; purification of his heart and dedication to God; and as a possible health measure. This was a joyful ceremony for friends and family to celebrate the male child becoming part of God’s covenant nation.
The second ceremony was “Redemption of the Firstborn.” Exodus 13:2 states, “’Consecrate to me every firstborn male. The first offspring of every womb among the Israelites belongs to me, whether man or animal.’” One month after birth the firstborn son was presented to God. Through an offering the child was brought back or redeemed from God.
This dedication was to remind the people of their deliverance through God.
The third ceremony was the “Purification of the Mother.” If the child was a boy, purification was 40 days after birth and for a girl it was 80 days after birth. During this period the mother was ceremonially unclean and could not enter the temple. This allowed time for the bleeding and bodily secretions of the mother to stop.
We learn in Luke 2:22-24, “When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord as it is written in the Law of the Lord, ‘Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord’, and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: ‘a pair of doves or two young pigeons.’” Since Mary and Joseph could not afford a lamb for the burnt offering, they were permitted to bring a second dove or pigeon instead.
Although Jesus was God’s Son, Mary and Joseph carried out these ceremonies required by God’s law. As the Scriptures reveal, Jesus was not born above the law but fulfilled it perfectly.
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