Bible Strands
Luke 2:27
Led by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. And when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for Him what was customary under the Law,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Simeon enters the Jerusalem temple courts while Joseph and Mary bring the infant Jesus to fulfill the Mosaic purification rites. The text records his arrival at this specific moment of temple dedication.
The words — The phrase ἐν τῷ πνεύματι (en tō pneumati) literally translates to "in the Spirit" and carries the definite article τῷ, specifying the divine agent directing his movement into the temple precincts.
The thread — The motif of Spirit-directed movement appears in Matthew 4:1, where Jesus is guided into the wilderness, while the surrounding temple dedication parallels the purification rites noted in Luke 2:22.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to recognize that divine guidance precedes and frames human obedience to religious obligation. It demands attention to how specific moments of compliance are initiated by supernatural direction rather than routine.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
And he came by the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law,
Cross-references
- Luke 2:22 And when the time of purification according to the Law of Moses was complete, His parents brought Him to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord
- Matthew 4:1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
- Luke 2:41 Every year His parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover.
- Luke 2:48 When His parents saw Him, they were astonished. “Child, why have You done this to us?” His mother asked. “Your father and I have been anxiously searching for You.”
- Luke 2:51 Then He went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But His mother treasured up all these things in her heart.
- Acts 10:19 As Peter continued to reflect on the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Behold, three men are looking for you.
- Luke 4:1 Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,
- Acts 11:12 The Spirit told me to accompany them without hesitation. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s home.
- Acts 16:7 And when they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not permit them.
- Revelation 1:10 On the Lord’s day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet,