Luke 2:34 (DBY)

Passage

And Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary his mother, Lo, this [child] is set for the fall and rising up of many in Israel, and for a sign spoken against;

Nearby Context

Luke 2:32 a light for revelation of [the] Gentiles and [the] glory of thy people Israel.

Luke 2:33 And his father and mother wondered at the things which were said concerning him.

Luke 2:34 And Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary his mother, Lo, this [child] is set for the fall and rising up of many in Israel, and for a sign spoken against;

Luke 2:35 (and even a sword shall go through thine own soul;) so that [the] thoughts may be revealed from many hearts.

Luke 2:36 And there was a prophetess, Anna, daughter of Phanuel, of [the] tribe of Asher, who was far advanced in years, having lived with [her] husband seven years from her virginity,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "simeon", "blessed", "said", "mary", "mother", "child", "fall", and "rising". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "simeon" and "blessed", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 33's "And his father and mother wondered at..." into verse 35's "and even a sword shall go through...", so "simeon" and "blessed" belong inside that flow. In Luke context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "simeon" and "blessed" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.