Luke 2:26 (DRB)

Passage

And he had received an answer from the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord.

Nearby Context

Luke 2:24 And to offer a sacrifice, according as it is written in the law of the Lord, a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons:

Luke 2:25 And behold there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon: and this man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel. And the Holy Ghost was in him.

Luke 2:26 And he had received an answer from the Holy Ghost, that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord.

Luke 2:27 And he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when his parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the law,

Luke 2:28 He also took him into his arms and blessed God and said

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "received", "answer", "holy", "ghost", "should", "death", "before", and "seen". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "received" and "answer", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 25's "And behold there was a man in..." into verse 27's "And he came by the Spirit into...", so "received" and "answer" 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 "received" and "answer" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.