Remind and Remember
Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity; and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord, and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem.
Luke 2:36-38
Anna had lived a life of devotion, this much is apparent. Six decades of fasting and prayer in the temple is extraordinary. Anna only occupies three verses and yet I dare say we’d be hard-pressed to find a rival example of godliness in the whole of scripture. Yet, perhaps the one we could point to, and the one we may be intended to notice is the one who bears her name. We meet Hannah(the same name as Anna in Hebrew) in 1 Samuel 1 and 2. The name means “grace.” She is found praying so fervently for so long in the house of the Lord that Eli the priest mistakes her for a drunkard. She would spend much time in the temple just as Anna. Both Anna and Hannah prophesied. Anna, is identified as a prophetess who was devout in fasting and prayers. Her whole life it seems, coalesces in this moment as a present portrait of Hannah, pulled forward through over one thousand years of expectation, that her prophesy of celebration in 1 Samuel 2 might be remembered and fulfilled. Read the words, and see the Christ prophesied by Hannah, and witnessed by Anna:
“And Hannah prayed and said:
“My heart rejoices in the Lord;
My horn is exalted in the Lord.
I smile at my enemies,
Because I rejoice in Your salvation.
2
“No one is holy like the Lord,
For there is none besides You,
Nor is there any rock like our God.
3
“Talk no more so very proudly;
Let no arrogance come from your mouth,
For the Lord is the God of knowledge;
And by Him actions are weighed.
4
“The bows of the mighty men are broken,
And those who stumbled are girded with strength.
5
Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread,
And the hungry have ceased to hunger.
Even the barren has borne seven,
And she who has many children has become feeble.
6
“The Lord kills and makes alive;
He brings down to the grave and brings up.
7
The Lord makes poor and makes rich;
He brings low and lifts up.
8
He raises the poor from the dust
And lifts the beggar from the ash heap,
To set them among princes
And make them inherit the throne of glory.
“For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s,
And He has set the world upon them.
9
He will guard the feet of His saints,
But the wicked shall be silent in darkness.
“For by strength no man shall prevail.
10
The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken in pieces;
From heaven He will thunder against them.
The Lord will judge the ends of the earth.
“He will give strength to His king,
And exalt the horn of His anointed.”
”
Anna, in this precise moment, orchestrated at the Father’s hand, hears the announcement of the Spirit-inspired Simeon, and bears witness to the prophecy of Hannah. It is a profound and beautiful picture of the deep heritage of godly women anticipating the anointed one, the Christ.
Anna is also a reminder. It is no coincidence that Anna’s heritage is mentioned as daughter of Phanuel from the tribe of Asher. We might expect her to be from the same tribe as Hannah, as that would make for such a delightful correlation. Hannah was a Levite, but Anna is of Asher, an apostate tribe of the northern kingdom. This tribe was carried away into Assyrian captivity in 722 B.C. So, the breadcrumbs do not lead us to some lineage of faithfulness or rooted righteousness. Instead, we find a rare remnant, a miracle woman of sorts, emerging from an unfaithful clan with poor pedigree, so many generations preserved. Anna spotlights the faithfulness not of her clan, but of her God. He is a God who remembers, a God who remains faithful to His promises through dozens of generations, even unfaithful generations. Her name means GRACE!
Anna’s story, is a story of grace. What could you tell of your story of grace?
Nevertheless, her life knew hardship. What hardships have shaped the grace you’ve experienced?
Is your view of Christ, the anointed one rightly aligned? Does your heart regard Him as so precious and valuable to you, that every formative moment leading you to His grace is counted worth it?
