Simeon part 1

by John Thomas Lowe
(Woodruff, S.C.)

Simeon
Who was Simeon in the Bible?
There are four different men named Simeon mentioned in the Bible: Simeon, a son of Jacob (Genesis 29:33); Simeon, a man who met the baby Jesus in the temple of Jerusalem (Luke 2:25); Simeon, a church member in Antioch (Acts 13:1); and Simeon who was listed in the lineage of Jesus (Luke 3:30). We will focus on the first two Simeons listed above because there is no detailed information given in the Bible about the other two.

Simeon: the man in the temple
The Simeon of the New Testament had an opposite reputation to that of the Simeon of the Old Testament. This Simeon was a Jerusalem resident known for being "righteous and devout" (Luke 2:25). He lived when Jesus was born. For generations, the Israelites had hoped that a Messiah who would free them from oppression would arrive and save them, as was done for the Israelites in Egypt (Luke 23:50–51; Exodus 3—14). Like the rest of the nation of Israel, Simeon was "waiting for the consolation of Israel." However, he was unique in that "the Holy Spirit was upon him" (Luke 2:25). It is this fact that enabled Simeon to have confidence that he would see the Messiah during his lifetime; for "it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ" (Luke 2:26).
As was customary, Joseph and Mary brought the infant Jesus to the temple in Jerusalem to present Him to God (Luke 2:22; cf. Exodus 13:1–2). On this occasion, Simeon saw Jesus and recognized Him as the Messiah. When Simeon saw the baby Jesus, he picked Him up in his arms and said, "Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel" (Luke 2:29–32).
Simeon's words reveal that salvation and truth would be available for the entire world, not just the Jews, through Jesus and that He would bring glory to Israel. Mary and Joseph marveled at Simeon's words (Luke 2:33).
He continued with a warning of the difficulties to come: "And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother, 'Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed (and a sword will pierce through your soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed" (Luke 2:34–35). These words disclose that Jesus would reveal the truth and that He would be accepted as the "consolation of Israel" by some of the Jews but not by others. Simeon's words also revealed that there would be opposition to Jesus in the future and that Jesus' suffering would cause personal pain to Mary. Simeon spent his life anticipating Christ's arrival. Similarly, we should live our lives anticipating Christ's return (see Acts 1:11 and Titus 2:13). Jesus is a comfort to all who place their faith in His salvation. Just as Simeon was an example of staying faithful to what God had told him in a world that had lost hope, we must stay faithful to Christ, who has reconciled us to God and given us hope for a future with Him (Romans 5:1–11).

Not to be confused with Simeon (Gospel of Luke).
Simeon
Pronunciation Šim'ōn
Born 1568 BCE or 1567 BCE Harran, Paddan Aram

Died aged 120 or 127
Children Jemuel (son)
Jamin (son)
Ohad (son)
Jachin (son)
Zohar (son)
Shaul (son)
Parents • Jacob (father)
• Leah (mother)

Relatives Reuben (brother)
Levi (brother)
Judah (brother)
Dan (half brother)
Naphtali (half brother)
Gad (half brother)
Asher (half brother)
Issachar (brother)
Zebulun (brother)
Dinah (sister)
Joseph (half brother)
Benjamin (half brother)
Rachel (aunt/stepmother)

Simeon was the second of the six sons of Jacob and Leah (Jacob's second son) and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Simeon, according to the Book of Genesis. However, some Biblical scholars view this as postdiction, an eponymous metaphor providing an etiology of the connectedness of the tribe to others in the Israelite confederation. With Leah as a matriarch, Biblical scholars regard the tribe as having been believed by the text's authors to have been part of the original Israelite confederation. However, the tribe is absent from the parts of the Bible that textual scholars regard as the oldest (for example, the ancient Song of Deborah). Some scholars think that Simeon was not initially regarded as a distinct tribe.
Simeon's name
The text of the Torah says that the name of Simeon refers to Leah's belief that God had heard that Jacob preferred her sister, Rachel, implying a derivation from the Hebrew term shama oni (שָׁמַע אוֹנִי‎ šāmaʿ ʾōnī) meaning "he has heard of my suffering"; this is a similar etymology as the Torah gives for the theophoric name Ishmael ("El has heard"), implying that the names are cognate. The name is sometimes interpreted as meaning "he who listens to the words of God," and at other times, thought to derive from sham 'avon (שָׁם עָוֺן‎ šām ʿāvōn), meaning "there is sin," which is argued to be a prophetic reference to Zimri's sexual miscegenation with a Midianite woman, a type of relationship which rabbinical sources regard as sinful.

Simeon and Levi slay the Shechemites
In the Torah's account of the rape of Dinah, wherein Dinah was raped (or, in some versions, merely seduced) by a Canaanite named Shechem. Simeon and his brother Levi took violent revenge against the inhabitants of the city by tricking them into circumcising themselves and then killing them when they were weakened. The account dramatizes the theme of tension between marriage within a group (endogamy) and marriage with outsiders (exogamy).
Jacob castigates Simeon and Levi for this, as their actions have placed the family in danger of a retaliatory strike by their neighbors. Later, his final blessing condemns Simeon's descendants for becoming divided and scattered. Some Biblical scholars regard the account of the rape of Dinah as an aetiological myth created by the Jahwist to justify the presence of a sanctuary at Shechem; in comparison to the Elohist's justification of the Shechem sanctuary, where the land is purchased by Jacob, and dedicated to El Elohe Israel (meaning El is the God of Israel, mighty is the God of Israel, or God, the God of Israel). The Jahwist's account is viewed as a veiled slight against the sanctuary.
Simeon's vengeance, and punishment in the blessing, are viewed by biblical scholars as aetiological postdiction, which were designed to explain why, in the time of the author of the blessing (900-700BC), the tribe of Simeon was dwindling out of existence. The midrashic book of Jasher argues that Simeon deceived Hamor by insisting that the men of Shechem would need to be circumcised. It goes on to argue that Simeon was mighty, despite only being 14 years old, and was able to slaughter all the men of Shechem nearly single-handedly, only having assistance from his brother Levi, and captured 100 young women, marrying the one named "Bonah."
Relation with Joseph
The classical rabbinical sources argue that Simeon was very fearless but also was particularly envious and had always been antagonistic and spiteful towards Joseph, owing to Joseph being Jacob's favorite son. The midrashic book of Jasher argues that Simeon was the one who proposed that the brothers should kill Joseph. Other classical sources argue that Simeon threw Joseph into a pit and became furious when he discovered that Judah had sold Joseph rather than killed him. According to classical sources, Simeon suffered divine punishment for this inhumanity, with his right hand withered, but this caused Simeon to repent. So his hand was restored a week later.
In the biblical Joseph narrative, when Joseph, having settled in Egypt, asks his brothers to bring Benjamin to him, he takes Simeon hostage to ensure that they return. According to classical rabbinical sources, Joseph chose Simeon to be the hostage because he was concerned that if Simeon was not separated from Levi, then Levi and Simeon might destroy Egypt together since they had already destroyed Shechem. Another theory was that Joseph singled out Simeon due to his taking a prominent role in Joseph's betrayal. However, Driscoll points out that there is no mention of this in the narrative. According to the midrashic book of Jasher, Simeon was not willing to become a hostage, so Joseph sent 70 strong Egyptians to take Simeon by force, but Simeon had a compelling voice and so was able to scare off the Egyptians simply by shouting. The text states that Simeon was eventually subdued by Manasseh and imprisoned. On the other hand, Simeon acknowledged that it was just for him to be imprisoned, given his earlier mistreatment of Joseph, so he went willingly.
According to the Book of Jubilees, Simeon was born on 21 Tevet, and according to the book of Genesis, he had six sons. Although some classical rabbinical sources argue that the mother of his children, and his wife, was Bonah, one of the women from Shechem, other classical rabbinical sources argue that Simeon's wife (and the mother of his children) was Dinah, his sister. The latter had insisted on the marriage before she would be willing to leave Shechem's home (Shechem was her rapist/lover). Many rabbinical sources argue that Simeon died at the age of 120, roughly three years before the death of his brother Reuben. However, Numbers Rabbah states that Simeon became the brothers' senior after Reuben died.