VIII. Upon all this that righteous man, waxing bold and yielding to the exhortation of the mother of God, who is the handmaid of God in regard to the things which pertain to men, received into his aged arms Him who in infancy was yet the Ancient of days, and blessed God, and said, “Lord, now let Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word: for my eyes have seen Your salvation, which You have prepared before the face of all people; a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel.” I have received from You a joy unmixed with pain.
Receive me rejoicing, O Lord, and singing of Your mercy and compassion. You have given unto me this joy of heart. I render unto You with gladness my tribute of thanksgiving. I have known the power of the love of God. Since, for my sake, God of You begotten, in a manner ineffable, and without corruption, has become man. I have known the inexplicable greatness of Your love and care for us, for You have sent forth Your own bowels to come to our deliverance. Now, at length, I understand what I had from Solomon learned: “Strong as death is love: for by it shall the sting of death be done away, by it shall the dead see life, by it shall even death learn what death is, being made to cease from that dominion which over us he exercised.
By it, also, shall the serpent, the author of our evils, he taken captive and overwhelmed.” You have made known to us, O Lord, Your salvation, causing to spring up for us the plant of peace, and we shall no longer wander in error. You have made known to us, O Lord, that You have not unto the end overlooked Your servants; neither have You, O beneficent One, forgotten entirely the works of Your hands. For out of Your compassion for our low estate You have shed forth upon us abundantly that goodness of Yours which is inexhaustible, and with Your very nature cognate, having redeemed us by Your only begotten Son, who is unchangeably like to You, and of one substance with You; judging it unworthy of Your majesty and goodness to entrust to a servant the work of saving and benefiting Your servants, or to cause that those who had offended should be reconciled by a minister.
But by means of that light, which is of one substance with You, You have given light to those that sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, in order that in Your light they might see the light of knowledge; and it has seemed good to You, by means of our Lord and Creator, to fashion us again unto immortality; and You have graciously given unto us a return to Paradise by means of Him who separated us from the joys of Paradise; and by means of Him who has power to forgive sins You have blotted out the handwriting which was against us.
Lastly, by means of Him who is a partaker of Your throne and who cannot be separated from Your divine nature, You have given unto us the gift of reconciliation and access unto You with confidence in order that, by the Lord who recognises the sovereign authority of none, by the true and omnipotent God, the subscribed sanction, as it were, of so many and such great blessings might constitute the justifying gifts of grace to be certain and indubitable rights to those who have obtained mercy.
And this very thing the prophet before had announced in the words: No ambassador, nor angel, but the Lord Himself saved them; because He loved them, and spared them, and He took them up, and exalted them. And all this was, not of works of righteousness which we have done, nor because we loved You—for our first earthly forefather, who was honourably entertained, in the delightful abode of Paradise, despised Your divine and saving commandment, and was judged unworthy of that life-giving place, and mingling his seed with the bastard off-shoots of sin, he rendered it very weak—but You, O Lord, of Your own self, and of Your ineffable love toward the creature of Your hands, hast confirmed Your mercy toward us, and, pitying our estrangement from You, hast moved Yourself at the sight of our degradation to take us into compassion.
Hence, for the future, a joyous festival is established for us of the race of Adam, because the first Creator of Adam of His own free-will has become the Second Adam. And the brightness of the Lord our God has come down to sojourn with us, so that we see God face to face, and are saved Therefore, O Lord, I seek of You to be allowed to depart. I have seen Your salvation; let me be delivered from the bent yoke of the letter. I have seen the King Eternal, to whom no other succeeds; let me be set free from this servile and burdensome chain.
I have seen Him who is by nature my Lord and Deliverer; may I obtain, then, His decree for my deliverance. Set me free from the yoke of condemnation, and place me under the yoke of justification. Deliver me from the yoke of the curse, and of the letter that kills; and enrol me in the blessed company of those who, by the grace of this Your true Son, who is of equal glory and power with You, have been received into the adoption of sons.
Source: Oration Concerning Simeon and Anna (New Advent)