Why is Anna considered a prophetess?
Question:
Hello Mr. Hamilton,
I have a question regarding Luke 2:36-38. I know that as Luke writes his part of the Gospel, Christianity has not started yet. So, there are possible cases of prophets still around. I wanted to know how Anna is considered a prophetess.
Answer:
"And there was a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years and had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple, serving night and day with fastings and prayers. At that very moment she came up and began giving thanks to God, and continued to speak of Him to all those who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem" (Luke 2:36-38).
A prophet speaks what God told them to say. In this case, Anna was able to recognize that a baby held by his parents was the long-awaited Savior. This could only have occurred by a revelation from God.
Prophetesses have been around during the days of the Old Testament. There were Miriam, Deborah, and Huldah as examples. What was unusual was that God had stopped speaking through prophets for about 450 years and suddenly Zecharias, Simeon, and Anna were all proclaiming the arrival of the Savior of the World.
Besides, Luke writing by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit said that Anna was a prophetess. I'm certain that the Spirit knows who He inspires to speak on behalf of God.
