Charles Ellicott Commentary Luke 2:32

"A light for revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of thy people Israel." — Luke 2:32 (ASV)

To lighten the Gentiles.—Literally, for a revelation to the Gentiles. The idea is strictly that of the withdrawal of the veil spread over all nations (Isaiah 25:7).

The glory of thy people Israel.—Here, again, the language is the natural utterance of the hope of the time, not the afterthought of later years. The Christ whom Israel had rejected was hardly “the glory of the people” when St. Luke wrote his Gospel.