But the Angel said to him. "Do not be afraid, Zachariah, because your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John.

"How shall I be sure of this?" said Zachariah to the Angel. "For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years."

The angel went in and said to her. "Joy to you, highly favored one! "The Lord is with you."

when the angel said to her. "Fear not Mary, for you have found grace with God.

And Mary said to the angel. "How can this be? For I have no husband?"

"The Holy Spirit shall come upon you," said the angel, "and the power of the most High shall overshadow you, and therefore the holy offspring which is born, shall be called the son of God.

Then Mary said: "Behold I am Lord's slave. Let it be to me as you have said." Then the angel departed from her.

And Mary said: "My soul doth magnify the Lord,

when his mother said, "No, he is to be called John."

Said they, "You have no relatives of that name!"

When suddenly an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord shone round them; and they feared with a great fear. The angel said to them.

Now when the angels had left them, and gone away to heaven, the shepherds said to one to another, "Let us go now even to Bethlehem, and see this saying which has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us."

he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,

And while his father and mother were marveling at the words that were spoken concerning him, Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother.

When they saw him they were astonished, and his mother said to him "Child, why have you treated us so? Behold your father and I have been looking for you in anguish."

And the crowd began to ask him questions. "What shall we do then?" they asked. In reply he said to them.

There came to him publicans also to be baptized, and they said to him, "Master, what must we do?"

And he said to them, "Exact no more than the sum allowed you."

The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God tell this stone to become bread."

And the devil led him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the inhabited earth in an instant of time, and the devil said to him.

Then he brought him to Jerusalem, and caused him to stand upon the Temple roof, and said to him. "If you really are the Son of God throw yourself down here;

"It has been said," replied Jesus, "Thou shalt not tempt the Lord, thy God."

But he said to them. "I must preach the gospel of the kingdom of God to the other towns also; for that is what I was sent to do."

When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Push out into deep water, and let down your nets for a haul."

Another time when he was in one of their cities, there was a man there full of leprosy. And he, upon seeing Jesus, fell on his face and implored him. "Lord," he said, "if only you choose you can make me clean."

And he stretched out his hand and touching him, said: "I do choose; be made clean."

And instantly the leprosy left him. Jesus ordered him to tell no one, "But be off," he said, "show yourself to the priest, and make the offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a testimony to them."

When Jesus saw their faith, he said to him, "Man, your sins are forgiven you!"

But that you may know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins (he said to the paralytic), "I bid you rise, take up your bed, and go to your house."

Astonishment fell upon them all, and they began to glorify God, and they were filled with awe, and they said, "We have seen strange things today."

After this he went forth and noticed a tax-gatherer, named Levi, sitting at the tax-office, and said to him, "Follow me."

Again they said unto him. "Why do the disciples of John fast frequently, and make supplications, as also do the disciples of the Pharisees, but your disciples are eating and drinking?"

He also told them a parable. "No one," he said, "tears a piece from a new garment, and patches it upon an old one; otherwise he will tear the new garment, and the patch from the new will not mend the old.

He was all along aware of their thoughts; and he said to the man with the withered hand, "Rise, and stand there in the midst."

So he rose and stood. Then Jesus said to them. "I ask you whether it is lawful on the Sabbath Day to do good or to do harm? To save a life or to destroy it?"

Then he looked round about on them in anger, and said to him, "Stretch out your hand!"

And they, when they reached Jesus, asked him earnestly to do this. "He deserves that you should do this," they said,

But when Jesus heard this he was astonished and he turned and said to the crowd that was following him, "I tell you that not even in Israel have I found faith like that."

A great crowd accompanied her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep."

And he came near and touched the bier; the bearer stopped and he said, "Young man, I bid you to rise."

So the men came to Jesus and said, "John the Baptist has sent us to ask you if you are the coming one, or if we are to expect another."

When he noticed this the Pharisee, who had invited him, said to himself, "If this man were really a prophet he would have perceived who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, and would know that she is a sinner."

"There were once to men," said Jesus, "in debt to one money-lender. One owed him fifty pounds; the other five.

"I take it," said Simon, "the one he forgave the most."

"You have rightly judged." answered Jesus, and turning to the woman, he said to Simon. "Do you see this woman? When I came into your house you gave me no water for my feet; but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.

"Your sins are forgiven," he said to her.

But he said to the woman. "Your faith has saved you. Go in peace."

"But some fell on good soil, and grew up, and brought forth fruit, a hundredfold." When he said this, he called out, "Whoever has ears to hear with, let him listen."

Now it happened that one of these days he got into a boat, And him his disciples, and he said to them, "Let us cross to the other side of the lake."

"Where is your faith?" he asked them, In their terror they were filled with amazement, and said to one another, "Who is this who commands even the winds and the sea, and they obey him?"

"Who is that touched me?" said Jesus and when everybody denied it, Peter said, "Master, the crowds are hemming you in and pressing upon you."

But Jesus said: "Some one did touch me; for I perceived that the power was proceeding out of me."

"Daughter," he said "your faith has made you well, go on into peace."

The people were weeping and bewailing her, but he said: "Stop your wailing; for she is not dead, but asleep."

And he said to them. "Take nothing for your journey, neither staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money, and do not have two tunics.

Now Herod, the Tetrarch, heard of all that was happening; and he was perplexed because of its being said by someone that John was risen from the dead;

So Herod said, "I beheaded John, but who is this of whom I am hearing such reports," And he kept seeking to see him.

But now the day began to decline, and the twelve came to him and said: "Send away the crowd so that they may go into the villages and surrounding the country to lodge and buy provisions; for here we are on a solitary place."

(For there were about five thousand men.) "Make them sit down in table-companies, of about fifty each," he said to his disciples.

Then he said to them, "But who do you say I am?" Then Peter answered saying, "The Christ of God."

and he said, "The Son of man must suffer much, and be restricted by the elders and high priests and scribes and be put to death, and on the third day be raised again."

And he said to all. "If any man wills to follow me, Let him renounce self and take up his cross daily and follow me.

And when they were preparing to depart from him Peter said to Jesus. "Master, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tents, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah"??ot knowing what he was saying.

"O faithless and perverse generation," said Jesus, "how long shall I be with you and bear with you? Bring your son to me."

And they were all awestruck at the mighty power of God. But while everyone was marveling at what he was doing, he said to his disciples.

then he said to them. "Whoever shall receive this little child in my name receives me; and whoever shall receive me receives him that sent me. For it is the lowliest among you all who is great."

"Master," said John, "we saw a man who was casting out demons in your name, and we forbade him, because he was not following us."

But Jesus said, "Forbid him not, for he who is not against you is for you."

And when his disciples, James and John, saw this they said, "Lord, are you willing for us to bid fire come down from heaven and destroy them?" As Elijah did.

But he turned and rebuked them and said,

As they were going on their way, a man came to him and said, "I will follow wherever you go."

To another he said, "Follow me!" But he replied, "Permit me first to go and bury my father."

"Leave the dead to bury their own dead," said Jesus to him, "go you and announce, far and wide the kingdom of God."

And another man also said to him. "I will follow you, Lord; but first permit me to bid farewell to those who are in my house."

And he said to them. "I watched Satan fall from heaven like a lightning flash.

In the same hour he thrilled with joy in the Holy Ghost. "I praise thee, Father, Lord of Heaven and Earth," he said "for hiding these things from the wise and prudent, and for revealing them to babes. Yea, Father, for so it was well pleasing in thy sight!

And turning to his disciples he said privately. "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see!

Then a certain lawyer stood up and tempted him. "Master," he said "what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"

And he said to him. "What is written in the Law? What do you read there?"

"You have answered right," said Jesus "do that and you shall live."

But he, determined to justify himself, said to Jesus, "But who is my neighbor?" Jesus answered.

"The next day he took two silver pieces and gave them to the landlord and said, "'Take care of him, and whatever more you spend I will repay it to you on my way back.'

He replied, "The one who showed mercy on him." "Go, then," said Jesus, "and do likewise."

But Martha meanwhile was growing distracted about much serving. She came up to him and said: "Lord do you not care that my sister has left me alone to do the serving? Come tell her to take hold of her end of the work along with me."

"Martha, Martha," said Jesus, "you are anxious and worried about many things,

It happened he was praying in a certain place, and when he stopped, one of his disciples said to him, "Master, teach us how to pray, just as John taught his disciples."

So he said to them. "When you pray, say, "Father, hallowed be thy name; May thy kingdom come,

He also said to them. "Suppose you have a friend and you go to him, 'My friend, lend me three loaves of bread,

But some of them said, "It is by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that he cast out demons."

He knew their intentions and said to them. "Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste and house falls upon house.

but the Lord said to him. "You Pharisee do cleanse the outside of your cup or plate, but your secret heart is full of extortion and wickedness.

"Woe unto you lawyers also!" said Jesus, "for you load men with irksome burdens, and you yourselves will not touch the burdens with one of your fingers.

"For this reason also said the Wisdom of God. 'I will send them prophets and apostles; some of them they will kill and some they will persecute;

"So that what you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light; and what you have whispered in the inner chambers shall be proclaimed from the housetops.

Then one of the crowd said to him, "Master, tell my brother to give me my share of our inheritance."

"Man," said he, "who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?"

And to the people he said, "Take heed and guard yourselves from all covetousness, for a man's life does not consist in the abundance of the things which he possesses."

"And he said to himself. 'This is what I will do. I will pull down my barns and build larger ones in which I will store all my wheat and my goods.

"But God said to him. 'Foolish man! This very night your soul is wanted! And these things you have prepared, whose shall they be?

Then he said to his disciples. "For this is the reason I say to you. Be not anxious for your life, what you shall eat; nor yet your body what shall you wear.