And the entire congregation of people was praying outside at the time when the incense was burned.

An angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the incense altar.

You will have great joy, and many people will rejoice at his birth,

But because you did not believe my announcement, which will be fulfilled at its proper time, you will become silent and unable to speak until the day this happens."

But when he did come out, he was unable to speak to them. Then they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. He kept motioning to them but remained unable to speak.

"This is what the Lord did for me when he looked favorably on me and took away my public disgrace."

Startled by his statement, she tried to figure out what his greeting meant.

Later on, Mary set out for a Judean city in the hill country.

How blessed is this woman for believing that what was spoken to her by the Lord would be fulfilled!"

So they motioned to the baby's father to see what he wanted to name him.

Everyone who heard about it kept thinking what had happened and asked, "What will this child become?" because it was obvious that the hand of the Lord was with him.

When the angels had left them and gone back to heaven, the shepherds told one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see what has taken place that the Lord has told us about."

When they saw this, they repeated what they had been told about this child.

All who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them.

Then the shepherds returned to their flock, glorifying and praising God for everything they had heard and seen, just as it had been told to them.

After eight days had passed, the infant was circumcised and named Jesus, the name given him by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.

as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every firstborn son is to be designated as holy to the Lord."

They also offered a sacrifice according to what is specified in the Law of the Lord: "a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons."

It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Lord's Messiah.

Led by the Spirit, he went into the Temple. When the parents brought the child Jesus to do for him what was customary under the Law,

Jesus' father and mother kept wondering at the things being said about him.

and then as a widow for 84 years. She never left the Temple, but continued to worship there night and day with times of fasting and prayer.

When the days of the festival were over, they left for home. The young man Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it.

All who heard him were amazed at his intelligence and his answers.

But they did not understand what he told them.

as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, "He is a voice calling out in the wilderness: "Prepare the way for the Lord! Make his paths straight!

John would say to the crowds that were coming out to be baptized by him, "You children of serpents! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?

The crowds kept asking him, "What, then, should we do?"

Even some tax collectors came to be baptized. They asked him, "Teacher, what should we do?"

Even some soldiers were asking him, "And what should we do?" He told them, "Never extort money from anyone by threats or blackmail, and be satisfied with your pay."

John replied to all of them, "I'm baptizing you with water, but one is coming who is more powerful than I, and I'm not worthy to untie his sandal straps. It is he who will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er,

where he was being tempted by the Devil for 40 days. During that time he ate nothing at all, and when they were over he became hungry.

Jesus answered him, "It is written, "One must not live on bread alone, but on every word of God.'"

He told Jesus, "I will give you all this authority, along with their glory, because it has been given to me, and I give it to anyone I please.

But Jesus answered him, "It is written, "You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him.'"

because it is written, "God will put his angels in charge of you to watch over you carefully.

Jesus answered him, "It has been said, "You must not tempt the Lord your God.'"

the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling the scroll, he found the place where it was written,

Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. While the eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fixed on him,

he began to say to them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled, as you've heard it read aloud."

All the people began to speak well of him and to wonder at the gracious words that flowed from his mouth. They said, "This is Joseph's son, isn't it?"

I'm telling you the truth there were many widows in Israel in Elijah's time, when it didn't rain for three years and six months and there was a severe famine everywhere in the land.

Yet Elijah wasn't sent to a single one of those widows except to one at Zarephath in Sidon.

There were also many lepers in Israel in the prophet Elisha's time, yet not one of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian."

They got up, forced Jesus out of the city, and led him to the edge of the hill on which their city was built, intending to throw him off.

They were utterly amazed at what he taught, because his message was spoken with authority.

"Oh, no! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are the Holy One of God!"

But Jesus rebuked him. "Be quiet," he said, "and come out of him!" At this, the demon threw the man down in the middle of the synagogue and came out of him without hurting him.

Overwhelmed with amazement, they all kept saying to one another, "What kind of statement is this? because with authority and power he gives orders to unclean spirits, and they come out!"

He bent over her, rebuked the fever, and it left her. She got up at once and began serving them.

Even demons came out of many people, screaming, "You are the Son of God!" But Jesus rebuked them and ordered them not to speak, because they knew he was the Messiah.

At daybreak he left and went to a deserted place, while the crowds kept looking for him. When they came to him, they tried to keep him from leaving them.

He saw two boats lying on the shore, but the fishermen had stepped out of them and were washing their nets.

So Jesus got into one of the boats (the one that belonged to Simon) and asked him to push out a little from the shore. Then he sat down and began to teach the crowds from the boat.

When he had finished speaking, he told Simon, "Push out into deep water, and lower your nets for a catch."

When Simon Peter saw this, he fell down at Jesus' knees and said, "Leave me, Lord! I am a sinful man!" -

because Simon and all the people who were with him were amazed at the number of fish they had caught,

So Jesus reached out his hand and touched him, saying, "I do want to. Be clean!" Instantly the leprosy left him.

So the man immediately stood up in front of them and picked up what he had been lying on. Then he went home, praising God.

After that, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the tax collector's desk. He told him, "Follow me!"

Later, Levi gave a large banquet at his home for Jesus. A large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them.

The Pharisees and their scribes started complaining to Jesus' disciples, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?"

But the time will come when the groom will be taken away from them, and at that time they will fast."

Then he told them a parable: "No one tears a piece of cloth from a new garment and sews it on an old garment. If he does, the new cloth will tear, and the piece from the new won't match the old.

Some of the Pharisees asked, "Why are you doing what isn't lawful on Sabbath days?"

Jesus answered them, "Haven't you read what David did when he and his companions became hungry?

How was it that he went into the house of God, took the Bread of the Presence and ate it, which was not lawful for anyone but the priests to eat, and then gave some of it to his companions?"

But Jesus knew what they were thinking. So he told the man with the paralyzed hand, "Get up, and stand in the middle of the synagogue." So he got up and stood there.

Then Jesus asked them, "I ask you, is it lawful to do good or to do evil on the Sabbath, to save a life or to destroy it?"

He looked around at all of them and then told the man, "Hold out your hand." The man did so, and his hand was restored to health.

The others were furious and began to discuss with each other what they could do to Jesus.

Now it was in those days that Jesus went to a mountain to pray, and he spent the whole night in prayer to God.

The entire crowd was trying to touch him, because power was coming out from him and healing all of them.

Then Jesus looked at his disciples and said, "How blessed are you who are destitute, because the kingdom of God is yours!

"But how terrible it will be for you who are rich, because you have had your comfort!

How terrible it will be for you who are full now, because you will be hungry! How terrible it will be for you who are laughing now, because you will mourn and cry!

"How terrible it will be for you when everyone says nice things about you, because that's the way their ancestors used to treat the false prophets!"

Keep on giving to everyone who asks you for something, and if anyone takes what is yours, do not insist on getting it back.

"If you love those who love you, what thanks do you deserve? Why, even sinners love those who love them.

If you do good to those who do good to you, what thanks do you deserve? Even sinners do that.

If you lend to those from whom you expect to get something back, what thanks do you deserve? Even sinners lend to sinners to get back what they lend.

Give, and it will be given to you. A large quantity, pressed together, shaken down, and running over will be put into your lap, because you'll be evaluated by the same standard with which you evaluate others."

How can you say to your brother, "Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,' when you don't see the beam in your own eye? You hypocrite! First remove the beam from your own eye, and then you'll see clearly enough to remove the speck from your brother's eye."

"Why do you keep calling me "Lord, Lord,' but don't do what I tell you?

I will show you what everyone is like who comes to me, hears my words, and acts on them.

They are like a person building a house, who dug a deep hole to lay the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the floodwaters pushed against that house but couldn't shake it, because it had been founded on the rock.

But the person who hears what I say but doesn't act on it is like someone who built a house on the ground without any foundation. When the floodwaters pushed against it, that house quickly collapsed, and the resulting destruction of that house was extensive."

because I, too, am a man under authority and have soldiers under me. I say to one "Go' and he goes, to another "Come' and he comes, and to my servant "Do this' and he does it."

When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him. Turning to the crowd that was following him, he said, "I tell you, not even in Israel have I found this kind of faith!"

As he approached the entrance to the city, a man who had died was being carried out. He was his mother's only son, and she was a widow. A large crowd from the city was with her.

Then he went up and touched the bier, and the men who were carrying it stopped. He said, "Young man, I say to you, get up!"

and sent them to the Lord to ask, "Are you the Coming One, or should we wait for someone else?"

When the men had come to Jesus, they said, "John the Baptist has sent us to you to ask, "Are you the Coming One, or should we wait for someone else?'"

At that time Jesus had healed many people of diseases, plagues, and evil spirits, and had given sight to many who were blind.

So he answered them, "Go and tell John what you have observed and heard: the blind see, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear again, the dead are raised, and the destitute hear the good news.

When John's messengers had gone, Jesus began to ask the crowds about John. "What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind?

Really, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fancy clothes? Look! Those who wear fine clothes and live in luxury are in royal palaces.

Really, what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and even more than a prophet!

This is the man about whom it is written, "See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.'