just as they reported them to us, who were from beginning eye-witnesses and ministers of the word,

it seemed good to me also accurately, from the very beginning, to write them to you in order, most excellent Theophilus,

"For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, "He shall drink neither wine nor strong drink, "He shall be filled with the Holy Spirit from the hour of his birth,

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

"For he has regarded the humiliation of his slave, And from this hour all ages will count me blessed.

"he has put down princes from their thrones, and has exalted those of low degree.

To deliver us from our enemies, and from the power Of all who hate us.

"Through the heart of mercy of our God, Whereby the Dayspring from on high shall visit us,

And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city if Nazareth, into Judea, to David's town of Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David.

and then being a widow even for fourscore and four years. She departed not from the temple, but worshiped with the fasting and prayer, night and day.

So John used to say to the crowd of those who were going out to be baptized by him. "You breed of vipers, who has warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

heaven opened, and the Holy Spirit, in bodily form like a dove, descended upon him. and a voice came out of heaven, saying. "Thou art my Son, dearly beloved; in thee is my delight."

Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, came back from the Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days, all the time tempted by the devil.

And they all spoke well of him, and marveled at the words of charm that fell from his lips. "Is not this the son of Joseph?" they asked.

He went on board one of the boats which belonged to Simon, and asked him to push out a little way from land. Then he sat down and continued to teach the crowd from the boat.

When Simon Peter saw this he fell down at the knees of Jesus, exclaiming, "Depart from me, O Lord, for I am a sinful man!"

and so were Simon's partners, James and John, sons of Zebedee.) But Jesus answered Simon. "Fear not; from this time on, you will be catching men."

One day he was teaching, and near to him were seated Pharisees and teachers of the Law, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem; and the power of the Lord was with him to heal.

"But there is coming a day when the Bridegroom will have been taken away from them; then at that time they will fast."

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.

And when day dawned he called his disciples, and from among them he selected twelve, whom also he called Apostles missionaries.

With these he came down till he reached a level place, where there was a great crowd of his disciples and a great many people from all Judea and Jerusalem and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon. These came to hear him, and to be healed of their diseases.

The whole crowd were trying to touch him, because power emanated from him and cured them all.

To him who gives you a blow on the jaw Turn the other jaw also; And from him who is robbing you of your cloak Withhold not your coat also.

Give to every one who asks you; And do not demand your goods back from him who is taking them away.

"And if you lend to those from whom you are hoping to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, so as to get as much back.

"Or how can you say to your brother. "Brother, allow me to pull that splinter out of your eye," when you do not see the beam in your own eye? Hypocrite! Take out first the beam from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take out the splinter from your brother's eye.

"You do not gather figs from thorns, and grapes are not plucked from a bramble-bush.

So Jesus started to go with them, but while he was not far from the house, the captain sent friends to him with a message. "Lord do not trouble yourself, for I am not fit that you should come under my roof,

It happened shortly afterwards that he began to go from town to town and village to village, preaching and telling the good news of the kingdom of God.

The twelve were with him, and certain women whom he had delivered from evil spirits and various diseases. Mary of Magdala, out of whom seven demons have been driven,

"Those by the wayside are people who hear, but then comes the devil and carries off the word from their heart, so that they may not believe and not be saved.

"Take heed, then, how you listen. for he who has, to him shall it be given, but from him who has not, shall be taken away even what he has."

Then they put in at the country of Gadarenes, which is across from Galilee.

And the whole populace of Gadarenes and the surrounding territory besought Jesus to go away from them; for they were terror-stricken. So he entered a boat and returned.

As he was speaking some one came from the house of the synagogue, saying. "Your daughter is dead! Do not trouble the Master."

"If any one will not receive you, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave this town, as a testimony against them."

So they went forth, and walked from village to village, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.

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;

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.

It happened the next day, when they were come down from the mountain, that a large crowd came to meet him;

But they did not understand this saying; it was hidden from them so that they perceived it not, and they were sore afraid to ask him about his saying.

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.

"Stay in that same house, eating and drinking what they give. for the laborer is worthy of his hire. Do not go from house to 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!

"A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell among bandits who both stripped him and beat him, and went off leaving him half dead.

"only one thing is really necessary. Mary, moreover, has chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her."

"for a friend of mine is come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to set before him.'

"and he from indoors shall answer. 'Do not pester me. The door is now closed, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot rise and give to you.'

Others, tempting him, kept seeking from him a sign from heaven.

"but when the stronger man attacks him, he takes away from the strong armor in which he was trusting and divides up the spoil.

"The queen of the South shall rise up in Judgment with the men of this generation, and shall condemn them; because she came from the ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon, and lo, one greater than Solomon is here!

"so that the blood of all the prophets which was shed from the foundation of the world may be required from this generation,

"from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zachariah, who perished between the alter and the sanctuary; yes; I tell you, it shall be required of this generation!

laying in wait for him, in order to catch a word from his lips.

"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.

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 be yourselves like men who are looking for the Lord, on his return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they may at once open the door for him.

"but he who did not know, but did things worthy of a beating, will receive few lashes. To whom much has been given, from him much will be required, and to whom much is entrusted, of him they will ask the more.

"From this time there will be five in one house divided, three against two and two against three;

Jesus noticed her and called to him and said, "Woman, you are free from your weakness."

But the Lord answered him. "Hypocrites!" he said, "does not each one of you loose his ox or his ass from the stall on the Sabbath Day, and lead it to water,

"and this woman, who is the daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound these eighteen years, ought she not have been loosened from bondage, though the day be the Sabbath?"

"when once the master of the house is risen up and has shut the door. You will begin to stand outside, and to knock at the door, crying, "'Lord, open to us.' "'I do not know were you came from,' he will reply.

"But he will answer. "'I tell you I do not know were you came from;

"'depart from me, all of you, you evil-doers.' There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you shall see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves cast out.

"And people shall come from the Orient and from the Occident, from the north and from the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God.

"He was full of sores, and longingly desired to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table. Yes! even the dogs came and licked his sores.

"But besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who want to cross from here to you cannot, nor can those who would cross from you to us.'

"'Nay, Father Abraham,' he said 'but if some one went to them from the dead they would repent.'

"'If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets,' said Father Abraham, 'neither will they be persuaded if one should rise from the dead.'"

"But who of you who has a slave plowing or keeping sheep, will say to him, when he is come in from the field, 'Come at once, sit down to dinner,'

"but on the day that Lot left Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all.

"All of these," he replied, "I have kept from my youth up."

"Then to those who stood by, he said, 'Take the pounds from him and give it to him who has ten pounds.'

"'I tell you that to every one who has it shall be given; and from him who has not shall be taken away even what he has.

exclaiming. "Oh that at this time you knew, yes, even you, on what your peace depends! But now it is hidden from your eyes.

"Was John's baptism from heaven or from man?"

So they reasoned among themselves. "If we say, 'From heaven,' he will ask us, 'Why did you not believe in him?'

"And if we say, 'From man,' all the people will stone us, for they were persuaded that John was a prophet."

"but those who are counted worthy to reach that world and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage.

"and there shall be great earthquakes, and, in many places, famines and pestilences; and there shall be terror and great portents from heaven.

But he himself withdrew from them about a stone's throw, kneeling down he prayed repeatedly, saying.

"Father, if thou art willing, take away this cup from me; but thy will, not mine, be done!"

(And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him.)

When he arose from his prayers, and came to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow,

"But from henceforth the Son of man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God."

"What need we of further evidence? for we ourselves have heard it from his own lips."

But they repeatedly insisted, "He is stirring up the people throughout all Judea with his teaching which started from Galilee."

Herod and Pilate became friends again from that very day; for before they had been at enmity between themselves.

And when they led him away they took hold of Simon, a Cyrenean, who was coming in from the country, and laid the cross on him to carry it behind Jesus.

he who came from the Jewish town of Arimathea, and who was on the watch for the kingdom of God. He had not concurred in the designs and deed of the council.

And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb,

and turning away from the tomb they told all this to the eleven, and to all the rest.

On that same day two of his disciples were walking to Emmaus, a village about seven miles from Jerusalem.

and he said: "Thus it is written that the Christ should suffer and rise again from the dead, the third day;

"and that repentance unto remission of sins should be preached in his name unto all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.

"And I will send forth the promise of my Father upon you. But tarry in Jerusalem until you are clothed with power from on high."

And it happened that while he was blessing them, that he parted from them and was carried into heaven.