Your Excellency Theophilus: Since so many people have undertaken the task of compiling a narrative of events that have happened among us,

They both did what was right in God's sight [by] living blamelessly according to all the commandments and requirements of the Lord.

Zacharias became disturbed when he saw the angel and was gripped by fear.

He will go on ahead of the Messiah [See verse 76], in the spirit and power of Elijah, to rekindle the affections of fathers for their children, and [to influence] disobedient people to live wisely like righteous people. And he will prepare the people to be ready for [the coming of] the Lord."

Now the people who waited [outside] for Zacharias were very surprised that he was staying in the Temple so long.

And when he [finally] came out, he was not able to talk to them. Then they realized he had seen a vision while in the Temple. So, he remained a mute and had to make [hand] signs to them [i.e., in order to be understood].

And so it happened, when he had completed the [required] days of his ministry, he went home.

Now in the sixth month [of Elizabeth's pregnancy] the angel Gabriel was sent from God to the Galilean town of Nazareth,

to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. The virgin's name was Mary.

And Mary said, "Here I am, the Lord's slave-girl; let it happen to me according to what you say." Then the angel left her.

And it happened when Elizabeth heard Mary greet her, the baby in Elizabeth's womb "kicked," and she was filled with the Holy Spirit.

So, Mary stayed with [her relative] Elizabeth for about three months [i.e., until about the time John was born. See 1:26-31], and then returned to her home.

And [so] they made [hand] signs to the [baby's] father to find out what he wanted to name him.

Yes, you [my] child [i.e., John], will be called the prophet of the Highest [i.e., God], for you will go ahead of the Lord's presence to prepare His ways.

because of God's merciful compassion. Therefore, the morning sun from above will arise

So, the child [i.e., John] grew and became strong in [his] spirit and stayed in the desert until the day when he appeared publicly to the Israelites.

So, Joseph also went from the Galilean town of Nazareth to David's town, which was the Judean town of Bethlehem, because he was among the descendants and family of David.

So, she bore her firstborn Son and wrapped Him in [linen] cloths and laid Him in an animal's feeding trough because there was no room for them in the lodge.

For a Savior has been born today in David's city [i.e., Bethlehem], who is Christ the Lord [i.e., God's specially chosen one].

And this is the sign [that will verify it] to you: You will find a baby wrapped in [linen] cloths lying in an animal's feeding trough."

And it happened when the angels left them and returned to heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go to Bethlehem now and see what all happened that the Lord told us about."

So, they went quickly and found both Mary and Joseph with the baby, lying in the animal's feeding trough.

And when they saw this, they told [everyone] what the angel had said about this baby.

Then when the days of their purification according to the law of Moses were completed [Note: This was a set procedure required for a Jewish mother on the birth of a child. See Lev. 12:1-8], Joseph and Mary brought Jesus up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord.

Now it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Lord's Christ [i.e., God's, specially chosen one].

And he was led by the Holy Spirit into the Temple, and when Joseph and Mary brought the baby Jesus in, so they could do to Him what was customary under the law of Moses,

[to be] a light for revealing [God's way of salvation] to the [unconverted] Gentiles, and a [source of] glory to your people, the Israelites."

And there was a woman prophet named Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, from the tribe of Asher [i.e., she was a descendant of one of Jacob's son]. (She was very old, having lived with her husband for [only] seven years after being married,

So, when Joseph and Mary had completed everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to their [current home] town of Nazareth, in Galilee.

And the child [i.e., Jesus] grew and became strong. He was filled with wisdom and God's favor was upon Him.

Now Jesus' parents went to Jerusalem every year to attend the Passover Festival. [Note: This was the annual Jewish festival commemorating Israel's deliverance from Egyptian bondage under Moses' leadership].

so thinking He was in the caravan, they continued traveling for an entire day [before] they began looking for Him among their relatives and friends.

When His parents [finally] saw Him, they were very surprised and His mother asked Him, "Son, why have you treated us this way? Look, your [step-] father and I have been anxiously searching for you."

And He replied to them, "Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I had to be in my Father's house [i.e., the Temple]?"

So, Jesus went down to Nazareth with them and [continued] to obey them. And His mother kept all these things [stored up] in her heart.

Now it was the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar. Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod was ruler of Galilee, his brother Philip was ruler of the regions of Ituraea and Trachonitus [Note: These two men were sons of Herod the Great (See Matt. 2:1) and ruled over provinces east of the Jordan River] and Lysanias was ruler of Abilene [Note: This was a province just north of the two previously mentioned ones].

[During this time], while Annas and Caiaphas [Note: This man was Annas' son-in-law. See John 18:13] were head priests, God's message came to John [the Immerser], son of Zacharias, [when he was] in the desert [of Judea].

And all mankind will see the salvation of God [i.e., become available to them]."

Demonstrate by your lives that you have [really] repented, and quit saying to yourselves, 'We claim Abraham as our forefather,' because I tell you, God is able to make Abraham's children out of these stones.

Now as people were anticipating [what would happen] and everyone was wondering in their hearts if perhaps John were the Christ [i.e., God's specially chosen one],

John answered [their concerns] by saying to all of them, "I am [the one] immersing you in water, but One who is more powerful than I will follow my [ministry]. I am not [even] worthy to loosen the straps of His sandals. He will immerse you people with the Holy Spirit and with fire [i.e., the punishment of hell. See Matt. 3:10-12].

So, John preached the good news to the people with many different appeals.

But because he had rebuked Herod, the tetrarch, for [marrying] his brother's wife Herodias, and for all the other bad things he had done,

Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan River [i.e., where He had been immersed. See 3:21] and was led by the Holy Spirit [See Matt. 4:1] into the desert.

Then he led Him up [i.e., to a high mountain. See Matt. 4:8] and showed Him all the world's kingdoms in a fleeting instant.

for it is written [Psa. 91:11-12], 'He will put his angels in charge of you, to protect you,'

and 'They will lift you up with their hands so you do not trip over a stone.'"

to proclaim the year of the Lord's acceptance [i.e., the time when people would become His obedient followers]."

So, everyone spoke well of Him and marvelled at the gracious words coming from His mouth. They said, "Is he not Joseph's son?"

"Ha! What business do we have with you, Jesus from Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are; [you are] God's Holy One."

So, He left the synagogue and entered Simon's [i.e., Peter's] house. Now Simon's mother-in-law was [in bed] stricken with a high fever. And they [i.e., Andrew, James and John, besides Peter. See Mark 1:29] begged Him [to do something] for her.

So, He stood over her and spoke sternly to the fever. It left her and she got up [out of bed] and began serving them.

And when it became daylight He left [Simon's house] and went to a deserted place [i.e., to pray. See Mark 1:35]. The crowds were looking for Him and [upon finding Him] went to Him and tried to discourage Him from leaving them.

But He told them, "I must go to other towns also to preach the good news of God's [coming] kingdom, for this is why I was sent [by God]."

So, He [went and] preached in the [Jewish] synagogues of Judea [also].

Now it happened while Jesus was standing on the shore of Lake Genneseret [i.e., Lake Galilee] that the crowd was pushing closer to Him to hear God's message.

He saw two boats [tied up] along the shore of the lake, for the fishermen had left them [there] and were washing their nets [i.e., on the beach].

So, He entered one of the boats that belonged to Simon [i.e., Peter], and asked him to launch out a short distance from shore. Then He sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.

Simon replied, "Master, we worked all night, but did not catch anything. But I will lower the nets if you say so."

So, they motioned to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. When they came, they filled both boats until they began to sink.

But when Simon Peter saw this, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Go away from me, Lord, because I am a sinful man."

Simon's partners James and John, sons of Zebedee, were also amazed. So, Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; from now on you will catch people."

And it happened while Jesus was in one of the towns [i.e., surrounding Lake Galilee], that a man covered with an infectious skin disease appeared and, when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face [to the ground] and begged Him, saying, "If you want to, you can heal me." [Note: Throughout this narrative the terms "heal/healing" are originally "clean/cleansing" because the Jews viewed a person with such a disease as ceremonially "unclean." See Lev. 13:1-3].

But the news about what Jesus had done spread all the more widely, so that large crowds assembled to listen to Him and to be healed of their sicknesses.

So, He went away to deserted places and prayed.

And it happened on one of those days [in Capernaum. See Mark 2:1], as He was teaching, that some Pharisees [i.e., a strict sect of the Jewish religion] and teachers of the law of Moses, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem, were sitting around [i.e., listening to Him]. And the power of the Lord was with Him, enabling Him to heal people.

Just then [four] men [See Mark 2:3] brought a paralyzed man on a cot and attempted to place him in front of Jesus.

And when He saw the evidence of their faith, He said, "Man, your sins are forgiven."

Which is easier; to say [to the paralyzed man], 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up and walk'?

But so you will know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins, (He then said to the paralyzed man), 'I say to you, get up, pick up your cot and go home.'"

So, immediately he stood up in front of them and picked up what he had been lying on [i.e., his cot], and went home, giving honor to God.

Then after these things happened, Jesus went out [i.e., probably walking along a street] and saw a publican [Note: This was a person with a bad reputation for dishonest tax collecting activities] named Matthew [i.e., the same as Levi. See Mark 2:14] sitting at the toll booth [collecting taxes] and said, "Become my follower."

So, Matthew gave up everything, got up and followed Jesus.

Then they said to Jesus, "John [the Immerser's] disciples fast frequently [i.e., going without food and/or drink for religious reasons] and they offer earnest prayer requests, and the disciples of the Pharisees do the same things. But your disciples eat and drink."

And the experts in the law of Moses were watching Him to see if He would heal [someone] on the Sabbath day, so they could figure out how to accuse Him.

But He knew what they were thinking. Then He said to the man with the deformed hand, "Get up, step forward in front of everyone." So, he got up and stepped forward.

[They were] Simon, also called Peter, and his brother Andrew, James and John [also brothers], Philip, Bartholomew [i.e., the same as Nathaniel. See John 1:45],

Matthew [i.e., the same as Levi. See Mark 2:14], Thomas [i.e., the same as Didymus. See John 11:16], James, the son of Alphaeus, Simon, called the Zealot [i.e., the same as the Cananean. See Matt. 10:4],

Judas, the son of James [i.e., the same as Thaddaeus. See Matt. 10:3] and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor [to Jesus].

[Ask God's] blessing on those who curse you; pray for those who treat you spitefully.

And do not pass [hypocritical] judgment [on other people. See Matt. 7:1-5] and you will not receive such judgment [on yourselves]. And do not condemn [others] and you will not be condemned [yourselves]. Release people [i.e., from guilt for offending you] and you will be released [i.e., by God?]

And why do you look for the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye but ignore the board in your own eye?

Or how can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me take that speck of sawdust out of your eye,' when you cannot see the board in your own eye? You hypocrite, take the board out of your own eye first; then you will be able to see clearly enough to take out the speck of sawdust that is in your brother's eye.

After Jesus had finished telling the people all He had to say, He went into Capernaum.

And a certain military officer's slave [was there], whom the officer highly valued. This slave was [so] sick that he was about to die.

So, Jesus went with them. And when He got close to the military officer's house, the officer sent [his] friends to Jesus, saying to Him [i.e., speaking on behalf of the military officer], "Sir, do not trouble yourself, for I do not deserve for you to come into my house;

[and] for the same reason I did not think I deserved to come to you either. So, [just] say the word and [I know] my slave will be healed.

For I also am a man [who was] placed under the authority [of others], and I have soldiers [who serve] under me. I can say to this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another one, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it."

And those who were sent [i.e., the officer's friends. See verse 6] returned to the house and found the slave completely well.

Now when He approached the town gate, He saw a dead man being carried out; it was the only son of his widowed mother. And many people from the town were with her.

Now when the Lord saw her, He felt very sorry for her and said to her, "Do not cry."

Then everyone was gripped with fear and gave honor to God, saying, " [Surely] a great prophet has arisen among us and God's [presence] has come to His people."

So, John called to him two of his disciples and sent them to the Lord to ask, "Are you the One who was to come, or should we look for someone else?"

So, Jesus answered them, "Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard; [how] blind people are receiving back their sight, and crippled people are walking [again], and people with infectious skin diseases are being healed, and deaf-mutes are hearing [and speaking (?) again], and people are being raised [from the dead], and poor people are having the good news preached to them.

And when the messengers sent by John left, Jesus began saying to the crowds about John, "What did you expect to see when you went out into the desert? A tall stem swaying in the wind?

What did you expect to see? A man dressed in fancy clothes? Look, people who wear elaborate outfits and bask in luxury live in kings' palaces.

But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I will say [he is], and much more than a prophet.

And when all the people, together with the tax collectors, heard this they praised God for being so just, and were immersed with the immersion [preached] by John.

But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law of Moses, who would not be immersed by John, rejected God's purpose for themselves.

It proves that [God's] wise counsel is right in the eyes of all of her children [i.e., in the eyes of people known for their wisdom]."