Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,

Not long after this, Mary rose up and went in haste into the hill country to a town in Judah.

But why is this honour done me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

Because the mighty One has done great things for me--Holy is His name!--

He has cast monarchs down from their thrones, And exalted men of low estate.

and all went to be registered--every one to the town to which he belonged.

So Joseph went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judaea, to David's town of Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David,

For a Saviour who is the Anointed Lord is born to you to-day, in the town of David.

Then, as soon as they had accomplished all that the Law required, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth.

but supposing Him to be in the travelling company, they proceeded a day's journey. Then they searched up and down for Him among their relatives and acquaintances;

Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was always obedient to them; but His mother carefully treasured up all these incidents in her memory.

Every ravine shall be filled up, and every mountain and hill levelled down, the crooked places shall be turned into straight roads, and the rugged ways into smooth;

And even now the axe is lying at the root of the trees, so that every tree which fails to yield good fruit will quickly be hewn down and thrown into the fire."

But Herod the Tetrarch, being repeatedly rebuked by him about Herodias his brother's wife, and about all the wicked deeds that he had done,

and the Holy Spirit came down in bodily shape, like a dove, upon Him, and a voice came from Heaven, which said, "Thou art My Son, dearly loved: in Thee is My delight."

Then he brought Him to Jerusalem and caused Him to stand on the roof of the Temple, and said to Him, "If you are God's Son, throw yourself down from here; for it is written,

And rolling up the book, He returned it to the attendant, and sat down--to speak. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him.

"Doubtless," said He, "you will quote to me the proverb, 'Physician, cure yourself: all that we hear that you have done at Capernaum, do here also in your native place.'"

They rose, hurried Him outside the town, and brought Him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, to throw Him down the cliff;

So He came down to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, where He frequently taught the people on the Sabbath days.

Next morning, at daybreak, He left the town and went away to a solitary place; but the people flocked out to find Him, and, coming to the place where He was, they endeavoured to detain Him that He might not leave them.

and going on board one of them, which was Simon's He asked him to push out a little from land. Then He sat down and taught the crowd of people from the boat.

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

"Rabbi," replied Peter, "all night long we have worked hard and caught nothing; but at your command I will let down the nets."

When Simon Peter saw this, he fell down at the knees of Jesus, and exclaimed, "Master, leave my boat, for I am a sinful man."

But when they could find no way of doing so because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down through the tiling--bed and all--into the midst, in front of Jesus.

With these He came down till He reached a level place, where there was a great crowd of His disciples, and a multitude of people from every part of Judaea, from Jerusalem, and from the sea-side district of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and to be cured of their diseases;

give, and gifts shall be bestowed on you. Full measure, pressed, shaken down, and running over, shall they pour into your laps; for with the same measure that you use they shall measure to you in return."

Shortly afterwards He went to a town called Nain, attended by His disciples and a great crowd of people.

And just as He reached the gate of the town, they happened to be bringing out for burial a dead man who was his mother's only son; and she was a widow; and a great number of the townspeople were with her.

And the report of what Jesus had done spread through the whole of Judaea and in all the surrounding districts.

And there was a woman in the town who was a notorious sinner. Having learnt that Jesus was at table in the Pharisee's house she brought a flask of perfume,

Shortly after this He visited town after town, and village after village, proclaiming His Message and telling the Good News of the Kingdom of God. The Twelve were with Him,

And when a great crowd was assembling, and was receiving additions from one town after another, He spoke a parable to them.

During the passage He fell asleep, and there came down a squall of wind on the Lake, so that the boat began to fill and they were in deadly peril.

When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before Him, and said in a loud voice, "What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of God Most High? Do not torture me, I beseech you."

The swineherds, seeing what had happened, fled and reported it both in town and country;

"Return home," He said, "and tell there all that God has done for you." So he went and published through the whole town all that Jesus had done for him.

"Who is it touched me?" Jesus asked. And when all denied having done so, Peter and the rest said, "Rabbi, the crowds are hemming you in and pressing on you."

Then the woman, perceiving that she had not escaped notice, came trembling, and throwing herself down at His feet she stated before all the people the reason why she had touched Him and how she was instantly cured.

Wherever they refuse to receive you, as you leave that town shake off the very dust from your feet as a protest against them."

The Apostles, on their return, related to Jesus all they had done. Then He took them and withdrew to a quiet retreat, to a town called Bethsaida.

But He said to His disciples, "Make them sit down in parties of about fifty each."

They did so, making them all, without exception, sit down.

Now Peter and the others were weighed down with sleep; but, keeping themselves awake all through, they saw His glory, and the two men standing with Him.

On the following day, when they were come down from the mountain, a great crowd came to meet Him;

When the disciples James and John saw this, they said, "Master, do you wish us to order fire to come down from Heaven and consume them?"

After this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them before Him, by twos, to go to every town or place which He Himself intended to visit.

"And whatever town you come to and they receive you, eat what they put before you.

Cure the sick in that town, and tell them, "'The Kingdom of God is now at your door.'

"But whatever town you come to and they will not receive you, go out into the broader streets and say,

"'The very dust of your town that hangs about us we wipe off as a protest. Only be sure of this, that the Kingdom of God is close at hand.'

"I tell you that it will be more endurable for Sodom on the great day than for that town.

And thou, Capernaum, shalt thou be lifted high as Heaven? Thou shalt be driven down as low as Hades.

Jesus replied, "A man was once on his way down from Jerusalem to Jericho when he fell among robbers, who after both stripping and beating him went away, leaving him half dead.

Now a priest happened to be going down that way, and on seeing him passed by on the other side.

Yes, I tell you that, from the blood of Abel down to the blood of Zechariah who perished between the altar and the House, it shall all be required from the present generation.

"And he said to himself, "'This is what I will do: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and in them I will store up all my harvest and my wealth;

So he said to the gardener, "'See, this is the third year I have come to look for fruit on this fig-tree and cannot find any. Cut it down. Why should so much ground be actually wasted?'

If after that it bears fruit, well and good; if it does not, then you shall cut it down.'"

When He had said this, all His opponents were ashamed, while the whole multitude was delighted at the many glorious things continually done by Him.

He was passing through town after town and village after village, steadily proceeding towards Jerusalem,

They will come from east and west, from north and south, and will sit down at the banquet in the Kingdom of God.

"Soon the servant reported the result, saying, "'Sir, what you ordered is done, and there is room still.'

"Which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not sit down first and calculate the cost, asking if he has the means to finish it? --

Or what king, marching to encounter another king in war, does not first sit down and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand men to meet the one who is advancing against him with twenty thousand?

"Or what woman who has ten silver coins, if she loses one of them, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and search carefully till she finds it?

"'A hundred firkins of oil,' he replied. "'Here is your account,' said the steward: 'sit down quickly and change it into fifty firkins.'

So you also, when you have obeyed all the orders given you, must say, "'There is no merit in our service: what we have done is only what we were in duty bound to do.'"

And as He entered a certain village, ten men met Him who were lepers and stood at a distance.

"Were not all ten made clean?" Jesus asked; "but where are the nine?

"On that day, if a man is on the roof and his property indoors, let him not go down to fetch it; and, in the same way, he who is in the field, let him not turn back.

"In a certain town," He said, "there was a judge who had no fear of God and no respect for man.

And in the same town was a widow who repeatedly came and entreated him, saying, "'Give me justice and stop my oppressor.'

And to some who relied on themselves as being righteous men, and looked down upon all others, He addressed this parable.

So He entered Jericho and was passing through the town.

As soon as Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for I must stay at your house to-day."

So he came down in haste, and welcomed Him joyfully.

And he called ten of his servants and gave each of them a pound, instructing them to trade with the money during his absence.

"So the first came and said, "'Sir, your pound has produced ten pounds more.'

"'Well done, good servant,' he replied; 'because you have been faithful in a very small matter, be in authority over ten towns.'

For I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man: you take up what you did not lay down, and you reap what you did not sow.'

"'By your own words,' he replied, 'I will judge you, you bad servant. You knew me to be a severe man, taking up what I did not lay down, and reaping what I did not sow:

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

("They said to him, "`Sir, he already has ten pounds.')

and all seven, having done the same, left no children when they died.

"As to these things which you now admire, the time is coming when there will not be one stone left here upon another which will not be pulled down."

"But take heed to yourselves, lest your souls be weighed down with self-indulgence and drunkenness or the anxieties of this life, and that day come upon you, suddenly, like a falling trap;

But He Himself withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed repeatedly, saying,

"Father, if it be Thy will, take this cup away from me; yet not my will but Thine be done!"

"Man, I don't know what you mean," replied Peter. No sooner had he spoken than a cock crowed.

No, nor does Herod; for he has sent him back to us; and, you see, there is nothing he has done that deserves death.

For if they are doing these things in the case of the green tree, what will be done in that of the dry?"

And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving due requital for what we have done. But He has done nothing amiss."

The sun was darkened, and the curtain of the Sanctuary was torn down the middle,

who came from the Jewish town of Arimathaea and was awaiting the coming of the Kingdom of God. He had not concurred in the design or action of the Council,

Then, taking it down, he wrapped it in a linen sheet and laid it in a tomb in the rock, where no one else had yet been put.

And, on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb bringing the spices they had prepared.

But as soon as He had sat down with them, and had taken the bread and had blessed and broken it, and was handing it to them,