So Joseph her husband, being righteous and not wanting to disgrace her, intended to divorce her secretly.

But [as] he was considering these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary [as] your wife, for what has been conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

and {did not have sexual relations with} her until she gave birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.

And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they went back to their [own] country by another route.

So he got up [and] took the child and his mother during the night and went away to Egypt.

"A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping [for] her children, and she did not want to be comforted, because {they exist no longer}."

And do not think to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham [as] father.' For I say to you that God is able to raise up children for Abraham from these stones!

Already now the ax is positioned at the root of the trees; therefore every tree not producing good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

I baptize you with water for repentance, but the one who comes after me is more powerful than I [am], whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

But John tried to prevent him, saying, "{I need} to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?"

But he answered [and] said, "It is written, 'Man will not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes out of the mouth of God."

Jesus said to him, "On the other hand it is written, 'You are not to put the Lord your God to the test.'"

Now [as he] was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew, throwing a casting net into the sea (for they were fishermen).

"Do not think that I have come to destroy the law or the prophets. I have not come to destroy [them] but to fulfill [them].

For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one tiny letter or one stroke of a letter will pass away from the law until all takes place.

"You have heard that it was said to the {people of old}, 'Do not commit murder,' and 'whoever commits murder will be subject to judgment.'

"You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.'

"Again you have heard that it was said to the {people of old}, 'Do not swear falsely, but fulfill your oaths to the Lord.'

But I say to you, do not swear at all, either by heaven, because it is the throne of God,

And do not swear by your head, because you are not able to make one hair white or black.

But I say to you, do not resist the evildoer, but whoever strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other to him also.

Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not the tax collectors also do the same?

And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing that is remarkable? Do not the Gentiles also do the same?

"And take care not to practice your righteousness before people to be seen by them; {otherwise} you have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

Therefore whenever you practice charitable giving, do not sound a trumpet in front of you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, in order that they may be praised by people. Truly I say to you, they have received their reward in full!

But you, [when you] practice charitable giving, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,

And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, because they love to stand [and] pray in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, in order that they may be seen by people. Truly I say to you, they have received their reward in full!

"But [when you] pray, do not babble repetitiously like the pagans, for they think that because of their many words they will be heard.

Therefore do not be like them, for your Father knows {what you need} before you ask him.

And do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

But if you do not forgive people, neither will your Father forgive your sins.

"Whenever you fast, do not be sullen like the hypocrites, for they make their faces unrecognizable in order that they may be seen fasting by people. Truly I say to you, they have received their reward in full!

so that you will not be seen by people as fasting, but to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and consuming [insect] destroy and where thieves break in and steal,

but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor consuming [insect] destroy and where thieves do not break in or steal.

"No one is able to serve two masters. For either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You are not able to serve God and money.

"For this [reason] I say to you, do not be anxious for your life, what you will eat, and not for your body, what you will wear. Is your life not more than food and your body [more than] clothing?

Consider the birds of the sky, that they do not sow or reap or gather [produce] into barns, and your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth more than they [are]?

And why are you anxious about clothing? Observe the lilies of the field, how they grow: they do not toil or spin,

but I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory was dressed like one of these.

But if God dresses the grass of the field in this way, [although it] is [here] today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not [do so] much more [for] you, you of little faith?

Therefore do not be anxious, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear?,'

for the pagans seek after all these [things]. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these [things].

Therefore do not be anxious for tomorrow, because tomorrow will be anxious for itself. {Each day has enough trouble of its own.}

"Do not judge, so that you will not be judged.

And why do you see the speck [that is] in your brother's eye, but do not notice the beam of wood in your [own] eye?

"Do not give what is holy to dogs, or throw your pearls in front of pigs, lest they trample them with their feet, and turn around [and] tear you to pieces.

You will recognize them by their fruits: they do not gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles, [do they]?

A good tree is not able to produce bad fruit, nor a bad tree to produce good fruit.

Every tree that does not produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter into the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and expel demons in your name, and perform many miracles in your name?'

And the rain came down and the rivers came and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it did not collapse, because its foundation was laid on the rock.

And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.

because he was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes.

And the centurion answered [and] said, "Lord, I am not worthy that you should come in under my roof. But only say the word and my slave will be healed.

And [when he] heard [it], he said, "Those who are healthy do not have need of a physician, but those {who are sick}.

But go [and] learn what it means, "I want mercy and not sacrifice." For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Then the disciples of John approached him, saying, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?"

And Jesus said to them, "{The bridegroom's attendants} are not able to mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them. But days are coming when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.

he said, "Go away, because the girl is not dead, but is sleeping." And they ridiculed him.

And [when he] saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were weary and dejected, like sheep that did not have a shepherd.

Jesus sent out these twelve, instructing them saying, "Do not go on the road to the Gentiles, and do not enter into a city of the Samaritans,

Do not procure gold or silver or copper for your belts.

Do not [take] a traveler's bag for the road, or two tunics, or sandals, or a staff, for the worker [is] deserving of his provisions.

And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you.

And whoever does not welcome you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet [as you] are going out of that house or [that] town.

But whenever they hand you over, do not be anxious how [to speak] or what you should say, for what you should say will be given to you at that hour.

For you are not the ones who are speaking, but the Spirit of your Father [who is] speaking through you.

"A disciple is not superior to his teacher, nor a slave superior to his master.

"Therefore do not be afraid of them, because nothing is hidden that will not be revealed, and nothing secret that will not become known.

And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but are not able to kill the soul, but instead be afraid of the one who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And one of them will not fall to the ground {without the knowledge and consent} of your Father.

Therefore do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

"Do not think that I have come to bring peace on the earth! I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.

The one who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and the one who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

And whoever does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.

And whoever is not offended by me is blessed."

Truly I say to you, among [those] born of women there has not arisen [one] greater than John the Baptist. But the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

saying, 'We played the flute for you and you did not dance; we sang a lament and you did not mourn.'

Then he began to reproach the towns in which the majority of his miracles had been done, because they did not repent:

But [when] the Pharisees saw [it], they said to him, "Behold, your disciples are doing what it is not permitted to do on the Sabbath!"

So he said to them, "Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, and those with him,

how he entered into the house of God and ate the bread of the presentation, which it was not permitted for him or for those with him to eat, but only for the priests?

Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple violate the sanctity of the Sabbath and are guiltless?

And if you had known what {it means}, 'I want mercy and not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the guiltless.

But he said to them, "What man will there be among you who will have one sheep and if this one fell into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift [it] out?

And he warned them that they should not {reveal his identity},

He will not quarrel or cry out, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets.

A crushed reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not extinguish, until he brings justice to victory.

But the Pharisees, [when they] heard [it], said, "This man does not expel demons except by Beelzebul the ruler of demons!"

But knowing their thoughts, he said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.

The one who is not with me is against me, and the one who does not gather with me scatters.

For this [reason] I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven!

And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him either in this age or in the coming one!

"Now whenever an unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it travels through waterless places searching for rest, and does not find [it].

And other [seed] fell on the rocky ground, where it did not have much soil, and it sprang up at once because it did not have [any] depth of soil.

But [when] the sun rose it was scorched, and because it did not have [enough] root, it withered.

And he answered [and] said to them, "To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to those [people] it has not been granted.