He had been dwelling upon this, when an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. "Joseph, son of David," the angel said, "do not be afraid to take Mary for your wife, for her child has been conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit.

She shall give birth to a son; and you shall give him the name Jesus, for it is he who shall save his people from their sins."

'Behold! the virgin shall be with child and shall give birth to a son, And they will give him the name Immanuel'--a word which means 'God is with us.'

When Joseph awoke from his sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord had directed him.

"Where is the new-born King of the Jews? for we saw his star in the east, and have come to do homage to him."

And, sending them to Bethlehem, he said: "Go and make careful inquiries about the child, and, as soon as you have found him, bring me word, that I, too, may go and do homage to him."

Entering the house, they saw the child with his mother, Mary, and fell at his feet and did homage to him. Then they unpacked their treasures, and offered to the child presents of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

After they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, and said: "Awake, take the child and his mother, and seek refuge in Egypt; and stay there until I bid you return, for Herod is about to search for the child, to put him to death."

At that time Jerusalem, and all Judea, as well as the whole district of the Jordan, went out to him

And were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan, to John, to be baptized by him.

But John tried to prevent him. "It is I," he said, "who need to be baptized by you; why then do you come to me?"

After the baptism of Jesus, and just as he came up from the water, the heavens opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending, like a dove, and alighting upon him,

And the Tempter came to him, and said: "If you are God's Son, tell these stones to become loaves of bread."

Then the Devil took him to the Holy City, and, placing him on the parapet of the temple, said to him:

The third time, the Devil took Jesus to a very high mountain, and, showing him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor, said to him:

Then Jesus said to him: "Begone, Satan! for Scripture says-- 'Thou shalt do homage to the Lord thy God, and worship him only.'"

Then the Devil left him alone, and angels came and ministered to him.

The two men left their nets at once and followed him.

And they at once left their boat and their father, and followed him.

And his fame spread all through Syria. They brought to him all who were ill with any form of disease, or who were suffering pain--any who were either possessed by demons, or were lunatic, or paralyzed; and he cured them.

On seeing the crowds of People, Jesus went up the hill; and, when he had taken his seat, his disciples came up to him;

I, however, say to you that any one who cherishes anger against his brother shall be liable to answer for it to the Court; and whoever pours contempt upon his brother shall be liable to answer for it to the High Council, while whoever calls down curses upon him shall be liable to answer for it in the fiery Pit.

Be ready to make friends with your opponent, even when you meet him on your way to the court; for fear that he should hand you over to the judge, and the judge to his officer, and you should be thrown into prison.

I, however, say to you that you must not resist wrong; but, if any one strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other to him also;

And, when any one wants to go to law with you, to take your coat, let him have your cloak as well;

And, if any one compels you to go one mile, go two miles with him.

Give to him who asks of you; and, from him who wants to borrow from you, do not turn away.

But, when one of you prays, let him go into his own room, shut the door, and pray to his Father who dwells in secret; and his Father, who sees what is secret, will recompense him.

Do not imitate them; for God, your Father, knows what you need before you ask him.

But, when one of your fasts, let him anoint his head and wash his face,

That he may not be seen by men to be fasting, but by his Father who dwells in secret; and his Father, who sees what is secret, will recompense him.

For he that asks receives, he that searches finds, and to him that knocks the door shall be opened.

Who among you, when his son asks him for a loaf, will give him a stone,

Or when he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?

If you, then, wicked though you are, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in Heaven give what is good to those that ask him!

When Jesus had come down from the hill, great crowds followed him.

And he saw a leper who came up, and bowed to the ground before him, and said: "Master, if only you are willing, you are able to make me clean."

Stretching out his hand, Jesus touched him, saying as he did so: "I am willing; become clean." Instantly he was made clean from his leprosy;

And then Jesus said to him: "Be careful not to say a word to any one, but go and show yourself to the Priest, and offer the gift directed by Moses, as evidence of your cure."

After Jesus had entered Capernaum, a Captain in the Roman army came up to him, entreating his help.

"I will come and cure him," answered Jesus.

Jesus was surprised to hear this, and said to those who were following him: "Never I tell you, in any Israelite have I met with such faith as this!

On his taking her hand, the fever left her, and she rose and began to wait upon him.

Seeing a crowd round him, Jesus gave orders to go across.

And a Teacher of the Law came up to him, and said: "Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go."

And the disciples came and roused him. "Master," they cried, "save us; we are lost!"

The men were amazed, and exclaimed: "What kind of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!"

At the news the whole town went out to meet Jesus, and, when they saw him, they entreated him to go away from their neighborhood.

And there some people brought to him a paralyzed man on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man: "Courage, Child! Your sins are forgiven."

As Jesus went along, he saw a man, called Matthew, sitting in the tax-office, and said to him: "Follow me." Matthew got up and followed him.

While Jesus was saying this, a President of a Synagogue came up and bowed to the ground before him. "My daughter," he said, "Has just died; but come and place your hand on her, and she will be restored to life."

So Jesus rose and followed him, and his disciples went also.

He said: "Go away, the little girl is not dead; she is asleep." They began to laugh at him;

When he had gone indoors, the blind men came up to him; and Jesus asked them: "Do you believe that I am able to do this?" "Yes, Master!" they answered.

But the men went out, and spread the news about him through all that part of the country.

Calling his twelve Disciples to him, Jesus gave them authority over foul spirits, so that they could drive them out, as well as the power of curing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.

Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot--the Apostle who betrayed him.

And do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but are unable to kill the soul; rather be afraid of him who is able to destroy both soul and body in the Pit.

But, if any one disowns me before his fellow men, I, too, will disown him before my Father who is in Heaven.

He who welcomes you is welcoming me; and he who welcomes me is welcoming him who sent me as his Messenger.

Let him who has ears hear.

For, when John came, neither eating nor drinking, men said 'He has a demon in him';

Everything has been committed to me by my Father; nor does any one fully know the Son, except the Father, or fully know the Father, except the Son and those to whom the Son may choose to reveal him.

How he went into the House of God, and how they ate the consecrated bread, through it was not allowable for him or his companions to eat it, but only for the priests?

And there he saw a man with a withered hand. Some people asked Jesus whether it was allowable to work a cure on the Sabbath- -so that they might have a charge to bring against him.

On coming out, the Pharisees plotted against Jesus, to put him to death.

Jesus, however, became aware of it, and went away from that place. A number of people followed him, and he cured them all;

but he warned them not to make him known,

'Behold! the Servant of my Choice, My Beloved, in whom my heart delights! I will breathe my spirit upon him, And he shall announce a time of judgment to the Gentiles.

Then some people brought to Jesus a possessed man, who was blind and dumb; and he cured him, so that the man who had been dumb both talked and saw.

How, again, can any one get into a strong man's house and carry off his goods, without first securing him? And not till then will he plunder his house.

While he was still speaking to the crowds, his mother and brothers were standing outside, asking to speak to him.

Someone told him this, and Jesus replied:

such great crowds gathered round him, that he got into a boat, and sat in it, while all the people stood upon the beach.

Let him who has ears hear."

Afterwards his disciples came to him, and said: "Why do you speak to them in parables?"

On this the owner's servants came to him, and said 'Was not it good seed that you sowed in your field? Where, then, do the tares in it come from?'

Then Jesus left the crowd, and went into the house. Presently his disciples came to him, and said: "Explain to us the parable of the tares in the field."

Then shall the righteous shine, like the sun, in the Kingdom of their Father. Let him who has ears hear.

These things proved a hindrance to their believing in him; whereupon Jesus said: "A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country and in his own house."

And said to his attendants: " This must be John the Baptist; he must be risen from the dead, and that is why these miraculous powers are active in him."

For Herod had arrested John, put him in chains, and shut him up in prison, to please Herodias, the wife of Herod's brother Philip.

For John had said to him 'You have no right to be living with her.'

Yet, though Herod wanted to put him to death, he was afraid of the people, because they looked on John as a Prophet.

When Jesus heard of it, he retired privately in a boat to a lonely spot. The people, however, heard of his going, and followed him in crowds from the towns on foot.

In the evening the disciples came up to him, and said: " This is a lonely spot, and the day is now far advanced; send the crowds away, that they may go to the villages, and buy themselves food."

Immediately afterwards Jesus made the disciples get into a boat and cross over in advance of him, while he dismissed the crowds.

But, when they saw him walking on the water, they were terrified. "It is a ghost," they exclaimed, and cried out for fear.

Instantly Jesus stretched out his hand, and caught hold of him. "O man of little faith!" he said, "Why did you falter?"

But the men in the boat threw themselves on their faces before him, and said: "You are indeed God's Son."

But the people of that place, recognizing Jesus, sent out to the whole country round, and brought to him all who were ill,

Begging him merely to let them touch the tassel of his cloak; and all who touched were made perfectly well.

For God said--'Honor thy father and mother,' and 'Let him who reviles his father or mother suffer death,'

Then Jesus called the people to him, and said: "Listen, and mark my words.

It is not what enters a man's mouth that 'defiles' him, but what comes out from his mouth--that does defile him!"

On this his disciples came up to him, and said: "Do you know that the Pharisees were shocked on hearing what you said?"

But Jesus did not answer her a word; and his disciples came up and begged him to send her away. "She keeps calling out after us," they said.

But the woman came, and, bowing to the ground before him, said: "Master, help me."

Great crowds of people came to him, bringing with them those who were lame, crippled, blind, or dumb, and many others. They put them down at his feet, and he cured them;