Chapter 2

Jesus’ Birth in Bethlehem

1 Now in those days a decree went out from aCaesar Augustus, that a census be taken of ball 1the inhabited earth.

2 1This was the first census taken while 2Quirinius was governor of aSyria.

3 And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city.

4 Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because ahe was of the house and family of David,

5 in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child.

6 While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth.

7 And she agave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a 1manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

8 In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night.

9 And aan angel of the Lord suddenly bstood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.

10 But the angel said to them, “aDo not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people;

11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a aSavior, who is 1bChrist cthe Lord.

12 “aThis will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a 1manger.”

13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

14 “aGlory to God in the highest,

And on earth peace among men 1bwith whom He is pleased.”

15 When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.”

16 So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the 1manger.

17 When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child.

18 And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds.

19 But Mary atreasured all these things, pondering them in her heart.

20 The shepherds went back, aglorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.

Jesus Presented at the Temple

21 And when aeight days had passed, 1before His circumcision, bHis name was then called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb.

22 aAnd when the days for their purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord

23 (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “aEvery firstborn male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”),

24 and to offer a sacrifice according to what was said in the Law of the Lord, “aA pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”

25 And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was arighteous and devout, blooking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

26 And ait had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not bsee death before he had seen the Lord’s 1Christ.

27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, 1ato carry out for Him the custom of the Law,

28 then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said,

29 “Now Lord, You are releasing Your bond-servant to depart in peace,

aAccording to Your word;

30 For my eyes have aseen Your salvation,

31 Which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples,

32 aA Light 1of revelation to the Gentiles,

And the glory of Your people Israel.”

33 And His father and amother were amazed at the things which were being said about Him.

34 And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary aHis mother, “Behold, this Child is appointed for bthe fall and 1rise of many in Israel, and for a sign to be opposed—

35 and a sword will pierce even your own soul—to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”

36 And there was a aprophetess, 1Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of bthe tribe of Asher. She was advanced in 2years cand had lived with her husband seven years after her 3marriage,

37 and then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple, serving night and day with afastings and prayers.

38 At that very 1moment she came up and began giving thanks to God, and continued to speak of Him to all those who were alooking for the redemption of Jerusalem.

Return to Nazareth

39 When they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to atheir own city of Nazareth.

40 aThe Child continued to grow and become strong, 1increasing in wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.

Visit to Jerusalem

41 Now His parents went to Jerusalem every year at athe Feast of the Passover.

42 And when He became twelve, they went up there according to the custom of the Feast;

43 and as they were returning, after spending the afull number of days, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. But His parents were unaware of it,

44 but supposed Him to be in the caravan, and went a day’s journey; and they began looking for Him among their relatives and acquaintances.

45 When they did not find Him, they returned to Jerusalem looking for Him.

46 Then, after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions.

47 And all who heard Him awere amazed at His understanding and His answers.

48 When they saw Him, they were astonished; and aHis mother said to Him, “1Son, why have You treated us this way? Behold, bYour father and I 2have been anxiously looking for You.”

49 And He said to them, “Why is it that you were looking for Me? Did you not know that aI had to be in My Father’s 1house?”

50 But athey did not understand the statement which He 1had made to them.

51 And He went down with them and came to aNazareth, and He continued in subjection to them; and bHis mother ctreasured all these 1things in her heart.

52 And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and 1stature, and in afavor with God and men.

Chapter 3

John the Baptist Preaches

1 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when aPontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and bHerod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene,

2 in the high priesthood of aAnnas and bCaiaphas, cthe word of God came to John, the son of Zacharias, in the wilderness.

3 And he came into all athe district around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins;

4 as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet,

“aThe voice of one crying in the wilderness,

‘Make ready the way of the Lord,

Make His paths straight.

5 ‘aEvery ravine will be filled,

And every mountain and hill will be 1brought low;

The crooked will become straight,

And the rough roads smooth;

6 aAnd all 1flesh will bsee the salvation of God.’ ”

7 So he began saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “aYou brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

8 “Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and ado not begin to say 1to yourselves, ‘bWe have Abraham for our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham.

9 “Indeed the axe is already laid at the root of the trees; so aevery tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

10 And the crowds were questioning him, saying, “aThen what shall we do?”

11 And he would answer and say to them, “The man who has two tunics is to ashare with him who has none; and he who has food is to do likewise.”

12 And some atax collectors also came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?”

13 And he said to them, “1Collect no more than what you have been ordered to.”

14 Some soldiers were questioning him, saying, “And what about us, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Do not take money from anyone by force, or aaccuse anyone falsely, and bbe content with your wages.”

15 Now while the people were in a state of expectation and all were 1wondering in their hearts about John, aas to whether he was 2the Christ,

16 aJohn answered and said to them all, “As for me, I baptize you with water; but One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the thong of His sandals; He will baptize you 1with the Holy Spirit and fire.

17 “His awinnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clear His threshing floor, and to gather the wheat into His barn; but He will burn up the chaff with bunquenchable fire.”

18 So with many other exhortations he preached the gospel to the people.

19 But when aHerod the tetrarch was reprimanded by him because of aHerodias, his brother’s wife, and because of all the wicked things which bHerod had done,

20 Herod also added this to them all: ahe locked John up in prison.

Jesus Is Baptized

21 aNow when all the people were baptized, Jesus was also baptized, and while He was bpraying, heaven was opened,

22 and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, “aYou are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”

Genealogy of Jesus

23 aWhen He began His ministry, Jesus Himself was about thirty years of age, being, 1as was supposed, the son of bJoseph, 2the son of 3Eli,

24 the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph,

25 the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of 1Hesli, the son of Naggai,

26 the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josech, the son of Joda,

27 the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, athe son of Zerubbabel, the son of 1Shealtiel, the son of Neri,

28 the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er,

29 the son of 1Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi,

30 the son of Simeon, the son of 1Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim,

31 the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David,

32 athe son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of 1Salmon, the son of 2Nahshon,

33 the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of 1Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah,

34 the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, athe son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor,

35 the son of Serug, the son of 1Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of 2Heber, the son of Shelah,

36 the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, athe son of Noah, the son of Lamech,

37 the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan,

38 the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.

Chapter 4

The Temptation of Jesus

1 aJesus, full of the Holy Spirit, breturned from the Jordan and was led around 1by the Spirit in the wilderness

2 for aforty days, being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days, and when they had ended, He became hungry.

3 And the devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”

4 And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘aMan shall not live on bread alone.’ ”

5 aAnd he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of 1bthe world in a moment of time.

6 And the devil said to Him, “I will give You all this domain and 1its glory; afor it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.

7 “Therefore if You 1worship before me, it shall all be Yours.”

8 Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘aYou shall worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’ ”

9 aAnd he led Him to Jerusalem and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here;

10 for it is written,

‘aHe will command His angels concerning You to guard You,’

11 and,

‘aOn their hands they will bear You up,

So that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.’ ”

12 And Jesus answered and said to him, “It is said, ‘aYou shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ”

13 When the devil had finished every temptation, he left Him until an opportune time.

Jesus’ Public Ministry

14 And aJesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and bnews about Him spread through all the surrounding district.

15 And He began ateaching in their synagogues and was praised by all.

16 And He came to aNazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, bHe entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and cstood up to read.

17 And the 1book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the 1book and found the place where it was written,

18 “aThe Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,

Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.

He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives,

And recovery of sight to the blind,

To set free those who are oppressed,

19 aTo proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”

20 And He aclosed the 1book, gave it back to the attendant and bsat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on Him.

21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your 1hearing.”

22 And all were 1speaking well of Him, and wondering at the 2gracious words which 3were falling from His lips; and they were saying, “aIs this not Joseph’s son?”

23 And He said to them, “No doubt you will quote this proverb to Me, ‘Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we heard was done aat Capernaum, do here in byour hometown as well.’ ”

24 And He said, “Truly I say to you, ano prophet is welcome in his hometown.

25 “But I say to you in truth, there were many widows in Israel ain the days of Elijah, when the sky was shut up for three years and six months, when a great famine came over all the land;

26 and yet Elijah was sent to none of them, but aonly to 1Zarephath, in the land of bSidon, to a woman who was a widow.

27 “And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, but aonly Naaman the Syrian.”

28 And all the people in the synagogue were filled with rage as they heard these things;

29 and they got up and adrove Him out of the city, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built, in order to throw Him down the cliff.

30 But apassing through their midst, He went His way.

31 And aHe came down to bCapernaum, a city of Galilee, and He was teaching them on the Sabbath;

32 and athey were amazed at His teaching, for bHis 1message was with authority.

33 In the synagogue there was a man 1possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice,

34 “Let us alone! 1aWhat business do we have with each other, Jesus 2of bNazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—bthe Holy One of God!”

35 But Jesus arebuked him, saying, “Be quiet and come out of him!” And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst of the people, he came out of him without doing him any harm.

36 And amazement came upon them all, and they began talking with one another saying, “What is 1this message? For awith authority and power He commands the unclean spirits and they come out.”

37 And athe report about Him was spreading into every locality in the surrounding district.

Many Are Healed

38 aThen He got up and left the synagogue, and entered Simon’s home. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was bsuffering from a high fever, and they asked Him 1to help her.

39 And standing over her, He arebuked the fever, and it left her; and she immediately got up and 1waited on them.

40 aWhile bthe sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and claying His hands on each one of them, He was dhealing them.

41 Demons also were coming out of many, shouting, “You are athe Son of God!” But brebuking them, He would cnot allow them to speak, because they knew Him to be 1the Christ.

42 aWhen day came, Jesus left and went to a secluded place; and the crowds were searching for Him, and came to Him and tried to keep Him from going away from them.

43 But He said to them, “I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, afor I was sent for this purpose.”

44 So He kept on preaching in the synagogues aof 1Judea.