| Luke 1 Introduction 1 Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled[a ] among us , 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word . 3 Therefore , since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning , it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you , most excellent Theophilus , 4 so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught . The Birth of John the Baptist Foretold 5 In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah , who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah ; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron . 6 Both of them were upright in the sight of God , observing all the Lord’s commandments and regulations blamelessly . 7 But they had no children , because Elizabeth was barren ; and they were both well along in years . 8 Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God , 9 he was chosen by lot , according to the custom of the priesthood , to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense . 10 And when the time for the burning of incense came , all the assembled worshipers were praying outside . 11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him , standing at the right side of the altar of incense . 12 When Zechariah saw him , he was startled and was gripped with fear . 13 But the angel said to him : “ Do not be afraid , Zechariah ; your prayer has been heard . Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son , and you are to give him the name John . 14 He will be a joy and delight to you , and many will rejoice because of his birth , 15 for he will be great in the sight of the Lord . He is never to take wine or other fermented drink , and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth . [ b ] 16 Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God . 17 And he will go on before the Lord , in the spirit and power of Elijah , to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord . ” 18 Zechariah asked the angel , “ How can I be sure of this ? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years . ” 19 The angel answered , “ I am Gabriel . I stand in the presence of God , and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news . 20 And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens , because you did not believe my words , which will come true at their proper time . ” 21 Meanwhile , the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long in the temple . 22 When he came out , he could not speak to them . They realized he had seen a vision in the temple , for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak . 23 When his time of service was completed , he returned home . 24 After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion . 25 “ The Lord has done this for me , ” she said . “ In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people . ” The Birth of Jesus Foretold 26 In the sixth month , God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth , a town in Galilee , 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph , a descendant of David . The virgin’s name was Mary . 28 The angel went to her and said , “ Greetings , you who are highly favored ! The Lord is with you . ” 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be . 30 But the angel said to her , “ Do not be afraid , Mary , you have found favor with God . 31 You will be with child and give birth to a son , and you are to give him the name Jesus . 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High . The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David , 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever ; his kingdom will never end . ” 34 “ How will this be , ” Mary asked the angel , “ since I am a virgin ? ” 35 The angel answered , “ The Holy Spirit will come upon you , and the power of the Most High will overshadow you . So the holy one to be born will be called[c ] the Son of God . 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age , and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month . 37 For nothing is impossible with God . ” 38 “ I am the Lord’s servant , ” Mary answered . “ May it be to me as you have said . ” Then the angel left her . Mary Visits Elizabeth 39 At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea , 40 where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth . 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting , the baby leaped in her womb , and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit . 42 In a loud voice she exclaimed : “ Blessed are you among women , and blessed is the child you will bear ! 43 But why am I so favored , that the mother of my Lord should come to me ? 44 As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears , the baby in my womb leaped for joy . 45 Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished ! ” Mary’s Song 46 And Mary said : “ My soul glorifies the Lord 47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior , 48 for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant . From now on all generations will call me blessed , 49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me — holy is his name . 50 His mercy extends to those who fear him , from generation to generation . 51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm ; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts . 52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble . 53 He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty . 54 He has helped his servant Israel , remembering to be merciful 55 to Abraham and his descendants forever , even as he said to our fathers . ” 56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home . The Birth of John the Baptist 57 When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby , she gave birth to a son . 58 Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy , and they shared her joy . 59 On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child , and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah , 60 but his mother spoke up and said , “ No ! He is to be called John . ” 61 They said to her , “ There is no one among your relatives who has that name . ” 62 Then they made signs to his father , to find out what he would like to name the child . 63 He asked for a writing tablet , and to everyone’s astonishment he wrote , “ His name is John . ” 64 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue was loosed , and he began to speak , praising God . 65 The neighbors were all filled with awe , and throughout the hill country of Judea people were talking about all these things . 66 Everyone who heard this wondered about it , asking , “ What then is this child going to be ? ” For the Lord’s hand was with him . Zechariah’s Song 67 His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied : 68 “ Praise be to the Lord , the God of Israel , because he has come and has redeemed his people . 69 He has raised up a horn[d ] of salvation for us in the house of his servant David 70 ( as he said through his holy prophets of long ago ) , 71 salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us — 72 to show mercy to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant , 73 the oath he swore to our father Abraham : 74 to rescue us from the hand of our enemies , and to enable us to serve him without fear 75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. 76 And you , my child , will be called a prophet of the Most High ; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him , 77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins , 78 because of the tender mercy of our God , by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven 79 to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death , to guide our feet into the path of peace . ” 80 And the child grew and became strong in spirit ; and he lived in the desert until he appeared publicly to Israel . Luke 2 The Birth of Jesus 1 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world . 2 ( This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria . ) 3 And everyone went to his own town to register . 4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea , to Bethlehem the town of David , because he belonged to the house and line of David . 5 He went there to register with Mary , who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child . 6 While they were there , the time came for the baby to be born , 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn , a son . She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger , because there was no room for them in the inn . The Shepherds and the Angels 8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby , keeping watch over their flocks at night . 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them , and the glory of the Lord shone around them , and they were terrified . 10 But the angel said to them , “ Do not be afraid . I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people . 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you ; he is Christ[a ] the Lord . 12 This will be a sign to you : You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger . ” 13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel , praising God and saying , 14 “ Glory to God in the highest , and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests . ” 15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven , the shepherds said to one another , “ Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened , which the Lord has told us about . ” 16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph , and the baby , who was lying in the manger . 17 When they had seen him , they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child , 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them . 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart . 20 The shepherds returned , glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen , which were just as they had been told . Jesus Presented in the Temple 21 On the eighth day , when it was time to circumcise him , he was named Jesus , the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived . 22 When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed , Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 ( as it is written in the Law of the Lord , “ Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord”[b ] ) , 24 and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord : “ a pair of doves or two young pigeons . ” [ c ] 25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon , who was righteous and devout . He was waiting for the consolation of Israel , and the Holy Spirit was upon him . 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Christ . 27 Moved by the Spirit , he went into the temple courts . When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required , 28 Simeon took him in his arms and praised God , saying : 29 “ Sovereign Lord , as you have promised , you now dismiss[d ] your servant in peace . 30 For my eyes have seen your salvation , 31 which you have prepared in the sight of all people , 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel . ” 33 The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him . 34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary , his mother : “ This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel , and to be a sign that will be spoken against , 35 so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed . And a sword will pierce your own soul too . ” 36 There was also a prophetess , Anna , the daughter of Phanuel , of the tribe of Asher . She was very old ; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage , 37 and then was a widow until she was eighty-four . [ e ] She never left the temple but worshiped night and day , fasting and praying . 38 Coming up to them at that very moment , she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem . 39 When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord , they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth . 40 And the child grew and became strong ; he was filled with wisdom , and the grace of God was upon him . The Boy Jesus at the Temple 41 Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover . 42 When he was twelve years old , they went up to the Feast , according to the custom . 43 After the Feast was over , while his parents were returning home , the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem , but they were unaware of it . 44 Thinking he was in their company , they traveled on for a day . Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends . 45 When they did not find him , they went back to Jerusalem to look for him . 46 After three days they found him in the temple courts , sitting among the teachers , listening to them and asking them questions . 47 Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers . 48 When his parents saw him , they were astonished . His mother said to him , “ Son , why have you treated us like this ? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you . ” 49 “ Why were you searching for me ? ” he asked . “ Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house ? ” 50 But they did not understand what he was saying to them . 51 Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them . But his mother treasured all these things in her heart . 52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature , and in favor with God and men . |