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Introduction
1 Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the
things that have been fulfilled 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 With this in mind,
since I myself have carefully investigated everything from
the beginning, I too decided 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 righteous in the sight of God, observing
all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. 7 But they
were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive,
and they were both well advanced 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 call him 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 before he is born. 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 parents 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 said to him, “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
appointed 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 of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, 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 conceive and give birth to a son, and you
are to call him 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 on
you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So
the holy one to be born will be called 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 unable to conceive is in
her sixth month. 37 For no word from God will ever fail.”
38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be
to me according to your word.” 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 the Lord
would fulfill his promises to her!”
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, just as he
promised our ancestors.”
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 to his people and redeemed them.
69 He has raised up a horn 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 ancestors 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 wilderness until he appeared publicly to
Israel. |
Cults 
Why Did God Permit Sin?
