The Christmas Story
From
the book of Matthew
From the book
of Luke
Matthew
The
Birth of Jesus Christ
1:18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ happened
this way. While his mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, but before they
came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 1:19
Because Joseph, her husband to be, was a righteous man, and because he
did not want to disgrace her, he intended to divorce her privately. 1:20
When he had contemplated this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in
a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary
as your wife, because the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
1:21 She will give birth to a son and you will name him Jesus, because
he will save his people from their sins." 1:22 This all happened so that
what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet would be fulfilled: 1:23
"Look! The virgin will conceive and bear a son, and they will call him
Emmanuel," which means "God with us." 1:24 When Joseph awoke from sleep
he did what the angel of the Lord told him. He took his wife, 1:25 but
did not have marital relations with her until she gave birth to a son,
whom he named Jesus.
The
Visit of the Wise Men
2:1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea,
in the time of King Herod, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem 2:2
saying, "Where is the one who is born king of the Jews? For we saw his
star when it rose and have come to worship him. 2:3 When King Herod heard
this he was alarmed, and all Jerusalem with him. 2:4 After assembling all
the chief priests and experts in the law he asked them where the Christ
was to be born. 2:5 "In Bethlehem of Judea," they said, "for it is written
this way by the prophet:
2:6 'And you, Bethlehem, in the land of
Judah,
are in no way least among the rulers of
Judah,
for out of you will come a ruler who will
shepherd my people Israel.'"
2:7 Then Herod privately summoned the wise
men and determined from them when the star had appeared. 2:8 He sent them
to Bethlehem and said, "Go and look carefully for the child. When you find
him, inform me so that I can go and worship him as well." 2:9 After listening
to the king they left, and once again the star they saw when it rose led
them until it stopped above the place where the child was. 2:10 When they
saw the star they shouted joyfully. 2:11 As they came into the house and
saw the child with Mary his mother, they bowed down and worshiped him.
They opened their treasure boxes and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense,
and myrrh. 2:12 After being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they
went back by another route to their own country.
The Escape
to Egypt
2:13 After they had gone, an angel of the Lord
appeared in a dream to Joseph saying, "Get up, take the child and his mother
and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going
to look for the child to kill him." 2:14 Then he got up, took the child
and his mother at night, and went to Egypt. 2:15 He stayed there until
Herod died. In this way what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet
was fulfilled: "I called my Son out of Egypt."
2:16 When Herod saw that he had been tricked
by the wise men, he became outraged. He sent men to kill all the children
in Bethlehem and nearby from the age of two and under, according to the
time he had learned from the wise men. 2:17 Then what was spoken by Jeremiah
the prophet was fulfilled:
2:18 "A voice was heard in Ramah,
weeping and loud wailing,
Rachel weeping for her children,
and she did not want to be comforted, because
they were gone."
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Luke
Birth
Announcement of Jesus the Messiah
1:26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy,
the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
1:27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, a descendant of
David, and the virgin's name was Mary. 1:28 The angel came to her and said,
"Greetings, favored one, the Lord is with you!" 1:29 But she was greatly
troubled by his words and began to wonder about the meaning of this greeting.
1:30 So the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found
favor with God. 1:31 Listen: you will become pregnant and give birth to
a son, and you will name him Jesus. 1:32 He will be great, and will be
called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne
of his father David. 1:33 He will reign over the house of Jacob forever,
and his kingdom will never end." 1:34 Mary said to the angel, "How will
this be, since I have not had sexual relations with a man?" 1:35 The angel
replied, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most
High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be holy;
he will be called the Son of God.
1:36 "And look, your relative Elizabeth
has also become pregnant with a son in her old age-although she was called
barren, she is now in her sixth month! 1:37 For nothing will be impossible
with God."124 1:38 So Mary said, "Yes, I am a servant of the Lord; let
this happen to me according to your word." Then the angel departed from
her.
Mary and
Elizabeth
1:39 In those days Mary got up and went hurriedly
into the hill country, to a town of Judah, 1:40 and entered Zechariah's
house and greeted Elizabeth. 1:41 When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting,
the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
1:42 She exclaimed with a loud voice, "Blessed are you among women, and
blessed is the child in your womb! 1:43 And who am I that the mother of
my Lord should come and visit me? 1:44 For the instant the sound of your
greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 1:45 And
blessed is she who believed that what was spoken to her by the Lord would
be fulfilled.
2:1 Now in those days a decree went out
from Caesar3 Augustus4 to register all the empire for taxes. 2:2 This was
the first registration, taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria. 2:3
Everyone went to his own town to be registered. 2:4 So Joseph also went
up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David
called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family line of David.
2:5 He went to be registered with Mary, who was promised in marriage to
him, and who was expecting a child. 2:6 While they were there, the time
came for her to deliver her child. 2:7 And she gave birth to her first-born
son and wrapped him in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because
there was no place for them in the inn.
The Shepherds'
Visit
2:8 Now there were shepherds nearby out in the
field, keeping guard over their flock by night. 2:9 An angel of the Lord
appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they
were absolutely terrified. 2:10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be
afraid; listen carefully, for I proclaim to you good news that brings great
joy to all the people: 2:11 Today your Savior is born in the city of David.
He is Christ the Lord. 2:12 This will be a sign for you: you will find
a baby wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a manger." 2:13 Suddenly
a multitude of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God
and saying,
2:14 "Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among people with whom
he is pleased!" 2:15 When the angels left them and went back to heaven,
the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go over to Bethlehem and see
this thing that has taken place, that the Lord has made known to us." 2:16
So they hurried off and located Mary and Joseph, and found the baby lying
in a manger. 2:17 When they saw him, they related what they had been told
about this child, 2:18 and all who heard it were astonished at what the
shepherds said. 2:19 But Mary treasured up all these words, pondering in
her heart what they might mean. 2:20 So the shepherds returned, glorifying
and praising God for all they had heard and seen; everything was just as
they had been told.
2:21 At the end of eight days, when he was
circumcised, he was named Jesus, the name given by the angel before he
was conceived in the womb.
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