Joseph Accepts Jesus as His Son

¹⁸ This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about^[a]: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.^{(A) 19} Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet^[b] did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce^(B) her quietly.

²⁰ But after he had considered this, an angel^(C) of the Lord appeared to him in a dream^(D) and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,^[c](E) because he will save his people from their sins.”^(F)

²² All this took place to fulfill^(G) what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³ “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”^[d](H) (which means “God with us”).

²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel^(I) of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. ²⁵ But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.^(J)

Matthias Chosen to Replace Judas

¹² Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem^(A) from the hill called the Mount of Olives,^(B) a Sabbath day’s walk^[a] from the city. ¹³ When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room^(C) where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James.^{(D) 14} They all joined together constantly in prayer,^(E) along with the women^(F) and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.^(G)

¹⁵ In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty) ¹⁶ and said, “Brothers and sisters,^[b](H) the Scripture had to be fulfilled^(I) in which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through David concerning Judas,^(J) who served as guide for those who arrested Jesus. ¹⁷ He was one of our number^(K) and shared in our ministry.”^(L)

¹⁸ (With the payment^(M) he received for his wickedness, Judas bought a field;^(N) there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out. ¹⁹ Everyone in Jerusalem heard about this, so they called that field in their language^(O) Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.)

²⁰ “For,” said Peter, “it is written in the Book of Psalms:

and,

²¹ Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus was living among us, ²² beginning from John’s baptism^(R) to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness^(S) with us of his resurrection.”

²³ So they nominated two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. ²⁴ Then they prayed,^(T) “Lord, you know everyone’s heart.^(U) Show us^(V) which of these two you have chosen ²⁵ to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.” ²⁶ Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.^(W)

Psalm 2

⁷ I will proclaim the Lord’s decree:

The Fall

3 Now the serpent^(A) was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?^(B)”

² The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,^{(C) 3} but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”^(D)

⁴ “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman.^{(E) 5} “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God,^(F) knowing good and evil.”

⁶ When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable^(G) for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband,^(H) who was with her, and he ate it.^{(I) 7} Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked;^(J) so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.^(K)

⁸ Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking^(L) in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid^(M) from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. ⁹ But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”^(N)

¹⁰ He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid^(O) because I was naked;^(P) so I hid.”

¹¹ And he said, “Who told you that you were naked?^(Q) Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?^(R)”

¹² The man said, “The woman you put here with me^(S)—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”

¹³ Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”

The woman said, “The serpent deceived me,^(T) and I ate.”

¹⁴ So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this,

¹⁶ To the woman he said,

¹⁷ To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’^(AB)

²⁰ Adam^[c] named his wife Eve,^[d](AL) because she would become the mother of all the living.

²¹ The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.^{(AM) 22} And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us,^(AN) knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life^(AO) and eat, and live forever.” ²³ So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden^(AP) to work the ground^(AQ) from which he had been taken. ²⁴ After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side^[e] of the Garden of Eden^(AR) cherubim^(AS) and a flaming sword^(AT) flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.^(AU)

Cain and Abel

4 Adam^[f] made love to his wife^(AV) Eve,^(AW) and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain.^[g](AX) She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth^[h] a man.” ² Later she gave birth to his brother Abel.^(AY)

Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil.^{(AZ) 3} In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering^(BA) to the Lord.^{(BB) 4} And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions^(BC) from some of the firstborn of his flock.^(BD) The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering,^{(BE) 5} but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.

⁶ Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry?^(BF) Why is your face downcast? ⁷ If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door;^(BG) it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.^(BH)”

⁸ Now Cain said to his brother Abel, “Let’s go out to the field.”^[i] While they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him.^(BI)

⁹ Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?”^(BJ)

“I don’t know,^(BK)” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

¹⁰ The Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground.^{(BL) 11} Now you are under a curse^(BM) and driven from the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. ¹² When you work the ground, it will no longer yield its crops for you.^(BN) You will be a restless wanderer^(BO) on the earth.^(BP)”

¹³ Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is more than I can bear. ¹⁴ Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence;^(BQ) I will be a restless wanderer on the earth,^(BR) and whoever finds me will kill me.”^(BS)

¹⁵ But the Lord said to him, “Not so^[j]; anyone who kills Cain^(BT) will suffer vengeance^(BU) seven times over.^(BV)” Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. ¹⁶ So Cain went out from the Lord’s presence^(BW) and lived in the land of Nod,^[k] east of Eden.^(BX)

¹⁷ Cain made love to his wife,^(BY) and she became pregnant and gave birth to Enoch. Cain was then building a city,^(BZ) and he named it after his son^(CA) Enoch. ¹⁸ To Enoch was born Irad, and Irad was the father of Mehujael, and Mehujael was the father of Methushael, and Methushael was the father of Lamech.

¹⁹ Lamech married^(CB) two women,^(CC) one named Adah and the other Zillah. ²⁰ Adah gave birth to Jabal; he was the father of those who live in tents and raise livestock. ²¹ His brother’s name was Jubal; he was the father of all who play stringed instruments^(CD) and pipes.^{(CE) 22} Zillah also had a son, Tubal-Cain, who forged^(CF) all kinds of tools out of^[l] bronze and iron. Tubal-Cain’s sister was Naamah.

²³ Lamech said to his wives,

²⁵ Adam made love to his wife^(CK) again, and she gave birth to a son and named him Seth,^[m](CL) saying, “God has granted me another child in place of Abel, since Cain killed him.”^{(CM) 26} Seth also had a son, and he named him Enosh.^(CN)

At that time people began to call on^[n] the name of the Lord.^(CO)