The Flood Subsides

8 But ^(A)God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the cattle that were with him in the ark; and ^(B)God caused a wind to pass over the earth, and the water subsided. ² Also ^(C)the fountains of the deep and the ^[a]floodgates of the sky were closed, and ^(D)the rain from the sky was restrained; ³ and the water receded steadily from the earth, and at the end ^(E)of one hundred and fifty days the water decreased. ⁴ In the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, ^(F)the ark rested upon the mountains of Ararat. ⁵ The water decreased steadily until the tenth month; in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains became visible.

⁶ Then it came about at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the ^(G)window of the ark which he had made; ⁷ and he sent out a raven, and it ^[b]flew here and there until the water was dried up ^[c]from the earth. ⁸ Then he sent out a dove from him, to see if the water was abated from the face of the land; ⁹ but the dove found no resting place for the sole of her foot, so she returned to him into the ark, for the water was on the ^[d]surface of all the earth. Then he put out his hand and took her, and brought her into the ark to himself. ¹⁰ So he waited yet another seven days; and again he sent out the dove from the ark. ¹¹ The dove came to him toward ^[e]evening, and behold, in her ^[f]beak was a freshly picked olive leaf. So Noah knew that the water was abated from the earth. ¹² Then he waited yet another seven days, and sent out ^(H)the dove; but she did not return to him again.

¹³ Now it came about in the ^(I)six hundred and first year, in the first month, on the first of the month, the water was dried up ^[g]from the earth. Then Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked, and behold, the ^[h]surface of the ground was dried up. ¹⁴ In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dry. ¹⁵ Then God spoke to Noah, saying, ¹⁶ “Go out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and your sons’ wives with you. ¹⁷ Bring out with you every living thing of all flesh that is with you, birds and animals and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, that they may ^[i](J)breed abundantly on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.” ¹⁸ So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him. ¹⁹ Every beast, every creeping thing, and every bird, everything that moves on the earth, went out ^[j]by their families from the ark.

²⁰ Then Noah built ^(K)an altar to the Lord, and took of every ^(L)clean animal and of every clean bird and offered ^(M)burnt offerings on the altar. ²¹ The Lord ^(N)smelled the soothing aroma; and the Lord said ^[k]to Himself, “I will never again ^(O)curse the ground on account of man, for ^(P)the ^[l]intent of man’s heart is evil from his youth; ^(Q)and I will never again ^[m]destroy every living thing, as I have done.

The Visit of the Magi

2 Now after Jesus was ^(A)born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of ^(B)Herod the king, ^[a]magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, ² “Where is He who has been born ^(C)King of the Jews? For we saw ^(D)His star in the east and have come to worship Him.” ³ When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. ⁴ Gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the ^[b]Messiah was to be born. ⁵ They said to him, “^(E)In Bethlehem of Judea; for this is what has been written ^[c]by the prophet:

⁷ Then Herod secretly called the magi and determined from them ^[d]the exact time ^(H)the star appeared. ⁸ And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him.” ⁹ After hearing the king, they went their way; and the star, which they had seen in the east, went on before them until it came and stood over the place where the Child was. ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. ¹¹ After coming into the house they saw the Child with ^(I)Mary His mother; and they ^[e]fell to the ground and ^(J)worshiped Him. Then, opening their treasures, they presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. ¹² And having been ^(K)warned by God ^(L)in a dream not to return to Herod, the magi left for their own country by another way.

The Flight to Egypt

¹³ Now when they had gone, behold, an ^(M)angel of the Lord *^(N)appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child to destroy Him.”

¹⁴ So ^[f]Joseph got up and took the Child and His mother while it was still night, and left for Egypt. ¹⁵ He ^[g]remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “^(O)Out of Egypt I called ^(P)My Son.”