28 And having come in, the angel said to her, (A)“Rejoice, highly favored one, (B)the Lord is with you; [a]blessed are you among women!”

29 But [b]when she saw him, (C)she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. 30 Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found (D)favor with God. 31 (E)And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and (F)shall call His name Jesus. 32 He will be great, (G)and will be called the Son of the Highest; and (H)the Lord God will give Him the (I)throne of His (J)father David. 33 (K)And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”

34 Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I [c]do not know a man?”

35 And the angel answered and said to her, (L)The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called (M)the Son of God. 36 Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. 37 For (N)with God nothing will be impossible.”

38 Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Mary Visits Elizabeth

39 Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, (O)to a city of Judah, 40 and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. 41 And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was (P)filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, (Q)“Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43 But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. 45 (R)Blessed is she who [d]believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.”

The Song of Mary

46 And Mary said:

(S)“My soul [e]magnifies the Lord,
47 And my spirit has (T)rejoiced in (U)God my Savior.
48 For (V)He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;
For behold, henceforth (W)all generations will call me blessed.
49 For He who is mighty (X)has done great things for me,
And (Y)holy is His name.
50 And (Z)His mercy is on those who fear Him
From generation to generation.
51 (AA)He has shown strength with His arm;
(AB)He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
52 (AC)He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
And exalted the lowly.
53 He has (AD)filled the hungry with good things,
And the rich He has sent away empty.
54 He has helped His (AE)servant Israel,
(AF)In remembrance of His mercy,
55 (AG)As He spoke to our (AH)fathers,
To Abraham and to his (AI)seed forever.”

56 And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her house.

Birth of John the Baptist

57 Now Elizabeth’s full time came for her to be delivered, and she brought forth a son. 58 When her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her, they (AJ)rejoiced with her.

Circumcision of John the Baptist

59 So it was, (AK)on the eighth day, that they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him by the name of his father, Zacharias. 60 His mother answered and said, (AL)“No; he shall be called John.”

61 But they said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name.” 62 So they made signs to his father—what he would have him called.

63 And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, saying, “His name is John.” So they all marveled. 64 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, praising God. 65 Then fear came on all who dwelt around them; and all these sayings were discussed throughout all the hill country of Judea. 66 And all those who heard them (AM)kept them in their hearts, saying, “What kind of child will this be?” And (AN)the hand of the Lord was with him.

Zacharias’ Prophecy

67 Now his father Zacharias (AO)was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:

68 “Blessed(AP) is the Lord God of Israel,
For (AQ)He has visited and redeemed His people,
69 (AR)And has raised up a horn of salvation for us
In the house of His servant David,
70 (AS)As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets,
Who have been (AT)since the world began,
71 That we should be saved from our enemies
And from the hand of all who hate us,
72 (AU)To perform the mercy promised to our fathers
And to remember His holy covenant,
73 (AV)The oath which He swore to our father Abraham:
74 To grant us that we,
Being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
Might (AW)serve Him without fear,
75 (AX)In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life.

76 “And you, child, will be called the (AY)prophet of the Highest;
For (AZ)you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways,
77 To give (BA)knowledge of salvation to His people
By the remission of their sins,
78 Through the tender mercy of our God,
With which the [f]Dayspring from on high [g]has visited us;
79 (BB)To give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,
To (BC)guide our feet into the way of peace.”

80 So (BD)the child grew and became strong in spirit, and (BE)was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel.

Christ Born of Mary(BF)

And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. (BG)This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city.

Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to (BH)the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, (BI)because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, (BJ)his betrothed [h]wife, who was with child. So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. And (BK)she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a [i]manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Footnotes

  1. Luke 1:28 NU omits blessed are you among women
  2. Luke 1:29 NU omits when she saw him
  3. Luke 1:34 Am a virgin
  4. Luke 1:45 Or believed that there
  5. Luke 1:46 Declares the greatness of
  6. Luke 1:78 Lit. Dawn; the Messiah
  7. Luke 1:78 NU shall visit
  8. Luke 2:5 NU omits wife
  9. Luke 2:7 feed trough

Bible Gateway Recommends