AUGUSTUS CAESAR reigned and Herod Antipas ruled in Jerusalem. ² Three provinces comprised the land of Palestine: Judea, Samaria, and Galilee. ³ Joachim was a master of the Jewish law, a man of wealth; he lived in Nazareth of Galilee; and Anna of the tribe of Judah was his wife. ⁴ To them was born a child, a goodly female child, and they were glad; and Mary was the name they gave the child. ⁵ Joachim made a feast in honor of the child. But he invited not the rich, the honored and the great; he called the poor, the halt, the lame, the blind, and to each he gave a gift of raiment, food, or other needful thing. ⁶ He said, "The Lord has given me this wealth; I am his steward by his grace, and if I give not to his children when in need, then he will make this wealth a curse." ⁷ Now when the child was three years old her parents took her to Jerusalem, and in the temple she received the blessings of the priests. ⁸ The high priest was a prophet and a seer, and when he saw the child he said, ⁹ "Behold, this child will be the mother of an honored prophet and a master of the law; she shall abide within this holy temple of the Lord. ¹⁰ And Mary did abide within the temple of the Lord; and Hillel, chief of the Sanhedrin, taught her all the precepts of the Jews, and she delighted in the law of God. ¹¹ When Mary reached the age of womanhood she was betrothed to Joseph, son of Jacob, and a carpenter of Nazareth. ¹² And Joseph was an upright man, and a devoted Essene.

N EAR HEBRON hills of Judah. Zacharias and Elizabeth abode. ² They were devout and just, and every day the read the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms which told of one-to-come, strong to redeem; and they were waiting for the king. ³ Now Zacharias was a priest, and in his turn he led the temple service in Jerusalem. ⁴ It came to pass that as Zacharias stood before the Lord and burned the incense in the Holy Place, Gabriel came and stood before his face. ⁵ And Zacharias was afraid; he supposed that some great evil was to come upon the Jews. ⁶ But Gabriel said,"O man of God, fear not; I bring to you and all the world a message of good will and peace on earth.⁷ Behold, the prince of peace, the king whom you seek, will quickly come. ⁸ Your wife will bear to you a son, a holy son, of whom the prophet wrote—

¹⁰ From the beginning of the age your son has borne the name of John, the mercy of the Lord; his name is John. ¹¹ He will be honored in the sight of God, and he will drink no wine, and from his birth he will be filled with the Holy Breath." ¹² And Gabriel stood before Elizabeth as she was in the silence of her home, and told her all the words that he had said to Zacharias in Jerusalem. ¹³ When he had done the service of his course, the priest went home, and with Elizabeth rejoiced. ¹⁴ Five months passed by and Gabriel came to Mary in her home in Nazareth and said, ¹⁵ "Hail Mary, hail! Once blessed in the name of God, twice blessed in the name of the Holy Breath, thrice-blest in the name of Christ; for you are worthy, and you shall bear a son who shall be called Immanuel. ¹⁶ His name is Jesus, for he saves his people from their sins.

¹⁷ When Joseph's daily task was done he came, and Mary told him all the words that Gabriel spoke to her, and they rejoiced; for they believed that he, the mighty man of God, had spoken words of truth. ¹⁸ And Mary went with haste to tell Elizabeth about the promises of Gabriel; together they rejoiced. ¹⁹ And in the home of Zacharias and Elizabeth did Mary tary ninety days, and after ninety days she returned to Nazareth. ²⁰ To Zacharias and his wife Elizabeth a son was born, and Zacharias said, ²¹ Most blessed is the name of God, for he has opened up the fount of blessings for his people, Israel. ²² His promises are verified; for he has brought to pass the words which holy prophets spoke in olden times. ²³ And Zacharias looked upon the infant John and said, ²⁴ You shall be called the prophet of the Holy One; and you will go before his face and prepare his way. ²⁵ And you will give a knowledge of salvation unto Israel, and you will preach the gospel of repentance and the blotting-out of sins. ²⁶ For behold, soon the Day Star from on high will visit us, ^{[Psa. 107:10, Isa. 9:2; 42:16]} to light the way for those who sit within the darkness of the shadow-land, and guide our feet unto the ways of peace.