In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee named Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
from the house of David,
and the name of the virgin was Mary.
Coming to her he said,
"Hello, favored one, the Lord is with you."
She was confused by the words,
and she pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
The angel said to her, "Fear not, Mary;
for you have found grace with God.
Look, you will conceive in the womb and bear a son,
and you shall call his name Jesus.
He will be great and will be called the son of the highest,
and the Lord God will give him
the throne of his father David;
he will reign over the house of Jacob forever,
and his kingdom will have no end."
Mary asked the angel,
"How will this be, since I know no husband?"
The angel answered her,
"The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the highest will overshadow you;
and so the holy one born will be called the son of God.
Look, Elizabeth, your relative,
also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren;
for every saying will not be impossible with God."
Mary said, "Look, the servant of the Lord;
let it be to me according to your saying."
And the angel departed from her.
The birth of Jesus the Christ was like this.
His mother Mary being betrothed to Joseph,
before they came together
she was found to be pregnant from the Holy Spirit.
Joseph her husband, being just and not wishing to expose her,
decided to divorce her secretly.
But as he considered these things,
look, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream,
saying, "Joseph, son of David,
do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife;
for what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus;
for he will save his people from their sins."
All this occurred so that what was spoken by the Lord
through his prophet might be fulfilled:
Look, the virgin will be pregnant and bear a son,
and they will call his name Immanuel,
which is translated "God with us."
Joseph rising from the sleep did
as the angel of the Lord ordered him and accepted his wife;
he did not know her until she bore a son,
and he called his name Jesus.