“Once while Jesus was standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in on Him to hear the Word of God, 2  He saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. 3  He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then He sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. 4  When he had finished speaking, He said to Simon, ‘Put out into the d

“ 14  Then Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about Him spread through all the surrounding country. 15  He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone. 16  When He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up, He went to the synagogue on the sabbath day, as was His custom. He stood up to read, 17  and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was writte

3  John went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, 4  as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah, ‘The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 5  Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth; 6  and all flesh shall see the salvation

“ 22  When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, Mary and Joseph brought Jesus up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord 23  as it is written in the law of the Lord, ‘Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord’, 24  and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, ‘a pair of turtle-doves or two young pigeons.’ 25  Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and

“ 1  You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty, 2  will say to the Lord, ‘My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust.’ 9  Because you have made the Lord your refuge, the Most High your dwelling-place, 10  no evil shall befall you, no scourge come near your tent. 11  For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. 12  On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot ag

“Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, 2  where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. 3  The devil said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.’ 4  Jesus answered him, ‘It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’ 5  Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the

8  In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9  Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10  But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see — I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: 11  to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. 12  This will be a sign for you: you will find a

“ 67  Then his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy: 68  ‘Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,     for he has looked favorably on his people and redeemed them. 69  He has raised up a mighty savior for us in the house of his servant David, 70  as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, 71  that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us. 72  Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancesto

“ 46  And Mary said, ‘My soul magnifies the Lord, 47  and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48  for He has looked with favor on the lowliness of His servant.     Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 49  for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and Holy is His Name. 50  His mercy is for those who fear Him     from generation to generation. 51  He has shown strength with His arm;  He has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts

“Again Jesus entered the synagogue, and a man was there who had a withered hand. 2  They watched Jesus to see whether He would cure the man on the sabbath, so that they might accuse Jesus of working on the Sabbath. 3  And Jesus said to the man who had the withered hand, ‘Come forward.’ 4  Then Jesus said to them, ‘Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the sabbath, to save life or to kill?’ But they were silent. 5  He looked around at them with anger; He was grieved at thei

“ 18  Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting; and people came and said to him, ‘Why do John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?’ 19  Jesus said to them, ‘The wedding-guests cannot fast while the bridegroom is with them, can they? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. 20  The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast on that day. 21  ‘No one sews a