Luke 1:10-32

¹⁰and, as it was the Hour of Incense, the people were all praying outside.

¹¹And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right of the Altar of Incense.

¹²Zechariah was startled at the sight and was awe-struck.

¹³But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, whom you will call by the name John.

¹⁴He will be to you a joy and a delight; and many will rejoice over his birth.

¹⁵For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; he will not drink any wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit from the very hour of his birth,

¹⁶and will reconcile many of the Israelites to the Lord their God.

¹⁷He will go before him in the spirit and with the power of Elijah, to reconcile fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, and so make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him.”

¹⁸“How can I be sure of this?” Zechariah asked the angel. “For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years.”

¹⁹“I am Gabriel,” the angel answered, “who stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.

²⁰And now you will be silent and unable to speak until the day when this takes place, because you did not believe what I said, though my words will be fulfilled in due course.”

²¹Meanwhile the people were watching for Zechariah, wondering at his remaining so long in the Temple.

²²When he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they perceived that he had seen a vision there. But Zechariah kept making signs to them, and remained dumb.

²³And, as soon as his term of service was finished, he returned home.

²⁴After this his wife, Elizabeth, became pregnant and lived in seclusion for five months.

²⁵“The Lord has done this for me,” she said, “he has shown me kindness and taken away the public disgrace of childlessness under which I have been living.”

²⁶Six months later the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth,

²⁷to a maiden there who was engaged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. Her name was Mary.

²⁸Gabriel came into her presence and greeted her, saying, “You have been shown great favour - the Lord is with you.”

²⁹Mary was much disturbed at his words, and was wondering to herself what such a greeting could mean,

³⁰when the angel spoke again, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God.

³¹And now, you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will give him the name Jesus.

³²The child will be great and will be called ‘Son of the Most High,’ and the Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David,