Luke 1:28-69

²⁸And the angel came in to her and said, Hail, thou that art highly favored! the Lord is with thee.

²⁹And she was troubled at the words, and was considering what this salutation could mean.

³⁰And the angel said to her, Fear not, Mary; for thou hast found favor with God.

³¹And lo! thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and hear a son, and shalt call his name Jesus.

³²He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to him the throne of David his father;

³³and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

³⁴Then said Mary to the angel, How shall this be, since I know not a man?

³⁵And the angel answering said to her, The Holy Spirit will come upon thee, and the power of the Most High will overshadow thee; wherefore the holy one that is to be born will be called the Son of God.

³⁶And lo! Elizabeth, thy kinswoman, she also hath conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her who is called barren.

³⁷For nothing will be impossible with God.

³⁸And Mary said, Lo, the handmaid of the Lord! May it be to me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.

³⁹And Mary arose and went in those days into the hill-country with haste, into a city of Judah.

⁴⁰And she entered the house of Zachariah, and saluted Elizabeth.

⁴¹And it came to pass, when Elizabeth heard the salutation of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit,

⁴²and cried out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women; and blessed is the fruit of thy womb!

⁴³And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

⁴⁴For lo! as soon as the voice of thy salutation came to my ears, the babe leaped in my womb in exultation.

⁴⁵And blessed is she who hath believed that there will be an accomplishment of those things which were told her from the Lord.

⁴⁶And Mary said, My soul magnifieth the Lord,

⁴⁷and my spirit hath exulted in God my Saviour;

⁴⁸for he hath looked upon the low estate of his handmaiden. For lo! from this time all generations will call me blessed;

⁴⁹for the Mighty One hath done great things for me; and holy is his name;

⁵⁰and his mercy is from generation to generation on them that fear him.

⁵¹He hath wrought mightily with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the device of their heart.

⁵²He hath cast down princes from thrones, and exalted men of low degree.

⁵³The hungry he hath filled with good things, and the rich he hath sent away empty.

⁵⁴He hath given help to Israel his servant, in remembrance of his mercy

⁵⁵toward Abraham and his offspring for ever, as he spoke to our fathers.

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

⁵⁷Now Elizabeth's full time came that she should be delivered; and she brought forth a son.

⁵⁸And her neighbors and her kinsfolk heard that the Lord had showed great mercy toward her; and they rejoiced with her.

⁵⁹And it came to pass that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they were about to call him Zachariah, after the name of his father.

⁶⁰And his mother answering said, Not so; but he shall be called John.

⁶¹And they said to her, There is no one of thy kindred that is called by this name.

⁶²And they made signs to his father, how he would have him named.

⁶³And he asked for a writing-tablet, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they all marveled.

⁶⁴And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue was loosed; and he spoke, blessing God.

⁶⁵And fear came on all that dwelt around them; and all these things were talked of throughout the whole of the hill-country of Judaea.

⁶⁶And all that heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, What then will this child be? For the hand of the Lord was with him.

⁶⁷And Zachariah his father was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying,

⁶⁸Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel! for he hath visited and redeemed his people,

⁶⁹and hath raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of David his servant,—