Study Desk

They both lived good lives in God's sight and obeyed fully all the Lord's laws and commands.

They had no children because Elizabeth could not have any, and she and Zechariah were both very old.

When he came out, he could not speak to them, and so they knew that he had seen a vision in the Temple. Unable to say a word, he made signs to them with his hands.

Her neighbors and relatives heard how wonderfully good the Lord had been to her, and they all rejoiced with her.

When the baby was a week old, they came to circumcise him, and they were going to name him Zechariah, after his father.

Zechariah asked for a writing pad and wrote, "His name is John." How surprised they all were!

and while they were in Bethlehem, the time came for her to have her baby.

An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone over them. They were terribly afraid,

So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph and saw the baby lying in the manger.

The shepherds went back, singing praises to God for all they had heard and seen; it had been just as the angel had told them.

The time came for Joseph and Mary to perform the ceremony of purification, as the Law of Moses commanded. So they took the child to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord,

When Joseph and Mary had finished doing all that was required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to their hometown of Nazareth in Galilee.

they thought that he was with the group, so they traveled a whole day and then started looking for him among their relatives and friends.

On the third day they found him in the Temple, sitting with the Jewish teachers, listening to them and asking questions.

His parents were astonished when they saw him, and his mother said to him, "Son, why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been terribly worried trying to find you."

Some tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, "Teacher, what are we to do?"

People's hopes began to rise, and they began to wonder whether John perhaps might be the Messiah.

They were all well impressed with him and marveled at the eloquent words that he spoke. They said, "Isn't he the son of Joseph?"

They rose up, dragged Jesus out of town, and took him to the top of the hill on which their town was built. They meant to throw him over the cliff,

The people were all amazed and said to one another, "What kind of words are these? With authority and power this man gives orders to the evil spirits, and they come out!"