Study Desk

She will have a son, and you will name him Jesus—because he will save his people from their sins."

and asked, "Where is the baby born to be the king of the Jews? We saw his star when it came up in the east, and we have come to worship him."

They went into the house, and when they saw the child with his mother Mary, they knelt down and worshiped him. They brought out their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and presented them to him.

After they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph and said, "Herod will be looking for the child in order to kill him. So get up, take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you to leave."

Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and left during the night for Egypt,

and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother, and go back to the land of Israel, because those who tried to kill the child are dead."

So Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went back to Israel.

But when Joseph heard that Archelaus had succeeded his father Herod as king of Judea, he was afraid to go there. He was given more instructions in a dream, so he went to the province of Galilee

and made his home in a town named Nazareth. And so what the prophets had said came true: "He will be called a Nazarene."

John's clothes were made of camel's hair; he wore a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey.

I baptize you with water to show that you have repented, but the one who will come after me will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. He is much greater than I am; and I am not good enough even to carry his sandals.

He has his winnowing shovel with him to thresh out all the grain. He will gather his wheat into his barn, but he will burn the chaff in a fire that never goes out."

But John tried to make him change his mind. "I ought to be baptized by you," John said, "and yet you have come to me!"

and said to him, "If you are God's Son, throw yourself down, for the scripture says, ‘God will give orders to his angels about you; they will hold you up with their hands, so that not even your feet will be hurt on the stones.'"

From that time Jesus began to preach his message: "Turn away from your sins, because the Kingdom of heaven is near!"

As Jesus walked along the shore of Lake Galilee, he saw two brothers who were fishermen, Simon (called Peter) and his brother Andrew, catching fish in the lake with a net.

Jesus saw the crowds and went up a hill, where he sat down. His disciples gathered around him,

"Happy are those who work for peace; God will call them his children!

But now I tell you: anyone who looks at a woman and wants to possess her is guilty of committing adultery with her in his heart.

"It was also said, ‘Anyone who divorces his wife must give her a written notice of divorce.'