¹Then Joseph went and told Pharaoh, and said, “My father and my brothers, their flocks and their herds and all that they possess, have come from the land of Canaan; and indeed they are in the land of Goshen.” ²And he took five men from among his brothers and presented them to Pharaoh. ³Then Pharaoh said to his brothers, “What is your occupation?” And they said to Pharaoh, “Your servants are shepherds, both we and also our fathers.” ⁴And they said to Pharaoh, “We have come to dwell in the land, because your servants have no pasture for their flocks, for the famine is severe in the land of Canaan. Now therefore, please let your servants dwell in the land of Goshen.” ⁵Then Pharaoh spoke to Joseph, saying, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. ⁶The land of Egypt is before you. Have your father and brothers dwell in the best of the land; let them dwell in the land of Goshen. And if you know any competent men among them, then make them chief herdsmen over my livestock.” ⁷Then Joseph brought in his father Jacob and set him before Pharaoh; and Jacob blessed Pharaoh. ⁸Pharaoh said to Jacob, “How old are you?” ⁹And Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred and thirty years; few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage.” ¹⁰So Jacob blessed Pharaoh, and went out from before Pharaoh. ¹¹And Joseph situated his father and his brothers, and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded. ¹²Then Joseph provided his father, his brothers, and all his father’s household with bread, according to the number in their families. ¹³Now there was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan languished because of the famine. ¹⁴And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, for the grain which they bought; and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh’s house. ¹⁵So when the money failed in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph and said, “Give us bread, for why should we die in your presence? For the money has failed.” ¹⁶Then Joseph said, “Give your livestock, and I will give you bread for your livestock, if the money is gone.” ¹⁷So they brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for the horses, the flocks, the cattle of the herds, and for the donkeys. Thus he fed them with bread in exchange for all their livestock that year. ¹⁸When that year had ended, they came to him the next year and said to him, “We will not hide from my lord that our money is gone; my lord also has our herds of livestock. There is nothing left in the sight of my lord but our bodies and our lands. ¹⁹Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants of Pharaoh; give us seed, that we may live and not die, that the land may not be desolate.” ²⁰Then Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for every man of the Egyptians sold his field, because the famine was severe upon them. So the land became Pharaoh’s. ²¹And as for the people, he moved them into the cities, from one end of the borders of Egypt to the other end. ²²Only the land of the priests he did not buy; for the priests had rations allotted to them by Pharaoh, and they ate their rations which Pharaoh gave them; therefore they did not sell their lands. ²³Then Joseph said to the people, “Indeed I have bought you and your land this day for Pharaoh. Look, here is seed for you, and you shall sow the land. ²⁴And it shall come to pass in the harvest that you shall give one-fifth to Pharaoh. Four-fifths shall be your own, as seed for the field and for your food, for those of your households and as food for your little ones.” ²⁵So they said, “You have saved our lives; let us find favor in the sight of my lord, and we will be Pharaoh’s servants.” ²⁶And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt to this day, that Pharaoh should have one-fifth, except for the land of the priests only, which did not become Pharaoh’s. ²⁷So Israel dwelt in the land of Egypt, in the country of Goshen; and they had possessions there and grew and multiplied exceedingly. ²⁸And Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. So the length of Jacob’s life was one hundred and forty-seven years. ²⁹When the time drew near that Israel must die, he called his son Joseph and said to him, “Now if I have found favor in your sight, please put your hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me. Please do not bury me in Egypt, ³⁰but let me lie with my fathers; you shall carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burial place.” And he said, “I will do as you have said.” ³¹Then he said, “Swear to me.” And he swore to him. So Israel bowed himself on the head of the bed.

¹Inasmuch as many have taken in hand to set in order a narrative of those things which have been fulfilled among us, ²just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word delivered them to us, ³it seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write to you an orderly account, most excellent Theophilus, ⁴that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed. ⁵There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. ⁶And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. ⁷But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years. ⁸So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division, ⁹according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. ¹⁰And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense. ¹¹Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. ¹²And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. ¹³But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. ¹⁴And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. ¹⁵For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. ¹⁶And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. ¹⁷He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” ¹⁸And Zacharias said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.” ¹⁹And the angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was sent to speak to you and bring you these glad tidings. ²⁰But behold, you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time.” ²¹And the people waited for Zacharias, and marveled that he lingered so long in the temple. ²²But when he came out, he could not speak to them; and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple, for he beckoned to them and remained speechless. ²³And so it was, as soon as the days of his service were completed, that he departed to his own house. ²⁴Now after those days his wife Elizabeth conceived; and she hid herself five months, saying, ²⁵“Thus the Lord has dealt with me, in the days when He looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.” ²⁶Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, ²⁷to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!” ²⁹But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. ³⁰Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ³¹And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. ³²He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. ³³And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.” ³⁴Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” ³⁵And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. ³⁶Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. ³⁷For with God nothing will be impossible.” ³⁸Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. ³⁹Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, ⁴⁰and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. ⁴²Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! ⁴³But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? ⁴⁴For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. ⁴⁵Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord.” ⁴⁶And Mary said: “My soul magnifies the Lord, ⁴⁷And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. ⁴⁸For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed. ⁴⁹For He who is mighty has done great things for me, And holy is His name. ⁵⁰And His mercy is on those who fear Him From generation to generation. ⁵¹He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. ⁵²He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly. ⁵³He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty. ⁵⁴He has helped His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy, ⁵⁵As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and to his seed forever.” ⁵⁶And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her house. ⁵⁷Now Elizabeth’s full time came for her to be delivered, and she brought forth a son. ⁵⁸When her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her, they rejoiced with her. ⁵⁹So it was, on the eighth day, that they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him by the name of his father, Zacharias. ⁶⁰His mother answered and said, “No; he shall be called John.” ⁶¹But they said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name.” ⁶²So they made signs to his father—what he would have him called. ⁶³And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, saying, “His name is John.” So they all marveled. ⁶⁴Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, praising God. ⁶⁵Then fear came on all who dwelt around them; and all these sayings were discussed throughout all the hill country of Judea. ⁶⁶And all those who heard them kept them in their hearts, saying, “What kind of child will this be?” And the hand of the Lord was with him. ⁶⁷Now his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying: ⁶⁸“Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited and redeemed His people, ⁶⁹And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of His servant David, ⁷⁰As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets, Who have been since the world began, ⁷¹That we should be saved from our enemies And from the hand of all who hate us, ⁷²To perform the mercy promised to our fathers And to remember His holy covenant, ⁷³The oath which He swore to our father Abraham: ⁷⁴To grant us that we, Being delivered from the hand of our enemies, Might serve Him without fear, ⁷⁵In holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life. ⁷⁶And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest; For you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways, ⁷⁷To give knowledge of salvation to His people By the remission of their sins, ⁷⁸Through the tender mercy of our God, With which the Dayspring from on high has visited us; ⁷⁹To give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, To guide our feet into the way of peace.” ⁸⁰So the child grew and became strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel.

¹“Behold, my eye has seen all this, My ear has heard and understood it. ²What you know, I also know; I am not inferior to you. ³But I would speak to the Almighty, And I desire to reason with God. ⁴But you forgers of lies, You are all worthless physicians. ⁵Oh, that you would be silent, And it would be your wisdom! ⁶Now hear my reasoning, And heed the pleadings of my lips. ⁷Will you speak wickedly for God, And talk deceitfully for Him? ⁸Will you show partiality for Him? Will you contend for God? ⁹Will it be well when He searches you out? Or can you mock Him as one mocks a man? ¹⁰He will surely rebuke you If you secretly show partiality. ¹¹Will not His excellence make you afraid, And the dread of Him fall upon you? ¹²Your platitudes are proverbs of ashes, Your defenses are defenses of clay. ¹³“Hold your peace with me, and let me speak, Then let come on me what may! ¹⁴Why do I take my flesh in my teeth, And put my life in my hands? ¹⁵Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him. Even so, I will defend my own ways before Him. ¹⁶He also shall be my salvation, For a hypocrite could not come before Him. ¹⁷Listen carefully to my speech, And to my declaration with your ears. ¹⁸See now, I have prepared my case, I know that I shall be vindicated. ¹⁹Who is he who will contend with me? If now I hold my tongue, I perish. ²⁰“Only two things do not do to me, Then I will not hide myself from You: ²¹Withdraw Your hand far from me, And let not the dread of You make me afraid. ²²Then call, and I will answer; Or let me speak, then You respond to me. ²³How many are my iniquities and sins? Make me know my transgression and my sin. ²⁴Why do You hide Your face, And regard me as Your enemy? ²⁵Will You frighten a leaf driven to and fro? And will You pursue dry stubble? ²⁶For You write bitter things against me, And make me inherit the iniquities of my youth. ²⁷You put my feet in the stocks, And watch closely all my paths. You set a limit for the soles of my feet. ²⁸“Man decays like a rotten thing, Like a garment that is moth-eaten.

¹Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, ²To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours: ³Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. ⁴I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, ⁵that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, ⁶even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, ⁷so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, ⁸who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. ¹⁰Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. ¹¹For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are contentions among you. ¹²Now I say this, that each of you says, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of Apollos,” or “I am of Cephas,” or “I am of Christ.” ¹³Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? ¹⁴I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, ¹⁵lest anyone should say that I had baptized in my own name. ¹⁶Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas. Besides, I do not know whether I baptized any other. ¹⁷For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect. ¹⁸For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. ¹⁹For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.” ²⁰Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? ²¹For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. ²²For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; ²³but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, ²⁴but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. ²⁵Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. ²⁶For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. ²⁷But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; ²⁸and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, ²⁹that no flesh should glory in His presence. ³⁰But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption— ³¹that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.”