Week 14 - Read­ing 3 

“Go ahead and mar­ry her.”

This is how Jesus Christ was born.  A young woman named Mary was engaged to Joseph from King David’s fam­i­ly.  But before they were mar­ried, she learned that she was going to have a baby by God’s Holy Spir­it.  Joseph was a good man and did not want to embar­rass Mary in front of every­one.  So he decid­ed to qui­et­ly call off the wedding.

While Joseph was think­ing about this, an angel from the Lord came to him in a dream.  The angel said, “Joseph, the baby that Mary will have is from the Holy Spir­it.  Go ahead and mar­ry her.  Then after her baby is born, name him Jesus, because he will save his peo­ple from their sins.”

So the Lord’s promise came true, just as the prophet had said, “A vir­gin will have a baby boy, and he will be called Immanuel,” which means “God is with us.”

After Joseph woke up, he and Mary were soon mar­ried, just as the Lord’s angel had told him to do.  But they did not sleep togeth­er before her baby was born.  Then Joseph named him Jesus.

 

Matthew 1:18-24
Con­tem­po­rary Eng­lish Ver­sion The Holy Bible (New York , NY: Amer­i­can Bible Soci­ety 1995)