Saturday, November 27, 2010

WHAT THE GOSPEL WRITERS SAY

The apostle Matthew: “After Jesus had been born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, look! astrologers from eastern parts came to Jerusalem, saying: ‘Where is the one born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when we were in the east, and we have come to do him obeisance.’ At hearing this King Herod was agitated.” So Herod asked “the chief priests . . . where the Christ was to be born.” On learning that it was “in Bethlehem,” Herod told the astrologers: “Go make a careful search for the young child, and when you have found it report back to me.”

“They went their way; and, look! the star they had seen when they were in the east went ahead of them, until it came to a stop above where the young child was. . . . When they went into the house they saw the young child with Mary its mother.” After presenting Jesus with gifts, “they were given divine warning in a dream not to return to Herod, [so] they withdrew to their country by another way.”

“After they had withdrawn, look! Jehovah’s angel appeared in a dream to Joseph, saying: ‘Get up, take the young child and its mother and flee into Egypt . . .’ So he got up and took along the young child and its mother by night and withdrew . . . Then Herod, seeing he had been outwitted by the astrologers, fell into a great rage, and he sent out and had all the boys in Bethlehem and in all its districts done away with, from two years of age and under.” —Matthew 2:1-16.

The disciple Luke: Joseph “went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to David’s city, which is called Bethlehem, . . . to get registered with Mary . . . While they were there, . . . she gave birth to her son, the firstborn, and she bound him with cloth bands and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the lodging room.”

“There were also in that same country shepherds living out of doors and keeping watches in the night over their flocks. And suddenly Jehovah’s angel stood by them, . . . and they became very fearful. But the angel said to them: ‘Have no fear, for, look! I am declaring to you good news of a great joy that all the people will have, because there was born to you today a Savior, who is Christ the Lord, in David’s city.’ ” At that the shepherds “went with haste and found Mary as well as Joseph, and the in- fant lying in the manger.”—Luke 2:4-16.

Ghost, OUT!

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