034 Emmanuel: Christmastime Subterfuge

Matthew 1:18-25

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: When His mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, before they came together, she was found to be with child, from the Holy Ghost.

19 Then Joseph, her husband, being a just man and not willing to make her a public example, was of a mind to release her secretly.

20 But while he thought these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, the son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For that which is conceived in her, is from the Holy Ghost.

21 “And she shall bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus. For He shall save His people from their sins.”

22 And all this was done to fulfill that which is spoken from the Lord by the Prophet, saying,

23 “Behold, a virgin shall be with Child, and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel, which is by interpretation, ‘God with us’.”

24 Then Joseph, having awakened, did as the angel of the Lord had instructed him, and took his wife.

25 But he did not know her until she had brought forth her first-born Son, and he called His name, Jesus.

Revised Geneva Translation