02 January 2016

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Saturday, 02 January 2016

Yesterday was a rather quiet day around here.  We're not into the wild drunken parties and over-the-top celebrations that seem to accompany the transition into the new calendar year.  We didn't even watch the "ball" drop from New York City nor any of the others, even the Potato Drop that they have in Boise, Idaho.  We stat home and watched some old (1930's)  movies while drinking cranberry flavored ginger ale (quite good, actually) and chowing down on black eyed peas, collard greens, pork, potatoes, sauerkraut, and kielbassa sausage.  Forgot the cornbread until too late.  Rather an mix of the northern and southern traditions, had left overs which will be our meals for much of the week to come.  I am the dishwasher (and laundry maid) around here, the automatic one hasn't worked in two years, so I did a load before turning in at 03:00.  Cats woke me at 05:10 for their 05:00 breakfast, then Dear Wife was feeling poorly and wanted to move to the recliner from whence she spent most of yeasterday, watching the Rose parade and then  hours and hours of horrid crime shows.  I got up and did the rest of the dishes, etc. Sorry, but two crock pots, a large kettle, and two smaller pans were more than I could fit in the drainer after the early morning load.
So I saw zero football games.  Small loss.

But the new year is here, and this coming Monday will mark a return to the "normal" life for many.  We're seeing weather forecasts for the next week with lows in the teens or below, and "highs" below zero.  December was unusually warm for this area at this time of year, but there is snow on the ground and more to come.  Compared to the weather-related suffering of others from Arizona to South Carolina, from Texas (loss of some 30,000 cattle) to Illinois, a cold snap is relatively trivial.  I don't like it, but it's less an issue than for those who lost loved ones or saw their homes flattened by tornadoes or floating away in a flood.  God has been good to us, as ever.

This year may bring storms of life to many of us.  It does not mean the Lord has abandoned us, nor that He is punishing us for something.  There may be, and often is, much more to it, things we may not realize until years later.  I know.  Been there, several times, and am there right now, somewhat.

The Old Testament passage here, Genesis 3, 4, and 5, has always been a bit depressing.  From walking and talking with the Lord in the Garden, to exile and sin and death, is depressing.  But that's not the end of the story.  Or we wouldn't have the New Testament passage, chapter 2.  Jesus on the earth.  Jesus' birth, death, resurrection, and ascension is not Plan B.  I have to believe that what happened in the Garden was known in advance, and Jesus' sacrifice for us was known even then.  WHY, I can not comprehend.  That, my friend, is Love.
And those events, from both Testaments, thousands of years ago, are still very much a part of what we are today.

==============================================


1
Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
2
And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:
3
But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
4
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:
5
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
6
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
7
And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.
8
And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God amongst the trees of the garden.
9
And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
10
And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.
11
And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?
12
And the man said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.
13
And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.
14
And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:
15
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
16
Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.
17
And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life;
18
Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
19
In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
20
And Adam called his wife's name Eve; because she was the mother of all living.
21
Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of skins, and clothed them.
22
And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
23
Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.
24
So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.


1
And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.
2
And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
3
And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
4
And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
5
But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
6
And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
7
If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
8
And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.
9
And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?
10
And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.
11
And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand;
12
When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.
13
And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear.
14
Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me.
15
And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.
16
And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.
17
And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch.
18
And unto Enoch was born Irad: and Irad begat Mehujael: and Mehujael begat Methusael: and Methusael begat Lamech.
19
And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah.
20
And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle.
21
And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ.
22
And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah.
23
And Lamech said unto his wives, Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt.
24
If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold.
25
And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew.
26
And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.


1
This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him;
2
Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.
3
And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, and after his image; and called his name Seth:
4
And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters:
5
And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.
6
And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos:
7
And Seth lived after he begat Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters:
8
And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died.
9
And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan:
10
And Enos lived after he begat Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters:
11
And all the days of Enos were nine hundred and five years: and he died.
12
And Cainan lived seventy years and begat Mahalaleel:
13
And Cainan lived after he begat Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begat sons and daughters:
14
And all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years: and he died.
15
And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and begat Jared:
16
And Mahalaleel lived after he begat Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters:
17
And all the days of Mahalaleel were eight hundred ninety and five years: and he died.
18
And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and he begat Enoch:
19
And Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:
20
And all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years: and he died.
21
And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah:
22
And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:
23
And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years:
24
And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
25
And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and begat Lamech.
26
And Methuselah lived after he begat Lamech seven hundred eighty and two years, and begat sons and daughters:
27
And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died.
28
And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son:
29
And he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed.
30
And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety and five years, and begat sons and daughters:
31
And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy and seven years: and he died.
32
And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.











=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-


1
Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,
2
Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.
3
When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
4
And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born.
5
And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet,
6
And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel.
7
Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared.
8
And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also.
9
When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was.
10
When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.
11
And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense and myrrh.
12
And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.
13
And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.
14
When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt:
15
And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.
16
Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.
17
Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying,
18
In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.
19
But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt,
20
Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life.
21
And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the land of Israel.
22
But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judaea in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither: notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee:
23
And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene.

01 January 2016

Today's Readings and Stuff -- Friday, 01 January 2016

Happy New Year to all to whom these presents come.  Greetings to all.

Last year this site was sadly neglected.  Life was, well, difficult here.  From September on, we were dealing with the issues of Dear Wife's intricate and very painful surgery, a surgery from which she is still recovering as we approach four months after the event.  Involved in this was substantial rearrangement of one foot, ankle, lower leg, and the related connecting tissues.  Like rebreaking and resetting some bones in the foot.  Like cutting and reattaching the Achilles Tendon. Like a great deal of other stuff.  No, it wasn't heart surgery, nor something like that.  But go without being able to walk at ALL for more than a month, and then only the brief trips between the bed, the bathroom, and the recliner.  Or more than two-and-a-half months of sponge baths performed by Yours Truly. 
She can walk now, some, for brief periods, but still spends virtually all of her time in bed or in a recliner with her foot elevated.
Even in the best of times, she hates to leave the house, generally only to go next door to "watch" the great niece or, occasionally, go with me to Wally World or Aldi.  She went with me to a church picnic in August, but hasn't been to church services since, and rarely even before.
Along the way (and just before her surgery) her closer-than-sister cousin had a heart attack.  She went with me to the hospital to check on her, but only once.
And last Sunday morning, I came home from church services to find her in tears.  Her aunt, the one who largely took over the duties of raising her during the periods of her mother's alcoholic delerium or other improper behaviors, had just died.  The deceased was, like much of the family, determined to be either atheist or pagan.  No services, therefor.  The extended family had a carry-in get together last Sunday, but Wife was too ill to attend.  So more sorrow there.

The result of all the above (and much more not mentioned) is that Yours Truly has been a full-time caregiver for much of the year just past.  And dealing with my own griefs and sorrows.  One of which is that I had the bad grace to give an honest and forthright opinion of one of the far-left political candidates for president, and as a result, both of our daughters have severed all contact.  ALL.  Phone calls are neither answered nor returned, social media contacts severed, e-mails ignored.  Tough, particularly given the above, not helped with the Thanksgiving-Christmas-New Year observances.

So it has been tough.  Finances are a catastrophe, and we have snow on the ground, and in the weather forecast for the coming week, we see several nights in the teens, and several days with the "high" below freezing.  Not my every dream come true.

The Lord knew our situation a million years ago, so He is aware.  I don't know what His plan or wish is, I only hope that I follow His direction.

====================

The morning reading in the Old Testament begins with those important words, "In the beginning, GOD .."  A pretty good beginning for us, each day.  When I lose that focus, things go awry, quickly, and getting back is tough.

1
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.
2
And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
3
And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
4
And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
5
And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.
6
And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
7
And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.
8
And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.
9
And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
10
And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.
11
And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.
12
And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
13
And the evening and the morning were the third day.
14
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:
15
And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.
16
And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.
17
And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,
18
And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.
19
And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.
20
And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
21
And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
22
And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.
23
And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.
24
And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.
25
And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.
26
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
27
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
28
And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
29
And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
30
And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
31
And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.


1
Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
2
And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
3
And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
4
These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,
5
And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground.
6
But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.
7
And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
8
And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.
9
And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
10
And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads.
11
The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold;
12
And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.
13
And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia.
14
And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates.
15
And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
16
And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:
17
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
18
And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.
19
And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.
20
And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field; but for Adam there was not found an help meet for him.
21
And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;
22
And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
23
And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
24
Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
25
And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.





The evening reading in the New Testament, begins with the earthly genealogy of Jesus.  You may see some familiar names in the family tree here.  Remember that this was very much a tribal culture, and one was commanded to marry within that tribe.  Here we see the heritage all the way from Jesus to Adam.  The family records were kept in a sort of records room in the Temple in Jerusalem.  That temple and those records were destroyed and lost when the temple was destroyed, not that many years after  Jesus returned to the Father.  This genealogy would have been of great import to the Jews in the land.

1
The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
2
Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren;
3
And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram;
4
And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon;
5
And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse;
6
And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias;
7
And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa;
8
And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias;
9
And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz begat Ezekias;
10
And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon; and Amon begat Josias;
11
And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren, about the time they were carried away to Babylon:
12
And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat Zorobabel;
13
And Zorobabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azor;
14
And Azor begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud;
15
And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob;
16
And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.
17
So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations.
18
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.
19
Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily.
20
But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.
21
And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
22
Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,
23
Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
24
Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:
25
And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.