5In the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, there was a certain priest named Zacharias, who belonged to the priestly order of Abijah; and his wife was one of the daughters (descendant) of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. 6And they were both righteous in the sight of God, observing all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord, blameless. 7But they were childless, because Elisabeth was barren, and they both were very old. 8And it happened, that while he (Zacharias) was serving God in his priest's office, 9As was the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10And while the incense was being burned inside, all the assembled worshippers were praying outside. 11And an angel of the Lord appeared to Zacharias, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12And when Zacharias saw him, he was startled, and fear gripped him. 13But the angel said to him, “Fear not, Zacharias; for your prayer has been heard; and your wife, Elisabeth, shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14And you shall have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. 15For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. 16And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. 17And he shall 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 asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? For I am an old man, and my wife well along in years”. 19And the angel answered, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God; and have been sent to speak unto you, and to tell you these glad tidings. 20And now you shall be dumb (mute), and unable to speak, until the day these things happen, because you did not believe my words, which shall be fulfilled at their appointed time”. 21And meanwhile, the people waited for Zacharias, and wondered why he stayed in the temple so long. 22And when he came out, he could not speak to them; and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple; for he kept motioning to them, and remained speechless. 23And the days of his service were accomplished, he returned to his own house. 24And after his wife, Elisabeth, conceived (became pregnant), and remained in seclusion for five months, saying, 25“The Lord has the done this for me”, in the days He has looked upon me, to take away my reproach among the people”.

26And in the sixth month (of Elisabeth’s pregnancy), the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, 27To a virgin espoused (pledged or engaged) to a man whose name was Joseph, a descendant of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. 28And the angel came to her, and said, “Hail, you are highly favored, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women”. 29And when she saw him, she was troubled at his words, and wondered what sort of salutation (greeting) this might be. 30And the angel said to her, “Fear not, Mary; for you have found favor with God. 31And you shall conceive, and give birth to a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. 32He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God shall give to Him the throne of His ancestor, David; 33And He shall reign over the descendants of Jacob forever; and of His kingdom there shall be no end.” 34Then Mary asked the angel, “How shall this be, since I am a virgin?” 35And the angel answered, “The Holy Spirit shall come upon you, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow you; therefore the Baby that shall be born of you shall be holy and called the Son of God. 36And what is more, your cousin, Elisabeth, has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month of her pregnancy, who had been called barren. 37For with God, nothing shall be impossible.” 38And Mary said, “Behold the handmaid (servant) of the Lord; may it be it to me according to your word”. And the angel left her.

39And Mary arose at that time, and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah; 40And entered the house of Zacharias, and greeted Elisabeth. 41And when Elisabeth heard the Mary’s greeting, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit; 42And she exclaimed with a loud voice, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. 43But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? 44For, as soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy. 45And blessed are you that believed that the Lord would fulfill His promise which was sent to her from the Lord.” 46And Mary said, “My soul does magnify the Lord, 47And my spirit rejoices in God my Savior. 48For He has regarded the low estate of His handmaiden; for from now on, all generations shall call me blessed. 49For He that is mighty has done for me great things; and holy is His name. 50And His mercy extends to them that fear Him from generation to generation. 51He has demonstrated strength with His mighty deeds; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. 52He has put down the mighty from their seats of power, and exalted those of low degree. 53He has filled the hungry with good things; and He has sent the rich away empty. 54He has helped His servant Israel, and remembered His mercy; 55As He has promised to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his descendants forever.” 56And Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months, then returned to her own home.

57Now when time came that she should be delivered; Elisabeth brought forth a son. 58And her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her; and they rejoiced with her. 59And on the eighth day, they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father. 60But his mother responded and said, “Not so; but he shall be called John”. 61And they said to her, “There is no one among your kindred that is called by that name”. 62And they made signs to his father, to find out how he would have him called. 63And Zacharias asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, “His name is John”. And they all marveled. 64And his mouth was immediately opened, and his tongue set free, and he began to speak, and praised God. 65And all the neighbors and those present were filled with awe; and all these sayings were noised talked about throughout all the hill country of Judaea. 66And all those that heard them laid them up in their hearts, wondering, “What manner of child shall this be!” And the hand of the Lord was with him.

67And his father, Zacharias, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying, 68“Praise be to the Lord God of Israel; because He has visited and redeemed His people, 69And He has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David; 70As He spoke (said) by the His holy prophets, long ago; 71That we should be saved from our enemies, and from all that hate us; 72To show us the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember His holy covenant; 73The oath which He swore to our father Abraham, 74That He would grant to us, that we, being rescued from our enemies, might serve Him without fear, 75In holiness and righteousness before Him, all the days of our life. 76And you, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High; for you shall go before the Lord to the way for Him; 77To give knowledge of salvation to His people by the forgiveness (remission) of their sins, 78By the tender mercy of our God; by which the dayspring (morning light) from on heaven high about to break upon us, 79To shine light to those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way (path) of peace.”

80And the child grew, and became strong in spirit, and lived in the deserts till the day he began his public ministry unto Israel.