The Byble in Englyshe that is to saye, the content of all the holye scrypture, bothe of the olde and newe Testament, truly translated after the veryte of the Hebrue and Greke textes, by the diligent studye of dyuers excellent lerned [men e]xperte in the fore[saide] tongues.

¶ The concepcion and byrth of Iohn̄ the Baptist. The concepcion of Christ. The thankfull songes of Mary and zachori.

CAPI. Primo.

THere was in the dayes of [unspec A] Herode the kyng of Iurye, a cer∣tayne preest named Zacharias, * 1.1 of the course of Abia. And his wyfe was of the doughters of Aaron: & her name was Elizabeth: they were both ryghte∣ous before God, and walked in all the lawes and ordynaunces of the Lorde, that no man coulde fynde fawte with them. And they had no chyld, bycause that Elizabeth was ba••eyn and they both were nowe wel stryken in age.

And it came to passe, that when Zacharye executed the preestes office before god, as his course came (accordyng to the custome of the preestes offyce) his lot fell to burne insence.

And he * 1.2 went into the temple of the Lorde, and the hoole multitude of people were with out in prayer, whyle the insence was a bur∣nyng. And there appeared vnto hym an an∣gell of the Lorde, standyng on the ryght syde of the aulter of insence. And when Zacharias sawe hym, he was abasshed, and feare came on hym.

But the angell sayde vnto hym: feare not [unspec B] zachary, for thy prayer is herde. And thy wife Elizabeth shall beare the a sonne, and thou shalte call his name Iohn̄, and thou shalte haue ioye and gladnes, & many shall reioyce at his byrth. For he shalbe great in the syght of the Lorde, and shall neyther drynke wyne nor strong drynke. And he shalbe fylled with the holy goost, euen frō his mothers wombe: and many of the chyldren of Israell shall he turne to theyr Lorde God. And he shall go be¦fore hym in the spirite and power of * 1.3 Elias, ☞ to turne the hertes of the Fathers to the chyldren, and the vnbyleuers to the wysdom of the iust men, to make redy a perfyte people for the Lorde. And Zacharias sayd vnto the angell: by what token shall I knowe this?

For * 1.4 I am olde, and my wyfe well stryken in yeres. And the angell answered, and sayde vnto hym: I am Gabriell, that stande in the presence of God, and am sent to speake vnto the: and to shew the these glad tydyng{is}. And beholde, it shall come to passe, that thou shalt be dombe, and not be able to speake, vntyll the day that these thynges be perfourmed, by¦cause thou byleu••dst not my wordes, whiche shalbe ••ufylled in theyr season. And the peple wayted for Zacharias, and meruayled that he tarted in the temple. And whē he came out he coulde not speake vnto them. And they perceyued that he had sene a visiō in the tem∣ple. And he beckened vnto them, and remay∣ned spechlesse.

✚ And it fortuned, that as soone as the [unspec C] dayes of his offyce were out, he departed in to his owne house. And after those dayes, his wyfe Elizabeth conceyued, and hyd her selfe fyue monethes, sayeng: This wyse hath god delte with me, in the dayes wherin he hath loked on me, to take from me my rebuke a∣monge men. And in the. vi. moneth the angel Gabriell was sent from God, vnto a citye of Galile, named Nazareth, to a virgyn spoused to a man, whose name was Ioseph, of the house of Dauid, and the virgins name was Mary. And the angell went in vnto her, and sayd: Hayle full of grace, the Lorde is with the: blessed arte thou among women. When she saw hym, she was abasshed at his sayeng and cast in her mynde, what maner of saluta¦cion that shulde be. And the angel sayd vnto her: feare not Mary, for thou haste founde grace with God. Beholde, * 1.5 thou shalte con∣ceyue in thy wombe, and beare a sonne, and * 1.6 shalt call his name Iesus. He shalbe great, and shall be called the sonne of the hyghest. And the Lorde God shall gyue vnto hym the seate of his father Dauid, & * 1.7 he shal reygne ouer the house of Iacob for euer, & * 1.8 of his kyngdome there shall be none ende.

Then sayd Mary vnto the angell: Howe [unspec D] shall this be, seynge I know not a man? And the angell answered, and sayd vnto her. The holy goost shall come vpon the, & the power of the hyghest shall oue•• shadowe the. Ther∣fore also that holy thyng which shalbe borne shal be called the sonne of God. And beholde thy cosen Elizabeth, she hath also conceyued a sonne in her age. And this is her syxte mo∣neth, whiche was called bareyne: for * 1.9 with god shal nothyng be vnpossyble: And Mary sayd: beholde the hande mayden of the Lorde be it vnto me accordyng to thy worde. ⊢ And the angell departed from her.

✚ And Mary arose in those dayes, & went into the mountaynes with haste ☞ in to the citye of Iurye, and entred in to the house of Zachary, and saluted Elizabeth. And it fortu¦ned, that whē Elizabeth herde the salutacion of Mary, the babe sprange in her wombe.

And Elizabeth was fylled with the holy [unspec E] goost, and cryed with a loude voyce, & sayde: Blessed arte thou amonge women, & blessed is the fruyte of thy wombe: And whence hap∣neth this to me, that the mother of my Lorde shuld come to me? For lo, assone as the voyce of thy salutacyon sounded in myne eares, the babe sprange in my wombe for ioye.

And blessed arte thou that haste byleued: for those thynges shalbe performed, which were tolde the from the Lorde. And Mary sayde. * 1.10 My soule magnifyeth the Lorde. And my spiryte hath reioysed in God my sauyoure. ⊢

For he hath loked on the lowe degre of his hande mayden: for lo: nowe from henseforth shall all generacions cal me blessed. Bicause he that is myghtye, hath done to me greate thynges, and holy is his name. And his mer¦cye is on them that feare hym, from genera∣cion to generacion. He hath shewed strength with his arme / he hath scattered them that are proude in the ymaginacyō of theyr herte. * 1.11 He hath put downe the myghtye frō theyr seates, & exalted them of lowe degre. He hath fylled the hungrye with good thynges: and sent awaye the ryche emptye. He hath helped his seruaunt Israell, in remembraūce of his mercye. * 1.12 Euen as he promysed to oure fa∣thers, Abraham, & to his seede for euer. And Mary abode with her aboute iii. monethes, and returned agayne to her owne house.

✚ Elizabethes tyme came that she shulde [unspec F] be deliuered, and she brought forth a sonne. And her neyghbours and her cosyns herde howe the Lorde had shewed great mercy vpō her, and they reioysed with her. And it fortu∣ned that in the eyght day, they came * 1.13 to cir∣cumcise the chylde: and called his name Za∣charias, after the n••me of his father. And his mother answered and sayd: not so but he shall be called Iohn̄. And they sayde vnto her: There is none in thy kynred, that is na∣med with this name. And they made sygnes to his father, howe he wolde haue him called And he asked for wrytyng tables, and wrote / sayeng: his name is Iohn̄. And they maruay led all. And his mouth was opened immedi∣atly, and his tongue also, and he spake, and praysed god. And feare came on al them that dwelt nygh vnto them. And all these sayeng{is} were noysed abrode thorowout all the hyll countrey of Iurye: and all they that herde them layde them vp in theyr hertes, sayenge: What maner of chylde shall this be? And the hande of the Lorde was with hym.

And his father Zacharias was fylled with the holy goost, and prophesyed sayeng? Pray sed be the Lorde God of Israell, for he hath ☞ visyted and redemed his people: ⊢

And hath reysed vp * 1.14 an horne of saluacyon vnto vs, in the house of his seruaunt Dauid

Euen as he promysed by the mouth of his [unspec G] holy prophettes / which were synce the world began. That we shulde be saued from oure enemyes, and from the hande of all that hate vs. That he wolde deale mercifully with our fathers, and remember his holy couenaunt. * 1.15 And that he wold performe the othe, which he sware to our father Abraham, for to gyue vs. * 1.16 That we delyuered out of the handes of our enemyes, myght serue hym with out feare, all the dayes of our lyfe, in soche holy∣nesse, & ryghtwysenesse as are accepte before hym. And thou chylde shalt be called the pro∣phet of the highest: for thou shalt go ☞ before the face of the Lorde, to prepare his wayes: to gyue knowledge of saluacion vnto his peo∣ple for the remissyon of syn̄es. Through the tender mercy of our God, wherby ☞ the day sprynge from an hygh hath visyted vs.

* 1.17 To gyue lyght to them that sat in darke∣nesse / and in the shadowe of death, to gyde our fete in to the way of peace. And the chyld grewe and wared stronge in spiryte / & was in wyldernesse, tyll the daye came, when he shulde shewe hym selfe vnto the Israelites.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Para xxv b
• * 1.2

  Exod. xx••. b Hebru. ix. b
• * 1.3

  Math xi. v.
• * 1.4

  Gene. xvii •• and. xviii. b
• * 1.5

  Esai. vi. ••
• * 1.6

  Math ••. •• Luke. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. ••
• * 1.7

  Esai. ix. ••
• * 1.8

  Deut. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. •• Mich. ••••••••
• * 1.9

  zacha. 8 •• Math. 〈◊〉〈◊〉. •• Mathe. x. ••
• * 1.10

  Esai. ••xi. d
• * 1.11

  Regū. ii. b Ecclesi. x. c.
• * 1.12

  ••••••••. xxii. c
• * 1.13

  Gene. 17. b. and. xxi. a Leuiti. xii. ••
• * 1.14

  Psal. 132. c
• * 1.15

  Gene. xxii. ••
• * 1.16

  Esai. 38. ••
• * 1.17

  Esai. ix •• Math. iiii. e