American Standard Version of 1901
Versliste
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
And the earth was waste and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep: and the Spirit of God {Or, was brooding upon}moved upon the face of the waters.
And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.
And God said, Let there be a {Hebrew: expanse.}firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
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.
And God called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day.
And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.
And God said, Let the earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit-trees bearing fruit after their kind, wherein is the seed thereof, upon the earth: and it was so.
And the earth brought forth grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, wherein is the seed thereof, after their kind: and God saw that it was good.
And there was evening and there was morning, a third day.
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years:
and let them be for lights in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.
And God made the two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.
And God set them in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth,
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.
And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.
And God said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth {Hebrew: on the face of the expanse of the heavens.}in the open firmament of heaven.
And God created the great sea-monsters, and every living creature that moveth, wherewith the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind: and God saw that it was good.
And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.
And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.
And God said, Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind, cattle, and creeping things, and beasts of the earth after their kind: and it was so.
And God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creepeth upon the ground after its kind: and God saw that it was good.
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 birds of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
And God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
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 birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that {Or, creepeth}moveth upon the earth.
And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for food:
and to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to everything that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is {Hebrew: a living soul.}life, I have given every green herb for food: and it was so.
And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
The same was in the beginning with God.
All things were made through him; and without him {Or, was not anything made. That which hath been made was life in him; and the life &c.}was not anything made that hath been made.
O Timothy, guard {Greek: the deposit.}that which is committed unto thee, turning away from the profane babblings and oppositions of the knowledge which is falsely so called;
because that which is known of God is manifest in them; for God manifested it unto them.
For the invisible things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made, even his everlasting power and divinity; {Or, so that they are}that they may be without excuse:
In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
And the light shineth in the darkness; and the darkness {Or, overcame See chapter 12:35 (Greek).}apprehended it not.
So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden the Cherubim, and the flame of a sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
And the earth was waste and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep: and the Spirit of God {Or, was brooding upon}moved upon the face of the waters.
And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.
And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.
And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.
And God said, Let there be a {Hebrew: expanse.}firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
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.
And God called the firmament Heaven. And there was evening and there was morning, a second day.
And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.
And God said, Let the earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit-trees bearing fruit after their kind, wherein is the seed thereof, upon the earth: and it was so.
And the earth brought forth grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, wherein is the seed thereof, after their kind: and God saw that it was good.
And there was evening and there was morning, a third day.
And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years:
and let them be for lights in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.
And God made the two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.
And God set them in the firmament of heaven to give light upon the earth,
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.
And there was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.
And God said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth {Hebrew: on the face of the expanse of the heavens.}in the open firmament of heaven.
And God created the great sea-monsters, and every living creature that moveth, wherewith the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind: and God saw that it was good.
And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.
And there was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.
And God said, Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind, cattle, and creeping things, and beasts of the earth after their kind: and it was so.
And God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creepeth upon the ground after its kind: and God saw that it was good.
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 birds of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
And God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
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 birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that {Or, creepeth}moveth upon the earth.
And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for food:
and to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to everything that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is {Hebrew: a living soul.}life, I have given every green herb for food: and it was so.
And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.
And the Word became flesh, and {Greek: tabernacled}dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, glory as of {Or, an only begotten from a father Compare Hebrews 11:17}the only begotten from the Father), full of grace and truth.
There came a man, sent from God, whose name was John.
The same came for witness, that he might bear witness of the light, that all might believe through him.
He was not the light, but came that he might bear witness of the light.
{Or, the true light, which lighteth every man, was coming}There was the true light, even the light which lighteth {Or, every man as he cometh}every man, coming into the world.
He was in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world knew him not.
He came unto {Greek: his own things}his own, and they that were his own received him not.
But as many as received him, to them gave he the right to become children of God, even to them that believe on his name:
who were {Greek: begotten}born, not of {Greek: bloods}blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
He was the lamp that burneth and shineth; and ye were willing to rejoice for a season in his light.
He was in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world knew him not.
He came unto {Greek: his own things}his own, and they that were his own received him not.
But as many as received him, to them gave he the right to become children of God, even to them that believe on his name:
who were {Greek: begotten}born, not of {Greek: bloods}blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
And the light shineth in the darkness; and the darkness {Or, overcame See chapter 12:35 (Greek).}apprehended it not.
who were {Greek: begotten}born, not of {Greek: bloods}blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to draw up a narrative concerning those matters which have been {Or, fully established}fulfilled among us,
even as they delivered them unto us, who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word,
it seemed good to me also, having traced the course of all things accurately from the first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus;
that thou mightest know the certainty concerning the {Greek: words.}things {Or, which thou wast taught by word of mouth}wherein thou wast instructed.
There was in the days of Herod, king of Judæa, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abijah: and he had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.
And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.
And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now {Greek: advanced in their days.}well stricken in years.
Now it came to pass, while he executed the priest's office before God in the order of his course,
according to the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to enter into the {Or, sanctuary}temple of the Lord and burn incense.
And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the hour of incense.
And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.
And Zacharias was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him.
But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: because thy supplication is heard, and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.
And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth.
For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and he shall drink no wine nor {Greek: sikera.}strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb.
And many of the children of Israel shall he turn unto the Lord their God.
And he shall {Some ancient authorities read come nigh before his face.}go before his face in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to walk in the wisdom of the just; to make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him.
And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife {Greek: advanced in her days.}well stricken in years.
And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and I was sent to speak unto thee, and to bring thee these good tidings.
And behold, thou shalt be silent and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall come to pass, because thou believedst not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.
And the people were waiting for Zacharias, and they marvelled {Or, at his tarrying}while he tarried in the {Or, sanctuary}temple.
And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the {Or, sanctuary}temple: and he continued making signs unto them, and remained dumb.
And it came to pass, when the days of his ministration were fulfilled, he departed unto his house.
And after these days Elisabeth his wife conceived; and she hid herself five months, saying,
Thus hath the Lord done unto me in the days wherein he looked upon me, to take away my reproach among men.
Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.
And he came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art {Or, endued with grace}highly favored, the Lord is with thee {Many ancient authorities add blessed art thou among women. See verse 42.}.
But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this might be.
And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found {Or, grace}favor with God.
And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
and he shall reign over the house of Jacob {Greek: unto the ages.}for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
And Mary said unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?
And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee: wherefore also {Or, that which is to be born shall be called holy, the Son of God}the holy thing which is begotten {Some ancient authorities insert of thee.} shall be called the Son of God.
And behold, Elisabeth thy kinswoman, she also hath conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her that {Or, is}was called barren.
For no word from God shall be void of power.
And Mary said, Behold, the {Greek: bondmaid.}handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.
And Mary arose in these days and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Judah;
and entered into the house of Zacharias and saluted Elisabeth.
And it came to pass, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit;
and she lifted up her voice with a loud cry, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.
And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come unto me?
For behold, when the voice of thy salutation came into mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.
And blessed is she that {Or, believed that there shall be}believed; for there shall be a fulfilment of the things which have been spoken to her from the Lord.
And Mary said,My soul doth magnify the Lord,
And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
For he hath looked upon the low estate of his {Greek: bondmaid.}handmaid:For behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
For he that is mighty hath done to me great things;And holy is his name.
And his mercy is unto generations and generationsOn them that fear him.
He hath showed strength with his arm;He hath scattered the proud {Or, by}in the imagination of their heart.
He hath put down princes from their thrones,And hath exalted them of low degree.
The hungry he hath filled with good things;And the rich he hath sent empty away.
He hath given help to Israel his servant,That he might remember mercy
(As he spake unto our fathers)Toward Abraham and his seed for ever.
And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned unto her house.
Now Elisabeth's time was fulfilled that she should be delivered; and she brought forth a son.
And her neighbors and her kinsfolk heard that the Lord had magnified his mercy towards her; and they rejoiced with her.
And it came to pass on the eighth day, that they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.
And his mother answered and said, Not so; but he shall be called John.
And they said unto her, There is none of thy kindred that is called by this name.
And they made signs to his father, what he would have him called.
And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, saying, His name is John. And they marvelled all.
And his mouth was opened immediately, and his tongue loosed, and he spake, blessing God.
And fear came on all that dwelt round about them: and all these sayings were noised abroad throughout all the hill country of Judæa.
And all that heard them laid them up in their heart, saying, What then shall this child be? For the hand of the Lord was with him.
And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying,
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;For he hath visited and wrought redemption for his people,
And hath raised up a horn of salvation for usIn the house of his servant David
(As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets that have been from of old),
Salvation from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us;
To show mercy towards our fathers,And to remember his holy covenant;
The oath which he sware unto Abraham our father,
To grant unto us that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemiesShould serve him without fear,
In holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
Yea and thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Most High:For thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to make ready his ways;
To give knowledge of salvation unto his peopleIn the remission of their sins,
Because of the {Or, heart of mercy}tender mercy of our God, {Or, Wherein}Whereby the dayspring from on high {Many ancient authorities read hath visited us.}shall visit us,
To shine upon them that sit in darkness and the shadow of death;To guide our feet into the way of peace.
And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his showing unto Israel.
Now it came to pass in those days, there went out a decree from Cæsar Augustus, that all {Greek: the inhabited earth.}the world should be enrolled.
This was the first enrolment made when Quirinius was governor of Syria.
And all went to enrol themselves, every one to his own city.
And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judæa, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David;
to enrol himself with Mary, who was betrothed to him, being great with child.
And it came to pass, while they were there, the days were fulfilled that she should be delivered.
And she brought forth her firstborn son; and she wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
And there were shepherds in the same country abiding in the field, and keeping {Or, night-watchers}watch by night over their flock.
And an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
And the angel said unto them, Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all the people:
for there is born to you this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is {Or, Anointed Lord}Christ the Lord.
And this is the sign unto you: Ye shall find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, and lying in a manger.
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
Glory to God in the highest,And on earth {Many ancient authorities read peace, good pleasure among men.}peace among {Greek: men of good pleasure.}men in whom he is well pleased.
And it came to pass, when the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this {Or, saying}thing that is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.
And they came with haste, and found both Mary and Joseph, and the babe lying in the manger.
And when they saw it, they made known concerning the saying which was spoken to them about this child.
And all that heard it wondered at the things which were spoken unto them by the shepherds.
But Mary kept all these {Or, things}sayings, pondering them in her heart.
And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, even as it was spoken unto them.
And when eight days were fulfilled for circumcising him, his name was called JESUS, which was so called by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
And when the days of their purification {Leviticus 12:2-6.}according to the law of Moses were fulfilled, they brought him up to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord
(as it is written in the law of the Lord, {Exodus 13:2, 12}Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord),
and to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, {Leviticus 12:8; 5:11.}A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons.
And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Spirit was upon him.
And it had been revealed unto him by the Holy Spirit, that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ.
And he came in the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, that they might do concerning him after the custom of the law,
then he received him into his arms, and blessed God, and said,
Now lettest thou thy {Greek: bondservant.}servant depart, {Greek: Master.}Lord,According to thy word, in peace;
For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,
Which thou hast prepared before the face of all peoples;
A light for {Or, the unveiling of the Gentiles}revelation to the Gentiles,And the glory of thy people Israel.
And his father and his mother were marvelling at the things which were spoken concerning him;
and Simeon blessed them, and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set for the falling and the rising of many in Israel; and for a sign which is spoken against;
yea and a sword shall pierce through thine own soul; that thoughts out of many hearts may be revealed.
And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher (she was {Greek: advanced in many days.}of a great age, having lived with a husband seven years from her virginity,
and she had been a widow even unto fourscore and four years), who departed not from the temple, worshipping with fastings and supplications night and day.
And coming up at that very hour she gave thanks unto God, and spake of him to all them that were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.
And when they had accomplished all things that were according to the law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own city Nazareth.
And the child grew, and waxed strong, {Greek: becoming full of wisdom.}filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was upon him.
And his parents went every year to Jerusalem at the feast of the passover.
And when he was twelve years old, they went up after the custom of the feast;
and when they had fulfilled the days, as they were returning, the boy Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem: and his parents knew it not;
but supposing him to be in the company, they went a day's journey; and they sought for him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance:
and when they found him not, they returned to Jerusalem, seeking for him.
And it came to pass, after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the {Or, doctors See chapter 5:17; Acts 5:34.}teachers, both hearing them, and asking them questions:
and all that heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.
And when they saw him, they were astonished; and his mother said unto him, {Greek: Child.}Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I sought thee sorrowing.
And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? knew ye not that I must be {Or, about my Father's business Greek: in the things of my Father.}in my Father's house?
And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them.
And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth; and he was subject unto them: and his mother kept all these {Or, things}sayings in her heart.
And Jesus advanced in wisdom and {Or, age}stature, and in {Or, grace}favor with God and men.
And the Word became flesh, and {Greek: tabernacled}dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, glory as of {Or, an only begotten from a father Compare Hebrews 11:17}the only begotten from the Father), full of grace and truth.
But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I heard from God: this did not Abraham.
But as many as received him, to them gave he the right to become children of God, even to them that believe on his name:
John beareth witness of him, and crieth, saying, {Some ancient authorities read (this was he that said).}This was he of whom I said, He that cometh after me is become before me: for he was {Greek: first in regard of me.}before me.
For of his fulness we all received, and {Or, grace upon grace.}grace for grace.
For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
No man hath seen God at any time; {Many very ancient authorities read God only begotten.}the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
And this is the witness of John, when the Jews sent unto him from Jerusalem priests and Levites to ask him, Who art thou?
And he confessed, and denied not; and he confessed, I am not the Christ.
And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elijah? And he saith, I am not. Art thou the prophet? And he answered, No.
They said therefore unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?
He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as {Isaiah 40:3.}said Isaiah the prophet.
{Or, And certain had been sent from among the Pharisees.}And they had been sent from the Pharisees.
And they asked him, and said unto him, Why then baptizest thou, if thou art not the Christ, neither Elijah, neither the prophet?
John answered them, saying, I baptize {Or, with}in water: in the midst of you standeth one whom ye know not,
even he that cometh after me, the latchet of whose shoe I am not worthy to unloose.
These things were done in {Many ancient authorities read Bethabarah, some Betharabah. Compare Joshua 15:6, 61; 18:22.}Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.