Matthew 2: 1 - 12 (NRSV) 1  In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2  asking, "Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage." 3  When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; 4  and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5  They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: 6  'And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.'" 7  Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8  Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage." 9  When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10  When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. 11  On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

Matthew 1: 18 – 25 (NRSV)

1  A shoot shall come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. 2  The spirit of the LORD shall rest on him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. 3  His delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; 4  but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. 5  Righteousness shall be the belt around his waist, and faithfulness the belt around his loins. 6  The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them. 7  The cow and the bear shall graze, their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 8  The nursing child shall play over the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put its hand on the adder's den. 9 They will not hurt or destroy on all my holy mountain; for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

11  May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully 12  giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. 13  He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14  in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. 15  He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; 16  for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers-- all things have been created through him and for him. 17  He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18  He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. 19  For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.