The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, just as it had been told them.

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph and the child lying in the manger.

This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger."

to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.

But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for see, I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people:

All who heard them pondered them and said, “What then will this child become?” For indeed the hand of the Lord was him.

He has come to the aid of his child Israel,

in remembrance of his mercy,

according to the promise he made to our ancestors,

to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”

He has brought down the powerful from their thrones

and lifted up the lowly;

he has filled the hungry with good things

and sent the rich away empty.

indeed, his mercy is for those who fear him

from generation to generation.

He has shown strength with his arm;

he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.

for he has looked with favor on the lowly state of his servant.

Surely from now on all generations will call me blessed,

for the Mighty One has done great things for me,

and holy is his name;

My soul magnifies the Lord,

and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible.,

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

For if we willfully persist in sin after having received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins

not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds,

Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful.

let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

Therefore let us go on toward perfection, leaving behind the basic teaching about Christ and not laying again the foundation: repentance from dead works and faith toward God, instruction about baptisms and laying on of hands, resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment.

Indeed, the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.