Herod wis sair pitten about tae hear that, an een sae wis the haill o Jerusalem. Sae he convened aa the Heid-Príests an Doctors o the Law i the kintra an speired at them whaur the Christ wis tae be born.
“At Bethlehem in Judaea,” said they, “een as the Prophet says in his buik:
‘An thou, Bethlehem i the Laund o Judah,
is naegate the least amang the Clans o Judah,
for frae thee will gang furth a leader
at will herd my peiple Israel’.”
Herod than caa’d the spaemen til him in hidlins, an whan he hed lairnt frae them the day an hour o the stairn’s kythin, he sent them awà tae Bethlehem, biddin them gang their waas an seek out aa the speirins they coud win at anent the bairn: “An whan ye hae fund him,” qo he, “bring me back wurd, sae at I may gae an wurship him mysel.”
They did een as the Kíng baud them, an tuik the gate; an, behaud, thair wis the stairn gaein on afore them, on an on, or it stappit abuin the houss whaur the bairn wis; an byous blythe war they tae see the stairn! Syne they gaed ben, an saw the bairn, wi Mary his mither; an they fell on their knees an wurshippit him, an apnin their treisur-kists, they laid gifts afore him—gowd, an frankincense, an myrrh. Than they fuir awà hame anither gate nor they hed come, sin they hed been warnished in a draim no tae gae back til Herod.
Efter their wagang belyve an angel kythed til Joseph in a draim an said til him, “Rise ye up an tak the bairn an his mither an haud awà til Egyp; for Herod ettles tae seek the bairn, for tae kill him.”
Sae Joseph rase an tuik the bairn an the bairn’s mither throu the nicht an gaed doun intil Egyp, an steyed there till Herod’s deith. For sae it buid be, at the wurd spokken bi the Lord throu the mouth o the prophet micht be fufilled: “I cried my son frae Egyp.”
Whan Herod saw at he hed been joukit bi the spaemen, he wis reid-wud wi teen, an sent an slauchtert aa the man-bairns intil the haill o Bethlehem, toun an laundart, at wis twa year auld or less, conform til the time he hed lairnt frae the spaemen. Than wis fufilled the wurd spokken bi Jeremíah the Prophet:
A cry wis hard in Râmah,
yammer an murnin an nae devaul—
Rachel yammerin for her bairntime,
an comfort nane wad she tak,
for at they warna nae mair.
But, whan Herod díed, belyve an angel o the Lord kythed in a draim til Joseph in Egyp an said til him, “Rise ye up an tak the bairn an his mither an haud awà til the Laund o Israel, for them at socht the bairn’s life is deid.” Sae Joseph rase an tuik the bairn an the bairn’s mither an fuir awà til the Laund o Israel. But whan he heared at Archelâus wis Kíng o Judaea in place o his faither Herod, he wis fleyed tae gang back there an owre the heid o a warnishment in a draim drew aff intil the pairt o Galilee an there sattelt in a toun caa’d Nazareth, at the wurd spokken bi the Prophets micht be fufilled: “He will be caa’d a Nazaraean.”
3 ABOUT THAT TIME John the Baptist kythed i the muirs o Judaea, preachin an tellin the fowk: “Repent, for the Kíngdom o Heiven is naurhaund!”
This wis the man at wis spokken o bi the Prophet Isaiah, whan he said:
Hark! The voice o ane cryin, out i the muirs:
‘Redd ye the gate o the Lord,
mak strecht his pads!’
This same John’s cleadin wis a raploch coat o caumel’s hair, wi a lethern girth about his waist, an 23locusts an bumbees’ hinnie wis aa his scran. Aa Jerusalem an the haill o Judaea an Jordanside gaed out til him an confessed their sins an hed baptism at his haunds i the Jordan.
Whan he saw a feck o Pharisees an Sadducees comin for baptism, he said til them, “Ye getts o ethers, wha warnished ye tae flee frae the comin wraith? Awà an bring furth the frutes o repentance! An thinkna tae say til yoursels, ‘We hae Abraham til our faither.’ I tell ye, God coud raise childer for Abraham out o thir stanes. The aix is lyin else at the ruits o the tree, an ilka tree at beirsna guid frute will be cuttit doun an cuissen intil the fire. I am baptízin ye wi watter, tae win ye tae repentance: but him at is comin efter me is michtier nor me, sae at I amna wurdie tae tak aff his shuin for him; an he will baptíze ye wi the Halie Spírit an fire. His shuil is eenou intil his haund, an weill will he dicht his threshin-fluir; his grain will he gether intil his corn-laft, but the caff will he brenn wi fire at downa be slockent!”
Jesus nou cam frae Galilee tae the Jordan tae be baptízed bi John. But John socht tae hender him: “I hae need tae be baptízed bi ye,” qo he, “an come ye tae me?”
But Jesus answert, “Lat it be sae for the nou; we behuive tae dae this, gin we ar tae dae God’s will in aathing.” Syne John loot him hae his will.
Jesus cam strecht up frae the watter efter he hed been baptízed, an on a suddentie the lift apent, an he saw the Spírit o God comin doun his airt like a dou; an strecht a voice cam out o the lift, sayin, “This is my beluvit Son; in him I am weill-pleised.”
4 SYNE JESUS WIS led awà bi the Spírit tae the muirs for tae be tempit bi the Deivil.
Whan he 24hedna haen bite nor soup for fortie days an fortie nichts an wis fell hungrisome, the Temper 25drew up til him an said, “Gin ye ar the Son o God, bid thir stanes turn intil laifs.”
Jesus answert, “It says i the Buik:
Man sanna líve on breid alane,
but on ilka wurd at comes
furth o God’s mouth”.
Neist the Deivil tuik him awà til the Halie Cítie an set him on the toupachin o the Temple an said til him, “Gin ye ar the Son o God, cast yoursel doun tae the grund; for it says i the Buik:
He will gíe his angels orders anent ye,
an they will haud ye up on their haunds,
at ye dingna your fit again a stane.”
Jesus answert, “Ithergates it says i the Buik: ‘Thou sanna pit the Lord thy God tae the pruif’.”
Aince mair the Deivil tuik him awà, this time til an unco heich muntain, whaur he shawed him aa the kíngdoms o the warld an aa their glorie, an said til him, “Aa thir I s’ gíe ye, gin ye will gae doun on your knees an wurship me.”
Than Jesus said til him, “Awà wi ye, Sautan! It says i the Buik:
Thou sal wurship the Lord thy God,
an him sal thou sair alane.”
At that the Deivil loot him abee, an immedentlie angels cam an 26begoud fettlin for him.
Whan he heared at John hed been incarcerate, he gaed back tae Galilee an, quattin Nazareth, sattelt in Capernaüm, doun at the Lochside, i the kintra o Zebulon an Naphtali. For sae it buid be, at the wurd spokken bi
