LITMIR.BIZ

      CHAPTER I.

      1 Caiphas relates that Jesus, when in his cradle,

       informed his mother that he was the Son of God.

       5 Joseph and Mary going to Bethlehem to be taxed, Mary's

       time of bringing forth arrives, and she goes into a cave.

       8 Joseph fetches in a Hebrew woman. The cave filled with

       great lights.

       11 The infant born,

       17 and cures the woman.

       19 Arrival of the shepherds.

      THE following accounts we found

       in the book of Joseph the

       high-priest, called by some

       Caiphas:

      2 He relates, that Jesus spake

       even when he was in the cradle,

       and said to his mother:

      3 Mary, I am Jesus the Son of

       God, that word, which thou didst

       bring forth according to the

       declaration of the angel Gabriel to

       thee, and my father hath sent me

       for the salvation of the world.

      4 In the three hundred and

       ninth year of the era of Alexander,

       Augustus published a decree that

       all persons should go to be taxed

       in their own country.

      5 Joseph therefore arose, and

       with Mary his spouse he went to

       Jerusalem, and then came to Bethlehem,

       that he and his family might be taxed

       in the city of his fathers.

      6 And when they came by the cave,

       Mary confessed to Joseph that her

       time of bringing forth was come,

       and she could not go on to the city,

       and said, Let us go into this cave.

      7 At that time the sun was very

       near going down.

      8 But Joseph hastened away,

       that he might fetch her a midwife;

       and when he saw an old Hebrew

       woman who was of Jerusalem, he

       said to her, Pray come hither,

       good woman, and go into that cave,

       and you will there see a woman

       just ready to bring forth.

      9 It was after sunset, when the

       old woman and Joseph with her

       reached the cave, and they both

       went into it.

      10 And behold, it was all filled

       with lights, greater than the light

       of lamps and candles, and greater

       than the light of the sun itself.

      11 The infant was then wrapped

       up in swaddling clothes, and sucking

       the breasts of his mother St.

       Mary.

      12 When they both saw this

       light, they were surprised; the

       old woman asked St. Mary, Art

       thou the mother of this child?

      13 St. Mary replied, She was.

      14 On which the old woman

       said, Thou art very different from

       all other women.

      15 St. Mary answered, As there

       is not any child like to my son,

       so neither is there any woman like

       to his mother.

      16 The old woman answered,

       and said, O my Lady, I am come

       hither that I may obtain an

       everlasting reward.

      17 Then our Lady St. Mary

       said to her, Lay thine hands upon

       the infant, which, when she had

       done, she became whole.

      18 And as she was going forth,

       she said, From henceforth, all the

       days of my life, I will attend upon

       and be a servant of this infant.

      19 After this, when the shepherds

       came, and had made a fire, and they

       were exceedingly rejoicing, the

       heavenly host appeared to them,

       praising and adoring the supreme God.

      20 And as the shepherds were

       engaged in the same employment,

       the cave at that time seemed like

       a glorious temple, because both

       the tongues of angels and men

       united to adore and magnify God,

       on account of the birth of the Lord

       Christ.

      21 But when the old Hebrew

       woman saw all these evident miracles,

       she gave praises to God, and

       said, I thank thee, O God, thou

       God of Israel, for that mine eyes

       have seen the birth of the Saviour

       of the world.