The Christmas Story in the Breakthrough Version

The passages below are from the second edition of the Breakthrough Version, a more modern and more literal translation in today's words (breakthroughversion.com). The verse numberings have been removed.

An engraving showing the angel speaking to Mary

Luke 1:26-38 (BV)

In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent out from God on a mission to a city of Galilee that has the name Nazareth to a virgin that had been engaged to a man who had the name Joseph from David's house. And the virgin's name was Mary.

And when he went in to her, he said, "Be happy. Having been shown generosity, the Master is with you."

She was very upset over the message and was considering what kind of greeting this was.

And the angel said to her, "Don't be afraid, Mary. You see, you found generosity beside God. And look, you will conceive in your uterus and will deliver a son. And you will call His name Jesus. This son will be huge and will be called the Son of the Highest. And the Master, God, will give Him the throne of David, His father. And He will be king over Jacob's house for the spans of time, and there will not be an end of His empire."

Mary said to the angel, "How will this be, since I do not know a man?"

And when the angel answered, he said to her, "The Sacred Spirit will come upon you, and the shadow of the ability of the Highest will fall on you. For this reason, the sacred Child born to you also will be called the Son of God. And look, Elisabeth, your relative, she has also conceived a son in her agedness. And this is the sixth month for her, the one who is called infertile, because every statement from God will not be impossible."

Mary said, "Look, the slave of the Master. May it happen to me in line with your statement."

And the angel went away from her.

A sketch of the wise men bowing and presenting their gifts

Matthew 1:18-2:23 (BV)

The birth of Jesus, the Anointed King, was like this: when His mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, before the time for them to come together, she was found to be pregnant from the Sacred Spirit.

Joseph, her husband, who did what was right and who did not want to make an example of her, intended to dismiss her in an unnoticed way.

When he contemplated these things, look, an angel of the Master appeared to him throughout a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take along Mary, your wife. You see, what is born in her is from the Sacred Spirit. She will deliver a son, and you will call His name Jesus. You see, He will rescue His ethnic group from their sins."

This whole thing had happened so that what was stated by the Master through the preacher in Isaiah 7:14 might be accomplished that says, "Look, the virgin will be pregnant and deliver a son. And they will call His name Immanuel, that is translated from Hebrew as 'God with us'."


When Jesus was born in Bethlehem, Judea in the days of Herod the king, look, Magian gurus from the east showed up in Jerusalem saying, "Where is the King of the Jews being delivered? You see, we saw His star in the east, and we came to bow down to Him."

When King Herod heard this, he was uneasy and all of Jerusalem with him.

And when he gathered all of the head priests and Old Testament transcribers of the ethnic group together, he was inquiring from them where the Anointed King should be born.

They said to him, "In Bethlehem, Judea." You see, this is what has been written through the preacher in Micah 5:2, "And you, Bethlehem, land of Judea, are you not the smallest among the leaders of Judea? You see, a leader will come out of you, someone who will shepherd My ethnic group Israel."

At that time, after Herod in an unnoticed way called for the Magian gurus, he verified with them the time of the shining star. And when he sent them to Bethlehem, he said, "After traveling there, question specifically about the young child. Whenever you find him, report back to me for the purpose that after going there, I also might bow down to him."

After they listened to the king, they traveled, and, look, the star that they saw in the east was going ahead of them until it came and stood over where the young child was.

When they saw the star, they were terribly happy with great happiness.

And when they came into the house, they saw the young child with Mary, His mother. And after they got down, they bowed to Him.

And when they opened their treasures, they offered up contributions to Him: gold, high quality incense, and myrrh (expensive perfume).

And when they received a notice from God throughout a dream not to turn back to Herod, they took a back way using another road to their rural region.

After they took a back way, look, an angel of the Master appeared throughout a dream to Joseph, saying, "Get up. Take along the young child and His mother, run away into Egypt, and be there until I tell you. You see, Herod is going to look for the young child to ruin Him."

After getting up, he took along the young child and his mother at night and took a back way into Egypt.

And he was there until the passing away of Herod so that what was stated by the Master through the preacher in Hosea 11:1 might be accomplished that says, "I called My Son out of Egypt."

At that time, when Herod saw that He was mocked by the Magian gurus, he was very angry. And he sent out and executed all the boys in Bethlehem and in all its borders from two years of age and below according to the time that he verified with the Magian gurus.

Then what was stated through Jeremiah, the preacher, in Jeremiah 31:15 was accomplished that says, "A sound was heard in Rama, much crying and mourning, Rachel crying for her children. And she does not want to be encouraged because they are not."

After Herod passed away, look, an angel of the Master appeared throughout a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, "Get up. Take along the young child and His mother, and travel into the land of Israel. You see, the people looking for the young child's soul have died."

He got up, took along the young child and His mother, and went into the land of Israel.

When he heard that Archelaus was king of Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go off to there. After he received a notice from God throughout a dream, he took a back way into the parts of Galilee.

And he came and resided in a city called Nazareth for the purpose that what was stated through the preachers might be accomplished, "He will be called a Nazarene."

A picture of the shepherds looking at baby Jesus

Luke 2:1-40 (BV)

It happened in those days; a rule went out from Caesar Augustus to register all the civilized world. This registration first happened as Cyrenius was the leader of Syria. And all were traveling to be registered, each to his own city.

Joseph also walked up from Galilee out of the city of Nazareth to Judea to David's city, a certain city that is called Bethlehem, because of the fact that he was from David's house and family tree, to be registered together with Mary, the woman who had been engaged to him being in the later stages of pregnancy.

It happened while they were there; the days for her to deliver culminated. And she delivered her firstborn son, wrapped Him in a strip of cloth, and laid Him in a feed trough because there was no place for them in the guest room.

And shepherds were in the same rural region camping out and standing guard over their flock during the three hour stretches of the night.

And an angel of the Master stood over them, and the greatness of the Master shined around them. And they were afraid with huge fear.

And the angel said to them, "Don't be afraid. You see, look, I am sharing the good news with you of huge happiness, something that will be for all of the ethnic group because there was delivered to you today, a rescuer, who is the Anointed King, the Master, in David's city.

And this is the indicator for you. You will find a baby that has been wrapped in a strip of cloth and is lying in a feed trough.

And unexpectedly there became together with the angel a large number of a heavenly army praising God and saying, "Greatness belongs to God in the highest, and on the earth peace among people of God's good notion."

And it happened as soon as the angels went away from them into the sky; the shepherds were speaking to each other, "We will for sure go through to Bethlehem and see this statement that has happened, that the Master informed us of."

And they went hurrying. And they looked for and found both Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the feed trough.

When they saw them, they informed them about the statement that was spoken to them about this young child.

And all the people who heard were amazed about what was spoken by the shepherds to them. But Mary was preserving all these statements as she deliberated in her heart.

And the shepherds returned admitting the greatness of and praising God based on everything that they heard and saw, just as it was spoken to them.

And when eight days culminated to circumcise Him, His name was actually called Jesus, what He was named by the angel before the time for Him to be conceived in the womb.

And when the days of their cleansing culminated according to the law of Moses, they took Him up into Jerusalem to offer Him to the Master (just as it has been written in the law of the Master in Exodus 13:2, "Every male completely opening the womb will be called sacred to the Master") and to give a sacrifice according to what has been stated in the law of the Master in Leviticus 12:8, "a pair of cooing doves or two young birds of doves."

And look, a man was in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. And this man did what was right and was devoted, expecting Israel's encouragement. And the Sacred Spirit was on him. And it was for him (having received a notice from God by the Sacred Spirit) to not see death before the time he would see the Anointed King of the Master.

And he went in the Spirit onto the temple grounds even while the parents brought the young child Jesus in for them to do according to what had been made the custom of the law concerning Him.

And he accepted Him into his bent arms, conferred prosperity on God, and said, "Now You are dismissing Your slave, Owner, in line with Your statement in peace because my eyes saw Your rescuing process that You had ready right in front of the face of all the ethnic groups, a light for uncovering non-Jews and for the greatness of Your ethnic group, Israel."

And His father and mother were amazed based on the things spoken about Him.

And Simeon conferred prosperity on them and said to Mary, His mother, "Look, this child lies here for a fall and return back to life of many people in Israel and for an indicator to which opposition is expressed (a sword will also go through your very soul) for the purpose that doubts from many hearts will be uncovered."

And Anna was a female preacher, Phanuel's daughter from Asher's family line. She was far advanced in years (literally, having walked on in many days) after living with a husband for seven years after her puberty. And she was a widow for eighty-four years who was not staying away from the temple grounds ministering with times of going without food and with pleas, night and day.

And when she in the same hour stood over them, she was responding by acknowledging God and speaking about Him to all of the people expecting Jerusalem's release payment.

And as soon as they finished all the things according to the law of the Master, they returned back to Galilee to their own city, Nazareth.

The young child was growing and gaining power being filled with insight. And God's generosity was on Him.