X. Then there was a conference with the priests, who said, Let us make a veil for the temple of the Lord. And the high priest said, Gather together the pure virgins of the family of David. And the servants went and searched, and found the seven virgins. And the high priest remembered the young Mary, who was of the line of David and was pure before God. And the servants went and brought her. And they brought the virgins into the temple of the Lord. And the high priest said, "Cast lots for whom: gold, and amiant,170 and linen, and silk, and hyacinth, and crimson, and true purple." And the real purple and scarlet fell out to Mary, and she took them, and returned to her house. At this time, Zechariah was mute, replaced by Samuel (until Zechariah began to speak again). And Mary, taking the scarlet, began to spin.

XI. And she took the pitcher, and went to fetch water; and she heard a voice announcing: Rejoice, full of grace! The Lord is with you; blessed art thou among women[171]. And she looked around to see where the voice came from. And being afraid, she returned home, and set down the pitcher, and took the purple, and began to spin it. And then an angel of the Lord stood before her and said: "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found grace with God, and you will conceive according to His word." And when she heard it, she pondered, saying to herself, "Shall I conceive of the living God, and give birth as any woman gives birth?" And the angel said, "Not so, Mary, but the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee, wherefore the Holy One that thou hast begotten shall be called the son of the Most High." And thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people. And Mary said, I am the servant of the Lord, let it be done to me according to thy word.

XII. And when she had finished spinning the crimson and the purple, she took it to the high priest. The high priest blessed her and said, "God has magnified your name, and you will be blessed in all the nations of the earth." Rejoicing, Mary went to her relative Elizabeth. And she knocked at the door, and when Elizabeth heard it, she ceased to spin the scarlet, and ran to the door, and when she opened it, she saw Mary, and blessed her, saying:

why is this (given) to me, that the mother of my Lord has come to me [172]. For the babe in me has leaped and blessed you. But Mary did not comprehend the mysteries that the Archangel Gabriel had revealed to her, and lifted up her eyes to heaven and said, "Who am I, Lord, that all the nations of the earth bless me?" And she lived with Elizabeth for three months [173]. Meanwhile, her womb grew larger day by day, and Mary returned to her house in fear and hid herself from the children of Israel. She was sixteen years old [174] when these sacraments were performed.

XIII. It was now the sixth month (of her pregnancy), when Joseph returned from his carpentry, and went into the house and saw her pregnant. And he smote his face, and fell on his face, and wept bitterly, saying, How shall I now turn to the Lord my God, how shall I pray for this virgin, for I have brought her out of the temple as a virgin, and have not been able to keep her? Who deceived me? Who has done evil to my house, and profaned the virgin? Did not the same thing happen to me as to Adam? As when Adam glorified (the Lord), the serpent appeared, and saw Eve alone, and deceived her, so it happened to me. And Joseph arose, and called Mary, and said,

You, who were in the care of God, what then did you do and forget the Lord your God? Why did you defile your soul, you who grew up in the Holy of Holies and received food from an angel? Then she wept bitterly and said, "I am pure and do not know my husband." And Joseph said to her, Whence then is the fruit in thy womb? She answered: As the Lord my God lives, I do not know from where.

XIV. And Joseph was frightened, and was comforted by her, and began to consider what to do with her. And Joseph said:

if I conceal her sin, I will become a transgressor of the law, and if I tell the children of Israel about it, I will give up innocent blood to death. What am I to do with it? I will let her go secretly. And night fell. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, and said, Fear not for the virgin: for that which is in her is of the Holy Spirit: she shall bear a son, and thou shalt call him Jesus. For he will save his people from the punishment of their sins. And Joseph awoke and glorified the God of Israel, who had sent him grace, and left her.

XV. Then Annas the scribe came to him and asked why you were not at the meeting? And Joseph answered,

I was tired from the journey and wanted to rest the first day. And Anna turned and saw Mary pregnant. And he ran to the high priest and said to him, "Joseph, whom you consider (righteous), has done against the law." And the high priest said, What has happened? And Annas the scribe said, "The virgin whom he took out of the temple of the Lord, he desecrated, broke the marriage, and did not tell the children of Israel about it." And the high priest asked, "Did Joseph do this?" And the scribe Anna said:

Send the servants and you will find out that she is pregnant. And they sent their servants, and they saw her as he spoke, and brought her and Joseph to court. And the high priest said, "Mary, what have you done?" Why did she defame her soul and forget about the Lord her God? Who dwelt in the Holy of Holies, who took food from the angel, who heard the singing from his mouth, who rejoiced before him, why did you do this? And she, weeping bitterly, said, As the Lord my God lives, I am pure before him, and know no man. And the high priest said to Joseph, Why hast thou done this? And Joseph answered, "As the Lord my God lives, I am pure before her." And the high priest said, "Do not bear false witness, but speak the truth." Thou hast broken the marriage, and hast not made it known to the children of Israel, and hast not bowed thy head before the hand of the Lord, that he may bless thy descendants. Joseph was silent.

XVI. And the high priest said, "Give me the virgin whom you took from the temple of the Lord." And Joseph wept. Then said the high priest, "I will give you to drink the water of reproof before the Lord, and God will show your sins before your eyes." And having taken (the water), he gave Joseph to drink and sent him to the mountain, and he returned unharmed. He also made Mary drunk and sent her to the mountain, and she returned unharmed. And then the people were amazed that no sin was found in them. And the high priest said, If the Lord God has not manifested your sin, I will not judge you. And he let them go. And Joseph took Mary and went home, praising the Lord and rejoicing.

XVII. Then there was an order from Caesar Augustus to take a census in Bethlehem of Judea. And Joseph said, I will write down my sons. But what am I to do with this maiden? Who should write it down? Wife? I'm ashamed.

Daughter? But all the children of Israel know that she is not my daughter. Let the day of the Lord show what will please the Lord. And he put her on a saddled donkey, and one son led him, and Joseph and his other son went after them. And they walked three miles. And Joseph looked (in the text - turned around) and saw that she was sad and thought that the fruit in her saddened her. Then Joseph looked again, and saw that she was joyful, and he asked her, "Mary, why do I see your face now sad, now happy?" And Mary answered Joseph, "Because I see before my eyes two nations, the one weeping and weeping, the other rejoicing and rejoicing. And when they had gone halfway, Mary said unto him, Take me down from the ass, for that which is in me maketh me go. And he took her from the donkey, and said to her, Whither shall I take thee, and hide thy shame? For the place here is deserted.