The Mission of John the Baptist
(Isaiah 40:1-5; Mark 1:1-8; Luke 3:1-20; John 1:19-28)
1In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, 2And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
3For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
4And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey. 5Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, 6And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.
7But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: 9And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. 10And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
11I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: 12Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.
The Baptism of Jesus
(Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:29-34)
13Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. 14But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? 15And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him. 16And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 17And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
King James Bible
Text courtesy of BibleProtector.com.
The Mission of John the Baptist
(Isaiah 40:1–5; Mark 1:1–8; Luke 3:1–20; John 1:19–28)
1 In those days, John the Baptizer came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, 2 “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!”
3 For this is he who was spoken of by Isaiah the prophet, saying, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, make ready the way of the Lord. Make his paths straight.”
4 Now John himself wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then people from Jerusalem, all of Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him. 6 They were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for his baptism, he said to them, “You offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bring forth fruit worthy of repentance! 9 Don’t think to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I tell you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 10 “Even now the axe lies at the root of the trees. Therefore, every tree that doesn’t bring forth good fruit is cut down, and cast into the fire.
11 I indeed baptize you in water for repentance, but he who comes after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor. He will gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire.”
The Baptism of Jesus
(Mark 1:9–11; Luke 3:21–22; John 1:29–34)
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. 14 But John would have hindered him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and you come to me?” 15 But Jesus, answering, said to him, “Allow it now, for this is the fitting way for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed him. 16 Jesus, when he was baptized, went up directly from the water: and behold, the heavens were opened to him. He saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming on him. 17 Behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
The Mission of John the Baptist
(Isaiah 40:1–5; Mark 1:1–8; Luke 3:1–20; John 1:19–28)
1 In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” 3 This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah:
“A voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make straight paths for Him.’ ” a
4 John wore a garment of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. 5 People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region around the Jordan. 6 Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.
7 But when John saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his place of baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Produce fruit, then, in keeping with repentance. 9 And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 10 The axe lies ready at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
11 I baptize you with water b for repentance, but after me will come One more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. c 12 His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”
The Baptism of Jesus
(Mark 1:9–11; Luke 3:21–22; John 1:29–34)
13 At that time Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?”
15 “Let it be so now,” Jesus replied. “It is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness in this way.” Then John permitted Him.
16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, He went up out of the water. Suddenly the heavens were opened, d and He saw e the Spirit of God descending like a dove and resting on Him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased!”
Footnotes:
3 a Isaiah 40:3 (see also LXX)
11 b Or in water
11 c Or in the Holy Spirit and in fire
16 d NA, BYZ, and TR the heavens were opened to Him
16 e Or and he saw ; see John 1:32–33.
The Mission of John the Baptist
(Isaiah 40:1-5; Mark 1:1-8; Luke 3:1-20; John 1:19-28)
1And in those days cometh John the Baptist, proclaiming in the wilderness of Judea, 2and saying, 'Reform, for come nigh hath the reign of the heavens,'
3for this is he who was spoken of by Isaiah the prophet, saying, 'A voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, straight make ye His paths.'
4And this John had his clothing of camel's hair, and a girdle of skin round his loins, and his nourishment was locusts and honey of the field. 5Then were going forth unto him Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region round about the Jordan, 6and they were baptized in the Jordan by him, confessing their sins.
7And having seen many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming about his baptism, he said to them, 'Brood of vipers! who did shew you to flee from the coming wrath? 8bear, therefore, fruits worthy of the reformation, 9and do not think to say in yourselves, A father we have -- Abraham, for I say to you, that God is able out of these stones to raise children to Abraham, 10and now also, the axe unto the root of the trees is laid, every tree therefore not bearing good fruit is hewn down, and to fire is cast.
11'I indeed do baptize you with water to reformation, but he who after me is coming is mightier than I, of whom I am not worthy to bear the sandals, he shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire, 12whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his floor, and will gather his wheat to the storehouse, but the chaff he will burn with fire unquenchable.'
The Baptism of Jesus
(Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:29-34)
13Then cometh Jesus from Galilee upon the Jordan, unto John to be baptized by him, 14but John was forbidding him, saying, 'I have need by thee to be baptized -- and thou dost come unto me!' 15But Jesus answering said to him, 'Suffer now, for thus it is becoming to us to fulfil all righteousness,' then he doth suffer him. 16And having been baptized, Jesus went up immediately from the water, and lo, opened to him were the heavens, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming upon him, 17and lo, a voice out of the heavens, saying, 'This is My Son -- the Beloved, in whom I did delight.'
The Favor of God Paraphrase
The Message of John the Baptizer
¹ In those days, John the Baptizer came preaching in the wilderness of Judea,
² saying, “Repent! Turn back to God, for the kingdom of heaven is about to break through!”
³ John was the one spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said, “A voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight!’”
⁴ John wore clothes made of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey.
⁵ People from Jerusalem, all Judea, and the whole region around the Jordan were going out to him,
⁶ and they were confessing their sins and being baptized by him in the Jordan River.
A Warning to the Religious Leaders
⁷ When John saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
⁸ Produce fruit that shows your repentance!
⁹ And don’t presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that God is able to raise up children for Abraham from these stones!
¹⁰ The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire!
John Proclaims the Messiah’s Coming
¹¹ I baptize you with water for repentance, but after me comes one who is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire!
¹² His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will clear His threshing floor, gathering His wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire!”
The Baptism of Jesus
¹³ Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John.
¹⁴ But John tried to deter Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and You come to me?”
¹⁵ Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented.
¹⁶ As soon as Jesus was baptized, He came up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on Him.
¹⁷ And a voice from heaven said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
Footnotes:
1.“Repent” (Greek: μετανοέω, metanoéō): This term implies a complete change of mind and heart, a turning away from sin and turning back to God in full submission and trust.
2.“Kingdom of heaven”: In Jewish thought, this referred to the rule of God over all creation, which was expected to break into the world in a new and transformative way.
3.“Make His paths straight”: A metaphor for preparing one’s heart and life for the coming of the Lord, ensuring that there is nothing that hinders His presence or work.
4.“Pharisees and Sadducees”: These were two influential religious groups in Israel. The Pharisees emphasized strict adherence to the law, while the Sadducees were more politically aligned and denied the resurrection of the dead.
5.“Brood of vipers”: A strong accusation, indicating that their actions were deceitful and harmful, like venomous snakes that poison others.
6.“Baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire”: The baptism of the Holy Spirit refers to being filled with God’s presence, power, and purification. The fire signifies judgment and the refining process of those who belong to God.
7.“Winnowing fork”: A tool used to separate wheat from the chaff. This symbolizes Jesus’ role in dividing those who are faithful from those who are not.
