John the Baptist Prepares the Way
1 aThe beginning of the gospel of Jesus bChrist, the cSon of God.1
John the Baptist Prepares the Way
1 bIn the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, cPontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and dHerod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother ePhilip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, 2 during the high priesthood of fAnnas and gCaiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. 3 And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a hbaptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet,1
d“Behold, I send my messenger before your face,
who will prepare your way,
3 ethe voice of one crying in the wilderness:
‘Prepare2 the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight,’”
5 Every valley shall be filled,
and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall become straight,
and the rough places shall become level ways,
6 and jall flesh shall see the salvation of God.’”
4 Now John wore a garment of ecamel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, 6 and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You fbrood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the gwrath to come? 8 Bear fruit hin keeping with repentance. 9 And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have iAbraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. 10 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. jEvery tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
10 And the crowds asked him, “What then shall we do?” 11 And he answered them, “Whoever has ptwo tunics1 is to qshare with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.” 12 Tax collectors also came to be baptized and said to him, “Teacher, what shall we do?” 13 And he said to them, r“Collect no more than you are authorized to do.” 14 Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what shall we do?” And he said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages.”
