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20 [a]he admitted and did not deny it, but admitted,(A) “I am not the Messiah.” 21 So they asked him, “What are you then? Are you Elijah?”[b] And he said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” He answered, “No.”(B) 22 So they said to him, “Who are you, so we can give an answer to those who sent us? What do you have to say for yourself?” 23 He said:

“I am ‘the voice of one crying out in the desert,(C)
“Make straight the way of the Lord,”’[c]

as Isaiah the prophet said.”

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Footnotes

  1. 1:20 Messiah: the anointed agent of Yahweh, usually considered to be of Davidic descent. See further the note on Jn 1:41.
  2. 1:21 Elijah: the Baptist did not claim to be Elijah returned to earth (cf. Mal 3:19; Mt 11:14). The Prophet: probably the prophet like Moses (Dt 18:15; cf. Acts 3:22).
  3. 1:23 This is a repunctuation and reinterpretation (as in the synoptic gospels and Septuagint) of the Hebrew text of Is 40:3 which reads, “A voice cries out: In the desert prepare the way of the Lord.”

15 (A)Now the people were filled with expectation, and all were asking in their hearts whether John might be the Messiah.

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