⁶ There was a man named John^[a] who was sent by God. ⁷ He came to tell people about the Light. Through him all people could hear about the Light and believe. ⁸ John was not the Light, but he came to tell people about the Light.

John Tells People About Jesus

¹⁹ The Jews in Jerusalem sent some priests and Levites to John.^[a] The Jews sent them to ask, “Who are you?”

²⁰ John spoke freely and did not refuse to answer. He said clearly, “I am not the Christ.”

²¹ So they asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”^[b]

He answered, “No, I am not Elijah.”

Then they asked, “Are you the Prophet?”^[c]

He answered, “No, I am not the Prophet.”

²² Then they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to tell those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”

²³ John told them in the words of the prophet Isaiah:

²⁴ In the group of Jews who were sent, there were some Pharisees. ²⁵ They said to John: “You say you are not the Christ. You say you are not Elijah or the Prophet. Then why do you baptize people?”

²⁶ John answered, “I baptize people with water. But there is one here with you that you don’t know. ²⁷ He is the One who comes after me. I am not good enough to untie the strings of his sandals.”

²⁸ This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan River. This is where John was baptizing people.