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A Voice in the Wilderness

19 And this is (A)the witness of John, when (B)the [a]Jews sent to him priests and Levites (C)from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20 And he confessed and did not deny, but confessed, “(D)I am not the [b]Christ.” 21 And they asked him, “What then? Are you (E)Elijah?” And he *said, “I am not.” “Are you (F)the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” 22 Therefore, they said to him, “Who are you, so that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?” 23 He said, “I am (G)a voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the [c]Lord,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.”

24 Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. 25 And they asked him, and said to him, “Why then are you baptizing, if you are not the [d]Christ, nor Elijah, nor (H)the Prophet?” 26 John answered them, saying, “(I)I baptize with water, but among you stands One whom you do not know. 27 This One is (J)He who comes after me, of whom I am not worthy to untie the (K)strap of His sandal.” 28 These things took place in Bethany (L)beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

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Footnotes

  1. John 1:19 Often refers to Jewish leaders in John’s gospel
  2. John 1:20 Messiah
  3. John 1:23 In OT, Yahweh, cf. Is 40:3
  4. John 1:25 Messiah

The Testimony of John the Baptist

19 This was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders sent priests and Temple assistants[a] from Jerusalem to ask John, “Who are you?” 20 He came right out and said, “I am not the Messiah.”

21 “Well then, who are you?” they asked. “Are you Elijah?”

“No,” he replied.

“Are you the Prophet we are expecting?”[b]

“No.”

22 “Then who are you? We need an answer for those who sent us. What do you have to say about yourself?”

23 John replied in the words of the prophet Isaiah:

“I am a voice shouting in the wilderness,
    ‘Clear the way for the Lord’s coming!’”[c]

24 Then the Pharisees who had been sent 25 asked him, “If you aren’t the Messiah or Elijah or the Prophet, what right do you have to baptize?”

26 John told them, “I baptize with[d] water, but right here in the crowd is someone you do not recognize. 27 Though his ministry follows mine, I’m not even worthy to be his slave and untie the straps of his sandal.”

28 This encounter took place in Bethany, an area east of the Jordan River, where John was baptizing.

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Footnotes

  1. 1:19 Greek and Levites.
  2. 1:21 Greek Are you the Prophet? See Deut 18:15, 18; Mal 4:5-6.
  3. 1:23 Isa 40:3.
  4. 1:26 Or in; also in 1:31, 33.