3 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, ² in the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John, the son of Zacharias, in the wilderness. ³ He came into all the region around the Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for remission of sins. ⁴ As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet,

⁷ He said therefore to the multitudes who went out to be baptized by him, “You offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸ Therefore produce fruits worthy of repentance, and don’t begin to say among yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father;’ for I tell you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones! ⁹ Even now the ax also lies at the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down, and thrown into the fire.”

¹⁰ The multitudes asked him, “What then must we do?”

¹¹ He answered them, “He who has two coats, let him give to him who has none. He who has food, let him do likewise.”

¹² Tax collectors also came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what must we do?”

¹³ He said to them, “Collect no more than that which is appointed to you.”

¹⁴ Soldiers also asked him, saying, “What about us? What must we do?”

He said to them, “Extort from no one by violence, neither accuse anyone wrongfully. Be content with your wages.”

¹⁵ As the people were in expectation, and all men reasoned in their hearts concerning John, whether perhaps he was the Christ, ¹⁶ John answered them all, “I indeed baptize you with water, but he comes who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to loosen. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and fire, ¹⁷ whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor, and will gather the wheat into his barn; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

¹⁸ Then with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people, ¹⁹ but Herod the tetrarch,^[a] being reproved by him for Herodias, his brother’s^[b] wife, and for all the evil things which Herod had done, ²⁰ added this also to them all, that he shut up John in prison.

¹⁹ This is John’s testimony, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?”

²⁰ He declared, and didn’t deny, but he declared, “I am not the Christ.”

²¹ They asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?”

He said, “I am not.”

“Are you the prophet?”

He answered, “No.”

²² They said therefore to him, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”

²³ He said, “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’Isaiah 40:3 as Isaiah the prophet said.”

²⁴ The ones who had been sent were from the Pharisees. ²⁵ They asked him, “Why then do you baptize, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?”

²⁶ John answered them, “I baptize in water, but among you stands one whom you don’t know. ²⁷ He is the one who comes after me, who is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I’m not worthy to loosen.” ²⁸ These things were done in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

²⁹ The next day, he saw Jesus coming to him, and said, “Behold,^[a] the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! ³⁰ This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who is preferred before me, for he was before me.’ ³¹ I didn’t know him, but for this reason I came baptizing in water: that he would be revealed to Israel.” ³² John testified, saying, “I have seen the Spirit descending like a dove out of heaven, and it remained on him. ³³ I didn’t recognize him, but he who sent me to baptize in water said to me, ‘On whomever you will see the Spirit descending and remaining on him is he who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.’ ³⁴ I have seen, and have testified that this is the Son of God.”

³⁵ Again, the next day, John was standing with two of his disciples, ³⁶ and he looked at Jesus as he walked, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” ³⁷ The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. ³⁸ Jesus turned and saw them following, and said to them, “What are you looking for?”

They said to him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, being interpreted, Teacher), “where are you staying?”

³⁹ He said to them, “Come, and see.”

They came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. It was about the tenth hour.^{[b] 40} One of the two who heard John and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. ⁴¹ He first found his own brother, Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah!” (which is, being interpreted, Christ^[c]). ⁴² He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him, and said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” (which is by interpretation, Peter).^{[d] 43} On the next day, he was determined to go out into Galilee, and he found Philip. Jesus said to him, “Follow me.” ⁴⁴ Now Philip was from Bethsaida, of the city of Andrew and Peter. ⁴⁵ Philip found Nathanael, and said to him, “We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, wrote: Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”

⁴⁶ Nathanael said to him, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?”

Philip said to him, “Come and see.”

⁴⁷ Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and said about him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!”

⁴⁸ Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?”

Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”

⁴⁹ Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are King of Israel!”

⁵⁰ Jesus answered him, “Because I told you, ‘I saw you underneath the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these!” ⁵¹ He said to him, “Most certainly, I tell you all, hereafter you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

¹³ Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan^[a] 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.”

²² After these things, Jesus came with his disciples into the land of Judea. He stayed there with them and baptized. ²³ John also was baptizing in Enon near Salim, because there was much water there. They came, and were baptized; ²⁴ for John was not yet thrown into prison. ²⁵ Therefore a dispute arose on the part of John’s disciples with some Jews about purification. ²⁶ They came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified, behold, he baptizes, and everyone is coming to him.”

²⁷ John answered, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven. ²⁸ You yourselves testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent before him.’ ²⁹ He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. This, my joy, therefore is made full. ³⁰ He must increase, but I must decrease. ³¹ He who comes from above is above all. He who is from the earth belongs to the earth and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. ³² What he has seen and heard, of that he testifies; and no one receives his witness. ³³ He who has received his witness has set his seal to this, that God is true. ³⁴ For he whom God has sent speaks the words of God; for God gives the Spirit without measure. ³⁵ The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into his hand. ³⁶ One who believes in the Son has eternal life, but one who disobeys^[a] the Son won’t see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.”