² As it is written in ^[a]the Prophets:

^4 (C)John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance ^[b]for the remission of sins. ^5 (D)Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.

⁶ Now John was ^(E)clothed with camel’s hair and with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey.

¹¹ Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of ^(A)the altar of incense. ¹² And when Zacharias saw him, ^(B)he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

¹³ But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and ^(C)you shall call his name John. ¹⁴ And you will have joy and gladness, and ^(D)many will rejoice at his birth. ¹⁵ For he will be ^(E)great in the sight of the Lord, and ^(F)shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, ^(G)even from his mother’s womb. ¹⁶ And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. ^17 (H)He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

¹⁸ And Zacharias said to the angel, ^(I)“How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.”

¹⁹ And the angel answered and said to him, “I am ^(J)Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was sent to speak to you and bring you ^[a]these glad ^(K)tidings. ²⁰ But behold, ^(L)you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time.”

²¹ And the people waited for Zacharias, and marveled that he lingered so long in the temple. ²² But when he came out, he could not speak to them; and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple, for he beckoned to them and remained speechless.

⁷ Then he said to them, “What kind of man was it who came up to meet you and told you these words?”

⁸ So they answered him, ^(A)“A hairy man wearing a leather belt around his waist.”

And he said, ^(B)“It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

⁹ Now as they came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, “Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man is risen from the dead.”

¹⁰ And His disciples asked Him, saying, ^(A)“Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?”

¹¹ Jesus answered and said to them, “Indeed, Elijah is coming ^[a]first and will ^(B)restore all things. ^12 (C)But I say to you that Elijah has come already, and they ^(D)did not know him but did to him whatever they wished. Likewise ^(E)the Son of Man is also about to suffer at their hands.” ^13 (F)Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist.