John the Baptist Prepares the Way^(A)

3 In those days John the Baptist^(B) came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea ² and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven^(C) has come near.”

⁴ John’s^(A) clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist.^(B) His food was locusts^(C) and wild honey. ⁵ People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. ⁶ Confessing their sins, they were baptized^(D) by him in the Jordan River.