⁴ Now John wore clothing of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey.^{(A) 5} Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region around the Jordan were going out to him, ⁶ and they were baptized by him in the River Jordan, confessing their sins.^(B)

⁷ But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for his^[a] baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?^{(C) 8} Therefore, bear fruit worthy of repentance,^{(D) 9} and do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham.^{(E) 10} Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.^(F)

¹¹ “I baptize you with^[b] water for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is more powerful than I, and I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with^[c] the Holy Spirit and fire.^{(G) 12} His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and will gather his wheat into the granary, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”^(H)

The Authority of Jesus Questioned

²³ When he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?”^{(A) 24} Jesus said to them, “I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. ²⁵ Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?” And they argued with one another, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why, then, did you not believe him?’ ²⁶ But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we are afraid of the crowd, for all regard John as a prophet.”^{(B) 27} So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.