The Baptism of Jesus

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John in order to be baptized by him. 14 But John tried to prevent[a] him, saying, “I need[b] to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 But Jesus answered and[c] said to him, “Permit it now, for in this way it is right for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he permitted him. 16 Now after he[d] was baptized, Jesus immediately went up from the water, and behold, the heavens opened[e] and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove coming[f] upon him. 17 And behold, there was[g] a voice from heaven saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 3:14 The imperfect verb is understood as conative (“tried to”)
  2. Matthew 3:14 Literally “I have need”
  3. Matthew 3:15 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“answered”) has been translated as a finite verb
  4. Matthew 3:16 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the participle (“was baptized”) which is understood as temporal
  5. Matthew 3:16 Some manuscripts have “opened to him”
  6. Matthew 3:16 Some manuscripts have “and coming”
  7. Matthew 3:17 The words “there was” are not in the Greek text, but are supplied to make a complete sentence in English

The Baptism of Jesus

13 Then Jesus went from Galilee to the Jordan River to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to talk him out of it. “I am the one who needs to be baptized by you,” he said, “so why are you coming to me?”

15 But Jesus said, “It should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires.[a] So John agreed to baptize him.

16 After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened[b] and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.”

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Footnotes

  1. 3:15 Or for we must fulfill all righteousness.
  2. 3:16 Some manuscripts read opened to him.