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Matthew 3:1–6

John the Baptist Prepares the Way

3:1–12pp—Mk 1:3–8; Lk 3:2–17

3 In those days John the Baptistz came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heavena has come near.” This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah:

“A voice of one calling in the wilderness,

‘Prepare the way for the Lord,

make straight paths for him.’ ”a b

John’sc clothes were made of camel’s hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist.d His food was locustse and wild honey. People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, they were baptizedf by him in the Jordan River.

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Matthew 3:1–6 — English Standard Version (ESV)

In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

‘Prepare the way of the Lord;

make his paths straight.’ ”

Now John wore a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region about the Jordan were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

Matthew 3:1–6 — King James Version (KJV 1900)

In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. And the same John had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey. Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.

Matthew 3:1–6 — New Living Translation (NLT)

In those days John the Baptist came to the Judean wilderness and began preaching. His message was, “Repent of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.” The prophet Isaiah was speaking about John when he said,

“He is a voice shouting in the wilderness,

‘Prepare the way for the Lord’s coming!

Clear the road for him!’ ”

John’s clothes were woven from coarse camel hair, and he wore a leather belt around his waist. For food he ate locusts and wild honey. People from Jerusalem and from all of Judea and all over the Jordan Valley went out to see and hear John. And when they confessed their sins, he baptized them in the Jordan River.

Matthew 3:1–6 — The New King James Version (NKJV)

In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying:

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

‘Prepare the way of the Lord;

Make His paths straight.’ ”

Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

Matthew 3:1–6 — New Century Version (NCV)

About that time John the Baptist began preaching in the desert area of Judea. John said, “Change your hearts and lives because the kingdom of heaven is near.” John the Baptist is the one Isaiah the prophet was talking about when he said:

“This is a voice of one

who calls out in the desert:

‘Prepare the way for the Lord.

Make the road straight for him.’ ”

John’s clothes were made from camel’s hair, and he wore a leather belt around his waist. For food, he ate locusts and wild honey. Many people came from Jerusalem and Judea and all the area around the Jordan River to hear John. They confessed their sins, and he baptized them in the Jordan River.

Matthew 3:1–6 — American Standard Version (ASV)

And in those days cometh John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, saying, Repent ye; for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of through Isaiah the prophet, saying,

The voice of one crying in the wilderness,

Make ye ready the way of the Lord,

Make his paths straight.

Now John himself had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then went out unto him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about the Jordan; and they were baptized of him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

Matthew 3:1–6 — 1890 Darby Bible (DARBY)

Now in those days comes John the baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, and saying, Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn nigh. For this is he who has been spoken of through Esaias the prophet, saying, Voice of him that crieth in the wilderness: prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. And John himself had his garment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins, and his nourishment was locusts and wild honey. Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the country round the Jordan, and were baptised by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

Matthew 3:1–6 — GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Later, John the Baptizer appeared in the desert of Judea. His message was, “Turn to God and change the way you think and act, because the kingdom of heaven is near.” Isaiah the prophet spoke about this man when he said, 

“A voice cries out in the desert: 

‘Prepare the way for the Lord! 

Make his paths straight!’ ” 

John wore clothes made from camel’s hair and had a leather belt around his waist. His diet consisted of locusts and wild honey. 

Jerusalem, all Judea, and the whole Jordan Valley went to him. As they confessed their sins, he baptized them in the Jordan River. 

Matthew 3:1–6 — The Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Wilderness of Judea and saying, “Repent, because the kingdom of heaven has come near!” For he is the one spoken of through the prophet Isaiah, who said:

A voice of one crying out in the wilderness:

Prepare the way for the Lord;

make His paths straight!

John himself had a camel-hair garment with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then people from Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the vicinity of the Jordan were flocking to him, and they were baptized by him in the Jordan River as they confessed their sins.

Matthew 3:1–6 — The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

In those days John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of Judea, proclaiming, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” This is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when he said,

“The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:

‘Prepare the way of the Lord,

make his paths straight.’ ”

Now John wore clothing of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then the people of Jerusalem and all Judea were going out to him, and all the region along the Jordan, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

Matthew 3:1–6 — The Lexham English Bible (LEB)

Now in those days John the Baptist came preaching in the Judean wilderness and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near!” For this is the one who was spoken about by the prophet Isaiah, saying,

“The voice of one crying out in the wilderness,

‘Prepare the way of the Lord,

make his paths straight.’ ”

Now John himself had his clothing made from camel’s hair and a belt made of leather around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the district around the Jordan were going out to him, and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they confessed their sins.

Matthew 3:1–6 — New International Reader’s Version (1998) (NIrV)

In those days John the Baptist came and preached in the Desert of Judea. He said, “Turn away from your sins! The kingdom of heaven is near.”

John is the one the prophet Isaiah had spoken about. He had said,

“A messenger is calling out in the desert,

‘Prepare the way for the Lord.

Make straight paths for him.’ ”

John’s clothes were made out of camel’s hair. He had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. People went out to him from Jerusalem and all of Judea. They also came from the whole area around the Jordan River. When they admitted they had sinned, John baptized them in the Jordan.

Matthew 3:1–6 — New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (NASB95)

Now in those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying,

Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet when he said,

The voice of one crying in the wilderness,

Make ready the way of the Lord,

Make His paths straight!’ ”

Now John himself had a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.

Then Jerusalem was going out to him, and all Judea and all the district around the Jordan;

and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, as they confessed their sins.


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