John 1:19–34

John’s Witness to the Priests and Levites

Matt. 3:1–12; Mark 1:2–8; Luke 3:3–16

¹⁹Now this is ^gthe testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?”

^20hHe confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.”

²¹And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?”

He said, “I am not.”

“Are you ⁱthe Prophet?”

And he answered, “No.”

²²Then they said to him, “Who are you, that we may give an answer to those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?”

²³He said: ^j“I am

^k‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

“Make straight the way of the Lord,” ’

as the prophet Isaiah said.”

²⁴Now those who were sent were from the Pharisees. ²⁵And they asked him, saying, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”

²⁶John answered them, saying, ^l“I baptize with water, ^mbut there stands One among you whom you do not know. ²⁷ⁿIt is He who, coming after me, ⁹is preferred before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose.”

²⁸These things were done ^oin ¹Bethabara beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

John’s Witness at Christ’s Baptism

Matt. 3:13–17; Mark 1:9–11; Luke 3:21, 22

²⁹The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! ^pThe Lamb of God ^qwho takes away the sin of the world! ³⁰This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who ²is preferred before me, for He was before me.’ ³¹I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, ^rtherefore I came baptizing with water.”

^32sAnd John bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. ³³I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, ^tthis is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ ³⁴And I have seen and testified that this is the ^uSon of God.”