1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.a

2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet,b

“Behold, I send my messenger before thy face,

who shall prepare thy way;

3 the voice of one crying in the wilderness:

Prepare the way of the Lord,

make his paths straight—”

4 John the baptizer appeared* in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.