Matthew 3:1-12 - John The Baptist Begins His Ministry

¹ In those days John the Baptist appeared, and preached in the desert of Judea. ² "Repent!" he said, "for the Kingdom of Heaven is coming!" ³ It was he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, when he said, "Hark! Someone is shouting in the desert, 'Get the Lord's way ready! Make his paths straight!' "

⁴ John wore clothing made of hair cloth, and he had a leather belt around his waist, and he lived on dried locusts and wild honey. ⁵ Then Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole Jordan valley went out to him, ⁶ and they were baptized by him in the Jordan River, in acknowledgment of their sins.

⁷ But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, "You brood of snakes! Who warned you to escape from the wrath that is coming? ⁸ Then produce fruit that will be consistent with your professed repentance! ⁹ Do not suppose that you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham for our forefather,' for I tell you God can produce descendants for Abraham right out of these stones! ¹⁰ But the axe is already lying at the roots of the trees. Any tree that fails to produce good fruit is going to be cut down and thrown into the fire.

¹¹ I am baptizing you in water in token of your repentance, but he who is coming after me is stronger than I am, and I am not fit to carry his shoes. He will baptize you in the holy Spirit and in fire. ¹² His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clean up his threshing-floor, and store his wheat in his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with inextinguishable fire."

¹ The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ. ² As it is written in the prophet Isaiah, "Here I send my messenger on before you; He will prepare your way; ³ Hark! Someone is shouting in the desert, 'Get the Lord's way ready, Make his paths straight,' "

⁴ John the baptizer appeared in the desert, and preached repentance and baptism in order to obtain the forgiveness of sins. ⁵ And all Judea and everybody in Jerusalem went out to him there, and accepted baptism from him in the Jordan River, acknowledging their sins. ⁶ John's clothing was made of hair cloth, and the belt around his waist was leather, and he lived on dried locusts and wild honey. ⁷ And this was his message: "After me there is coming one stronger than I am, one whose shoes I am not fit to stoop down and untie. ⁸ I have baptized you in water, but he will baptize you in the holy Spirit."

¹ In the fifteenth year of the reign of the Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod governor of Galilee, while his brother Philip was governor of the territory of Iturea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was the governor of Abilene, ² in the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, a message from God came to Zechariah's son John in the desert. ³ And he went all through the Jordan Valley preaching repentance and baptism in order to obtain the forgiveness of sins, ⁴ as the book of the sermons of the prophet Isaiah says, "Hark! Someone is shouting in the desert, Get the Lord's way ready! Make his paths straight. ⁵ Every hollow must be filled up, And every mountain and hill leveled. What is crooked is to be made straight, And the rough roads are to be made smooth, ⁶ And all mankind is to see how God can save!"

⁷ So he would say to the crowds that came out there to be baptized by him, "You brood of snakes! Who warned you to fly from the wrath that is coming? ⁸ Then produce fruit that will be consistent with your professed repentance! And do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham for our forefather,' for I tell you, God can produce descendants for Abraham right out of these stones! ⁹ But the axe is already lying at the roots of the trees. Any tree that fails to produce good fruit is going to be cut down and thrown into the fire."

¹⁰ The crowds would ask him, "Then what ought we to do?"

¹¹ And he answered, "The man who has two shirts must share with the man who has none, and the man who has food must do the same."

¹² Even tax-collectors came to be baptized, and they said to him, "Master, what ought we to do?"

¹³ He said to them, "Do not collect any more than you are authorized to."

¹⁴ And soldiers would ask him, "And what ought we to do?" He said to them, "Do not extort money or make false charges against people, but be satisfied with your pay."

¹⁵ As all this aroused people's expectations, and they were all wondering in their hearts whether John was the Christ, ¹⁶ John said to them all, "I am only baptizing you in water, but someone is coming who is stronger than I am, whose shoes I am not fit to untie. He will baptize you in the holy Spirit and in fire. ¹⁷ He has his winnowing fork in his hand, to clean up his threshing-floor, and store his wheat in his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with inextinguishable fire." ¹⁸ So with many varied exhortations he would preach the good news to the people, ¹⁹ but Herod the governor, whom he condemned because of Herodias, his brother's wife, and all the wicked things Herod had done, ²⁰ crowned them all by putting John in prison.