¹⁹ Now this was John's testimony when the Jewish leaders sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who are you?"

²⁰ He confessed -- he did not deny but confessed -- "I am not the Christ!"

²¹ So they asked him, "Then who are you? Are you Elijah?" He said, "I am not!" "Are you the Prophet?" He answered, "No!"

²² Then they said to him, "Who are you? Tell us so that we can give an answer to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?"

²³ John said, "I am the voice of one shouting in the wilderness, 'Make straight the way for the Lord,' as Isaiah the prophet said."

²⁴ (Now they had been sent from the Pharisees.) ²⁵ So they asked John, "Why then are you baptizing if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?"

²⁶ John answered them, "I baptize with water. Among you stands one whom you do not recognize, ²⁷ who is coming after me. I am not worthy to untie the strap of his sandal!"

²⁸ These things happened in Bethany across the Jordan River where John was baptizing.

²⁹ On the next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! ³⁰ This is the one about whom I said, 'After me comes a man who is greater than I am, because he existed before me.' ³¹ I did not recognize him, but I came baptizing with water so that he could be revealed to Israel."

³² Then John testified, "I saw the Spirit descending like a dove from heaven, and it remained on him. ³³ And I did not recognize him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'The one on whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining -- this is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' ³⁴ I have both seen and testified that this man is the Chosen One of God."