But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you must name him John.

But his mother said, "Never! But he must be named John."

Then he asked for a writing-tablet, and wrote, "His name is John." And they were all astonished.

in the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the message of God came to John, the son of Zechariah, in the desert.

Now while the people were on tiptoe in their expectations, and they were all arguing in their hearts about John whether he was himself the Christ,

John expressly answered them all, "I am baptizing you in water only, but there is coming the One who is stronger than I am, whose shoestrings I am not fit to untie. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and in fire;

So with many and varied exhortations John continued to proclaim the good news to the people.

added this on top of it all, that he put John in prison.

as well as James and John, Zebedee's sons, who were Simon's partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, "Stop being afraid; from now on you will be catching men."

After that they said to Him, "John's disciples rigidly practice fasting and offering up prayers; so do the Pharisees, but your disciples keep right on eating and drinking."

Simon whom he named Peter, his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew,

Now John's disciples told him about all these things.

So John called two of them to him and sent them to the Lord, to ask, "Are you the One who was to come, or should we continue to look for someone else?"

So the men went to Him and said, "John the Baptist sent us to you to ask, 'Are you the One who was to come, or should we continue to look for someone else?'"

And so He answered them, "Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind are seeing and the crippled are walking, the lepers are being healed and the deaf are hearing, the dead are being raised and the poor are having the good news preached to them.

But when John's messengers had gone, He began to speak to the crowds about John: "What did you go out into the desert to gaze at? A reed that is tossed to and fro by the wind?

"I tell you, of all men born of women there is not one greater than John; and yet the one who is of least importance in the kingdom of God is greater than he.

And all the people, even the tax-collectors, when they heard him, vindicated the righteous requirements of God by submitting to John's baptism,

"For John the Baptist came eating no bread and drinking no wine, and yet you say, 'He has a demon!'

When He reached the house, He let no one go in with Him but Peter, James, and John, and the child's father and mother.

Now Herod the governor heard of all that was taking place, and he continued to be puzzled over the reports -- by some that John had risen from the dead,

So Herod said, "John I beheaded, but who can this be about whom I hear such reports?" So he was trying to see Him.

They answered, "John the Baptist; though others say Elijah, and still others that one of the ancient prophets has come back to life."

Now about eight days after Jesus said this, He took Peter, John, and James, and went up on the mountain to pray.

Then John answered, "Master, we saw a man driving out demons by the use of your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not belong to our followers."

When the disciples, James and John, saw this, they said, "Lord, do you want us to bid fire come down from heaven and consume them?"

Once He was praying in a certain place, and when He ceased, one of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples."

It was the law and the prophets until John, but ever since that time the good news of the kingdom of God has been proclaimed, and everybody has been taking it by storm.

was John's baptism from heaven or from men?"

But if we say, 'From men,' all the people will stone us to death, for they are convinced that John was a prophet."

So He sent Peter and John, saying to them, "Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover meal."