Mat 3:1-12 | NASB2020 | STEP | Now in those days John the Baptist * came , preaching in the wilderness of Judea , saying ,

a Matt 3:1-12: Mark 1:3-8; Luke 3:2-17; John 1:6-8, 19-28

Matthew 3:1-12

The Preaching of John the Baptist

1 Now ^ain those days ^bJohn the Baptist * ^{▼▼Or arrived; or appeared}came, ^{▼▼Or proclaiming as a herald}preaching in the ^ewilderness of Judea, saying, 2 “ ^fRepent, for ^gthe kingdom of heaven ^{▼▼Lit has come near}is at hand.” 3 For this is the ⁱone referred to ^{▼▼Or through}by Isaiah the prophet when he said,

“ ^kThe voice of one ^{▼▼Or shouting}calling ^{▼▼Or out, Prepare in the wilderness the way} out in the wilderness,
‘ ⁿPrepare the way of the Lord,
Make His paths straight!’”
4 Now John himself had ^{▼▼Lit his garment
,} ^pa garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist; and his food was ^qlocusts and wild honey. 5 At that time Jerusalem ^rwas going out to him, and all Judea and all ^sthe region around the Jordan; 6 and they were being ^tbaptized by him in the Jordan River, as they confessed their sins.

7 But when he saw many of the ^uPharisees and ^vSadducees coming for ^{▼▼Later mss his baptism}baptism, he said to them, “You ^{▼▼Or brood
,} ^yoffspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from ^zthe wrath to come? 8 ^aaTherefore produce fruit ^abconsistent with repentance; 9 and do not assume that you can say to yourselves, ‘ ^acWe have Abraham as our father’; for I tell you that God is able, from these stones, to raise up children for Abraham. 10 And the ^adaxe is already laid at the root of the trees; therefore, ^aeevery tree that does not bear good fruit is being cut down and thrown into the fire.

11 “As for me, ^afI baptize you ^{▼▼The Gr here can be translated in, with, or by}with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; ^ahHe will baptize you ^{▼▼The Gr here can be translated in, with, or by}with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His ^ajwinnowing fork is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear His threshing floor; and He will ^akgather His wheat into the barn, but He will burn up the ^alchaff with ^amunquenchable fire.”