1
Nowin the fifteenthyear of the reign of TiberiusCaesar,PontiusPilate being governor of Judaea,andHerod being tetrarch of Galilee,andhisbrotherPhiliptetrarch of Ituraeaand of the region of Trachonitis,andLysanias the tetrarch of Abilene,
2
AnnasandCaiaphasbeing the high priests, the word of GodcameuntoJohn the son of Zachariasin the wilderness.
3
And he cameintoall the country aboutJordan,preaching the baptism of repentancefor the remission of sins;
4
As it is writtenin the book of the words of Esaias the prophet,saying , The voice of one cryingin the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord,makehispathsstraight.
5
Everyvalley shall befilled , andeverymountainandhill shall be brought low ; and the crooked shall be madestraight,and the roughways shall be madesmooth;
7
Thensaid he to the multitude that came forth to be baptizedofhim, O generation of vipers,who hath warnedyou to fleefrom the wrath to come ?
8
Bring forththereforefruitsworthy of repentance,andbeginnot to saywithinyourselves, We haveAbraham to our father:for I say unto you,ThatGod is ableofthesestones to raise upchildren unto Abraham.
9
Andnowalso the axe is laidunto the root of the trees:everytreetherefore which bringethnotforthgoodfruit is hewn down , andcastinto the fire.
10
And the peopleaskedhim,saying , What shall we dothen?
11
He answerethandsaith unto them, He that hathtwocoats, let him impart to him that hathnone;and he that hathmeat, let him dolikewise.
12
Thencamealsopublicans to be baptized , andsaiduntohim,Master,what shall we do ?
13
And he saiduntothem,Exactnomorethan that which is appointedyou.
14
And the soldierslikewisedemanded of him,saying , Andwhat shall wedo ? And he saiduntothem, Do violence to no man,neither accuse any falsely ; and be content with yourwages.
15
And as the people were in expectation , and all menmusedintheirheartsofJohn,whetherhewere the Christ, or not;
16
Johnanswered , saying unto them all,Iindeedbaptizeyou with water;but one mightier thanIcometh , the latchet of whose*shoes I amnotworthy to unloose : he shall baptizeyouwith the HolyGhostand with fire:
17
Whosefan is inhishand,and he will throughly purgehisfloor,and will gather the wheatintohisgarner;but the chaff he will burn with fireunquenchable.
18
And*manyotherthingsin his exhortationpreached he unto the people.
19
ButHerod the tetrarch, being reprovedbyhimforHerodiashisbrotherPhilip'swife,andforall the evilswhichHerod had done ,
20
Addedyetthisaboveall,that he shut upJohninprison.