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At that time John the Baptist came to the desert of Judea and started preaching.
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"Turn away from your sins," he said, "because the Kingdom of heaven is near!"
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John was the man the prophet Isaiah was talking about when he said,
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John's clothes were made of camel's hair; he wore a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey.
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People came to him from Jerusalem, from the whole province of Judea, and from all over the country near the Jordan River.
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They confessed their sins, and he baptized them in the Jordan.
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When John saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to him to be baptized, he said to them, "You snakes - who told you that you could escape from the punishment God is about to send?
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Do those things that will show that you have turned from your sins.
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And don't think you can escape punishment by saying that Abraham is your ancestor. I tell you that God can take these rocks and make descendants for Abraham!
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