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John is the man to whom the Scriptures refer when they say, ‘Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, and he will prepare your way before you.’
11
“I tell you the truth, of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John the Baptist. Yet even the least person in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he is!
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And from the time John the Baptist began preaching until now, the Kingdom of Heaven has been forcefully advancing, and violent people are attacking it.
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For before John came, all the prophets and the law of Moses looked forward to this present time.
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And if you are willing to accept what I say, he is Elijah, the one the prophets said would come.
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Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!
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“To what can I compare this generation? It is like children playing a game in the public square. They complain to their friends,
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‘We played wedding songs, and you didn’t dance, so we played funeral songs, and you didn’t mourn.’
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For John didn’t spend his time eating and drinking, and you say, ‘He’s possessed by a demon.’
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The Son of Man, on the other hand, feasts and drinks, and you say, ‘He’s a glutton and a drunkard, and a friend of tax collectors and other sinners!’ But wisdom is shown to be right by its results.”
20
Then Jesus began to denounce the towns where he had done so many of his miracles, because they hadn’t repented of their sins and turned to God.