¹Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar , Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea , and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee , and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis , and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene,

²during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas , the word of God came to John , the son of Zacharias , in the wilderness .

³He came into all the region around the Jordan , preaching the baptism of repentance for remission of sins.

⁴As it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet ,

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness ,

‘Make ready the way of the Lord .

Make his paths straight .

⁵Every valley will be filled .

Every mountain and hill will be brought low .

The crooked will become straight ,

and the rough ways smooth .

⁶All flesh will see God ’s salvation .’”[#Isaiah 40:3-5]

⁷He said therefore to the multitudes who went out to be baptised by him , “You offspring of vipers , who warned you to flee from the wrath to come ?

⁸Therefore produce fruits worthy of repentance , and don’t begin to say amongst yourselves , ‘We have Abraham for our father ;’ for I tell you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones !

⁹Even now the axe also lies at the root of the trees . Every tree therefore that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire .”

¹⁰The multitudes asked him , “What then must we do ?”

¹¹He answered them , “He who has two coats , let him give to him who has none . He who has food , let him do likewise .”

¹²Tax collectors also came to be baptised, and they said to him , “Teacher , what must we do ?”

¹³He said to them , “Collect no more than that which is appointed to you .”

¹⁴Soldiers also asked him , saying , “What about us ? What must we do ?”

He said to them , “Extort from no one by violence, neither accuse anyone wrongfully. Be content with your wages .”

¹⁵As the people were in expectation , and all men reasoned in their hearts concerning John , whether perhaps he was the Christ ,

¹⁶John answered them all , “I indeed baptise you with water , but he comes who is mightier than I , the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to loosen. He will baptise you in the Holy Spirit and fire .

¹⁷His winnowing fan is in his hand , and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor, and will gather the wheat into his barn; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire .”

¹⁸Then with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people ,

¹⁹but Herod the tetrarch , being reproved by him for Herodias , his brother’s wife , and for all the evil things which Herod had done ,[#3:19 a tetrarch is one of four governors of a province; #3:19 TR reads “brother Philip’s” instead of “brother’s”]

²⁰added this also to them all , that he shut up John in prison .

²¹Now when all the people were baptised, Jesus also had been baptised and was praying . The sky was opened,

²²and the Holy Spirit descended in a bodily form like a dove on him ; and a voice came out of the sky , saying “You are my beloved Son . In you I am well pleased .”

²³Jesus himself, when he began to teach, was about thirty years old , being the son (as was supposed ) of Joseph , the son of Heli ,

²⁴the son of Matthat , the son of Levi , the son of Melchi , the son of Jannai , the son of Joseph ,

²⁵the son of Mattathias , the son of Amos, the son of Nahum , the son of Esli , the son of Naggai ,

²⁶the son of Maath , the son of Mattathias , the son of Semein , the son of Joseph , the son of Judah ,

²⁷the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa , the son of Zerubbabel , the son of Shealtiel , the son of Neri ,

²⁸the son of Melchi , the son of Addi, the son of Cosam , the son of Elmodam , the son of Er ,

²⁹the son of Jose, the son of Eliezer , the son of Jorim , the son of Matthat , the son of Levi ,

³⁰the son of Simeon , the son of Judah , the son of Joseph , the son of Jonan , the son of Eliakim ,

³¹the son of Melea , the son of Menan , the son of Mattatha , the son of Nathan , the son of David ,

³²the son of Jesse , the son of Obed , the son of Boaz , the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon ,

³³the son of Amminadab, the son of Aram, the son of Hezron , the son of Perez , the son of Judah ,[#3:33 NU reads “Admin, the son of Arni” instead of “Aram”]

³⁴the son of Jacob , the son of Isaac , the son of Abraham, the son of Terah , the son of Nahor ,

³⁵the son of Serug, the son of Reu , the son of Peleg , the son of Eber, the son of Shelah ,

³⁶the son of Cainan , the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem , the son of Noah , the son of Lamech ,

³⁷the son of Methuselah , the son of Enoch , the son of Jared , the son of Mahalaleel , the son of Cainan ,

³⁸the son of Enos , the son of Seth , the son of Adam, the son of God .