Nowin thosedaysJohnthe Baptistcame,preachingin the wildernessof Judea,saying,
Then Benaiahthe sonof Jehoiadawentup and fellupon him and puthim to death,and he was buriedat his own housein the wilderness.
"TrulyI sayto you, amongthose bornof womenthere has not arisen[anyone] greaterthan Johnthe Baptist!Yetthe onewho is leastin the kingdomof heavenis greaterthan he.
As thesemen were going[away], Jesusbeganto speakto the crowdsaboutJohn,"Whatdid you goout into the wildernessto see?A reedshakenby the wind?
And they said,"Some[say] Johnthe Baptist;and others,Elijah;but still others,Jeremiah,oroneof the prophets."
"For Johncameto you in the wayof righteousnessand you did not believehim; but the tax collectorsand prostitutesdid believehim; and you, seeing[this], did not evenfeel remorseafterwardso as to believehim.
"Thereforebearfruitin keepingwith repentance;
and saying,"The timeis fulfilled,and the kingdomof Godis at hand;repentand believein the gospel."
As it is writtenin Isaiahthe prophet:"BEHOLD,I SENDMY MESSENGERAHEADOF YOU, WHOWILL PREPAREYOUR WAY;
"And you, child,will be calledthe prophetof the Most High;For you will goon BEFORETHE LORDTO PREPAREHIS WAYS;
When the messengersof Johnhad left,He beganto speakto the crowdsaboutJohn,"Whatdid you goout into the wildernessto see?A reedshakenby the wind?
beginningwith the baptismof Johnuntilthe daythat He was takenup from us-- oneof these[must] becomea witnesswith us of His resurrection."
"Nowbehold,the LORDhas let me live,justas He spoke,theseforty-fiveyears,from the timethat the LORDspokethiswordto Moses,whenIsraelwalkedin the wilderness;and nowbehold,I am eighty-fiveyearsoldtoday.
The descendantsof the Kenite,Moses'father-in-law,wentup from the cityof palmswith the sonsof Judah,to the wildernessof Judahwhichis in the southof Arad;and they wentand livedwith the people.
