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saying, 'The voice of one crying in the desert, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the crooked places shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth; and all flesh shall see the salvation of God:' and,1 'Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, who shall prepare thy way.'

Now this John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his food was locusts and wild honey.

And there went out unto him all the land of Judea, and all the region round about the Jordan, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

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But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said unto them, "Ye broods of vipers! who hath warned you to flee from the wrath about to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, 'We have Abraham for our father;' for I say unto you, God is able from these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. But even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees: every tree therefore which bringeth not forth good fruit, is hewn down and cast into the fire."

And the multitudes asked him, saying, "What therefore shall we do?" But he answereth and saith unto them, "Let him that hath two vests, give one to him that hath none; and let him that hath provisions, do likewise."

Mal. iii. 1. Griesbach reads (Mk. i. 2,) in Isaiah the prophet: the Received Text is, in the prophets : Mill thinks the original reading was, in the prophet. 2 M. Then said he to the multitudes that came forth to be baptized by him, L.

Now there came also publicans to be baptized; and they said unto him, "Rabbi! what shall we do?" And he said unto them, "Exact no more than that which is appointed for you."

And the soldiers 2 also asked him, saying, “And what shall we do?" And he said unto them, "Use not violent extortion towards any one, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with your wages."

Now as the people were in expectation, and all were reasoning in their hearts concerning John, whether he were the Christ; John answered them all, saying, “I indeed am baptizing you with water unto repentance: but there cometh after me one mightier than I, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose : 3 he will baptize you with the holy spirit and with fire; whose winnowing shovel is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing-floor; and he will gather the wheat into his granary, but will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

Giving, therefore, many and different exhortations, he continued publishing his glad tidings to the people.1

SECT. III.

The Baptism of Jesus, near Bethabara.

MATT. iii. 13-17. MARK i. 9-11. LUKE iii. 21-23.

And it came to pass in those days, when all the people were baptized, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee to the Jordan, unto John, to be baptized by him. But John forbad him, saying, "I have need to be baptized by thee, and comest thou to me?" But Jesus answering said unto

1 v. H. n. 2 Persons engaged in military service: v. H. n. 3 Mk. so L.: whose sandals I am not worthy to carry, M. 4 In the Harmony, Luke, iii. 19, 20, follows here; but as the event there recorded did not happen for some time, this passage will be found in Part IV. Sect I.

him, "Suffer it now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness." Then he suffered him. And Jesus having been baptized went up straightway from the water and, praying, lo the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the spirit of God 2 descending in a bodily appearance as a dove, and coming upon him; and lo a voice from the heavens, saying, "Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased." 3

And Jesus himself was about thirty years of beginning his ministry.

SECT. IV.

age, when

The Sojourn of Christ in the Desert; His Temptations.

MATT. iv. 1-11. MARK i. 12, 13. LUKE iv. 1-13.

AND Jesus being full of the holy spirit returned from the Jordan and immediately the spirit sendeth him forth into the desert. And he was in the desert forty days, being tempted by Satan, 4 and he was with the wild beasts. And he ate nothing in those days: and when they were ended, he afterwards hungered. And the tempter 5 came to him and said, "If thou art the Son of God command that these stones 6 become bread."7 But he answered and said, "It is written Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God."" Then the devil taketh him to the holy city, Jerusalem, and placeth him on the wing of the temple, and saith unto him, "If thou art the Son of God, cast thyself down from hence, for it is written 10 He will give his angels charge

1 Or, every righteous ordinance. 2 M.: spirit, Mk.: holy spirit, L. 3 L.: This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, M.: Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, Mk. 4 Mk.: the devil, M. and L. 5 M.: devil, L. M.: Command this stone that it become bread, L. 7 Or, loaves. 8 Deut. viii. 3. 9 The second temptation in M. is the third in L.; and v. v. 10 Ps. xci. 11, 12.

concerning thee, to keep thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.'" And Jesus, answering, said unto him, 'Again it is written,1 'Thou shalt not tempt the LORD thy God.'"

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Again the devil taketh him up to a very high mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, in a moment of time and saith unto him, "I will give thee all this authority, and the glory of them for it hath been delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will, I give it. If therefore thou will fall down and do me reverence, all shall be thine." Then saith Jesus unto him, "Get thee behind me, Satan : for it is written,3 'Thou shalt revere the LORD thy God, and him only shalt thou worship.""

And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him for a season: and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

SECT. V.

Testimony of the Baptist to a Deputation from the Sanhedrim, which came to him at Bethabara. The first Disciples of Jesus.

JOHN i. 19-51.

AND this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent Priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, "Who art thou?" And he confessed, and denied not: yea he confessed, "I am not the Christ." And they asked him, "What, therefore? Art thou Elijah ?" And he saith, "I am not." "Art thou the prophet?"4 And he answered, "No." They said therefore unto him, "Who art thou? that we may give

1 Deut. vi. 16. 2 M.: land, L. 3 Deut. vi. 13.

4 Deut xviii. 15.

an answer to them that sent us: what sayest thou concerning thyself?" He said, "I am 'the voice of one crying in the desert, Make straight the way of the Lord,' as said Isaiah the prophet." (And they who were sent were of the Pharisees.) And they asked him, and said unto him, "Why therefore dost thou baptize, if thou art not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?" John answered them, saying, "I baptize with water: but one hath stood in the midst of you, whom ye know not; even he who cometh after me, the thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to unloose." These things took place at Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

The next day he seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, "Behold the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world. This is he concerning whom I said, 'After me cometh a man who is preferred before me: for he was before me.' 2 And I knew him not before :3 but that he might be made manifest to Israel, for this I came baptizing with water." And John bare testimony, saying, "I saw the spirit descending from heaven as a dove, and it abode upon him. And I knew him not before: but he that sent me to baptize with water, had said unto me, 'Upon whomsoever thou shalt see the spirit descending, and abiding upon him, the same is he that baptizeth with the holy spirit.' And I saw, and bare testimony that this is the Son of God.”

The next day John was again standing there, and two of his disciples; and looking upon Jesus as he was walking along, he saith, "Behold the Lamb of God!" And the two disciples heard him speaking thus, and they followed Jesus. But Jesus turning and seeing them following him, saith unto

1 Is. xl. 3. 2 Or, who hath taken precedence of me, for he was my principal. 3 v. H. n.

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