[A] voice crying in the wilderness
Prepare the way of the Lord
Be making straight his paths;
5 He will fill every valley,
And every mountain and hill will be humbled,
And the crooked will be into straight,
And the rough into smooth roads,
6 And all flesh will see the salvation of God.
7 He was saying therefore to those coming out to be baptized by him: Generation of vipers, who showed you to be fleeing from the impending wrath? 8 Produce therefore fruit worthy of repentance; and do not begin to be saying among yourselves, [the] father we have [is] Abraham, for I say to you that God is able out of these rocks to raise up children to Abraham. 9 But already the ax to the root of the trees is laid. Every tree therefore not producing good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
10 And the crowds were asking him saying: What therefore should we do? 11 And answering he said to them: Let1 the [one] having two tunics share with the [one] not having [any], and the [one] having bread, let1 him do likewise. 12 And tax gatherers also came to be baptized and they said to him: Teacher, what shall we do? 13 And he says to them: Be doing no more than what is commanded you. 14 And also those serving as soldiers were asking him saying: And what shall we do? And he said to them: Exort no one nor blackmail [anyone], and be satisfied with your wages.
15 But [to] the people looking for and all [those] reasoning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ 16 John was answering saying to them: I on the one hand baptize you in2 water, but [one] stronger than me comes, of whom I am not worthy to loose the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you in3 the Holy Spirit and fire, 17 of whom the winnowing fork in his hand will clean out his threshing floor, and he will gather the wheat into his storehouse, but the chaff he will burn in fire inextinguishable.
18 Many [things] therefore and other [things] he was proclaiming entreating the people. 19 But Herod the tetrarch, being reproved by him concerning Herodias the wife of his brother and concerning all the wickedness4 that Herod had done, 20 and this added upon all, he locked John up in prison.
1imperative
2or "with"
3or "with"
4PONEROS (πoνηρoς ) here. The Greek word KAKOS (κακoς ) is always translated `evil', PONEROS is usually translated as `wicked' although occasionally as `bad'; it can also mean 'diseased', 'sickly' and is thus translated where appropriate. Like KAKOS, PONEROS also means `evil', but the harm that evil does is more in view, where KAKOS is more `evil as evil'.
version 3.85.
On 08 Sep 2009, 19:29.