Matthew 3:1-10

1Now 1in those days 2John the Baptist 3came, 4preaching in the 5wilderness of Judea, saying, 2“6Repent, for 7the kingdom of heaven has come near.” 3For this is the 8one referred to 9by Isaiah the prophet when he said, “10The voice of one 11calling 12out in the wilderness, ‘13Prepare the way of the Lord, Make His paths straight!’” 4Now John himself had 1415a garment of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist; and his food was 16locusts and wild honey. 5At that time Jerusalem 17was going out to him, and all Judea and all 18the region around the Jordan; 6and they were being 19baptized by him in the Jordan River, as they confessed their sins.

7But when he saw many of the 20Pharisees and 21Sadducees coming for 22baptism, he said to them, “You 2324offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from 25the wrath to come? 826Therefore produce fruit 27consistent with repentance; 9and do not assume that you can say to yourselves, ‘28We have Abraham as our father’; for I tell you that God is able, from these stones, to raise up children for Abraham. 10And the 29axe is already laid at the root of the trees; therefore, 30every tree that does not bear good fruit is being cut down and thrown into the fire.