Matthew 11:8

11:8 What ¹  did you go out to see? A man dressed in fancy clothes? ²  Look, those who wear fancy clothes are in the homes of kings! ³ 

Matthew 11:2

Jesus and John the Baptist

11:2 Now when John ⁴  heard in prison about the deeds Christ ⁵  had done, he sent his disciples to ask a question: ⁶ 

Matthew 1:8

1:8 Asa the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, Joram the father of Uzziah,

Zechariah 13:4

13:4 “Therefore, on that day each prophet will be ashamed of his vision when he prophesies and will no longer wear the hairy garment ⁷  of a prophet to deceive the people. ⁸ 

Malachi 4:5

4:5 Look, I will send you Elijah ⁹  the prophet before the great and terrible day of the Lord arrives.

Mark 1:6

1:6 John wore a garment made of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. ¹⁰ 

Luke 1:17

1:17 And he will go as forerunner before the Lord ¹¹  in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, ¹²  to make ready for the Lord a people prepared for him.”

Revelation 11:3

11:3 And I will grant my two witnesses authority ¹³  to prophesy for 1,260 days, dressed in sackcloth.

¹ tn Grk “But what.” Here ἀλλά (alla, a strong contrastive in Greek) produces a somewhat awkward sense in English, and has not been translated. The same situation occurs at the beginning of v. 9.

² sn The reference to fancy clothes makes the point that John was not rich or powerful, in that he did not come from the wealthy classes.

³ tn Or “palaces.”

⁴ sn John refers to John the Baptist.

⁵ tc The Western codex D and a few other mss (0233 1424 al) read “Jesus” here instead of “Christ.” This is not likely to be original because it is not found in the earliest and most important mss, nor in the rest of the ms tradition.

⁶ tc Instead of “by his disciples” (see the tn below for the reading of the Greek), the majority of later mss (C³ L ˹ Ï lat bo) have “two of his disciples.” The difference in Greek, however, is only two letters: διὰ τῶν μαθητῶν αὐτοῦ vs. δύο τῶν μαθητῶν αὐτοῦ (dia twn maqhtwn autou vs. duo twn maqhtwn autou). Although an accidental alteration could account for either of these readings, it is more likely that δύο is an assimilation to the parallel in Luke 7:18. Further, διά is read by a good number of early and excellent witnesses (א B C* D P W Z Δ Θ 0233 ˹³ 33 sa), and thus should be considered original.

⁷ tn The “hairy garment of a prophet” (אַדֶּרֶת שֵׁעָר, ’adderet she’ar) was the rough clothing of Elijah (1 Kgs 19:13), Elisha (1 Kgs 19:19; 2 Kgs 2:14), and even John the Baptist (Matt 3:4). Yet, אַדֶּרֶת alone suggests something of beauty and honor (Josh 7:21). The prophet’s attire may have been simple the image it conveyed was one of great dignity.

⁸ tn The words “the people” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation from context (cf. NCV, TEV, NLT).

⁹ sn I will send you Elijah the prophet. In light of the ascension of Elijah to heaven without dying (2 Kgs 2:11), Judaism has always awaited his return as an aspect of the messianic age (see, e.g., John 1:19-28). Jesus identified John the Baptist as Elijah, because he came in the “spirit and power” of his prototype Elijah (Matt 11:14; 17:1-13; Mark 9:2-13; Luke 9:28-36).

¹⁰ sn John’s lifestyle was in stark contrast to many of the religious leaders of Jerusalem who lived in relative ease and luxury. While his clothing and diet were indicative of someone who lived in the desert, they also depicted him in his role as God’s prophet (cf. Zech 13:4); his appearance is similar to the Prophet Elijah (2 Kgs 1:8). Locusts and wild honey were a common diet in desert regions and locusts (dried insects) are listed in Lev 11:22 among the “clean” foods.

¹¹ tn Grk “before him”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹² sn These two lines cover all relationships: Turn the hearts of the fathers back to their children points to horizontal relationships, while (turn) the disobedient to the wisdom of the just shows what God gives from above in a vertical manner.

¹³ tn The word “authority” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. “Power” would be another alternative that could be supplied here.