Luke 1:80

1:80 And the child kept growing ¹  and becoming strong ²  in spirit, and he was in the wilderness ³  until the day he was revealed ⁴  to Israel.

Luke 3:2

3:2 during the high priesthood ⁵  of Annas and Caiaphas, the word ⁶  of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness. ⁷ 

Matthew 3:1-5

The Ministry of John the Baptist

3:1 In those days John the Baptist came into the wilderness ⁸  of Judea proclaiming, 3:2 “Repent, ⁹  for the kingdom of heaven is near.” 3:3 For he is the one about whom Isaiah the prophet had spoken: ¹⁰ 

“The voice ¹¹  of one shouting in the wilderness,

‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make ¹²  his paths straight.’” ¹³ 

3:4 Now John wore clothing made from camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his diet consisted of locusts and wild honey. ¹⁴  3:5 Then people from Jerusalem, ¹⁵  as well as all Judea and all the region around the Jordan, were going out to him,

Mark 1:4-5

1:4 In the wilderness ¹⁶  John the baptizer ¹⁷  began preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ¹⁸  1:5 People ¹⁹  from the whole Judean countryside and all of Jerusalem ²⁰  were going out to him, and he was baptizing them ²¹  in the Jordan River as they confessed their sins.

John 1:23

1:23 John ²²  said, “I am the voice of one shouting in the wilderness, ‘Make straight ²³  the way for the Lord,’ ²⁴  as Isaiah the prophet said.”

[1:80]  ¹ tn This verb is imperfect.

[1:80]  ² tn This verb is also imperfect.

[1:80]  ³ tn Or “desert.”

[1:80]  ⁴ tn Grk “until the day of his revealing.”

[3:2]  ⁵ sn Use of the singular high priesthood to mention two figures is unusual but accurate, since Annas was the key priest from a.d. 6-15 and then his relatives were chosen for many of the next several years. After two brief tenures by others, his son-in-law Caiaphas came to power and stayed there until a.d. 36.

[3:2]  ⁶ tn The term translated “word” here is not λόγος (logos) but ῥῆμα (rJhma), and thus could refer to the call of the Lord to John to begin ministry.

[3:2]  ⁷ tn Or “desert.”

[3:1]  ⁸ tn Or “desert.”

[3:2]  ⁹ tn Grk “and saying, ‘Repent.’” The participle λέγων (legwn) at the beginning of v. 2 is redundant in English and has not been translated.

[3:3]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “was spoken of by Isaiah the prophet, saying.” The participle λέγοντος (legonto") is redundant and has not been translated. The passive construction has also been rendered as active in the translation for the sake of English style.

[3:3]  ¹¹ tn Or “A voice.”

[3:3]  ¹² sn This call to “make paths straight” in this context is probably an allusion to preparation through repentance.

[3:3]  ¹³ sn A quotation from Isa 40:3.

[3:4]  ¹⁴ 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.

[3:5]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “Then Jerusalem.”

[1:4]  ¹⁶ tn Or “desert.”

[1:4]  ¹⁷ tn While Matthew and Luke consistently use the noun βαπτίστης (baptisths, “[the] Baptist”) to refer to John, as a kind of a title, Mark prefers the substantival participle ὁ βαπτίζων (Jo baptizwn, “the one who baptizes, the baptizer”) to describe him (only twice does he use the noun [Mark 6:25; 8:28]).

[1:4]  ¹⁸ sn A baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins was a call for preparation for the arrival of the Lord’s salvation. To participate in this baptism was a recognition of the need for God’s forgiveness with a sense that one needed to live differently as a response to it.

[1:5]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “And the whole Judean countryside.” Mark uses the Greek conjunction καί (kai) at numerous places in his Gospel to begin sentences and paragraphs. This practice is due to Semitic influence and reflects in many cases the use of the Hebrew ו (vav) which is used in OT narrative, much as it is here, to carry the narrative along. Because in contemporary English style it is not acceptable to begin every sentence with “and,” καί was often left untranslated or rendered as “now,” “so,” “then,” or “but” depending on the context. When left untranslated it has not been noted. When given an alternative translation, this is usually indicated by a note.

[1:5]  ²⁰ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[1:5]  ²¹ tn Grk “they were being baptized by him.” The passive construction has been rendered as active in the translation for the sake of English style.

[1:23]  ²² tn Grk “He”; the referent (John the Baptist) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:23]  ²³ sn This call to “make straight” is probably an allusion to preparation through repentance.

[1:23]  ²⁴ sn A quotation from Isa 40:3.