Mark 1:3-4
Context1:3 the voice of one shouting in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
make 1 his paths straight.’” 2
1:4 In the wilderness 3 John the baptizer 4 began preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5
Mark 1:13
Context1:13 He was in the wilderness forty days, 6 enduring temptations from Satan. He 7 was with wild animals, and angels were ministering to his needs. 8


[1:3] 1 sn This call to “make his paths straight” in this context is probably an allusion to preparation through repentance.
[1:3] 2 sn A quotation from Isa 40:3.
[1:4] 4 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] 5 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.
[1:13] 5 sn The forty days may allude to the experience of Moses (Exod 34:28), Elijah (1 Kgs 19:8, 15), or David and Goliath (1 Sam 17:16).
[1:13] 7 tn Grk “were serving him,” “were ministering to him.”