Matthew 3:13-15

The Baptism of Jesus

3:13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John to be baptized by him in the Jordan River. ¹  3:14 But John ²  tried to prevent ³  him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and yet you come to me?” 3:15 So Jesus replied ⁴  to him, “Let it happen now, ⁵  for it is right for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John ⁶  yielded ⁷  to him.

Luke 3:21

The Baptism of Jesus

3:21 Now when ⁸  all the people were baptized, Jesus also was baptized. And while he was praying, ⁹  the heavens ¹⁰  opened,

[3:13]  ¹ tn “River” is not in the Greek text but is supplied for clarity.

[3:14]  ² tc ‡ The earliest mss (א* B sa) lack the name of John here (“but he tried to prevent him,” instead of “but John tried to prevent him”). It is, however, clearly implied (and is thus supplied in translation). Although the longer reading has excellent support (Ì⁹⁶ א¹ C D^s L W 0233 0250 Ë^1,13 33 Ï lat[t] sy mae bo), it looks to be a motivated and predictable reading: Scribes apparently could not resist adding this clarification.

[3:14]  ³ tn The imperfect verb has been translated conatively.

[3:15]  ⁴ tn Grk “but Jesus, answering, said.” This construction with passive participle and finite verb is pleonastic (redundant) and has been simplified in the translation to “replied to him.”

[3:15]  ⁵ tn Grk “Permit now.”

[3:15]  ⁶ tn Grk “he”; the referent (John the Baptist) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[3:15]  ⁷ tn Or “permitted him.”

[3:21]  ⁸ tn Grk “Now it happened that when.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[3:21]  ⁹ tn Grk “and while Jesus was being baptized and praying.” The first of these participles has been translated as a finite verb to be more consistent with English style.

[3:21]  ¹⁰ tn Or “the sky”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context. In this context, although the word is singular, the English plural “heavens” connotes the Greek better than the singular “heaven” would, for the singular does not normally refer to the sky.