John 1:12-24

¹²To all those who did so take him, however, he gave the right of becoming children of God — that is, to those who had faith in his name:

¹³Whose birth was from God and not from blood, or from an impulse of the flesh and man's desire.

¹⁴And so the Word became flesh and took a place among us for a time; and we saw his glory — such glory as is given to an only son by his father — saw it to be true and full of grace.

¹⁵John gave witness about him, crying, This is he of whom I said, He who is coming after me is put over me because he was in existence before me.

¹⁶From his full measure we have all been given grace on grace.

¹⁷For the law was given through Moses; grace and the true way of life are ours through Jesus Christ.

¹⁸No man has seen God at any time; the only Son, who is on the breast of the Father, he has made clear what God is.

¹⁹And this is the witness of John when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to him with the question, Who are you?

²⁰He said quite openly and straightforwardly, I am not the Christ.

²¹And they said to him, What then? Are you Elijah? And he said, I am not. Are you the prophet? And his answer was, I am not.

²²So they said to him, Who are you then? We have to give some answer to those who sent us. What have you to say about yourself?

²³He said, I am the voice of one crying in the waste land, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said Isaiah the prophet.

²⁴Those who had been sent came from the Pharisees.