John 1:15-36 (John bears witness to him; he cried aloud--for it was he who spoke--"'He who is Coming' after me is now before me, for he was ever first");

Twentieth_Century⁽ⁱ⁾ ¹⁵ (John bears witness to him; he cried aloud--for it was he who spoke--"'He who is Coming' after me is now before me, for he was ever first"); ¹⁶ Out of his fullness we have all received some gift, gift after gift of love; ¹⁷ For the Law was given through Moses, love and truth came through Jesus Christ. ¹⁸ No man has ever yet seen God; God the Only Son, who is ever with the Father--He has revealed him. ¹⁹ When the Jews sent some Priests and Levites to John from Jerusalem, to ask--"Who are you?", his statement was this: ²⁰ He confessed and did not deny it, he confessed--"I am not the Christ." ²¹ "What then?" they asked. "Are you Elijah?" "No," he said, "I am not." "Are you 'the Prophet'?" He answered, "No." ²² "Who then are you?" they continued; "tell us, that we may have some answer to give to those who have sent us. What do you say about yourself?" ²³ "I," he answered, "am--'The voice of one crying aloud in the Wilderness--"straighten the way of the Lord"', as the Prophet Isaiah said." ²⁴ These men had been sent from the Pharisees; ²⁵ And their next question was: "Why then do you baptize, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor yet 'the Prophet'?" ²⁶ John's answer was--"I baptize with water, but among you stands one whom you do not know; ²⁷ He is coming after me, yet I am not worthy even to unfasten his sandal." ²⁸ All this took place at Bethany, across the Jordan, where John was then baptizing. ²⁹ The next day John saw Jesus coming towards him, and exclaimed: "Here is the Lamb of God, who is to take away the sin of the world! ³⁰ It was of him that I spoke when I said 'After me there is coming a man who is now before me, for he was ever First.' ³¹ I myself did not know him, but, that he may be made known to Israel, I have come, baptizing with water." ³² John also made this statement--"I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of the heavens, and it remained upon him. ³³ I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water, he said to me 'He upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining upon him--he it is who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.' ³⁴ This I have seen myself, and I have declared my belief that he is the Son of God." ³⁵ The next day, when John was standing with two of his disciples, ³⁶ He looked at Jesus as he passed and exclaimed: "There is the Lamb of God!"