After this, Jesus went into Judea with his disciples, stayed there with them, and baptized.
John was also baptizing, at Aenon, near to Salim, because water was plentiful in that region; and people were constantly coming for baptism. (This was before John's imprisonment.)
Some of John's disciples had fallen into disputes with Judeans about purification; so they came to [John] and said, "Rabbi, there was a man with you on the other side of the Jordan, to whom you bore your witness. Here he is baptizing, and crowds are flocking to him!"
John's answer was, "A man can have only what God gives him. You yourselves can testify that I said, 'I am not the Messiah; I have been sent as his forerunner.'
"It is the bridegroom to whom the bride belongs. The bridegroom's friend, who stands by and listens to him, is overjoyed at hearing the bridegroom's voice. This joy, this perfect joy, is now mine. As he grows greater, I must grow less."
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