Mateus 3
1 E, n'aquelles dias, appareceu João Baptista prégando no deserto da Judea,
While [Jesus was still in Nazareth town], John, [whom the people called] the Baptizer, went to a desolate place in Judea [district].
2 E dizendo: Arrependei-vos, porque é chegado o reino dos céus;
He was preaching [to the people who came there]. He kept saying, “[You need to] turn away from your sinful behavior, because God [MET] will soon begin to rule [over people, and he will reject you if you do not turn away from your sinful life].”
3 Porque é este o annunciado pelo propheta Isaias, que disse: Voz do que clama no deserto: preparae o caminho do Senhor, endireitae as suas veredas.
John was the person who [fulfilled] what was said by Isaiah the prophet {what Isaiah the prophet [predicted] when he said}, long ago: In a desolate area ([people will hear someone/someone will be heard]) shouting [to the people who pass by], Prepare [yourselves to receive] the Lord when he comes! [Make yourselves ready so that you will be prepared when he comes] [MET, DOU], just like people [improve and] straighten out the road [for an important official!]
4 E este João tinha o seu vestido de pellos de camelo, e um cinto de coiro em torno de seus lombos; e alimentava-se de gafanhotos e mel silvestre.
John wore [coarse] clothing made from camel’s hair. And [as the prophet Elijah did long ago], he wore a leather belt around his waist. His food was [only] grasshoppers and honey [that he found] in that desolate area.
5 Então ia ter com elle Jerusalem, e toda a Judea, e toda a provincia adjacente ao Jordão,
[People who lived in] Jerusalem [city] [MTY], many [HYP] [people who lived in other places in] Judea [district] [MTY], and many [HYP] [people who lived in] the area around the Jordan [River] [MTY] came to John [to hear him preach].
6 E eram por elle baptizados no rio Jordão, confessando os seus peccados.
After [they heard him tell them to turn away from their sinful behavior], they [openly] confessed their sins, and as a result they were baptized by John {John baptized them} in the Jordan River.
7 E, vendo elle muitos dos phariseos e dos sadduceos, que vinham ao seu baptismo, dizia-lhes: Raça de viboras, quem vos ensinou a fugir da ira futura?
After John noted that many men of the Pharisee [religious group] and of the Sadducee [religious group] were coming [to him] to be baptized {in order that he would baptize them}, he said to them, “You people are [evil like poisonous] snakes [MET]! I warn you that God will some day punish [MTY] everyone who sins. (And do not think that you can escape from his punishing you [MTY] [if you do not turn from your sinful behavior]!/Did someone tell you that you can escape from his punishing you [MTY] [if you do not turn from your sinful behavior]?) [RHQ]
8 Produzi pois fructos dignos de arrependimento;
Do what is appropriate [IDM] for people who have truly turned away from their sinful behavior [before you come to me in order to be baptized] {[that I baptize you]}.
9 E não presumaes de vós mesuros, dizendo: Temos por pae a Abrahão; porque eu vos digo que mesmo d'estas pedras Deus pode suscitar filhos a Abrahão.
[God promised to give Abraham many descendants. In order to fulfill that promise], God [does not need you! I] tell you that he can change these stones to make them descendants of Abraham. So do not start to say to yourselves, ‘Since we are descendants of [our ancestor] Abraham, [God will not punish us even though we have sinned].’
10 E tambem agora está posto o machado á raiz das arvores; toda a arvore, pois, que não produz bom fructo, é cortada e lançada no fogo
[God is] ready [to punish you if you do not turn away from your sinful behavior, just like] a man who lays his axe at the roots of a [fruit] tree [in order to] chop it down and throw it into the fire if it does not produce good fruit [MET].”
11 E eu, em verdade, vos baptizo com agua, para o arrependimento; mas aquelle que vem após mim, é mais poderoso do que eu; cujas alparcas não sou digno de levar; elle vos baptizará com o Espirito Sancto, e com fogo.
“As for me, I [am not very important, because] I baptize you [only] with water. I [baptize you] because of your feeling sorry that you have sinned. But someone else will come soon who is very great; [he will do powerful deeds] (OR, [act powerfully]). [Because he is] superior to me, I am not worthy [even to do a menial task for him, such as] to carry his sandals. He will put [his] Holy Spirit [within] you [to truly change] the way you live [MET], and [he will judge others of you and punish you in] the fire [in hell]. (questioned)
12 Em sua mão tem a pá, e limpará a sua eira, e recolherá no celleiro o seu trigo, e queimará a palha com fogo que nunca se apagará.
[He is like a farmer who wants to clear away the grain that is on the ground where it has been threshed] {[they have threshed it]}. [That farmer uses a] huge fork to throw the grain into the air [to separate the wheat from the chaff] [MET], and then he cleans up the threshing area. [Similarly], God will [separate righteous people from the evil people like a farmer who] gathers the wheat into his storage area, and then [God] will burn the [people who are like] chaff with a fire that will never be put out [MET].”
13 Então veiu Jesus da Galilea a João, junto do Jordão, para ser baptizado por elle,
During that time, Jesus went from Galilee [District] to the Jordan [River], where John was. [He did that] in order to be baptized by John {in order to ask that John would baptize him}.
14 João oppunha-se-lhe, porém, dizendo: Eu careço de ser baptizado por ti, e vens tu a mim?
[When Jesus asked John to baptize him], John objected, saying, “I need to be baptized by you {you to baptize me} [because you are superior to me. Since you are not a sinner], ([you(sg)] should not come to me [to be baptized by me] {[to ask that I baptize you(sg)]}!/why do you come to me [to be baptized by me] {[ask that I baptize you(sg)]} [RHQ]?)”
15 Jesus, porém, respondendo, disse-lhe: Deixa por agora, porque assim nos convem cumprir toda a justiça. Então elle o deixou.
But Jesus said to him, “Baptize me at this time, because in this way we [two] will do [everything that God] requires.” Then John consented to baptize him.
16 E, sendo Jesus baptizado, saiu logo da agua, e eis-que se lhe abriram os céus, e viu o Espirito de Deus descendo como pomba e vindo sobre elle.
After he was baptized {John baptized Jesus}, Jesus immediately came up out of the water. Just then, [it was as though] the sky was opened {split apart}. Then [Jesus] saw God’s Spirit coming down upon him. He came in the form of a dove.
17 E eis que uma voz dos céus dizia: Este é o meu Filho amado, em quem me comprazo.
Then [God] [SYN] spoke from heaven, saying, “This is my Son. I love him. I am very pleased with him.”
