1:21a

Then who are you?: The priests and Levites asked this question to introduce their next question, “Are you Elijah?” John had told them who he was not, but they still needed to learn who he was.

Here is another way to translate this question:

Who are you, then? (Good News Translation)

Then: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Then can also be translated as “therefore” or “so.” It is a short way of saying “if that is the situation,” or “if you are not the Christ.”

they inquired: The pronoun they refers to the priests and Levites. In some languages it is more natural to say this explicitly. For example:

These priests and Levites asked

1:21b

Are you Elijah?: The priests and Levites thought that John might be the prophet Elijah, who lived about eight hundred years before. They thought this because there was a prophecy that Elijah would come before the Messiah (see Malachi 4:5–6). Also, John was dressed like Elijah had dressed. You may want to explain this in a footnote.

The men were not asking if John’s name was Elijah. They knew his name was John. They were asking if he was fulfilling the prophecy by doing the work of Elijah.

In some languages it may be good to include the information that Elijah was a prophet from long ago. For example:

And they said, “Are you (sing.) Elijah, ⌊the prophet from long ago⌋ ?”
-or-
And these priests and Levites asked if he were Elijah, ⌊the prophet who was to announce the Messiah⌋ .

1:21c

He said: The pronoun He refers to John the Baptist. In some languages it is more natural to make that explicit. For example:

John answered (Good News Translation)

I am not: John stated that he was not Elijah. In some languages the name Elijah should be included in the answer. For example:

I am not ⌊Elijah⌋ .

1:21d

Are you the Prophet?: This is another question that the men asked John. In some languages it may be natural to introduce it with a phrase such as “They asked”:

Then they asked, “Are you the Prophet?” (God’s Word)
-or-
And when they asked if he were the Prophet…. (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
“Are you the Prophet?” they asked. (New Century Version)

the Prophet: The men were referring to a particular prophet, a prophet who was to be in some way “like Moses.” See Key Biblical Terms Prophet 1(c), The prophet. This person was predicted in Deuteronomy 18:15, 18–19. Moses lived over a thousand (1000) years before. However, the Israelites expected someone “like Moses” to return at the time of the Messiah. In some languages, it is more natural to include some of this information, because the first-century audience knew about it. For example:

Again they asked, “Are you (sing.) perhaps the prophet ⌊who is written about in the Law⌋ ?”
-or-
And they said, “Is it possible that you (sing.) are the ⌊special⌋ prophet ⌊whom God will send to us⌋ ?”

Prophet: A Prophet was a man who spoke as a representative of God. He told people what God revealed to him. God gave some prophets power to do miracles. These miracles helped people realize that God sent the prophet.

Here are some ways to translate Prophet :

a messenger/representative for God
-or-
a man who speaks God’s words
-or-
God’s message-speaker

It is good to use a general term that does not only refer to predicting the future. Although prophets did predict the future, they also gave people other messages from God. They especially told them to stop sinning and to obey God.

When choosing a term for Prophet, consider how you will distinguish it from other words that are similar in meaning, such as “angel,” “apostle,” and “preacher.”

1:21e

He answered, “No.”: The pronoun He refers to John the Baptist. In some languages it is natural to include both John’s name and what he was denying. For example:

John answered, “No, ⌊I am not the prophet⌋ .”

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