Markus 1:4

1:4 In the wilderness ¹  John the baptizer ²  began preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ³ 

Markus 6:25

6:25 Immediately she hurried back to the king and made her request: ⁴  “I want the head of John the Baptist on a platter immediately.”

Markus 13:22

13:22 For false messiahs ⁵  and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, the elect.

[1:4]  ¹ tn Or “desert.”

[1:4]  ² tn While Matthew and Luke consistently use the noun βαπτίστης (baptisths, “[the] Baptist”) to refer to John, as a kind of a title, Mark prefers the substantival participle ὁ βαπτίζων (Jo baptizwn, “the one who baptizes, the baptizer”) to describe him (only twice does he use the noun [Mark 6:25; 8:28]).

[1:4]  ³ sn A baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins was a call for preparation for the arrival of the Lord’s salvation. To participate in this baptism was a recognition of the need for God’s forgiveness with a sense that one needed to live differently as a response to it.

[6:25]  ⁴ tn Grk “she asked, saying.” The participle λέγουσα (legousa) is redundant and has not been translated.

[13:22]  ⁵ tn Or “false christs”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”