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Matthew 03 General Notes
Structure and formatting
Some translations indent quotations from the Old Testament. The ULB does this with the quoted material in verse 3.
Special concepts in this chapter
"Bear fruit worthy of repentance"
Fruit is a common image in the scriptures. It is used to describe the results of either good or bad behavior. In this chapter, good fruit is the result of living as God commands. (See: rc://en/tw/dict/bible/other/fruit)
Other possible translation difficulties in this chapter
"The kingdom of heaven is near"
Scholars debate whether the "kingdom of heaven" was present at this time or still coming. English translations frequently use the phrase "at hand," but this can create difficulty in translating. Other versions use the phrases "is coming near" and "has come near."