17. "God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world. He sent his Son to save the world through him.
18. Anyone who believes in him is not judged. But anyone who does not believe is judged already. He has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.
19. "Here is the judgment. Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light. They loved darkness because what they did was evil.
20. "Everyone who does evil things hates the light. They will not come into the light. They are afraid that what they do will be seen.
21. But anyone who lives by the truth comes into the light. He does this so that it will be easy to see that what he has done is with God's help."
22. After this, Jesus and his disciples went out into the countryside of Judea. There he spent some time with them. And he baptized people there.
23. John was also baptizing. He was at Aenon near Salim, where there was plenty of water. People were coming all the time to be baptized.
24. That was before John was put in prison.
25. Some of John's disciples and a certain Jew began to argue. They argued about special washings to make people "clean."
26. They came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan River is baptizing people. He is the one you gave witness about. Everyone is going to him."
27. John replied, "A person can receive only what God gives him from heaven.
28. You yourselves are witnesses that I said, 'I am not the Christ. I was sent ahead of him.'
29. The bride belongs to the groom. The friend who helps the groom waits and listens for him. He is full of joy when he hears the groom's voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete.