Mark 1:7

He proclaimed, ¹  “One more powerful than I am is coming after me; I am not worthy ²  to bend down and untie the strap ³  of his sandals.

And this was his message: "After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie.

And he was preaching, and saying, "After me One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to stoop down and untie the thong of His sandals.

He announced: "Someone is coming soon who is far greater than I am––so much greater that I am not even worthy to be his slave.

As he preached he said, "The real action comes next: The star in this drama, to whom I'm a mere stagehand, will change your life.

And he said to them all, There is one coming after me who is greater than I, whose shoes I am not good enough to undo.

He proclaimed, "The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals.

And he preached, saying, "There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose.

He proclaimed, ¹  “One more powerful than I am is coming after me; I am not worthy ²  to bend down and untie the strap ³  of his sandals.

¹ tn Grk “proclaimed, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

² tn Grk “of whom I am not worthy.”

sn The humility of John is evident in the statement I am not worthy. This was considered one of the least worthy tasks of a slave, and John did not consider himself worthy to do even that for the one to come, despite the fact he himself was a prophet.

³ tn The term refers to the leather strap or thong used to bind a sandal. This is often viewed as a collective singular and translated as a plural, “the straps of his sandals,” but it may be more emphatic to retain the singular here.