Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.

This line is part of the so-called “Great Commission,” Jesus’ charge to his disciples after the resurrection and immediately before the ascension, as narrated at the close of the Gospel of Matthew. It functions as a programmatic mandate for the early Christian movement: the disciples are to extend their mission beyond Israel to “all nations,” initiating converts through baptism. In later Christian history the verse became a key proof-text for missionary activity and for Trinitarian baptismal practice in many churches. In English, the familiar wording comes from the King James Version (1611), which strongly shaped its liturgical and cultural afterlife.

The quotation combines two imperatives—teaching and baptizing—linking instruction with a ritual act of incorporation into the community. “All nations” signals a universal scope, framing Christianity as a faith intended for every people rather than a local or ethnic cult. The baptismal formula “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” has been central to Trinitarian theology and sacramental practice, expressing a threefold divine identity within a single “name.” The verse’s enduring significance lies in how it grounds evangelism, catechesis, and baptism in a single authoritative commission.

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

1) “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (common modern translation tradition)
2) “Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (ASV-style rendering)
3) “Go therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (modernized KJV-style wording)