LUKE 3:1 – 20: JOHN THE BAPTIST

© Rosemary Bardsley 2025

Again Luke ties his report to history. In 3:1 & 2 he tells us who was the Caesar, who was the governor of Judea, who were the ‘tetrarchs’ of various areas, and who were the priests, when John, the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth, began his ministry of preparing the way for Jesus, the Lord. The ‘fifteenth year of Tiberias’ dates the beginning of John’s ministry somewhere between August AD28 and August AD29. Note that Annas was High Priest AD6 – 15, and Caiaphas AD18 – 36. (It is thought that Annas, who was deposed by the Romans, continued to have high-priestly influence and input, even though he was no longer officially in the role.)

Luke also connects John and his ministry to the Old Testament prophecy (3:4 – 6).

Read Luke 3:4 – 6 and Isaiah 40:3 – 5. Answer these questions:
Who is the ‘one calling in the desert’?

According to these verses, for whom is he preparing the way?

According to the fulfilment of this prophecy, who was it that he prepared the way for?

What does this teach you about Jesus?

What do you think is the spiritual meaning of Luke 3:5?

What are two significant truths in Luke 3:6?

Each of the four gospels identifies John the Baptist with this prophet described by Isaiah (See Matthew 3:3; Mark 1:2, 3. See also John 1:23 – where it is John the Baptist, not the Gospel writer, who identifies himself with Isaiah’s prediction. In Luke 7:27 Jesus affirms that John the Baptist is the one of whom Isaiah spoke.) John is the herald whom Isaiah predicted would prepare the way for ‘the Lord’, for ‘our God’. The one he prepared the way for is Jesus. Putting the prophecy of Isaiah together with Luke (and the other gospel writers), the clear conclusion is that Jesus is the eternal God.

John, citing Isaiah 40:3 – 5, retains Isaiah’s road-building imagery – the raising of the valleys, the lowering of the mountains – as the preparation for the coming Lord, his revelation of the glory of God, and the salvation that he brings to all nations of the earth. But perhaps this road building imagery has a double meaning; that it is not just the preparation for, but also the result of, the coming of Christ, the Lord:

By his coming the glory of God is revealed to all.

By his coming all are rendered equal: equal in sinfulness and condemnation (Romans 3:19, 20, 23), and, for those who believe in Christ, equal in the salvation granted them by Christ Jesus (Romans 3:24; Galatians 3:26 – 29; Ephesians 2:14 – 18).

Because of Christ, the ‘tall-poppy’ syndrome is outlawed in the church. Boasting is outlawed (Romans 3:27).

Note also the global application: that ‘all mankind’ will see God’s salvation. Jesus did not come to save only the Jews, to reveal God to only the Jews. The incorporation of the Gentiles was in God’s mind from before time began, as promised in the covenant with Abraham (Genesis 22:18), affirmed by the prophets (Isaiah 49:6), and ratified in Revelation (5:9; 7:9).

A. WHAT JOHN PREACHED

Read these verses in Luke. What do they say about John’s message?
3:2

3:3

3:7 – 9

3:11 – 14

3:18

Luke tells us that ‘the word of God came to John’ (verse 2). Because of this he went into all the country around the Jordan River, ‘preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins’. He also included reference to the wrath of God.

A.1 About ‘baptism’
(The verb ‘baptize’ means to make wet.) The Jews were familiar with the concept of ‘baptism’ – their rituals included various rituals involving water, some including ‘sprinkling’, some hand washing, and some ‘immersion’.

Ritual/ceremonial cleansings prescribed by God, via Moses, included:

Physical cleanness when in the presence of God – Exodus 19:10.

Washing of priests, preparatory for serving God – Exodus 29:4; 30:17 – 21; 30:12, 30 – 32; Leviticus 16:4; 22:4 – 7, and cleansing/consecration of the Levites – Numbers 8:6 – 15, 20 – 21.

Cleansing after uncleanness acquired by touching the carcase of any creature– Leviticus 11.

Cleansing following various health conditions – Leviticus 13:6, 34 – 45, 54 – 59; Leviticus 14:7 – 9; and some usual and unusual bodily discharges – Leviticus 12:1 – 8; 15:1 – 33.

Various washings for those involved in the Day of Atonement rituals, to remove uncleanness acquired from that participation – Leviticus 16:24, 36, 28.

Also, although not included in the Mosaic Law, by the New Testament era, Gentiles who converted to Judaism were, as well as being circumcised if male, required to undergo immersion in a ritual bath.

A.2 John preached a ‘baptism of repentance’ – verse 3
Old Testament prophets called the people of Israel to repentance – to a turning from idols to the living God, which involved a turning also from the social injustice and corruption that accompanied their disregard of God. John came preaching ‘a baptism of repentance’, not a superficial religious experience, not the mere performance of a cleansing ritual, but a deep-seated and on-going return to God that was evident in changed choices and actions. The word ‘repentance’ means a change of mind. John knew, and taught, that a real change of mind results in changed actions. It was not going through the ritual act of baptism that is significant; John demanded a changed life – real repentance, though an action of the mind, expresses itself in observable actions. Without the life-change any so-called repentance involved in submission to John’s baptism would be proved empty. John was well aware of such fake repentance, calling those who came only for a mere ritual repentance a ‘brood of vipers’.

Read 3:7 – 14. How is real repentance expressed in these verses?

B. WHAT JOHN DENIED

Because expectations of the promised Messiah were part of Judaism, John’s presence and ministry evoked the question ‘Is he the Messiah?’ [Note: The title ‘Christ’ is the English translation of the Greek Christos, which means ‘the anointed one’, and is the Greek rendering of the Hebrew ‘Messiah’.

John denied that he was the Christ, and diverted their attention away from himself to the one coming after him.

Read 3:15 – 18. Answer these questions:
What was the difference between John’s baptism and Jesus’ baptism?

What was different in the status of John and Jesus?

How does John describe the judgement implemented by Jesus?

John, like each of the other Gospel writers, defines a great difference between the baptism he preached and practised and the ‘baptism’ that Jesus would implement.

John baptised in water – a baptism that was, at the bottom line, a ritual of cleansing. In itself it did nothing.

Jesus, John said, would baptise ‘with the Holy Spirit’ – that is, he would immerse people with his Spirit; he would re-unite people with God.

In addition, Jesus would baptize people ‘with fire’. Fire is, in Scripture, frequently used in reference to, or as a symbol of, judgement. [See below.]

John was well aware of who Jesus was: that he was ‘more powerful than’ John; that John was not worthy even to untie his sandals – the task of the lowest of household servants.

John called people to repentance so that they would escape the judgement: Jesus, the Christ, although, as we know, is the one who provides the ultimate escape from the judgement, is also the one who actually implements the judgement (verse 17). In addition, his presence on earth, and the very words that he spoke, constitute judgement.

Despite the clear reference to judgement, it is interesting that Luke sums up John’s ministry with verse 18: ‘with many other words John exhorted the people and preached the good news to them.’ Perhaps that ‘good news’ was the truth about the One coming after him – more powerful, more worthy, and as we now know, One able to rescue us from the judgement before it falls, able to rescue us from the coming wrath (verse 7), by himself coming and bearing that wrath.

FOR EXTRA STUDY, check these verses that present Jesus as judge:
Isaiah 9:7

Isaiah 11:3, 4

Isaiah 42:3b, 4

John 3:18, 19

John 5:22, 27

John 12:47, 48

Acts 10:42

Revelation 19:11