Jesus Calls the First Disciples

 Jesus Calls the First Disciples

Mk 1:16-20 (NRSV)

As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea — for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zeb’edee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father embedded in the boat with the hired men, and followed him.

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

Mt 4:18-22 (NRSV)

As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea — for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make yo fish for people.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went from ther, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

Lk 5:1-11 (NRSV)

Once while Jesus was standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. When he had finished speaking he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” Simon answered, “Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.” When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” For he and all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken; and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.” When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.

The First Disciples of Jesus

Jn 1:35-42 (NRSV)

The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, and he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, “Look, here is the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. Whe Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, “What are you looking for?” They said to him, “Rabbi” (which translated means Teacher), “where are you staying?” He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon. One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated Anointed). He brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter).

Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael

Jn 1:43-51 (NRSV)

The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” Now Philip was from Bethsaida, and the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” When Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him, he said of him. “Here is truly and Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael asked him, “Where did you get to know me?” Jesus answered, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.” Nathanael replied, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.” And he said to him, “Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”

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(1) 

The Beginning of the Galilean Ministry

 The Beginning of the Galilean Ministry

MK 1:14-15 (NRSV)

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.”

Jesus Begins His Ministry in Galilee

MT 4:11-17 (NRSV)

Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

    “Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,

    On the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the

        Gentiles —

    The people who sat in darkness

        have see a great light,

    and for those who sat in the region and shadow of deaths

        Light has dawned”

From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

The Beginning of the Galilean Ministry

LK 4:14-15 (NRSV)

Then Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee, and a report about him spread through all the surrounding country. He began to teach in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.

Jesus Returns to Galilee

John 2:43-45 (NRSV)

When the two days were over, he went from that place to Galilee (for Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in the prophet’s own country. When he came to Galilee, the Galilean welcomed him, since they had seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the festival; for they too had gone to the festival.

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(1) In the Synoptic Gospels this pericope The Proclamation of John the Baptist, The Baptism of Jesus and the Temptation of Jesus. In GJohn it occurs early like the Synoptics but in John. Jesus has already called his first disciples, turned water into wine at The Wedding at Cana, gone to celebrate Passover in Jerusalem, Cleansed the Temple (a pericope that inspires the passion narratives in the Synoptics), Visited with Nicodemus, John the Baptist (before he was arrested) reassures his disciples that it is OK that Jesus and his disciples baptizes more people than John, talked with the Samaritan woman at the well of Jacob and stayed with Samarians for two days (the two days mentioned in the pericope above).

(2) GMark and GMatt share the following

(a) Both mention that John the Baptist has been arrested.

(b) Both call for repentance and state that the kingdom of God (GMark)/heaven (GMatt) are near.

(3) GMark is unique in proclaiming directly it is “good news”

(4) GMatt is unique in stating that Jesus moved from Nazareth (in the land of Zebulon) and made Capernaum (in the land of Naphtali) his home. He did this in order to fulfill a prophesy from Isaiah. The verses GMatt quote come from Is 9:1-2. Here is Isaiah 9:1-7 (NRSV) for the entire context:

But there will be no gloom for those who were in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he will make glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.

    The people who walk in darkness

        have seen a great light;

    those who lived in a land of deep darkness —

        on them light has shined.

    You have multiplied the nation,

        you have increased its joy;

    they rejoice before you

        as with joy at the harvest,

        as people exult when dividing plunder.

    For the yoke of their burden,

        and the bar across their shoulders,

        the rod of their oppressor,

        You have broken as on the day of Midian.

    For all the boots of the tramping warriors

        and all the garments rolled in blood

        shall be burned for the fire.

    For a child has been born for us,

        a son given to us;

    authority rests upon his shoulders

        and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

        Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

    His authority shall grow continually,

        And there shall bee endless peace

    for the throne of David and his kingdom.

        He will establish and uphold it

    with justice and with righteousness

        From this time onward and forevermore.

    The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.

GMatt knows Isaiah well. And he sees Isaiah as heralding the Messiah. He wants to show that Jesus is fulfilling this prophecy and it certainly seems like it is an obvious reference to Jesus. But is this the message Isaiah’s audience would have gotten?

Isaiah is actually a compilation of writings by at least 3 different authors. Porto-Isaiah wrote chapters 1 through 39 so this is part of Proto-Isaiah’s work. Proto-Isaiah wrote in the Southern Kingdom (Judah as opposed to Israel) right before Israel falls to the Sumerians in 722 BCE; 718 years or so before Jesus is born. It is unlikely Isaiah’s audience would see this as a reference to him. What would they think? To understand that the verses have to be put into historical context.

This is a tough time for that Judah, they are a tiny kingdom under huge pressure from the dominant civilization in the area at the time … Assyria. In order to survive Israel has made an alliance with Damascus. That alliance could easily subdue Judah. This problem would be foremost on the people’s mind.

A couple of chapters prior to this Isaiah has already prophecized that the Lord will give them a sign that he will help Judah out. That verse is the famous Isaiah 7:14 given here in the NRSV translation:

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel.” 

The birth narrative in GMatt quotes this verse as a prophecy for Jesus. GMatt had the Septuagint (LXX; a Greek translation of the Hebrew bible) as its source of scripture. The Hebrew Bible was written in Hebrew. The Septuagint translated the Hebrew word “bethulah” as “virgin”, but it is more properly translated as “young woman”. So GMatt had thought the verse said “ … the virgin is with child and shall bear a son,” So he viewed this as the quintessential prophecy for Jesus; as have Christians for centuries. But it suffers from the same problem as does the verses from Isaiah GMatt quotes from in this pericope. Isaiah 7:14 is NOT a prophecy about Jesus … for one thing at no point other than the GMatt’s reference to the verse in Isaiah is Jesus actually ever called Immanuel (which means “God is with us”). Isaiah gives us big hints on who Immanuel exactly was in the next chapter:

IS 8:1-10 (NRSV)

Then the LORD said to me [Isaiah], Take a large tablet and write on it in common characters, “Belonging to Maher-shalal-hash-baz,” and have it attested for me by reliable witnesses, the priest Uriah and Zechariah son of Jeberechiah. And I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore a son. The the LORD said to me, Name him Maher-shalal-hash-baz; for before the child knows how to call “My father” or “My mother,” the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away by the king of Assyria.

The LORD spoke to me again: Because this people has refused the waters of Shiloah that flow gently, and melt in fear before Rezin the son of Remaliah; therefore, the Lord is bringing up against it the mighty flood waters of the River, the king of Assyria and all his glory; it will rise above all its channels and overflow all its banks; it will sweep into Judah as a flood, and pouring over, it will reach up the neck; and its outspread wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.

    Band together, you peoples, and be dismayed;

        listen, all you far countries;

    gird yourselves and be dismayed;

        gird yourselves and be dismayed!

    Take counsel together, but it shall be brought to naught;

        speak a word, but it will not stand.

        for God is with us. [Emphasis added]

Immanuel was Isaiah’s own son, who he had with the prophetess. He has another name as well … Maher-shall-hash-bad (which means “Swift to the spoils, speedy to the plunder” in Hebrew). The baby was God’s sign that Assyria would sweep into Judah but it will all come to naught. They will not stand, because “God is with us” (i.e. Immanuel).

The section of Isaiah that GMatt references in this pericope is pretty much more of the same. The lands of  Zebulun and Naphtali are areas of the Northern Kingdom (Israel), not to Jesus moving from Nazareth to Capernaum. The child that “has been form for us, a son given to us” refers o Isaiah’s son Immanuel/Maher-shalal-hash-baz. It is he, not Jesus, who is the “Wonderful Counselor”/“Prince of Peace”.

As one would expect, a prophet prophesizes to his own people … not to people that will come 700 years after his death.

(5) GLuke is interesting. There is no parallel in words to that of GMark or GMatt, but it occurs in the exact same place and deals with the same subject matter as GMark and GMatt. In GLuke Jesus “returns” to Galilee; in GMark Jesus “came” to Galilee; and in GMatt Jesus “withdrew” to Galilee. In GLuke Jesus is “filled with the power of the Spirit”; reports about him spread through the countryside; he teaches in their synagogues and everyone praises him. None of this is mentioned in GMark or GMatt.

The Temptation of Jesus

 The Temptation of Jesus

MK 1:12-13 (NRSV)

And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him.

The Temptation of Jesus

MT 4:1-11 (NRSV)

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”

But he answered, “It is written,

    ‘One does not live by bread alone,

    But by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple,

saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written

    ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’

    and ‘On their hands they will bear you up,

    So that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’”

Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor, and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.”

Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written,

    ‘Worship the Lord your God,

    and serve only him.’”

The the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.

The Temptation of Jesus

LK 4:1-13 (NRSV)

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.” Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’”

Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And the devil said to him, “To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. If you, then will worship me, it will be all yours.”

Jesus answered him, “It is written,

    ‘Worship the Lord your God,

    and serve only him.’”

Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle fo the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here,

    for it is written,

        ‘He will command his angels concerning you,

        to protect you’

and

        ‘On their hands they will bear you up,

        so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’”

Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.

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(1) This pericope is found only in the Synoptic Gospels (GMark, GMatt, and GLuke). 

(2) GMark has only two short verses. It tells us that after his baptism by John the Baptist, the Spirit “drove” Jesus out to the wilderness. There he was tempted for forty days by Satan. He spent time with wild beasts. And he was attended by angels.

GMatt and GLuke include the Spirit but they are more gentle in that instead of driving Jesus to the wilderness it leads him there. They agree on the forty days he spends there (although GMatt adds “and forty nights” for dramatic effect). They go into a great deal of depth on exactly how Satan tempts Jesus (presumably this comes from a source GMark did not have access to). And finally, GMatt says that after Satan’s tests, angels served Jesus. GLuke makes no mention of angels.

(3) GMatt and GLuke agree on much of the specifics of Satan’s temptations. He fasted during the forty days (and nights; GMatt) he was there. It was after the fast that Satan tempted Jesus. He is given three “temptations” (1) an exhortation to turn stones into bread; (2) Jump off the pinnacle of the temple in Jerusalem; and (3) Jesus is offered dominion over all the kingdoms of the world.

GMatt and GLuke differ in the order of these temptations: GMatt has it 1, 2, and 3; GLuke has it 1, 3 and then 2. Another small difference is that when Satan shows Jesus “all the kingdoms of the world” GMatt says Satan “took him to a very high mountain” while GLuke just says “the devil led him up … “. One problem with this part of the pericope is that (especially in GMatt) it implies the earth is flat. A spherical earth no matter how high the mountain Jesus could not have seen the kingdoms on the other side of the earth.

(4) Jesus and Satan have a battle of scripture. It is worth checking out where this comes from and the context:

(a) Jesus to Satan: ‘One does not live by bread alone [in GMatt and GLuke’, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God [GMatt only]’

Dt. 8:3 (NRSV) He humbled you by letting you hunger, then by feeding you with manna, with which neither you nor your ancestors were acquainted, in order to make you understand that one does not live by bread alone, but by every word that come from the mouth of the LORD.

(b) Satan to Jesus: ‘He will command his angels concerning you [GMatt & GLuke] to protect you [GLuke only]’ and ‘On their hands and knees they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’

Interestingly both GMatt and GLuke separate the verse quotations with an “and” implying they come from separate places, but the two verses can be found next to each other; 

Ps 91:11-12 For he will command his angels concerning you

    To guard you in all ways.

        On their hands they will bear you up,

    So that you will not dash your foot against a stone.

(c) Jesus to Satan: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test’ (GMatt and GLuke)

Dt 6:16 (NRSV) Do not put the LORD your God to the test, as you tested him at Massah

“Massah” was the name Moses gave to the area of Mt. Horeb that he struck a rock to produce water for the Israelites. To see how this could be seen as putting God “to the test” see Ex 17:1-7.

(d) Jesus to Satan: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’

I could not find this verse in the NRSV. However, there wer several that expressed a similar sentiment. Here is the one I am going to go with:

Dt 6:13 (NRSV) The LORD your God you shall fear; him you shall serve, and by his name alone you shall swear.

The Baptism of Jesus

 The Baptism of Jesus

MK 1:9-11 (NRSV)

In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”

The Baptism of Jesus

MT 3:13-17 (NRSV)

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.” The he consented. And when, Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him, And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.:

The Baptism of Jesus

LK 3:21-22 (NRSV)

Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”

The Lamb of God

JN 1:29-34 (NRSV)

The next day he [John the Baptist] saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for a reason, the he might be revealed to Israel.” And John testified, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I myself have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.”

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(1) All four periscopes share two things in common: (a) Jesus either gets (GMark and GMatt) or recently has been (GLuke and GJohn) baptized by John the Baptist; and (b) the Holy Spirit descends upon Jesus like a dove. GMark says John “saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him.” GMatt says that just as Jesus “comes up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he [Jesus, not John] saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him.” GLuke says it was after “Jesus had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove.” GJohn says “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him.”

(2) The Synoptic Gospels (GMark, GMatt, and GLuke) are a lot more similar than is GJohn. In the Synoptics there is a voice from heaven that says: “You (GMark and GLuke/This (GMatt) is my son, the Beloved, with you (GMark and GLuke)/whom (GMatt) I am well pleased.” In GMark and GLuke the voice speaks directly to Jesus, in GMatt it is speaking to the entire gathering.

(3) This pericope created some problems. The purpose of baptism is to symbolically wash away one’s sins. But Jesus did not commit sins, so why should he be baptized. GMark does not address the problem. GLuke and GJohn get around it by having the act already done. GMatt addresses the problem head on. In GMatt John wants to talk Jesus out of the act. He says that it is Jesus who should be baptizing John instead of the other way around. But Jesus says it is proper for John to baptize him because it fulfills “all righteousness”.

(4) In the GLuke pericope, John the Baptist is not mentioned. The only way you know that it was John who baptized Jesus is because the pericope comes immediately after the Proclamation of John the Baptist pericope.

(5) GJohn has a number of unique features. (a) John gives Jesus the moniker “Lamb of God”; (b) He says of Jesus, “This is he of whom I said. ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’” What this refers to is JN 1:14-15 (NRSV) “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me” This is part of the introduction to GJohn and is sophisticated theology. Jesus is the “Word”. The Word was there at the beginning. The Word was with God and the Word WAS God. It was through the Word that everything came into being. Many Biblical scholars thought it would take a long time to develop such a sophisticated theology. That is one of the reasons GJohn is dated to 60 to 70 years after Jesus’s death; John testifies that Jesus IS the Son of God.

(6) In the Synoptics the Holy Spirit descends in the form of a dove onto Jesus, a voice from heaven (God) announces Jesus to be His son. An early sect of Christians (adoptionists) interpreted this pericope to mean that something special happened to Jesus at that time. Prior to the John’s baptism, Jesus was just a regular man like any other. The Holy Spirit enters his body and changes him. He is now worthy of his mission. When God announces that “This/you are my son”, God is actually adopting Jesus at that moment.

The Proclamation of John the Baptist

 The Proclamation of John the Baptist

MK 1:1-8 (NRSV)

The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

As it is written in the prophet Isaiah,

“See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,

who will prepare your way; 

the voice of one crying in the wilderness:

‘Prepare the way of the Lord,

make his paths straight,’”

John the baptized appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And people from the whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 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. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

 The Proclamation of John the Baptist

MT 3:1-12 (NRSV)

In those days John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of Judaea, proclaiming, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” This is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when he said,

“The voice of one crying out in the wilderness,

‘Prepare the way of the Lord,

make his paths straight.’”

Now John wore clothing of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then the people of Jerusalem and all Judaea were going out to him, and all the region along the Jordan, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

But when he say many Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, “you brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruit worthy of renpentance. Do not presume to say to yourselves, “We have Abraham as ancestor; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown int the fire.

“I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and will gather his wheat into the granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

The Proclamation of John the Baptist

LK 3:1-20 (NRSV)

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judaea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysander ruler of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. He went into all the regions around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah,

“The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:

’Prepare the way of the Lord,

Make his paths straight.

Every valley shall be filled,

and every mountain and hill shall be made low,

and the crooked shall be made straight,

and the rough ways made smooth;

and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’”

John said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits worthy of repentance. Do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown int the fire.”

And the crowds asked him, “What then should we do?” In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.” Even tax collectors came to be baptized, and they asked him, “Teacher, what should we do?” He said to them, “Collect no more than the amount prescribed for you,” Soldiers also asked him, “And we, what should we do?” He said to them, “Do not extort money from anyone by threats or false accusation, and be satisfied with your wages.”

As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

So, with many other exhortations, he proclaimed the good news to the people. But Herod the ruler, who had been rebuked by him because of Herodias, his brother’s wife, and because of all the evil things that Herod had done, added to them all by shutting up John in prison.

The Testimony of John the Baptist

JN 1:19-28 (NRSV)

This is the testimony given by John when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” He confessed and died not deny it, but confessed, “I am not the Messiah.” And they asked him, “What then, Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the prophet?” He answered, “No” then they said to him “Who are you? Let us have an answer for those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” He said,

“I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness,

‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’”

as the prophet Isaiah said.

Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. They asked him, “Why then are you baptizing if you are neither the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?” John answered them, “I baptize with water. Among you stands one whom you do not know, the one who is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal.” This took place in Bethany across the Jordan where John was baptizing.

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(1) All canonical gospels claim that John the Baptist is fulfilling a role long since prophesied by Isaiah. The version of the Hebrew Bible used by all the writers of those Gospels was the Septuagint (LXX) written in Greek. The closest we have to that now is the King James Version which is an English translation of the LXX. Now we have the Dead Sea Scrolls which has versions of all the books of the Hebrew Bible and these scrolls can be 1000 years earlier than earliest version of the LXX we have and thus much more likely to reflect the original scripture. Newer translations have incorporated the changes. The verses specifically referred to in the canonical gospels are IS 40:3-5. Here is the NRSV translation:

A voice cries out

“In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, 

Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Every valley shall be lifted up,

and every mountain and hill be made low;

the uneven ground shall become level,

Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,

And all people shall see it together,

for the mouth of the LORD has spoken’ 

Are these verses really a prophesy of John the Baptist? To answer that question we need to understand the context in which IS 40:3-5 was written.

The book of Isaiah is actually a compilation of at least 3 different authors whose works have been clumped together. The original Isaiah wrote the first 39 chapters of the book of Isaiah. Scholars give the author of chapters 40 through 55 the name “deutero-Isaiah” and the author of chapters 56 through 66 “trito-Isaiah”.

Supposedly (there is a controversy about whether or not this represents actual history), King David united all the Israelites under a “united monarchy”. This unity lasted only through the rule of his son, Solomon. Solomon had been a great builder but to accomplish those things required taxing the Israelites heavily. When he died and his son, Rehoboam took over the Israelites petitioned him to lower their taxes. Rehoboam refused and the 10 northern tribes split off (and took with them the name of the kingdom) and became Israel. The two southern tribes stayed together but formed the much smaller nation of Judaea. Unfortunately both countries were small compared to Egypt to its south and whatever northern kingdom ruled above them (first was Sumeria, then came Babylon, then came Persia, then came Greece). The powerful northern kingdoms often fought with powerful Egypt and since little Israel and even littler Judaea were right between the two, the fighting often took place on their lands. The best way for them to survive was to make an alliance with the side they thought was going to win and help them. But that only works if you choose correctly. Unfortunately, they didn’t always do that. In 722 BCE they sided with the Egyptians but the Sumerians won. The nation of Israel had the Jezreel valley which was excellent farmland. Sumeria used their winner’s perk and decided to annex the land. They rounded up the inhabitants of Israel and dispersed them to other parts of their empire. They became the 10 lost tribes of Israel. Judaea, on the other hand was mountainous and desert-like. It was left to survive on its own. However, in 586 BCE, after they had chosen the wrong side (again Egypt except this time over Babylon). Nebuchadrezzar, decided to do the same thing to them. The inhabitants of Judaea were marched off to Babylon and stayed there until 539 BCE when the Cyrus the Persian defeated the Babylonians and allowed the Israelites in exile to return to Judea as a vassal state of Persia. The original Isaiah wrote around the time of the Sumerians defeat of Israel. Deutero-Isaiah wrote during the period of exile. And trito-Isaiah wrote after the Israelites returned to Judaea.

So the verses used in this periscope were written by deutero-Isaiah, during the exile. John the Baptist was still 600 years in the future. The writer was not concerned about him. He was writing while the Israelites were in despair. He was encouraging them to hold on even though it didn’t look good for them. (Thus, he was the voice in the wilderness). He was telling them that God was going to make their path back to the promised land smooth. Just hold out and the glory of God would be shown. It had nothing to do with a future John the Baptist at all.

(2) All four Gospels have John saying he baptizes with fire and there will be another more worthy who comes after him.  The wording is more similar in GMark, GMatt, and GLuke (the Synoptic Gospels) than in GJohn:

GMark: “The one who is more powerful than I is combing after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.

GMatt: “I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more powerful than I is coming after; I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and will gather his wheat into the granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

GLuke: “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

GJohn: “I baptize you with water. Among you stands one whom you do not know, the one who is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal.”

(3) Again the wording and the settings are much closer in the Synoptic Gospels than in GJohn. The Synoptics all have John the Baptist on the bank of the river Jordan exhorting the multitude to repent and be baptized. GJohn has him meeting with priests and Levites in Bethany and being quizzed as to his bonifides to perform baptisms. GMark and GMatt describe John the Baptist in a very ascetic way … he wears camel-hair clothes with a leather belt around his waist and eats locusts and wild honey. GMatt and GLuke having him castigating the crowd using the same words with only three very minor changes:

“You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear [fruit (GMatt); fruits (GLuke)] worthy of repentance. Do not [presume (GMatt); begin (GLuke)] to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor, for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now [as (GMatt)] the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

(4) About all of the periscope of GMark is paralleled in GMatt and GLuke. GMatt and GLuke though have the castigation of the crowd (Pharisees and Sadducee in GMatt; everybody there in GLuke), add “fire” to the “Holy Spirit” as to what Jesus will baptize people in, and add the reference to the “winnowing fork” that GMark does not include.

(5) GLuke has two significant additions not found in either of the other two Synoptics: (a) his specification of the time the periscope takes place; and (b) his questioning by the crowd, tax collectors and soldiers as to what they should do and his response to them.

(6) GMatt has a small parallel with itself. It uses the phrase “You brood of vipers!” a second time in periscope of “A Tree and Its Fruit” (MT 12:33-37; the actual phrase is MT 12:34a). This time the words are spoken by Jesus. Jesus says that a tree is known to be either good or bad by the fruit that it produces. If you are an evil person you will speak evil things and you will be judged by the words you say.