The Baptism of John the Baptist

John the Baptist was a prophet who appeared 400 years after the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi, was written. He was called “John the Baptist” because he preached a message of repentance and baptized people in the Jordan River. His father was a priest (Luke 1:8-13), but John lived in the wilderness, and his clothes and food were not priestly at all; they were identical to those of the prophet Elijah (2 Kings 1:8). His later conflict with Herod Antipas was also very similar to Elijah’s conflict with King Ahab. Jesus Himself said that John the Baptist was the Elijah who was to come.

At that time, people from Jerusalem and all Judea, and the whole region of the Jordan, went out to him. They confessed their sins and were baptized by him in the Jordan River. John’s baptism was also called “the baptism of repentance.” It was a public declaration of a person’s repentant heart, acknowledging their sin before God and proclaiming that they deserved to die, “for the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23, NCV). By being immersed in the water, they symbolically put an end to their past sins of forsaking God. The Jews of that time considered themselves to be a part of God’s chosen people, descendants of Abraham, and therefore already recipients of God’s salvation. They believed they did not need to receive a baptism of repentance. John the Baptist used a baptism ceremony on Jews, something they believed was only for unclean Gentiles. This completely shattered the Jews’ sense of security and made them realize that they were no different from Gentiles and also needed to confess their sins, repent, and turn back to God.

Although many people respected John the Baptist, he always pointed people’s attention toward the One who was to come after him. John explicitly stated, “I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Matthew 3:11). John’s “baptism of repentance” was not a baptism into Christ, while a Christian’s baptism is a “baptism into Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:3), symbolizing a shared death and a shared new life with Christ (Romans 6:3-5).

Edited and compiled based on the Chinese Union Version of the Bible and a comprehensive biblical interpretation.