John the Baptist prepares the way
1 It was the fifteenth year of the rule of the Emperor Ti berius; Pontius Pilatus was governor of Judea; Herod ruled over Galilee, his brother Philip ruled over the country of Iturea and Trachonitis, and Lysa nias over Abi lene.
2 Annas and Caiaphas were the High Priests at that time when the word of God came to John, the son of Ze chariah in the desert.
3 John proclaimed a baptism for repentant people to obtain forgiveness of sins and he went through the whole country bordering the Jordan River.
4 It was just as is written in the book of the proph et Isaiah: listen to this voice crying out in the desert: prepare the way of the Lord, make his path straight.
5 The valleys will be filled and the mountains and hills made low. Everything crooked will be made straight and the rough paths smooth;
6 and every mortal will see the salvation of God.
7 John said to the crowds who came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! How will you escape when divine punishment comes?
8 Produce now the fruits of a true change of heart, and do not deceive yourselves by saying: ‘Abra ham is our ancestor!’ For I tell you, God can make children of Abra ham from these stones.
9 The axe is already laid to the root of the tree and every tree that fails to produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.”
10 The people asked him, “What are we to do?”
11 And John an swered, “If you have two coats, give one to the person who has none; and if you have food, do the same.”
12 Even tax collectors came to be baptized and asked him, “Master, what must we do?”
13 John said to them, “Collect no more than your fixed rate.”
14 People serving as soldiers ask ed John, “What about us? What are we to do?” And he an swered, “Don’t take anything by force or threaten the peo ple by denouncing them falsely. Be content with your pay.”
15 The people were wondering about John’s identity, “Could he be the Messiah?”
16 Then John an swered them, “I baptize you with water, but the one who is coming will do much more: he will baptize you with Holy Spirit and fire. As for me, I am not worthy to untie his san dal.
17 He comes with a winnowing fan to clear his threshing floor and gather the grain into his barn. But the chaff he will burn with fire that never goes out.”
18 With these and many other words John announced the Good News to the people
19 until Herod had him put in prison. For John reproached Herod for living with Herodias, his brother’s wife, and for his evil deeds.
20 Then Herod added another crime to all the rest he had committed: he put John in prison.
Jesus is baptized by John
21 Now, with all the people who came to be baptized, Jesus too was bap tized. Then, while he was praying, the heav ens open ed:
22 the Holy Spirit came down upon him in the bodily form of a dove and a voice from heaven was heard, “You are my Son, this day I have begotten you.”
23 When Jesus made his appearance, he had reached the age of thirty years. He was known as the son of Joseph, whose father and forefathers were:
24 Matthat, Levi, Melchi, Jan nai, Joseph,
25 Matthathias, Amos, Nahum, Esli, Naggai,
26 Maath, Mattathias, Semein, Josech, Joda,
27 Joanan, Rhesa, Zerubbabel, Sheal tiel, Neri,
28 Melchi, Addi, Cosam, El ma dam, Er,
29 Joshua, Eliezer, Jorim, Matthat, Levi,
30 Si meon, Judah, Joseph, Jonam, Elia kim,
31 Melea, Menna, Mattatha, Na than, David,
32 Jesse, Obed, Boaz, Sal mon, Nah son,
33 Am minadab, Adnim, Arni, Hez ron, Pe rez, Judah,
34 Jacob, Isaac, Abraham, Terah, Nahor,
35 Se rug, Reu, Pe leg, Eber, Shelah,
36 Cai nan, Arpha xad, Shem, Noah, Lamech,
37 Methu selah, Enoch, Jared, Malaleel, Cai nan,
38 Enos, Seth, and Adam – who was from God.
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Comments Luke,
• 3.1 Luke provides us with facts that enable us to situate Jesus in history. It is the year 27 after Christ and actually Jesus is about thirty to thirty-five years old. The Jews have lost their autonomy, and their country is divided into four small provinces. Herod and Philip, sons of the Herod mentioned at the birth of Jesus (see Mt 2:1) rule over two of these provinces.
Those interested in the chronological commentaries can also read John 2:20.
In the first two chapters Luke has shown us how the Son of God inserted himself into humanity. As Paul says in his letter to the Galatians, he was “born of a woman, subject to the Law” (Gal 4:7) which means that he had to be formed by a culture, marked by his era, limited by the human context of his time. We are now going to see that he did not begin his mission in a grandiose way with prodigious miracles but very simply entered a movement initiated by another one, John the Baptist.
The first paragraph shows how the Holy Land was divided, a challenge to the promises of God. In the case of several high priests there was contempt for the law of God, for the high priests should succeed each other, father to son, and remained in office all their lives. In this degrading situation a new element would rock the people: the preaching of John the Baptist.
• 3. Listen to this voice crying out in the desert (v. 4). The text which follows is from Isaiah (40:3) John renews the tradition of the prophets after four centuries of interruption and like many among them, he speaks of an imminent judgment. To confront the judgment of God is always most fearful and John speaks of rebuilding a sense of justice. John speaks of the punishment to come. In verse 7 the text says more precisely “escape from the coming wrath”. These Hebrew words refer to a condemnation already pronounced by God that will soon bring a terrible trial on a national or worldwide scale (Lk 21:23; 1 Th 2:16) that believers recognize as a judgment of God. It is then that the wicked receive their punishment, while the just who count on God are saved (Is 1:24-27; Joel 3:1-5, Zec 14).
John awakens the expectation of a savior. It is easy for us to say that the savior was Jesus and that God’s judgment would come a few years later with the war that destroyed the Jewish nation, but for those who were hearing John it was difficult to imagine what this savior might be.
We are the sons of Abraham! (v. 8). Just like the prophets, John warns us against fanaticism whether it be national or religious. It is not enough to walk under the flag of the God of Israel (or the Church) since many of those who pretend to defend this cause are no more than a race of vipers. God demands justice and reparation for the evil that has been committed.
So we see John preaching without having asked anything of the religious authorities. People come from all directions searching for pardon. Verses 12-14 tell us that John turned no one away: neither the prostitutes nor the collectors of Roman taxes. He does ask of all a commitment of solidarity. Once corruption has taken over and the vision of God’s Alliance has faded away, those who recognize their part in the evil affecting the whole of society must make positive gestures regarding money and the enjoyment of it, which will be for all a sign and a call to conversion. Such signs should increase in Christian communities today and in the groups seeking to purify our society.
It is that which gives meaning to the total renunciation of John and his appalling austerity: in no way are we all asked to imitate him, but his sacrifices give weight to his words. The religious leaders and the Pharisees who see themselves as models keep away even sneering perhaps, (7:30 and 33) but the people come to John asking for baptism.
• 15. Baptism means to be immersed in water and to rise. The Essenes in the desert were baptized on the occasion of certain feasts to show their desire to reach a purer life when the Savior would come. John, in turn, baptizes those who wishing to straighten out their life, marking their commitment by a visible ritual.
Here the Gospel compares John with Jesus and John’s baptism with Christian baptism. All of us have heard words like: since Jesus was not baptized until he was thirty years old, one should be baptized as an adult. This is a useless argument since we are not dealing with the same baptism and the demands are different.
Baptism in water… baptism in fire (v. 16): this refers to common experiences. We wash stains off clothes in water, but what has been washed does not then resemble that which is new. Besides there are stains which remain. On the other hand, fire purifies rusted metal so that shining metal comes from the crucible as good as new. Moreover, fire can consume stains together with whatever is stained.
John baptizes with water those who want to straighten out their life. For them, baptism is a way of expressing publicly their decision and promise. Such resolutions are fallible as are any human commitments and insufficient to eradicate the root of evil from our heart.
Jesus, on the other hand, requests that his apostles baptize those who enter the church. It is then when God gives his Spirit that transforms people interiorly.
John did not baptize children (or women). As Christian baptism draws its power, not so much from the commitment of the recipient, as from the gift of God making us his children, we can baptize children as did Christians from the early times. They may receive the gift of God, provided that their family and the Christian community accept the responsibility for their growth in faith.
• 21. Jesus neither needs conversion, nor John’s baptism. Being the Savior, he wishes to join sinners seeking the way to forgiveness. By receiving John’s baptism, Jesus affirms this as the right way: to seek justice and reform one’s life.
There had been no prophets for centuries. God seemed silent and the Jews often said that “the heavens were closed.” Now, God speaks again and Jesus stands in place of the prophets. The heavens opened means that Jesus received a divine revelation (see Ezk 1:1 and Rev 4:1).
You are my Son (v. 22). Who saw and who heard that voice is not clear from the Gos pel (Mt 3:16; Mk 1:10; Jn 1:32). Studying the texts brings us to the following conclusion: Jesus was favored with a revelation from God which John the Baptist may have shared. Why such a manifestation? Did Jesus need to know that he was the Son of God?
Let us not forget that the phrase son of God can be understood in various ways. In the period before Jesus, the king of Israel was called son of God. Son of God was also used to designate the expected Messiah, chosen by God to save Israel.
Jesus was Son of God in the sense of Only Son of God, begotten of God from the time of his conception. From that moment on, he was conscious of being the Son of God.
On the other hand, it was only at the time of his baptism by John that Jesus received the call from God inviting him to begin his ministry of salvation, and that God made him his Son (in the old biblical sense), that is, prophet and king of his people. God is calling him to begin his ministry. That is why in 3:22 we read a word of Psalm 2: “You are my son, this day I have begotten you,” a word of God presenting his Messiah to the world. (A good number of ancient texts give to verse 22 the same text as Mk 1:11).
Since the word of God (if it is really from God) is always effective and accomplishes what it says, Jesus receives at the same time the fullness of the Spirit, who consecrates prophets and works miracles. From the moment of his conception Jesus enjoyed the fullness of the Spirit bonding him in a unique relationship with his Father. Now he receives the Spirit enabling him to be the prophet and the servant of the Father.
Thus, Jesus is anointed to proclaim the reign of God and to call the poor first (4:18). Different from so many liberators who, according to Scripture, received the Spirit with a view to a specific mission, Jesus is fully savior. Different from us, who are always so concerned to leave a way out of our commitments, Jesus will not rest until his word and witness to the truth lead him to his death.
In many pages of the Gospel we see Jesus dealing with individuals. In other and more important circumstances Jesus is depicted as the savior of the whole human race as in this baptism. The Bible tells us of a God who creates, nurtures, instructs and brings to maturity the only one “Adam,” i.e.: the human race as a whole – Jesus is not the savior of “people,” i.e., of many individuals, in order to give them free entrance to heaven – Jesus takes by the hand the human race (Heb 2:16) and makes it one holy body in which God the Father will recognize his only Son.
• 23. Luke then presents a list of Jesus’ ancestors, which is quite different from Matthew’s (Mt 1:1). Luke not only goes back to Abraham, he also supplies the legendary list of Abraham’s ancestors all the way back to the first human, as if to emphasize that Jesus has come to save all of humanity. He is not only the Savior of Christians: his coming is relevant for the whole of history and helps us to appreciate the contribution of all the saints and wise people God has raised throughout the world. On the other hand, from Abraham to Jesus the list is very different from Matthew’s. The list of ancestors varied depending on whether one counted natural parents or adoptive parents, since adoption was a frequent occurrence among the Jews.