Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 John tried to prevent him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and yet you are coming to me?” 15 Jesus said to him in reply, “Allow it now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed him. 16 After Jesus was baptized, he came up from the water and behold, the heavens were opened [for him], and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove [and] coming upon him. 17 And a voice came from the heavens, saying, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee to John to be baptized in preparation for his public ministry. His baptism by John would bind him to all who would believe in him. Jesus was identifying himself fully with the humanity he was sent to save. John would have known that Jesus was his relative (Lk. 1:36) and Matthew indicates that JBap knew that Jesus was superior to him (Mt. 3:14). Jesus would baptize all who believe with the Holy Spirit, and destroy those who do not believe (Mt. 3:11). After Jesus was baptized it was divinely revealed to John that Jesus was the Son of God, the Messiah (v. 17; Jn. 1:33)
John the Baptist appeared perplexed when Jesus came to him. Jesus said to John, “Allow it now,” because it is the Divine will. Under the New Covenant instituted by Jesus’ death and resurrection, repentance is a necessary part of the process leading to baptism, but there is no separate baptism of repentance (Acts 2:38). After Jesus was baptized, the heavens which were previously closed to mankind were opened and the Spirit of God descended on Jesus like a dove anointing him as the Messiah (Acts 10:37-38). There is some similarity with Holy Spirit descending on the Apostles at Pentecost. (Acts 2:1-13). Jesus said, “No one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit (Jn. 3:5).” A follower of Christ must be a new creation by rebirth through water and the Spirit. Then the voice from heaven spoke and the words can be compared to the words of the prophet Isaiah by substituting Son for Servant, “Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one with whom I am pleased (Is. 412:1).” Whether the bystanders saw the dove and heard the voice is not clear but JBap the herald did and knew the significance of the Theophany. The Trinity was present at Jesus’ baptism; there was the Divine Son, the Holy Spirit, and the Father.
Lord Jesus Christ, in our Baptism we are born into the Kingdom of God and are given the choice to toil for the salvation of others, as you did, or follow the disobedience of our hearts. Grant us the grace to labor with joy in your Father’s vineyard as we serve those the Father has given to you. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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