The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ [the Son of God]. 2 ''As it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; he will prepare your way. 3 A voice of one crying out in the desert: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.’” 4 John [the] Baptist appeared in the desert proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 People of the whole Judean countryside and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins. 6 John was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. He fed on locusts and wild honey. 7 And this is what he proclaimed: “One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals. 8 I have baptized you with water; he will baptize you with the holy Spirit.”
The Gospel of Mark starts with the Good News of the coming of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who was introduced by John the Baptist, who was sent to prepare the way for the one who was to bring the ‘Good News’ of salvation to the world. In verses 2-3, the evangelist referred to Exodus (Ex. 23:20), Malachi (Mal. 3:1), and Isaiah (Is. 40:3). The Gospel writers believed that those verses foretold the coming of Jesus the Messiah. Jesus was the Lord whose way the herald John the Baptist (JBap) was preparing.
JBap was the link between the OT and the NT. He is regarded as the last of the OT prophets and the bridge between the era of the prophets and the era of the Messiah. He preached in the wilderness and his message was a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins (v. 4) and many people from Galilee and Jerusalem went to him to be baptized (v. 5). His message was similar to the messages of the OT prophets, especially Isaiah. In describing the return of the Jewish exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem in the 8th century BCE, Isaiah wrote, “A voice proclaims: In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord! Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God (Is. 40:3)!” This passage describes how the Lord will lead the exiles straight across the wilderness back to Palestine. The evangelists have adapted Is. 40:3-5 to be the OT witness of JBap to Jesus. It was the custom to send heralds to proclaim the forthcoming visit of a king so that his subjects could repair the roads.
JBap was the first of the witnesses to Jesus the Messiah, and his ministry was to prepare the people for the coming of the ‘mightier’ one and the Kingdom of God. The baptism about which he preached was not a baptism for the forgiveness of sins. John was inviting the people to a conversion of heart, a turning back to God. He was the first among Jesus’ followers to be martyred for his faith in Jesus. He was beheaded because he spoke out about the unlawful marriage of Herod Antipas to Herodias his niece (Mk. 6:14-29)
JBap’s clothing was similar to Elijah’s clothing; “He wore a hairy garment with a leather belt around his waist (2. Kgs. 1:8).” The OT foretold Elijah’s return before the Messiah came; “Now I am sending to you Elijah the prophet, Before the day of the Lord comes (Mal. 3:23).” Jesus said that JBap was the second coming of Elijah, “But I tell you that Elijah has come and they did to him whatever they pleased (Mk. 9:11-13).” JBap lived an austere lifestyle as his diet reflected. He proclaimed the coming of one mightier who would baptize with the Holy Spirit which would lead to a more profound spiritual transformation. Compared to the mightier one, he ranked himself lower than a slave who would customarily perform the very lowly task of untying sandal straps which was beneath those of higher social standing. Baptism with the Holy Spirit was fulfilled after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension (Acts 2:1-4).
Almighty God, you prepare your faithful for every task you ask them to do and give them everything they need to accomplish the task. We ask that you grant us the grace to have a conversion of heart and turn back to you when we stray so that we too can accomplish your works that lead to salvation. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
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References
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.
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.
Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
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