Matthew 3:6

Baptized. Gr. baptizo, “to dip,” “to immerse.” Baptizo was used of immersing cloth in dye, and of submerging a vessel in order to fill it with water. It was also used metaphorically of bloody wounds received in a fight, as in Aeschylus of dyeing (literally, “baptizing”) a man in the red dye of Sardis. Baptizo was also used of a man drowning, as it were, in debt.

The meaning of the word itself, together with specific details of the narrative in the Gospels, makes it clear that John’s baptism was administered by immersion. John the evangelist emphasizes the fact that John the Baptist “was baptizing in Aenon near to Salim, because there was much water there” (John 3:23). Furthermore, all four Gospel writers note that most, if not all, of John’s ministry was carried on in the immediate vicinity of the Jordan River (Matt. 3:6; Mark 1:5, 9; Luke 3:3; John 1:28). Had John not baptized by immersion he would have found sufficient water almost anywhere in Palestine.

The same was apparently true also of Christian baptism, for in the description of the baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch it is noted that both the one baptizing and the one baptized “went down ... into the water” and came “up out of the water” (Acts 8:38, 39). Had pouring or sprinkling been permissible, the eunuch, instead of waiting until they “came unto a certain water” before requesting baptism (v. 36), might have offered Philip water from his flask.

Furthermore, only immersion accurately reflects the symbolism of the baptismal rite. According to Rom. 6:3-11 Paul teaches that Christian baptism represents death. To be “baptized,” Paul says, is to be “baptized into his [Christ’s] death” (v. 3), to be “buried with him by baptism into death” (v. 4), to be “planted together in the likeness of his death” (v. 5), to be “crucified with him” (v. 6). Paul then concludes, “Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin” (v. 11). Obviously, pouring and sprinkling are not symbols of death and burial. Paul makes his meaning doubly clear by pointing to the important fact that coming forth from baptism symbolizes being “raised up from the dead” (v. 4). It is evident that the writers of the NT knew only of baptism by immersion.

That John the Baptist was probably not the first to introduce the practice of baptism is evident from ancient sources. The Jews early followed the practice of baptizing proselytes to Judaism. It is not certain when the practice was adopted, but incidental details concerning the procedure were a point of dispute between the school of Shammai and the school of Hillel in the 1st century A.D. Since by that time the practice was apparently already well established, it is highly probable that the baptism of proselytes dates from pre-Christian times. See Mishnah Pesahim 8.8, Soncino ed. of the Talmud, pp. 490, 491; Talmud Pesahim 92a, Soncino ed., pp. 491, 492; see also Tosephta Pesahim 7.13 and Jerusalem Talmud Pesahim 8.36b.31, both cited in Strack and Billerbeck, Kommentar zum Neuen Testament, vol. 1, p. 103.

It is also well established that the mode of proselyte baptism was immersion. The regulations required that the entire body be covered with water (see Talmud ‘Erubin 4b, Soncino ed., p. 20; Yebamoth 47a, 47b, Soncino ed., pp. 311,312). Finds at Qumran and in Cairo (see pp. 53, 54, 90-92) reveal that the Jewish sect known as Essenes baptized themselves daily by immersion, symbolically washing away their sins. Qumran is in the “wilderness of Judaea,” where John preached.

It is apparent that the Jews who flocked to John in the wilderness understood the meaning of the rite and considered it an appropriate procedure. Even the representatives of the Sanhedrin sent to question John did not challenge the rite of baptism itself, but only John’s authority to perform it (see John 1:19–28).

That the rite of Christian baptism is simply a symbol and does not convey divine grace, is evident throughout the NT. Unless a man believes in Jesus Christ (Acts 8:37; cf. Rom. 10:9) and repents of sin (Acts 2:38; cf. ch. 19:18), baptism can be of no value to him. In other words, there is no saving power in the rite itself, apart from faith in the heart of the one receiving the rite. From these and other considerations it is clear that infant baptism is a meaningless procedure so far as the salvation of the child is concerned. Baptism can become meaningful only when the child is old enough to understand salvation, faith, and repentance.

Although the Jews recognized the validity of proselyte baptism, the rite was only for Gentile converts to Judaism. That John required it of the Jews themselves — even of their religious leaders — was the striking aspect of his baptism. Furthermore, he considered his baptism only preparatory to the baptism to be administered by Christ (Matt. 3:11). Unless the Jews accepted John’s baptism and the subsequent baptism of the Holy Spirit by Jesus Christ, they were no better than the heathen. Their descent from Abraham would avail them nothing (Matt. 3:9; cf. John 8:33, 39, 53; Rom. 11:21; Gal. 3:7, 29; James 2:21; etc.).

Confessing. When we confess, God forgives (1 John 1:9). John the Baptist felt an intense hatred for all kinds of sin and wrongdoing. God never sends messages to flatter the sinner; that would be fatal for eternal life. One of the marks of genuine reformation is sincere repentance of sin and a turning away from it. Similarly, it is one of the marks of the genuineness of a message from God that the communication points out sin and calls for repentance and confession. Thus it was with the prophets of old (see Isa. 1:1-20; 58:1; etc.), thus it was in NT times (Matt. 3:7; 23:13-33; Rev. 2:5; 3:15-18), and thus it is today (3T 254). John’s baptism was a “baptism of repentance” (Mark 1:4); that was its most prominent characteristic. It was the sins of Israel that lay at the root of all their personal and national woes (Isa. 59:1, 2; Jer. 5:25; etc.). From these calamities they sought in vain for deliverance. They longed and prayed for release from the yoke of Rome, but most of them failed to realize that sin had to be separated from the camp before God could work for them. See Vol. IV, pp. 30-33.