This current scripture is the opening direct reference to baptism in the entire Bible. Through using the expression “In those days”, the author Matthew is placing his text into it’s historical situation. He is in addition recounting to his contemporaries about days that had recently passed, and was most likely writing to his audience a long while subsequent to the dealings that he notes. So that we can learn which days Matthew is informing us about, we will need to examine the previous chapters.
In the opening of his gospel, the Aposple Matthew names it “The book of the generation of Jesus Christ” (Matthew 1v1). Here Matthew states his objective - to reveal Jesus as a real human being that lived at a certain stage, was born to particular mother and father, and had the ministry and position of “Christ”, the anointed Messiah or Saviour. The balance of the first chapter tells us about the family tree of Jesus, and furthermore a succinct explanation of how Mary got pregnant: “she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.” (Matthew 1v18)
It is in chapter two that we start to glimpse the precise events that Matthew uses so that we can locate his writings into a chronological period. The historical events shown include:
· Jesus was born in Bethlehem (King David’s historical home) “in the days of Herod the king” (Matthew 2v1)
· Wise men came out of the east to Jerusalem, asking “Where is he that is born King of the Jews?” (Matthew 2v1-2)
· The wise men travelled because, in their words, “we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him” (Matthew 2v2)
· Herod asked the wise men at what instant the star did appear (Matthew 2v7) and found that it was as much as two years previously (Matthew 2v16). It is feasible nevertheless that he overestimated in an effort to make sure that the baby Jesus was murdered, thinking that the heavenly body had in fact appeared at His conception approximately 9 months earlier.
· Herod the king sent out the edict with the intention of every one of the babies less than the age of 2 in Bethlehem as well as the whole of the adjoining realm must be slaughtered. This was his effort in order to make sure that hardly one infant, the baby Jesus, was also killed. (Matthew 2v16)
· Following the visit of the wise men, Joseph took Mary and the baby Jesus toward Egypt in a rush, seeing that he had been warned about Herod the king's strategy via an angel. (Matthew 2v13-14)
· Whilst the family had been in Egypt, Herod the king died so Joseph was told to come back in the direction of Israel with “the young child”. (Matthew 2v19-20)
· When King Herod had died, his son Archelaus ruled Judaea in his place. (Matthew 2v22)
Unmistakably, the aposple Matthew places the events in the days of the Lord Jesus Christ inside the framework of who was ruling Judaea, as well as a number of of the things that they had ordered. This would almost certainly locate the birth of the baby Jesus within a small number of days or weeks from the edict that Herod the king had made to have him and all further babies in and in the vicinity of Bethlehem slaughtered. It is probable that a number of Matthew’s audience had lost a child, brother or sister at some stage in this point and may well correlate the account of Matthew quickly to events inside their particular families. It was into these period in the reader's recent past that John the Baptist had appeared, preaching as well as baptising.
John the Baptist was not preaching inside the temple or other places of worship, but in the wasteland. Perhaps he was not welcome in the temple for some reason - the most possible grounds was the teaching that he brought. For extra confirmation of this, see in addition v7 3.
Shall we look at the message that he preached, which is established within the small number of scriptures which go after the present one:
· Repentance was commanded to every one (v2)
· The “kingdom of heaven” was at hand - just about to be revealed (v2)
· John the Baptist appreciated his peculiar ministry as laying the foundations for the ministry of the Lord, sowing the earth, getting the whole thing geared up, and making His route a little quicker. (v3)
Plainly, right from the start of the biblical account of baptism, repentance from sinful ways was entwined in the message of baptism. This message of repentance and baptism was preparing every individual that received the message for the pending ministry of the Lord Jesus.
Author Resource:-
MJ Anderson
All quotations from the Good News Bible unless otherwise indicated.
MJ Anderson writes on Baptism, and has also written a book studying each of the 91 verses of scripture about baptism. The book is called "Baptism's 91 Witnesses", and further information can be found at http://www.91witnesses.com
MJ Anderson also produces custom Bumper Stickers, Sticky Labels and Food and Drink stickers through his website at http://www.labels4me.co.uk
Natural Thyroid Treatments and articles at Natural Thyroid Treatment dot Org and Thyroid Booster dot Net
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