John's ministry, as Jesus', did not begin until he was a mature man. This section of the Gospel shows the vital place John played as Messiah's forerunner.
3:1-2 Luke made detailed reference to the time when John commenced his ministry to document the reliability of his Gospel.116Only the reference to Tiberius is necessary to date the beginning of John's ministry that shortly preceded the commencement of Jesus' ministry. The other references place these events in a broader historical context.
Pontius Pilate was governor (prefect) of Judea from 26 to late 36 or early 37 A.D. Herod Antipas ended his reign as tetrarch of Galilee that began in 4 B.C. by deposition in 39 A.D. His brother Herod Philip, who ruled territories to the northeast of Palestine from 4 B.C., died in 34 A.D. Archaeological evidence does not enable scholars to date Lysanias, the tetrarch of Abilene, an area northeast of Damascus. Annas was Israel's high priest from 6 to 15 A.D. until the Roman authorities deposed him. However the Jews continued to regard him as the high priest, and he retained his title.117His son-in-law Caiaphas served as the official high priest from 18 to the spring of 37 A.D. Thus the general time frame when John began his ministry was between 26 and the spring of 37 A.D. The specific date, the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar, is harder to pinpoint, but it was probably 29 A.D.118
Then the word of God came to John in the wilderness where he lived (cf. 1:80). He began his ministry as a prophet then (cf. Isa. 1:1; Jer. 1:1-3; et al.).
3:3 Luke mentioned John's itinerant ministry in the region around the Jordan River whereas Matthew described it as in the wilderness of Judea (Matt. 3:1). The thing that characterized John's ministry in the minds of his contemporaries was his baptism. What marked his baptism distinctively was that it expressed repentance that resulted in divine forgiveness of sins. John's baptism prefigured Jesus' different kind of baptism (cf. v. 16). Luke said little about John's baptizing but stressed his preaching.
"The task of proclaiming . . . repentance for release of sins' (3:3) remains central throughout Luke-Acts [cf. 4:18; 5:17-32; 24:47]."119
3:4-6 All three synoptic writers quoted Isaiah 40:3 as the prophecy that John fulfilled, and John the evangelist recorded John the Baptist quoting it of himself (cf. John 1:23). However, Luke alone also quoted Isaiah 40:4-5. These verses contained the preparations made for a royal visitor that were common in the Greco-Roman world. They also included the fact that all people would experience the salvation that God would provide. One of Luke's main themes was the universal scope of salvation (cf. 2:30; Acts 28:28; et al.).120Typically Luke quoted from the Septuagint. John's ministry consisted of preparing the Jews by getting them right with God so when Messiah appeared they would believe on Him.
"This quotation from Isaiah not only interprets John's special mission but reveals the purpose of God which underlies the whole narrative of Luke-Acts."121
In Luke, John is a "prototype of the Christian evangelist."122
"The section on John's ministry begins with a rather lengthy scriptural quotation and ends with an arrest that will lead to death. Jesus' ministry will begin and end in the same way."123
Essentially John called his hearers to change their minds about their relationship to God and to demonstrate the genuineness of their repentance with righteous conduct (vv. 7-14). He also promoted Jesus (vv. 15-17). Only Luke included John's enumeration of specific changes the people needed to make to demonstrate true repentance (vv. 10-14).
3:7-9 Luke's introduction of John's message is more general than Matthew's, but his summary of John's preaching is almost identical to Matthew's. However, Luke never reported that John said, "Repent, for the kingdom is at hand"(Matt. 3:2). Luke waited to introduce the kingdom theme until Jesus began His ministry (4:43).
As adders try to escape before an approaching brush fire, so the Jews of John's day were trying to escape God's coming judgment by fleeing to him for baptism.124However, John sensed that their reason for coming to him was just their safety, not genuine repentance. Righteous behavior would demonstrate true repentance. Many of the Jews believed that Abraham's righteousness availed for his descendants.125As God had cut Israel out of Abraham, who was a rock spiritually, so He could produce children for Himself from the stones in the wilderness (cf. 19:40).126People commonly cut down and burn fruit trees that do not produce fruit. Likewise God would judge Israel as a fruitless tree unless the Jews repented and started bearing the fruits of repentance (cf. 6:43-45; 13:6-9; Isa. 5:1-7).
"The Greek verb [metanoeo, translated "to repent"] means to change one's mind,' but in its Lucan usage it comes very close to the Hebrew verb for repent which literally means to turn or turn around' (sub). . . . A change of perspective, involving the total person's point of view, is called for by this term. In fact, John called for the Israelites to bring forth fruit worthy of repentance (3:8). This passage is significant for it separates repentance from what it produces, and also expresses a link between repentance and fruit. One leads to the other.
"In summary, Luke saw repentance as a change of perspective that transforms a person's thinking and approach to life."127
3:10-11 Luke's unique inclusion of the specific fruits of repentance (vv. 10-14) demonstrates his concern for social justice. To the sincere in the crowd John recommended generously sharing their possessions with the needy (cf. Gal. 5:22-23). The tunic (Gr. chiton) was the short undergarment worn under a robe. The Jews often wore two of them at once if they had two.128
3:12-13 John counselled sincere tax collectors to refrain from extorting more money than they had a right to receive (cf. 5:27-32). He advocated honesty and freedom from greed. He did not suggest overthrowing a system that allowed for abuses but prescribed personal morality that would eliminate the abuses.
3:14 Soldiers were able because of their position to threaten people with reprisal to extort money from them. Exactly who these soldiers were is unclear, but it is also unimportant. Greed appears to have been a special temptation for them since the wages of soldiers were low. Therefore John called on them to demonstrate contentment.
Verses 12-14 help us see that certain temptations are more prominent in certain occupations than others. However material possessions were a source of temptation to all these people.
3:15-17 Luke's account of John's preaching about Jesus is the longest in the three Synoptic Gospels (cf. John 1:19-25). John distinguished between his baptism and Messiah's to show that he was not the Messiah.
Matthew's account of these words stressed the importance of Jesus' Jewish hearers repenting personally and nationally. Luke tailored his account to Gentiles and stressed the judgment that Jesus would bring (cf. Isa. 4:4). The presence of only one article before "Holy Spirit"and "fire"in the Greek text suggests that John was referring to one baptism. It is probably the baptism that Jesus will initiate when He returns to earth as the messianic King but which He initiated from heaven as a foreview of that event on the day of Pentecost (Acts 1:5; 2:3-4; cf. Isa. 44:3; Joel 2:28-32). John's water baptism prefigured Jesus' baptism. John's reference to unquenchable fire implies eternal judgment. Jesus will be the stronger One who judges, not just God.
3:18 John's preaching was also positive. He preached good news to the people (Gr. laos, a potentially responsive group) as well as warning them of coming judgment.
"John illustrates how the proclaimer of the Word should perform his task. The preacher must bear good news as well as news that exposes sin. Some preachers in the past tended to emphasize sin so much that one wondered where grace might be found. Today our problem is the opposite: being able to confront people with their accountability and culpability before God."129
Luke concluded his account of John's ministry before he began to narrate Jesus' ministry. This arrangement of material allowed Luke to continue comparing and contrasting the ministries of the two men.130
"John's prophetic call, his ministry in fulfillment of Scripture, his preaching to all classes in society, his falling foul of Herod, and his ultimate fate all have their counterparts in the career of Jesus."131
John's stern words about sin led to his arrest and imprisonment by Herod Antipas. Matthew and Mark recorded a longer account of what happened (Matt. 14:4-12; Mark 6:17-29). Luke recorded references to John's death later (9:7-9, 19-20). Here he stressed John's boldness and the sickness of the society that he confronted. John probably began his ministry in 29 A.D. and remained free for one year. The next two years he was in prison, and he died in 32 A.D.132
