John the Baptist, the Witness, the Prophet by Felix Just, S.J., Ph.D.
Introduction:
A Jewish man named John, the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth (more commonly known as John the Baptist) is significant not only in relation to Jesus of Nazareth in the New Testament writings, but was an important figure in the history of first-century Judaism, as known to us through other sources.
For many centuries, some people even considered John the Baptist to be more important than Jesus of Nazareth, according to several commonly recognized ancient criteria. Not only was John slightly older than Jesus (acc. to Luke 1–2), but he was actively preaching and baptizing before Jesus began his own public ministry. Moreover, according to several Gospel accounts, Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan river, thus not only implying that Jesus recognized John's role and importance, but also leading some scholars to suggest that Jesus himself was a disciple of John the Baptist, at least for a time, before embarking on his own ministry of preaching and healing.
Although admitting that Jesus was younger than John and was baptized by John, Christians throughout the centuries have maintained that Jesus is nevertheless "greater" or more important than John, whose primary role is seen as the "forerunner" or precursor of Jesus. Thus, John is seen as the last prophet of ancient Israel, while Jesus is the Messiah who ushers in the new age of the Kingdom of God. Each of the four canonical Gospels explains the relationship between John and Jesus in a slightly different way, as detailed below.
Vocabulary: John, Baptism, Witness, Prophet, etc.
Greek Word
Meaning
Mark
Matt
Luke
John
Acts
123Jn
Rev
Other
NT Total
Ἰωάννης
John (the Baptist)
16
23
24
19
9
0
0
0
91
.
John (son of Zebedee)
10
3
7
0
9
0
0
1
30
.
John (father of Simon)
0
0
0
4
0
0
0
0
4
.
John (a.k.a. Mark)
0
0
0
0
5
0
0
0
5
.
John (a high priest)
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
.
John (the seer)
0
0
0
0
0
0
4
0
4
ὁ βαπτιστής
Baptist
2
7
3
0
0
0
0
0
12
βαπτίζω
to baptize, dip
13
7
10
13
21
0
0
13
77
τὸ βάπτισμα
baptism
4
2
4
0
6
0
0
3
19
ὁ βαπτισμός
dipping, washing
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
3
4
βάπτω
to dip
0
0
1
2
0
0
1
0
4
ἐμβάπτω
to dip into
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
μαρτυρέω
to witness, testify
0
1
1
33
11
10
4
16
76
ἡ μαρτυρία
testimony
3
0
1
14
1
7
9
2
37
τὸ μαρτύριον
evidence
3
3
3
0
2
0
1
7
19
μαρτύρομαι
to testify, assert
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
3
5
ὁ μάρτυς
witness
1
2
2
0
13
0
5
12
35
ὁμολογέω
to confess
0
4
2
4
3
6
1
6
26
ἀρνέομαι
to deny
2
4
4
4
4
3
2
10
33
Ἠλίας
Elijah
9
9
7
2
0
0
0
2
29
ὁ προφήτης
prophet
6
37
29
14
30
0
8
20
144
Characters Named John:
Six different men are named "John" in the NT, so one must be careful not to confuse them. The situation can be particularly difficult when speaking about the character John (the Baptist) in the Fourth Gospel (FG; the Gospel according to John). Surprisingly, the only person explicitly named "John" in this Gospel is the baptizing precursor of Jesus (although he's never called "the Baptist" in the FG), while the well-known apostle of Jesus, who is called "John, the son of Zebedee" in the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) is never named in the FG!
John, the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth (John the Baptist) - mentioned in all four Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles, far more often than any other "John" in the NT; the story of his birth is narrated in Luke 1; he preaches and baptizes at the Jordan river, and is later arrested and beheaded by the Herod Antipas, the Tetrarch of Galilee and Perea.
John, the son of Zebedee and brother of James (John the Apostle) - one of the first four disciples called by Jesus and one of the three disciples closest to Jesus, according to the Synoptic Gospels; never named in the Fourth Gospel, aside from one reference to "the sons of Zebedee" in the epilogue (John 21:2).
John, the father of Simon Peter - is referred to only when Peter is called "Simon, son of John" (John 1:42; 21:15-17), but does not himself appear as a character in the NT.
John Mark of Jerusalem - a young man at whose mother's house the early believers gathered in Jerusalem (Acts 12:12); he became a traveling companion and co-worker of Barnabas and Paul (Acts 12:25; 13:5, 13; 15:37); Mark is called the "cousin of Barnabas" in Col 4:10, although he is not explicitly called "John" there.
John, a priest in Jerusalem - mentioned only once, along with Annas, Caiphas, Alexander, "and all who were of the high-priestly family" (Acts 4:6).
John, the seer of Revelation - unlike the Fourth Gospel and the Johannine Epistles, in which the authors remain anonymous, the author of the Book of Revelation is explicitly called "John" both at the beginning and the end of that book (Rev 1:1, 4, 9; 22:8).
[John the Evangelist] - although not named within the book itself, the author of the Fourth Gospel has traditionally been called "John"; scholars continue to debate which "John" this might be, or whether the original author was someone else.
Baptizing and Dipping:
Several NT Greek words with related meanings are derived from the root βαπτ- (bapt-):
The verbs βάπτω and ἐμβάπτω literally mean “to dip” something into some kind of liquid, such as when a hand or a piece of bread is “dipped” into a bowl (Matt 26:23; Mark 14:20; John 13:26).
The verb βαπτίζω sometimes refers to hands or eating utensils being “washed” or “dipped” in water (Mark 7:4; Luke 11:38), but throughout the NT it almost always refers to people being "immersed" in water in a ritual of cleansing or purification as a sign of repentance or renewal.
Similarly, the masculine noun βαπτισμός can refer to the “washing” or “dipping” of objects (Mark 7:4; Heb 9:10) or to Christian “baptism” (Col 2:12; Heb 6:2).
In contrast, the neuter noun βάπτισμα always refers to the ritual immersion of people in water.
Ritual immersions were common in ancient Judaism, especially at Qumran but also at the Jerusalem Temple and elsewhere, for “purifying” oneself after coming into contact with any “unclean” person or thing.
John the Baptist:
The immersions performed by John had a slightly different and distinctive focus, expressing a definitive “repentance” of sinners, in contrast to the repeated “purifications” performed regularly by most Jews.
John's baptizing activity was evidently so distinctive that he became popularly known as “the Baptist” (ὁ βαπτιστής, Matt 3:1) or “the baptizer” (ὁ βαπτίζων, Mark 1:4; 6:14), at least according to the Synoptic Gospels.
In the FG, however, he is never called by these titles; although he is said to baptize people (John 1:25-33), he is always simply called “John.”
In the Synoptics, John the Baptist is the only person who baptizes anyone with water.
Although John claims that Jesus will baptize “with the Holy Spirit” (Mark 1:8, to which Matt 3:11 and Luke 3:16 add “and with fire”), Jesus never baptizes anyone with water during his own public ministry.
In the FG, by contrast, not only does John (the Baptist) again assert that Jesus will baptize with the Holy Spirit (John 1:33), but the Evangelist claims that Jesus and/or his disciples also performed water baptisms, just like John and his disciples (John 3:22—4:2).
Only in Matthew does the risen Jesus send his disciples out to baptize “all nations” (Matt 28:19).
The Baptism of Jesus:
Jesus' baptism is described very differently in the four Gospels:
In the Synoptic Gospels, Jesus himself is baptized by John (explicitly in Mark 1:9 and Matt 3:13-16; only implicitly in Luke 3:21)
The Fourth Gospel never says or even implies that Jesus was baptized by John or by anyone else.
In the Synoptics, Jesus speaks metaphorically of his own death as a “baptism” (Mark 10:38-39; Luke 12:50)
This idea is also expressed in Paul’s letters (Romans 6:3-4), but never in the Fourth Gospel.
John the Witness:
In the FG, much more important than John’s activity baptizing people is his role in “bearing witness” (μαρτυρέω) or providing “testimony” (μαρτυρία) about Jesus. His faithful “witnessing” activity is stressed with several other verbs, especially ὁμολογέω (“to confess”) and ἀρνέομαι (“to deny”). Confessing Jesus (i.e., proclaiming one’s allegiance publicly) is an essential requirement of true discipleship in the FG (9:22; 12:42). John “confessed and did not deny” (1:20), in contrast to Simon Peter, who later denies even knowing Jesus (13:38; 18:25-27).
Aside from John (the Baptist), several other characters in the FG also “bear witness” to Jesus, including the Samaritan woman (4:39), the “works” which Jesus does (5:36; 10:25), the Father (5:37; 8:18), the Scriptures (5:39), the crowd that saw Jesus raise Lazarus (12:17), the Paraclete (15:26), the disciples of Jesus (15:27), and especially “the disciple whom Jesus loved” (19:35; 21:24). Moreover, Jesus frequently gives testimony about himself (3:11, 32-33; 4:44; 5:31; 7:7; 8:13-18; 13:21; 18:37), which raises objections among his opponents in the FG. A few other related words are used in the Synoptics, but not in the FG (see chart above).
Hebrew Bible Prophets in the New Testament:
The NT Gospels frequently quote and/or mention the prophets of ancient Israel in various contexts:
Texts from the writings of the biblical prophets, especially Isaiah, are cited frequently throughout the New Testament (Mark 1:2-3; John 1:23; etc.).
In the synagogue at Nazareth, Jesus not only reads from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah (Luke 4:16-21), but also mentions some miracles performed by the prophets Elijah and Elisha (Luke 4:24-27).
People speculate whether John the Baptist is actually Elijah or one of the other ancient prophets returned to earth (Matt 11:7-15; John 1:21).
People also speculate whether Jesus embodies the return of John the Baptist, Elijah, or another prophet (Mark 6:14-15 // Luke 9:8; Mark 8:28 // Matt 16:14 // Luke 9:19).
Moses and Elijah appear and speak with Jesus during the Transfiguration (Mark 9:4-5 // Matt 17:3-4 // Luke 9:30-33).
Jesus' disciples ask him about the popular expectation that Elijah would return to earth, an opinion that Jesus shares (Mark 9:11-13 // Matt 17:10-13).
At the crucifixion, some bystanders think Jesus was crying out to Elijah to save him (Mark 15:34-36 // Matt 27:46-49).
John the Prophet:
Due to his fiery preaching and outward appearance, John was considered a prophet and compared to the prophets of the Hebrew Bible, especially Elijah. The four Gospels agree that John the Baptist was a prophet, yet they surprisingly disagree about whether or not he was the "Elijah" figure who was expected to come before the Messiah.
In the Synoptic Gospels, not only do other people speculate whether John could be the awaited Elijah (Mark 6:15), but Jesus clearly and explicitly affirms that John is Elijah (Matt 17:10-12).
In Luke, even before John's birth, the angel Gabriel tells his father Zechariah that John would act "with the spirit and power of Elijah" (Luke 1:17)
In the Fourth Gospel, however, John explicitly denies being the Messiah, or Elijah, or the anticipated prophet (John 1:21-25).
John instead refers to himself as a "voice crying out in the wilderness" (John 1:23).
Jesus and John:
Each of the four Gospels (and the Acts of the Apostles) shows Jesus to be greater than John the Baptist, yet in significantly different ways:
Mark:
Mark 1:2-6 - Mark quotes OT prophets (Malachi & Isaiah) and portrays John the Baptist as a prophet preparing the way for Jesus
Mark 1:7-8 - John compares himself with the one coming after him: "The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. / I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
Mark 1:9-11 - Although Jesus is baptized by John, the three-fold divine reaction (heavens open, Spirit descends, voice proclaims) attests to Jesus' identity
Mark 6:14-16 - Some people, including Herod Antipas, believe that Jesus is John the Baptist risen from the dead!
Mark 8:27-30 - Peter professes that Jesus is not just a prophet like John the Baptist, but is the Messiah.
Mark 11:27-33 - Jesus stumps some of his opponents by asking whether John's baptism was of heavenly or human origin.
Matthew:
Several passages in Matthew are fairly similar to Mark: the description of John's prophetic ministry (Matt 3:1-11 // Mark 1:2-8), the actual baptism of Jesus (Matt 3:16-17 // Mark 1:9-11), Herod's belief that Jesus is John risen from the dead (Matt 14:1-2 // Mark 6:14-16), Peter's profession that Jesus is not just a prophet like John (Matt 16:13-16 // Mark 8:27-30), and Jesus questioning his opponents about John's baptism (Matt 21:23-27 // Mark 11:27-33).
Yet Matthew also adds some important new material concerning the relationship of Jesus and John:
Matt 3:12 - John speaks even more explicitly of the one coming after him: "His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and will gather his wheat into the granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."
Matt 3:13-15 - Before John agrees to baptize Jesus, he argues that the situation should be reversed: "Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. / John would have prevented him, saying, 'I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?' / But Jesus answered him, 'Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.' Then he consented."
Matt 11:2-19 - As John is in prison, he sends some of his disciples to question Jesus; then Jesus speaks at length about John.
Matt 17:9-13 - Coming down from the mountain of the Transfiguration, as Jesus speaks about Elijah coming back before the Son of Man, the Evangelist states that Jesus was talking about John the Baptist
Matt 21:28-32 - After telling the Parable of the Two Sons, Jesus applies the comparison to tax collectors and prostitutes vs. chief priest and elders, including their different reactions to the preaching of John the Baptist.
Luke:
Luke only implies, but never directly states that Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan River. Moreover, Luke tells of the imprisonment of John BEFORE telling about the divine signs that occurred after Jesus came up out of the waters.
