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THE KING’S BUSINESS
whose shoe’s latchet (, even He that cometh after me, the latchet of whose shoe) I am not worthy Ho unloose.” John’s, answer to their question is complete and satisfactory. There are really two parts to the answer, the first part being that his baptism was only water baptism and was therefore per fectly proper on the part of the forerunner of Him whose baptism was the real and permanent baptism, baptism in the Holy Spirit and fire (cf. Matt. 3:11). This does not imply for a moment that water baptism is not important or necessary, but it does suggest that it is not the all-important baptism which was the work, not of the forerunner, but of the Christ Himself. The second part of the answer is that though he was not himself the Christ', the Christ was at hand—indeed already present—and that therefore the time had come for the preparatory baptism (cf. v. 31). John the Baptist did not merely say, “In the midst of you there is one,” but “in the midst of you standeth one.” This word “stand eth” seems to mark the dignity and stability of the position which Christ was shown to hold (cf. 1 Thess. 3 :8 in which passage the same word translated “standeth” in the passage before us, is translated “stand fast”). The words “ye know not” are very suggestive. The “ye” is emphatic and brings out the incompetence of the committee that were sent to examine John, seen in the fact that while Christ was among them they had not recognized Him, but he himself, whom they sought to examine and silence, had recognized Him. John again emphasizes his utter inferiority to Jesus Christ, he was not even worthy to do a slave’s work for Him, to stoop down and unloose the latchet of His shoe. | These words ought to have set the Pharisees to thinking and led them to Very deep questionings, but they were mere ecclesiastics who had performed the duty which they were sent to perform and that ended it for them. v. 28. “These things were done in Betha- bara (Bethany) beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.” This Bethany must not be confused with the Bethany on the Mount
of Olives. The exact location is not known. It is probably some insignificant village in Peraea. The mention of the exact locality is one of the many indications that the writer knew the exact details and was an eye witness. It is one of the countless proofs that John the Apostle was really the author of the fourth gospel. In the original the form of the expression “John was bap tizing,” denotes that he was continually baptizing, i.e., that he baptized day after day. Making a practice of baptizing was the work he was doing there. v. 29. “The next£day John (On the mor row he) seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” John the Baptist’s testimony to Jesús met with an unfavorable reception on the part of the Jews,/and in this' we have the first illüstration of the unbelief referred to by John in his introduction .to his gospel (vs. 10 , 11 ), but now we read of another testi mony given to Jesus by John the Baptist (vs. 29-34), followed by a third (vs. 35-37) that mét with an entirely different recep tion ; and so over against the unbelief of the representatives of Jewish ecclesiastical authority the acceptance of John’s testi mony by his two disciples gives us the first record of the Churches faith. The occasion upon which John gave the testimony here reqorded is most significant: the representa tive committee from Jerusalem had retired and now John sees Jesus coming to him. Our Lord was just returning from the temptation in the wilderness; for it is evi dent from a comparison of John’s account with that of the synoptic Gospels, that the baptism and temptation of Jesus must have preceded verse 19 , and the rapid succession of events here recorded, as indicated by the language in verses 29, 33 leaves no interval for the temptation. The bapt.ism and temptation of Jesus having already taken place, he was about to begin, his public ministry. It was most fitting there fore that' his entrance upon his public ministry should begin with this testimony by his herald, John the Baptist: The-testi-
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