Switching Gears
Bear with me as I close out the discussion of what the gospels say about the crucifixion of Jesus, and back up to analyze another important passage that is common to all four gospels: the baptism of Jesus.
The Baptism of Jesus in Mark
Mark opens his gospel with a quick and to-the-point summary of the baptism of Jesus. This event is covered in the opening eleven verses of chapter one. Brevity is a trademark of Mark’s gospel, and the following bullets summarize what Mark states:
- Mark opens with the prophecy in Isaiah concerning John the Baptist.
- The Baptist heralds that he is the first of two, that the one coming is mightier than he.
- Then Jesus appears from Nazareth and is baptized.
- The Spirit descends on Jesus as he comes out of the water.
- The voice from heaven announces “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”
The Baptism of Jesus in John
John contains a much more verbose history concerning the events at Jesus’ baptism. It starts in 1:6 and continues until verse 34. Summarizing:
- John is described as a witness to the One who is coming.
- He quotes Isaiah when asked who he was.
- John says “I did not recognize (know) Him, but so that He might be manifested to Israel, I came baptizing in water.”
- Again John says “I did not recognize (know) Him, but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, 'He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the One who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.'”
- John says “I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon Him.”
- Finally, John says “I myself have seen, and have testified that this is the Son of God.”
Comparing this passage to Mark, there is only one substantive difference:
- Mark – A voice from heaven announces openly that Jesus is the Son of God.
- John – The Baptist testifies that the Spirit told him privately to look for the sign of the Spirit descending upon the One, and that John in turn testified that Jesus is the Son of God.
John’s gospel implies that the sign of the Spirit descending was for him alone, whereas Mark implies the vision was witnessed by several people.
Which version is correct? I tend to side with John’s version, as I tend to doubt that a public miracle occurred at Jesus’ baptism. As noted earlier when I discussed whether an earthquake occurred at the crucifixion, I tend to be cautious of well-intended exaggerations in the gospels. But this is the only difference noted here, and we can be assured that Jesus was indeed baptized by John, and that the Spirit descended upon Him at that event, and that this event served to prove that Jesus was the Son of God.
Next I will look at Matthew's and Luke's accounts.