Matthew 3

Translator Notes

1. The historical present paraginetai ('appears, arrives') creates narrative immediacy — John bursts onto the scene. The title ho baptistees ('the Baptist, the one who baptizes') identifies John by his distinctive practice. The wilderness (eremos) of Judea is the barren region west of the Dead Sea, a place associated with divine encounter and prophetic calling throughout Israel's history.

Key Terms

Translator Notes

1. The verb metanoeite ('repent') means a radical change of mind and direction, corresponding to the Hebrew teshuvah ('return'). The perfect tense eggiken ('has drawn near, has come close') indicates that the kingdom's approach has already begun — it is not merely future but pressing into the present. 'Kingdom of heaven' (basileia ton ouranon) is Matthew's distinctive phrase, using 'heaven' as a reverential circumlocution for 'God,' reflecting Jewish practice of avoiding direct use of the divine name.

Translator Notes

1. The quotation from Isaiah 40:3 is foundational to all four Gospels' presentation of John. In its original context, the voice calls for a highway through the desert for God's return to Zion after the exile. Matthew applies this to John preparing the way for Jesus. The phrase 'in the wilderness' modifies 'crying out' (as in the Septuagint and the Gospels), though in the Hebrew of Isaiah 40:3 it modifies 'prepare' — 'in the wilderness prepare the way.' This difference in punctuation shifts the emphasis from the location of the preparation to the location of the prophet.
2. [TCR Cross-Reference] References Isaiah 40:3 — the TCR OT rendering of that text provides the Hebrew source and explains the translation decisions involved.

Translator Notes

1. John's appearance deliberately mirrors Elijah's description in 2 Kings 1:8 — a hairy garment with a leather belt. This visual allusion would be immediately recognized by Matthew's audience. Locusts were permitted food under Jewish dietary law (Leviticus 11:22). The wilderness diet emphasizes John's ascetic separation from settled society and his prophetic identity.
2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Echoes 2 Kings 1:8. See the TCR's OT rendering for the Hebrew behind this passage and the translation rationale.
3. [TCR Cross-Reference] Echoes Leviticus 11:22. See the TCR's OT rendering for the Hebrew behind this passage and the translation rationale.

Translator Notes

1. The imperfect tense exeporeueto ('were going out') describes a continuous stream of people, not a single event. The hyperbolic 'all Judea' and 'the entire region' (pasa, repeated) conveys the scale of John's popular impact. The Jordan River region was associated with Israel's entry into the promised land under Joshua.

Translator Notes

1. The verb ebaptizonto ('were being baptized') is imperfect passive, indicating an ongoing process. The Greek baptizo means 'to immerse, dip, submerge.' Confession of sins (exomologoumenoi) accompanied the immersion, making it a public act of repentance, not merely a ritual washing. Jewish purification rites involved water, but John's baptism was distinctive in linking immersion to moral repentance and eschatological preparation.

Translator Notes

1. The phrase genneemata echidnon ('brood of vipers') is devastatingly hostile — they are not merely compared to snakes but identified as the offspring of venomous serpents. The rhetorical question implies that their appearance at the baptism is insincere — they are seeking to escape judgment without genuine repentance. The 'coming wrath' (mellouses orgees) refers to eschatological judgment. The Pharisees and Sadducees rarely appear together; their joint presence may indicate that both wings of the religious establishment are under indictment.

Translator Notes

1. The singular karpon ('fruit') in the SBLGNT (versus the KJV's plural 'fruits') treats repentance as producing a unified result — a transformed life, not merely individual good deeds. The adjective axion ('worthy, fitting, corresponding to') demands that the fruit match the claim. John requires evidence, not merely words.

Translator Notes

1. John strikes at the core of Jewish ethnic confidence — descent from Abraham was considered a guarantee of covenant standing. John insists that biological lineage without moral transformation is worthless. The reference to 'these stones' (ton lithon touton) may involve a wordplay in Aramaic (the spoken language): 'stones' (avanim) and 'children' (banim) sound alike. God's ability to create children from stones also evokes the creation of Adam from earth.

Translator Notes

1. The present tense keitai ('is laid, is lying') indicates that judgment is not approaching — it has arrived. The axe is already positioned. The tree-and-fruit metaphor recurs throughout Matthew (7:16-20, 12:33, 21:19) as a standard image for the moral evaluation of people. Fire (pyr) represents eschatological judgment.

Key Terms

Translator Notes

1. John contrasts his water baptism with the coming one's baptism 'with the Holy Spirit and fire' (en pneumati hagio kai pyri). Whether 'Spirit and fire' describes one baptism (the Spirit as purifying fire) or two (blessing for the repentant, judgment for the unrepentant) is debated. The sandal-carrying metaphor indicates slave-level service — John considers himself unworthy even of the lowest task for the one who follows him. The Greek ischyroteros ('more powerful, stronger') emphasizes raw divine authority.

Translator Notes

1. The agricultural metaphor of winnowing — tossing grain into the air so the wind separates wheat from chaff — depicts divine judgment as a sorting process. The Greek ptyon ('winnowing fork/shovel') is a large fork used to throw grain. 'Unquenchable fire' (pyri asbesto) intensifies the judgment beyond ordinary burning — this fire cannot be extinguished. The imagery connects to Malachi 3:2-3, where the messenger's coming involves refining fire.
2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Draws on Malachi 3:2-3. Consult the TCR rendering of that passage for the underlying Hebrew and the rationale for key translation choices.

Translator Notes

1. The historical present paraginetai ('arrives') mirrors the same verb used for John's appearance in verse 1, creating a structural parallel. Jesus comes specifically for baptism (tou baptisthenai, a purpose infinitive), making this a deliberate, intentional act rather than a chance encounter.

Translator Notes

1. The imperfect tense diekolyen ('was trying to prevent, kept preventing') indicates ongoing resistance, not a single objection. John recognizes the incongruity — the greater should baptize the lesser, not the reverse. This exchange is unique to Matthew and addresses the theological puzzle of why the sinless one submitted to a baptism of repentance.

Key Terms

Translator Notes

1. Jesus's reply is his first spoken words in Matthew's Gospel. The phrase 'fulfill all righteousness' (plerosai pasan dikaiosynen) is theologically dense — it connects to Matthew's theme of fulfillment and to the concept of dikaiosyne ('righteousness') that will dominate the Sermon on the Mount. The 'us' (heemin) includes both John and Jesus in a shared mission. 'Righteousness' here likely means conformity to God's will and purposes rather than personal moral achievement.

Key Terms

Translator Notes

1. The opening of the heavens (aneochtheesan hoi ouranoi) echoes Ezekiel 1:1 and Isaiah 64:1 — moments when the barrier between heaven and earth is breached. The phrase 'like a dove' (hosei peristeran) is ambiguous: it may describe the Spirit's visual form or the gentle manner of descent. The verb erchomenon ('coming') combined with ep' auton ('upon him') echoes Isaiah 11:2, where the Spirit 'rests upon' the messianic branch. This is a royal anointing scene — the Spirit's descent constitutes Jesus's commissioning.
2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Quotes Ezekiel 1:1. The TCR rendering of that OT passage preserves the Hebrew source text and documents the translation decisions behind it.
3. [TCR Cross-Reference] Quotes Isaiah 64:1. The TCR rendering of that OT passage preserves the Hebrew source text and documents the translation decisions behind it.
4. [TCR Cross-Reference] Quotes Isaiah 11:2. The TCR rendering of that OT passage preserves the Hebrew source text and documents the translation decisions behind it.

Key Terms

Translator Notes

1. The heavenly voice combines two Old Testament texts: Psalm 2:7 ('You are my Son') — a royal enthronement psalm — and Isaiah 42:1 ('my chosen one in whom my soul delights') — the first Servant Song. The fusion declares Jesus simultaneously as Davidic king and Suffering Servant. Matthew has 'This is' (houtos estin, third person, a public declaration) where Mark has 'You are' (sy ei, second person, addressed to Jesus). The verb eudokesa ('I am well pleased, I have delighted') is aorist, possibly indicating a timeless or pre-temporal delight rather than a response to the baptism alone.
2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Draws on Psalm 2:7. Consult the TCR rendering of that passage for the underlying Hebrew and the rationale for key translation choices.
3. [TCR Cross-Reference] Draws on Isaiah 42:1. Consult the TCR rendering of that passage for the underlying Hebrew and the rationale for key translation choices.