Matthew 3:1-12
- Reading the Text:
- NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
- Greek Interlinear Bible, ScrTR, ScrTR t, Strong, Parsing, CGTS, CGES id, AV.
- The Bible Gateway: NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
- The Blue Letter Bible. KJV, alternate versions, Greek text with concordance, commentaries.
- The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary & sermons.
- Historical References, Commentary and
Comparative Texts:
- The Five Gospels Parallels, John W. Marshall, University of Toronto.
- "Repentance, Confession and Restitution," Comparative World Scriptures from United Communities of Spirit.
- "John's Message," "John the Baptist," "Kingdom and Repentance," The Jesus Database, an online annotated inventory of the traditions concerning the life and teachings of Jesus. Dr. Gregory C. Jenks, FaithFutures Foundation.
- Stephen Carlson's color-coded Greek Synoptic Parallels: 3:1-6, 3:7-10, 3:11-12.
- Comparative Primary Texts at Mahlon H. Smith's
Into His Own: Perspective on the World of
Jesus, Rutgers University:
- Pharisees & Sadducees from Josephus, Tosefta, Mishnah & Babylonian Talmud.
- Baptism: Water & Spirit from DSS, Josephus, Babylonian Talmud.
- Sin and Justice from Mishnah and Babylonian Talmud.
- Chapter XLIX, Dialogue With Trypho, Justin Martyr. (c 160)
- III.IX.1, IV.IV.3, IV.VII.2, IV.VIII.3, IV.XXV.1, IV.XXXIII.1, IV.XXXIII.11, IV.XXXVI.4, IV.XXXIX.3, V.XVII.4, V.XXXIV.1, Adversus Haereses, Irenaeus of Lyons. (c. 180)
- Chapter VI, Chapter X, Chapter XX, On Baptism, Tertullian (c. 198)
- Chapter I, Exhortation to the Greeks, Clement of Alexandria (c 200)
- I.9, Paedagogus, Clement of Alexandria (c 200)
- Chapter III, The Prescription of Heretics, Tertullian (c. 200)
- Chapter II, Chapter IV, Considering Repentance, Tertullian (c. 203)
- Chapter XII, Chapter XXXVII, Against Hermogenes, Tertullian (c. 205)
- I.6, To His Wife, Tertullian (c. 206)
- Chapter XXI, On the Soul, Tertullian (c. 210)
- Chapter VI, Exhortation to Chastity, Tertullian (c. 210)
- Chapter XIII, De Corona, Tertullian (c. 211)
- Concerning Flight in Persecution (paragraph 1) Tertullian (c. 212)
- Chapter VI, On Monogamy, Tertullian (c. 215)
- Chapter XX, On Modesty, Tertullian (c. 217)
- V.III, VI.XI, The Refutation of all Heresies (Philosophumena), Hippolytus of Rome. (c. 225)
- Epistle LXII - Caecilius, on the Sacrament of the Cup of the Lord -- Cyprian of Carthage (c. 253)
- Homilies on the Gospel of St. Matthew, St. Chrysostom (c. 380)
- Commentary on a Harmony of the Evangelists, John Calvin, 1558:
- From the Catena Aurea, Patristic Commentary by St Thomas Aquinas.
- From the
Geneva Notes.
- "John, who through his singular holiness and rare austerity of life caused men to cast their eyes on him, prepares the way for Christ who is following fast on his heels, as the prophet Isaiah foretold, and delivers the sum of the gospel, which a short time later would be delivered more fully."
- From
Matthew
Henry's Commentary.
- "This was not an uninhabited desert, but a part of the country not thickly peopled, nor much enclosed. No place is so remote as to shut us out from the visits of Divine grace."
- From
Wesley's
Notes.
- "The very demand of repentance, as previous to it, showed it was a spiritual kingdom, and that no wicked man, how politic, brave, or learned soever, could possibly be a subject of it."
- From the Commentary on the Whole Bible (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
- From
The People's
New Testament, B.W. Johnson, 1891.
- "The great rite of John was baptism, but the great duty commanded was repentance. Repentance is more than a sorrow for sin; it is a determination to abandon it and live a new life. It means a change of the will, or heart, new purposes, a determination to leave off sinning. Sorrow is not repentance, but 'godly sorrow worketh repentance'."
- Contemporary Commentary, Studies, and Exegesis:
-
Commentary,
Matthew 3:1-12, Ben Witherington, Preaching This Week,
WorkingPreacher.org, 2010.
- "Repentance, or metanoia, to use the Greek word, refers to far more than a simply being or saying one is sorry for past sins, far more than mere regret or remorse for such sins. It refers to a turning away from the past way of life and the inauguration of a new one, in this case initialized by an act of baptism."
-
Commentary,
Matthew 3:1-12, James Boyce, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org,
2007.
- "What is it that we most deeply hope for, long for, or expect in our lives for the present or for the future?"
- Matthew 3:1-12: Comments (commentary) and Clippings (technical notes for in-depth study), Advent 2A, Chris Haslam, Diocese of Montreal.
-
"First
Thoughts on Year A Gospel Passages in the Lectionary: Advent 2,"
William Loader, Murdoch University, Uniting Church in Australia.
- "Put negatively, there are no favourites: everyone must be immersed in the waters; everyone must join the transformation. Turned into positive terms, this also means: no one is to be written off as inferior or worthless. Every person matters to God."
-
Commentary, Matthew 3:1-12, Aaron L. Parker,
The African American Lectionary, 2009.
- "Representatives from two elite, normally opposing, Jewish religious/political parties, the Pharisees and the Sadducees, show up in the desert for baptism by John. Instead of baptizing them, however, John, as it were, reads their ignoble intentions and greets them with a flagrant insult, 'You brood of venomous snakes.' He then raises a rhetorical question, challenging their sincerity."
-
Exegetical Notes by Brian Stoffregen at
CrossMarks Christian
Resources.
- "What is repenting? Literally the Greek (metanoeo) means, "to change one's mind." However, given Matthew's emphasis on "bearing fruit," his idea of "repentance" probably goes back to the Hebrew shuv -- "to change one's ways." It involves more than just thinking in a different way."
-
Lectionary Blogging, John Petty, Progressive Involvement, 2010.
- "One wonders at Matthew's insertion of the 'region along the Jordan.' The Jordan is the place where Joshua and the Israelites crossed into the Promised Land over 1000 years prior. Is Matthew recalling the Canaanite resistance to this encroachment?"
- "John the Baptist," Gospel Analysis, Sermons from Seattle, Pastor Edward F. Markquart, Grace Lutheran Church, Seattle, Washington. Detailed background and exegesis.
- Dylan's Lectionary Blog, Advent 2A, 2004. (Episcopal Lectionary) Biblical Scholar Sarah Dylan Breuer looks at readings for the coming Sunday in the lectionary of the Episcopal Church.
- "I suspect that the difficulty of trying to figure out just who's in and who's out arises because God's love is a circle expanding faster than any person or community can graph. So why not throw out the graph paper?"
- "The Fear of Punishment," Advent Reflections on Matthew 3:1-12, Alyce McKenzie, Patheos, 2010.
- "For Matthew, repentance is turning toward God to allow all one's motives and actions to flow from obedience to God as one's supreme authority. Confession of sins is pointless (it is fleeing from the wrath to come) if it is not part of the process of submitting one's entire life to God's authority."
- "Prophets Are Terrible Dinner Guests," Danielle Shroyer, The Hardest Question, 2010.
- "Does John really want people to repent?"
-
Evangelio, San Mateo 3:1-12, Osvaldo Vena, Preaching This Week,
WorkingPreacher.org, 2010.
- "Este pasaje detalla el ministerio de Juan el Bautista con materiales que combinan sus fuentes."
- Proclamation of John the Baptist, audio telling, story in episodes, graphic, audio and written commentaries. Go Tell Communications, Biblical Storytelling for the Global Village, 2010.
- "Preaching Matthew 3:1-12," Mary Donovan Turner, Lectionary Homiletics Sample.
- "Unquenchable Fire," study guide, Robert B. Kruschwitz, (other resources at) "Heaven and Hell," Christian Reflection, The Center for Christian Ethics at Baylor University, 2002.
-
"Second Sunday in Advent: Matthew 3:1-12,"
The Matthean Advent
Gospels, James Arne Nestingen, Word & World: Theology for
Christian Ministry, Luther Northwestern Theological School, 1992.
- "Repentance is a correlate of freedom. The tearing away that takes place in detachment is only possible because a deeper, more powerful and superior attachment has come: the attachment of faith, the grip of the kingdom."
- Matthew in the Margins, by Brian McGowan, Anglican priest in Western Australia.
-
"Wheat and Chaff," Ruth A. Meyers, The Christian Century,
2001.
- "John the Baptist?s fiery call to repentance sounds harsh when we?re in the midst of preparations for the baby Jesus."
-
"Salvation by
Lineage?"
Jerry Goebel, One
Family Outreach. "Focus on scripture from a justice perspective." Exegesis, study, and teen study
and activities.
- "John the Baptist; what an imposing portrait he paints across time. A person with no earthly desires has no earthly fears ? and that summarizes the preaching of John."
-
Wellspring of
the Gospel, Advent 2A, Catherine McElhinney and Kathryn
Turner, Weekly Wellsprings.
- "What is your reaction to John?s
words? How might they
apply to you?"
- "What is your reaction to John?s
words? How might they
-
"John the Baptist: A Clear Message and Identity," Advent 2A,
Fr. Gerry Pierse, C.Ss.R., from Sundays Into
Silence: Reflections on the Sunday Gospels in the Light of Christian
Meditation. Claretian Publications.
- "If you wanted a model of the type of person that you may become through meditation you could hardly find a better one than John the Baptist as portrayed in our Gospel today. He comes across as a man with a clear message. That clarity comes from his unconfused ego-free identity."
-
"Spiritual
Preparation," Larry Broding's Word-Sunday.Com: A Catholic
Resource for This Sunday's Gospel. Adult Study, Children's Story, Family
Activity, Support Materials.
- "How are your Christmas preparations coming? Lists and shopping and cards? How have you prepared for the season in a spiritual sense?"
-
"The
Kingdom of Heaven Is at Hand," Rev. Bryan Findlayson, Lectionary Bible
Studies and Sermons, Pumpkin Cottage Ministry Resources. Includes detailed
textual notes.
- "When the Bible uses the word "repent", particularly as a response to the gospel, it means something stronger than sorrow. It is a turning to God for mercy in the face of his coming judgement."
-
Environmental &
earth-centered reflections from the Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota Environmental
Stewardship Commission.
- "How do we announce God's presence in other holy places where God's nearness is felt profoundly and God speaks to us clearly?"
-
"The
Church and Proclamation," Lawrence Semel, in Kerux: The
Online Journal of Biblical Theology (Reformed)
- "Just as a red carpet is rolled out to welcome a "VIP" and over that carpet the dignitaries arrive, so also the herald makes a path or clears a path by which the king comes. That path is the path of repentance."
-
"Again,
What Kind of Coming This Year?" Expository Essay, Dr. William
R. Long.
- "There is something very powerful when a radical person like John tells the 'establishment' that they can't really repent."
-
Commentary,
Matthew 3:1-12, Ben Witherington, Preaching This Week,
WorkingPreacher.org, 2010.
- Articles & Background:
- "John the Baptist," wikipedia.
-
"Why Didn't John the Baptist Commit Himself to Jesus As a Disciple?"
Michael H. Crosby, Biblical Theology Bulletin, 2008.
- "A more critical reading of Luke and, especially, Matthew points to the possibility that John's 'pre-understanding' vis-a-vis the Messiah kept him from making the leap of faith to become a disciple of Jesus."
-
"Repentance
and Forgiveness," David R. Blumenthal, Cross Currents.
- "Teshuvá is the key concept in the rabbinic view of sin, repentance, and forgiveness. The tradition is not of one mind on the steps one must take to repent of one's sins. However, almost all agree that repentance requires five elements: recognition of one's sins as sins (hakarát ha-chét'), remorse (charatá), desisting from sin (azivát ha-chét'), restitution where possible (peira'ón), and confession (vidúi)."
- "Intertextual Echoes in the Matthean Baptismal Narrative," David B. Capes, Bulletin for Biblical Research, 1999.
-
"Baptism
in the Indian Context: An Event of Separation or Human Solidarity?" David C.
Scott, at Religion OnLine.
- "In the model of the 'Church as an Institution of Salvation`, baptism is an absolute necessity for salvation, indeed that extra Ecclesiam nulla salus. However, when we begin to understand the Church as a servant of the Kingdom, and salvation as effective growth as God's children in freedom and love, into the likeness of the Christ, then there is a relativization of all rites, including baptism."
- John the Baptist at G.J. Goldberg's Flavius Josephus Home Page.
- Recommended articles
from ATLAS, an online collection of religion and theology journals, are
linked below.
ATLAS Access options are available for academic institutions, alumni of
selected theological schools, and clergy/church offices. Annotated list of "starting place" articles at ATLAS
for this week's texts (includes direct links).
- Allen, Ronald J.,
"Removing Anti-Jewish Toxins from Advent Preaching," The Living
Pulpit, 1997.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Blomberg, Craig L.,
"The New Testament Definition of Heresy (or When Do Jesus and the Apostles
Really Get Mad?)," Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society,
2002.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Blumenthal, David R., "Repentance and
Forgiveness," Cross Currents, 1996.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Bretscher, Paul, "'Whose Sandals'? (Matt 3:11)," Critical Notes,
Journal of Biblical
Literature, 1967.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Carter, Warren, "Matthew's Gospel: An
Anti-Imperial/Imperial Reading," Currents in Theology and Mission,
2007. See entire issue of
Currents in Theology and Mission 34, image focus on Matthew's
gospel.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Charles, J. Daryl,
"The 'Coming One'/'Stronger One' and His Baptism: Matt 3:11-12, Mark 1:8,
Luke 3:16-17," Pneuma, 1989.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Cousar, Charles B.,
"Disruptive Hope: New Testament Texts for Advent," Journal for
Preachers, 2001. (Section begins on page 27.)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
- Hutchison, John C.,
"Was John the Baptist an Essene from Qumran?" Bibliotheca Sacra,
2002.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Keener, Craig S.,
"'Brood of Vipers' (Matthew 3.7; 12.34; 23.33)," Journal for the
Study of the New Testament, 2005.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
- Kelhoffer, James A., "Early Christian Studies among
the Academic Disciplines: Reflections on John the Baptist's 'Locusts and
Wild Honey,'" Biblical Research, 2005.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Kirk, Alan,
"Upbraiding Wisdom: John's Speech and the Beginning of Q,"
Novum
Testamentum, 1998.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Long, Thomas G., "Worship on the
Wrong: Thoughts on Matthew 3:1-10," The Living Pulpit, 2002.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Myers, Ruth A., "Wheat and Chaff,"
The Christian Century, 2001.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Nestingen, James Arne, "The Matthean Advent Gospels,"
Word & World, 1992.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Niedner, Frederick, "Holy Fishes," The Christian
Century, 2004.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Reines, Rabbi Sarah H., "Turning
Ourselves Around," The
Living Pulpit, 2007. (See also
"Atonement," issue focus of The Living Pulpit, 16.2, 2007.)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Richter, Kimberly Clayton, "The Advent Texts:
Glorious Visions, Dogged Discipleship," Journal for Preachers,
2004.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Roberts, Raymond R.,
"Between Text and Sermon: Matthew 3:1-12,"
Interpretation, 2005.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Taylor, Barbara Brown, "A Cure for Despair: Matthew
3:1-12," Journal for Preachers, 1997. Sermon.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Vinson, Richard, "'King of the Jews': Kingship and
Anti-Kingship Rhetoric in Matthew's Birth, Baptism, and Transfiguration
Narratives," Review & Expositor, 2007.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Wainwright, Elaine,
"Reading Matthew 3-4: Jesus--Sage, Seer, Sophia, Son of God,"
Journal
for the Study of the New Testament, 2000.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Wardlaw, Theodore J., "Preaching the Advent Texts,"
Journal for Preachers, 2007. (Section begins on page 4.)
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials - Webb, Robert L.,
"The Activity of John the Baptist's Expected Figure at the Threshing Floor
(Matthew 3.12 = Luke 3.17)," Journal for the Study of the New
Testament, 1991.
EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
- Allen, Ronald J.,
"Removing Anti-Jewish Toxins from Advent Preaching," The Living
Pulpit, 1997.
- Reviews:
- Review: James A. Kelhoffer, The Diet of John the Baptist. Mohr Siebeck, 2005. Review by Tobias Nicklas, Review of Biblical Literature, 2006.
- Review: James A. Kelhoffer, The Diet of John the Baptist. Mohr Siebeck, 2005. Review by Frederick W. Danker, 2009.
- Lawrence, Jonathan D., Washing in Water: Trajectories of Ritual Bathing in the Hebrew Bible and Second Temple Literature. Society of Biblical Literature/Brill, 2006. Review by James W. Watts, Review of Biblical Literature, 2007.
- Sermons:
- "Let Us Have It!" The Rev. Bradley Schmeling, Day 1, 2004.
- "A Parable: The City and the Wilderness," Sermons from Seattle, Pastor Edward F. Markquart, Grace Lutheran Church, Seattle, Washington.
- "Change: The Kingdom Is Near," John Jewell, 1998.
- Father Andrew M. Greeley, "Priest, Author, Sociologist," Commentary and Homily
- With Children:
- "Children's Literature: A Resource for Ministry," December 5, Union Presbyterian Seminary, 2010. Connections: Matthew 3:1-12 and Mama's Coming Home by Kate Banks.
- Building Shalom, Anna Shirey, Anna's Hosannas, Children's Lesson for Advent 2A, 2010.
- "John the Baptist," Illustrating the Story (lessons, children's sermons), coloring pages, activity sheets, crafts, children's songs. MSSS Crafts.
- "John the Baptist," "Outreach," Fr. Max Bowers, Kid's Church.
- "John the Baptist Speaks Out," Sunday School Lessons: Family Bible Study, art projects, music, stories, etc.
- Drama:
- "An Axe Is Laid to the Roots," from A Certain Jesus by Jose Ignacio and Maria Lopez Vigil. Ideal for catechetical and liturgical dramatization of today's gospel. Claretian Publications.
- Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
- Free Public Domain Clipart for Church Bulletins: John the Baptist, Church Bulletin Resources.
- Clip Art, Matthew Matthew 3:7, Fr. Richard Lonsdale, Resources for Catholic Educators.
- Clip Art Images: Matthew 3:1-12, Misioneros Del Sagrado Corazón en el Perú.
- Matthew 3:1-12 at Cerezo Barredo's weekly gospel illustration. Liberation emphasis.
- Clip Art, Julius Schnoor von Carolsfeld woodcuts, World Mission Collection, Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod.
- Hymns and Music:
- ?When John the Baptist Preached,? Carolyn Winfrey Gillette, Tune: VENITE ADOREMUS 10.10.10.10 with Refrain (?The Snow Lay on the Ground?), The Presbyterian Outlook magazine.
- Contemporary/Praise Song suggestions, Together to Celebrate, David MacGregor.
- Hymns with Scripture Allusions: Matthew 3:2, 11. The Cyber Hymnal.
- Hymn Selections, The Lutheran Hymnal, Lutheran Worship.
- Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
- Movies scenes with the following themes, listed at The Text This Week's Movie Concordance:
- Study Links and Resources for the Book of Matthew
