That there is never a hint of anyone
whom John baptized being rebaptized, except for the mysterious “disciples” in
Acts 19:1-7, suggest that in this respect John’s ministry was more than
preparatory and that his baptism, based on people’s repentance for sins (Mark
1:4 pars.), was once for all time as a sign of the inbreaking kingdom. That the
men Paul encountered in Acts 19 had never heard there was a Holy Spirit almost
guarantees that they were not Jewish, and that, even if they had been immersed
by someone related to John’s ministry, they had not understood his fundamental
message about one coming who would baptize with the Spirit (Mark 1:8 pars.).
That they were baptized again is thus no real exception to the trend. (Craig
L. Blomberg, Jesus the Purifier: John’s Gospel and the Fourth Quest for the
Historical Jesus [Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Academic, 2023], 340)
