John’s baptism of Jesus lies within
the tradition of prophets anointing prophets. The association of the baptism
scene in Matthew with monarchic power (the “kingdom of Heaven”) situates the
baptism within the tradition of the anointment of kings by prophets while
combining these roles, through the motif of purification as a condition of
being close to God, with that of the sacrificing priest. The full accounts in Mark and Luke both contain John’s prophecy that a better baptizer will come—a B
element; Matthew’s account alone contains John’s demurrer: that it is more
appropriate for Jesus to baptize him, to be the Elijah to his Elisha. The
immersion returns Jesus to the purity of his birth. Recognition by others
reinforces this theme. Like the baptizing sectarians of the time, the account
in Matthew here sees bathing not simply as a way of preparing properly for an
encounter with the divine, but as a public act of penitence that gives one
entry into a particular community. (Harris Lenowitz, The Jewish Messiahs;
From the Galilee to Crown Heights [Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998],
39)
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