Nazareth – Matthew 2:23
Went and
lived in a
city called Nazareth. After fleeing to Egypt to save Jesus, Joseph and Mary returned to Israel when an angel tells them Herod is dead (Matt. 2:19-20). But instead of returning to Judea, they moved far away to the north in Galilee, where Jesus will later begin his ministry (Matt. 4:12-25). Matthew describes Jesus as a Nazarene, not only because of his location, but probably also because of the idea that Nazarenes were dedicated and often despised (Num. 6:1-21; John 1:46) and also to connect Jesus with Isa. 11:1 that prophesied that the Christ would be a
branch (Heb.
netzer) coming from the root of Jesse, that is, in the line of King David.
John the Baptist - Matthew 3:1-17
The Gospel of Matthew is a biography about Jesus so every story is connected to him, though there are also some important secondary characters. John the Baptizer is one of the most important of these. This story introduces John and he will appear two more times in Matthew (Matt. 11:1-19; 14:1-12). In this story John is presented as a prophet who has come to prepare people for the Messiah's coming (Matt. 3:3), who preaches the same message of repentance because God's kingdom is coming to earth (Matt. 3:2; 4:17).
The Preparation for Ministry - Matthew 3:1-4:22
Chapters 3–4 are the second part (Matt. 3:1–4:22) of the overall introduction to Matthew's Gospel (Matt. 1:1–4:22), all of which describes who Jesus is and what he experienced in preparation for the beginning of his ministry.
Repent - Matthew 3:2
Repent. John's message is a call to reorient one's life. To repent is not primarily about an emotion of regret or guilt but a dedication of one's life in a new and deeper way toward God. John's message of repentance consists of turning
away from patterns of life that are not aligned with God — the confession of one's sins (Matt. 3:6) — and turning
toward God and his way of being and instructions — symbolized through the act of baptism (Matt. 3:6).
The kingdom of heaven is near – Matthew 3:2
The
kingdom of
heaven is
near. Throughout Jesus' ministry his primary message is about God's kingdom that is coming from heaven to earth. The expression "kingdom of heaven" (as compared to the rest of the NT's "kingdom of God") is unique to Matthew. It has the same reference as the "kingdom of God" (Matt. 12:28; 19:24; 21:31, 43) — both referring to God fully and completely ruling over all of his creation — but "kingdom of heaven" more clearly contrasts the God who is in heaven with all of humanity on Earth (see Dan. 2:28; Isa. 55:9; Ps. 103:11), highlighting these two different realms while anticipating their reunification through Jesus' life, death, and resurrection (Matt. 6:9-10).
Bear fruit worthy of repentance - Matthew 3:8
Bear fruit worthy of
repentance. John preached what Jesus taught, that true repentance is identifiable by its effects on one's heart and behavior (Matt. 7:21-23; 12:50; 21:28-32; see also Jam. 2:14-24). A healthy tree will produce healthy fruit. If not, this tree is useless and will be cut down (Matt. 3:10).
He who comes after me is mightier - Matthew 3:11
He who
comes after me is
mightier. Embodying his calling, John reminded his audience that even as a prophet (see Matt. 11:11) he is merely a messenger pointing to the one coming who is more than a prophet, God's own Son, Jesus. See
WCF 27.3, 28.2;
WLC 163, 177;
WSC 91;
BC 34;
HC 69, 72.
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