Semikkah7

02/02/22 – John – Chapter 1 Commentary – 3 of 2? haha

Ok, I couldn’t resist. This is an excellent link with regard to John the Baptist. Below the link, I pasted just the section that shows some striking similarities to Elijah and John the Baptist; Re: John’s response in 1:21 that he was not Elijah.

https://bible.org/seriespage/4-john-baptist-and-jesus-matthew-31-17

More subtly, Matthew also links John the Baptist with Elijah,⁶⁸ especially in relation to his appearance. In 2 Kings 1, Ahaziah, the son of Ahab, had fallen through a lattice and had been injured. He wanted to know if he would recover, and so he sent messengers to inquire of Baal Zebub. Elijah intercepted these messengers and sent them back to Ahaziah with a word of rebuke. Note Ahaziah’s response to these returning messengers:

5 When the messengers returned to the king [Ahaziah], he asked them, “Why have you returned?” 6 They said to him, “A man came up to meet us. He told us, “Go back to the king who sent you and tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says, “You must think there is no God in Israel! That explains why you are sending for an oracle from Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron. Therefore you will not leave the bed on which you lie, for you will certainly die.”‘‘ 7 The king asked them, “Describe the appearance of this man who came up to meet you and told you these things.” 8 They said to him, “He was a hairy man and had a leather belt tied around his waist.” The king said, “He is Elijah the Tishbite” (2 Kings 1:5-8).

Why Elijah? The first and most obvious answer is because that is what Malachi prophesied (3:1; 4:5). Elijah, like John, was a kind of “wilderness man,” a man who lived on the run, out of the mainstream of society. But Elijah was a prophet of the Northern Kingdom and not Judah. This is true, but I believe it is also purposeful. Elijah also ministered during the days when a “pretender” – Ahab — was on the throne, a man who was not a rightful heir to the throne of David. In John’s day, the “pretender” was Herod, a half-breed (compare Deuteronomy 17:15). As Ahab’s wicked wife Jezebel (the idol-worshipping daughter of a Sidonian king) sought to kill Elijah, so Herod’s wicked and ill-gotten wife Herodias sought to kill John (Matthew 14:1-12). Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, was a very wicked woman, who married Jehoram, king of Judah (2 Kings 8:16-19, 26), and thus contributed to his corruption. The daughter of Herodias was likewise instrumental in the downfall of King Herod and the death of John the Baptist (Matthew 14:1-12). As Elijah stood against the king and queen of Israel, so John the Baptist confronted King Herod and his wife, Herodias.

Elijah called the adulterous Northern Kingdom to repentance because they had departed from worshipping God to worshipping the gods of the heathen. John the Baptist called the Jews of Judah to repentance because they had corrupted true religion as well. As Ezekiel 16 clearly states, Jerusalem and Judah sinned in a manner that was worse than apostate Israel. Judah was twice the harlot Israel was, and thus received greater punishment.

He commanded us to preach to the people and to warn them that he is the one appointed by God as judge of the living and the dead (Acts 10:42).

Blessings!

Soli Deo Gloria1