From: Matthew 3:13-17
Jesus is Baptized
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Commentary:
13. Jesus spent about thirty years (Lk 3:23) in what is normally called his “hid-
den life”. We should marvel at the silence of the Incarnate Word of God during
this period. There may be many reasons why he waited so long before beginning
his public ministry, but one factor may have been the Jewish custom whereby
rabbis did not carry out their function as teachers until they were thirty years
old. Whatever the reason, by his long years of work beside St Joseph, our Lord
teaches all Christians the sanctifying value of ordinary life and work. The Baptist
prepares the people to receive the Messiah, according to God’s plan; and it is
only then that Jesus commences his public life.
14. St John’s reluctance to baptize Jesus is not surprising since he had given
such forthright witness to Him. Jesus did not need to be baptized by John since
he had no sin, but he chose to receive this baptism (see the note on v. 15) be-
fore beginning to preach, so to teach us to obey all God’s commands (he had
already subjected himself to circumcision, presentation in the temple and being
redeemed as the first-born). God wished Jesus to humble himself even to the ex-
tent of submitting to the authority of others.
15. “Righteousness” (or “justice”) has a very deep meaning in the Bible; it refers
to the plan which God, in his infinite goodness and wisdom, has marked out for
man’s salvation. Consequently, “to fulfill all righteousness” should be, understood
as fulfilling God’s will and designs. Thus, we could translate “fulfill all righteous-
ness” as: “fulfill everything laid down by God.” Jesus comes to receive John’s
baptism and hence recognizes it as a stage in salvation history — a stage fore-
seen by God as a final and immediate preparation for the messianic era. The ful-
fillment of anyone of these stages can be called an act of righteousness. Jesus,
who has come to fulfill his Father’s Will (Jn4:34), is careful to fulfill that saving
plan in all its aspects. See the note on Mt 5:6.
16. Jesus possessed the fullness of the Holy Spirit from the moment of his con-
ception. This is due to the union of human nature and divine nature in the person
of the Word (the dogma of the hypostatic union). Catholic teaching says that in
Christ there is only one person (who is divine) but two natures (divine and human).
The descent of the Spirit of God spoken of in the text indicates that just as Je-
sus was solemnly commencing his messianic task, so the Holy Spirit was be-
ginning his action through him. There are very many texts in the Old Testament
which speak of the showing forth of the Holy Spirit in the future Messiah. This
sign of the Spirit gave St John the Baptist unmistakable proof of the genuineness
of his testimony concerning Christ (cf. Jn 1:29-34). The mystery of the Holy Trinity
is revealed in the baptism of Jesus: the Son is baptized; the Holy Spirit descends
on him in the form of a dove; and the voice of the Father gives testimony about his
Son. Christians must be baptized in the name of the three divine persons. “If you
have sincere piety, the Holy Spirit will descend on you also and you will hear the
voice of the Father saying to you from above: ‘This was not my son, but now afte
Baptism he has been made my son”’ (St Cyril of Jerusalem, “De Baptismo”, 14).
17. Literally, as the RSV points out, “This is my Son, my (or the) beloved”.
When the expression “the beloved” goes with “the son”, normally it refers to an
only son (cf. Gen 16; Jer 6:26; Amos 8:10; Zech 12:10). Repetition of the article
and the solemnity of the passage show that, in the language of the Bible, Jesus
is not just one more among the adopted sons of God, nor even the greatest of
them. Rather, it declares strongly and correctly that Jesus is “the Son of God”,
the Only-begotten who is totally different from other men because of his divine
nature (cf. Mt 7:21; 11:27; 17:5; Jn 3:35; 5:20; 20:17; etc.).
Here we can see the fulfillment of the messianic prophecies, especially Isaiah 42:
1, which is applied now to Jesus through the voice of the Father speaking from
heaven.
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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.
Liturgical Colour: White.
First reading |
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Isaiah 42:1-4,6-7 © |
Responsorial Psalm |
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Psalm 28(29):1-4,9-10 © |
Second reading | Acts 10:34-38 © |
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Gospel Acclamation | cf.Mk9:8 |
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Gospel | Matthew 3:13-17 © |
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