And he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins;
All Commentaries on Luke 3:3 Go To Luke 3
Gregory The Dialogist
AD 604
“And he came into all the region of the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” It is apparent to all who read that John not only preached a baptism of repentance but also bestowed it on some. Yet he was not able to bestow a baptism for the forgiveness of sins. Forgiveness of sins is granted us only in the baptism of Christ. We must note the words “preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” He preached a baptism that would take away sins, but he was unable to give it himself. By his word of preaching he was the forerunner of the Father’s Word incarnate. By his baptism, which could not of itself take away sin, he was to be the forerunner of that baptism of repentance by which sins are taken away. His words prepared the way for the Redeemer’s actual presence, and his preaching of baptism was a foreshadowing of the truth.
