What kind of baptims was John the Baptist performing?

[Lampo]

I have a feeling this is a very basic, fundamental question that I should know and am a little embarrassed asking. Who was John the Baptist baptizing and was it a Trinitarian baptism? I know that he baptized Jesus. It is my understanding that Jesus didn’t institute the Sacrament of Baptism until Pentecost saying to baptize in the name of the Father, Son and of the Holy Spirit.

 

[SuscipeMeDomine]

It was a baptism of repentance for sins.

“John (the) Baptist appeared in the desert proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. People of the whole Judean countryside and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins.” (Mark 1:4-5).

"John wore clothing made of camel’s hair and had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. At that time Jerusalem, all Judea, and the whole region around the Jordan were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the Jordan River as they acknowledged their sins. When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance” (Matthew 3:5-8).

"He went throughout (the) whole region of the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one crying out in the desert: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths. Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be made low. The winding roads shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth, and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’” He said to the crowds who came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce good fruits as evidence of your repentance; and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones” (Luke 3:3-8).

 

[banjo]

I have a feeling this is a very basic, fundamental question that I should know and am a little embarrassed asking. Who was John the Baptist baptizing and was it a Trinitarian baptism? I know that he baptized Jesus. It is my understanding that Jesus didn’t institute the Sacrament of Baptism until Pentecost saying to baptize in the name of the Father, Son and of the Holy Spirit.

“Grace was to be conferred on men through Christ: ‘Grace and truth have come through Jesus Christ’ (Jn 1:17). And therefore, the baptism of John did not confer grace, but only prepared the way for grace in a threefold way—in one way, by John’s teaching, which led men to faith in Christ; in another way, by accustoming men to the rite of Christ’s baptism; and in a third way, through penance, which prepared men to receive the effect of Christ’s Baptism (Summa theologiae, III, q. 38, a. 3).”

From the Navarre Bible commentary, Acts of the Apostles 19:3-4

 

[Benadam]

**Jesus called John a perfect pattern of righteousness.The righteousness John imparted was righteousness he possessed. **

John teaches about Baptism
25An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew(“http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?book_id=50&chapter=3&version=31#fen-NIV-26136i”)] over the matter of ceremonial washing. 26They came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified about—well, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”*

John explains the origins of his and Jesus’ baptism’s and what is imparted by his ,namely the right disposition to accept the Truth from the Son of God whom John as he explains here is His prophet.

27To this John replied, "A man can receive only what is given him from heaven. 28You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christj] but am sent ahead of him.’
the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all. 32He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony.

John explained how he opens the door to Christ as the only one who accepted Jesus testimony. I take this to mean the only one among the religious authority. Would God preserveSodom for the sake of just one righteous man? He said He would.

***33The man who has accepted it has certified that God is truthful. ***

John is refering to himself in the above

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Finally John explains the fruit of his baptism

36Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him."l]

Scripture gives witness to the fruits of John’s Baptism just as John described

***29(**All the people, even the tax collectors, when they heard Jesus’ words, acknowledged that God’s way was right, because they had been baptized by John. 30But the Pharisees and experts in the law rejected God’s purpose for themselves, because they had not been baptized by John.) *

 

[wmscott]

I have a feeling this is a very basic, fundamental question that I should know and am a little embarrassed asking. Who was John the Baptist baptizing and was it a Trinitarian baptism? I know that he baptized Jesus. It is my understanding that Jesus didn’t institute the Sacrament of Baptism until Pentecost saying to baptize in the name of the Father, Son and of the Holy Spirit.

I am currently reading the book Jesus of Nazareth, by Pope Benedict XVI. The first chapter is about the Baptism of Christ. It is a very inspiring, profound, and beautiful explanation of what Baptism is. It has changed my outlook forever, now as I enter church on Sundays and pass by the Baptismal fount, I let my fingers touch the flowing waters so that I can cross myself, I am reminded to an even deeper level of understanding of just what my Baptism was really for and how it now affects my life. I am half way through the book and I recommend it to all.

 

[bengal_fan]

believer’s baptism by immersion!!!

(i hope you know i’m kidding)

 

[MH84]

I have a feeling this is a very basic, fundamental question that I should know and am a little embarrassed asking. Who was John the Baptist baptizing and was it a Trinitarian baptism? I know that he baptized Jesus. It is my understanding that Jesus didn’t institute the Sacrament of Baptism until Pentecost saying to baptize in the name of the Father, Son and of the Holy Spirit.

IMO John the Baptist would not have known that God is Triune, he probably didn’t know the reality of the fullness of Christ’s divinity, although he realised after He baptised Jesus that He was God’s beloved Son.

I got this from the notes in the Gospel of Matthew of the Jerusalem Bible (1965 version)

Notes for Matthew 3:5

“The rite of immersion, symbolic of purification or of renewal, was familiar to the ancient religions andot Judaism… John’s baptism though suggested by these practices is distinct from them for three meain reasons: it is directed to moral, not ritual purification; it takes place only once and for this reason appears as a ceremony of initaition; it has eschatological value in so far as it enrols its recipients among the number of those who professedly and actively prepare themselves for the iminent coming of the Messiah and who are, therefore, the messianic community in anticipation. It produces a real effect upon the soul but this effect is not produced sacramentally since it depends on something that has not yet taken place: this event is God’s future judgement embodied in the coming of the Messiah whose ‘fire’ will puify or consume according to the good or bad dispositions it meets with; he alone and not John, will baptise ‘in the Holy Spirit’. John’s baptism continued to be administerd by the disciples of Jesus intil it was absorbed by the new rite which he had instituted.” (1965 Jerusalem Bible; edited by Jones; publisher: Darton, Longman & Todd: London)