Luke 3:16

After this, John brings forward a second argument, saying, "I indeed baptize you in water. He shall baptize you in the Holy Spirit and in fire." This too is of great importance for the proof and demonstration that Jesus is God and Lord. For it is the sole and peculiar property of the Substance that transcends all, to be able to bestow on people the in-dwelling of the Holy Spirit and make those that draw near unto it partakers of the divine nature. But this exists in Christ, not as a thing received, nor by communication from another, but as his own and as belonging to his substance. He baptizes in the Holy Spirit.

(ubi sup.) And having said that his own baptism was only with water, he next shows the excellence of that baptism which was brought by Christ, adding, He shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit, and fire, signifying by the very metaphor which he uses the abundance of grace. For he says not, "He shall give you the Holy Spirit," but He shall baptize you. And again, by the addition of fire, he shows the power of grace. And as Christ calls the grace of the Spirit, water, (John 4:14; 7:38.) meaning by water the purity resulting from it, and the abundant consolation which is brought to minds which are capable of receiving Him; so also John, by the word fire, expresses the fervour and uprightness of grace, as well as the consuming of sins.

What happened in the case of our Master's body also happens in the case of your own. Although John appeared to be holding his body by the head, it was the divine Word that led his body down into the streams of Jordan and baptized him. The Master's body was baptized by the Word, by the voice of his Father from heaven which said, "This is my beloved Son," and by the manifestation of the Holy Spirit which descended upon him. This also happens in the case of your body. The baptism is given in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Therefore John the Baptist told us, for our instruction, that man does not baptize us but God: "There comes after me one who is mightier than I, and I am not worthy to loose the strap of his sandal. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire."For this reason, when the priest is baptizing he does not say, "I baptize so-and-so," but "So-and-so is baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." In this way he shows that it is not he who baptizes but those whose names have been invoked, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

John, filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother's womb, was sanctified for the purpose of baptizing the Lord. John himself did not impart the Spirit but preached the glad tidings of him who does. He says, "I indeed baptize you with water, for repentance. But he who is coming after me, he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." Why fire? Because the descent of the Holy Spirit was in fiery tongues. Concerning this the Lord says with joy, "I have come to cast fire upon the earth, and how I wish that it would be kindled!"

As a witness for simplicity in shoes let John suffice, who avowed that "he was not worthy to unloose the latchet of the Lord's shoes." For he who exhibited to the Hebrews the type of the true philosophy wore no elaborate shoes.

Dispelling such an opinion, he says: the difference between me and Christ is, first, that "I baptize... with water," but "He... with the Spirit... and fire," and the other is that "I am not worthy even to untie the strap of His sandal." What the …

Regarding the confession of truth in John, it is added: John answered, saying to all, that is, publicly, because all were in error: I indeed baptize you with water, and "only, as Ambrose says, I immerse bodies"; and therefore I am not the savior of …

"I baptize in water; but there has stood in your midst one whom you do not know. He who comes after me was made before me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie." John baptizes not with the Spirit, but with water, because, not being able to forgive sins, he washes the bodies of the baptized through water, but nevertheless does not wash the mind through pardon. Why then does he baptize who does not remit sins through baptism, unless, preserving the order of his role as precursor, he who had preceded by being born the one who was to be born, might also precede by baptizing the Lord who was to baptize; and he who by preaching became the precursor of Christ, might also become his precursor in baptizing through imitation of the sacrament?

To show what he was, he said: "There comes one mightier than I after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to loose." Behold, although he was such through his wonderful working of virtues that he was believed to be Christ, he not only answered that he was not Christ, but also declared that he was not worthy to loose the strap of his sandal, that is, to scrutinize the mystery of his incarnation.

(Hom. 7. in Evan.) But John denounces himself as unworthy to loose the latchet of Christ's shoes: as if he openly said, I am not able to disclose the footsteps of my Redeemer, who do not presume unworthily to take unto myself the name of bridegroom, for it was an ancient custom thata when a man refused to take to wife her whom he ought, whoever should come to her betrothed by right of kin, was to loose his shoe. Or because shoes are made from the skins of dead animals, our Lord being made flesh appeared as it were with shoes, as taking upon Himself the carcase of our corruption. The latchet of the shoe is the connection of the mystery. John therefore can not loose the latchet of the shoe, because neither is he able to fathom the mystery of the Incarnation, though he acknowledged it by the Spirit of prophecy.

I indeed baptize you with water. However, one mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie. John does not baptize with the spirit, but with water, because he, being unable to absolve sins, washes the bodies of the baptized …

He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. This is both the cleansing of sanctification and the testing of tribulation. However, the same Holy Spirit can also be understood as signified by the name of fire. Because He both enkindles through love and …

The Holy Spirit also may be understood by the word fire, for He kindles with love and enlightens with wisdom the hearts which He fills. Hence also the Apostles received the baptism of the Spirit in the appearance of fire. There are some who explain it, that now we are baptized with the Spirit, hereafter we shall be with fire, that as in truth we are now born again to the remission of our sins by water and the Spirit, so then we shall be cleansed from certain lighter sins by the baptism of purifying fire.

John was a prophet, yea more than a prophet, more so than any of the Old-Testament prophets; but Christ was a prophet more than John, for it was both by the Spirit of Christ, and of the grace of Christ, that all the prophets prophesied, and John among the rest, 1 Pet. i.

John answered, saying unto them all,....

IT was not John's business to attract followers to himself but to point them to Jesus, and he very faithfully discharged his commission. His opinion of his Master, of whom he was the herald, was a very high one. He reverenced Him as the Anointed of the Lord, the King of Israel, and, consequently, he was not tempted into elevating himself into a rival. He rejoiced to declare, "He must increase but I must decrease."

whether he were the Christ--showing both how successful he had been in awakening the expectation of Messiah's immediate appearing, and the high estimation, and even reverence, which his own character commanded.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase

So far from entertaining such a thought as laying claim to the honors of Messiahship, the meanest services I can render to that "Mightier than I that is coming after me," are too high an honor for me. Beautiful spirit, distinguishing this servant of Christ throughout! one mightier than I--"the Mighter than I."

We learn, firstly, from these verses — that one effect of a faithful ministry, is to set men thinking. We read concerning John the Baptist's hearers, that "the people were in expectation, and all men mused in their hearts about John — whether he might be the Christ." The cause of true religion has gained a giant step in a parish, or congregation, or family — when people begin to think . Thoughtlessness about spiritual things is one great feature of unconverted men. It cannot be said, in many cases, that they either like the Gospel, or dislike it.

We learn, firstly, from these verses — that one effect of a faithful ministry, is to set men thinking. We read concerning John the Baptist's hearers, that "the people were in expectation, and all men mused in their hearts about John — whether he might be the Christ." The cause of true religion has gained a giant step in a parish, or congregation, or family — when people begin to think . Thoughtlessness about spiritual things is one great feature of unconverted men. It cannot be said, in many cases, that they either like the Gospel, or dislike it. But they do not give it a place in their thoughts. They never "consider." (Isaiah 1:3.) Let us always thank God when we see a spirit of reflection on religious subjects, coming over the mind of an unconverted man. Thinking and deliberation are the high road to conversion. The truth of Christ has nothing to fear from sober examination . We invite inquiry . We desire to have its claims fully investigated. We know that its fitness to supply every need of man's heart and conscience, is not appreciated in many cases — simply because it is not known. Thinking, no doubt, is not faith and repentance. But it is always a hopeful symptom. When hearers of the Gospel begin to "muse in their hearts" — then we ought to bless God and take courage. We learn, secondly, from these verses — that a faithful minister will always exalt Christ. We read that when John saw the state of mind in which his hearers were, he told them of a coming One, far mightier than himself. He refused the honor which he saw the people ready to give him, and referred them to Him who had the "winnowing fork in his hand" — the Lamb of God, the Messiah. Conduct like this will always be the characteristic of a true "man of God." He will never allow anything to be credited to him, or his office — which belongs to his divine Master.

IT was not John's business to attract followers to himself but to point them to Jesus, and he very faithfully discharged his commission. His opinion of his Master, of whom he was the herald, was a very high one. He reverenced Him as the Anointed of the Lord, the King of Israel, and, consequently, he was not tempted into elevating himself into a rival. He rejoiced to declare, "He must increase but I must decrease." In the course of his self-depreciation he uses the expression of our text which is recorded by each one of the Evangelists with some little variation. Matthew words it, "whose shoes I am not worthy to bear." He was not fit to fetch his Lord His shoes. Mark writes it, "whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose." And John has it very much as in Luke. This putting on and taking off and putting away of sandals was an office usually left to menial servants. It was not a work of any repute or honor, yet the Baptist felt that it would be a great honor to be even a menial servant of the Lord Jesus. He felt that the Son of God was so infinitely superior to himself that he was honored if only permitted to be the meanest slave in His employ. He would not allow men to attempt comparisons between himself and Jesus—he felt that none could, for a moment, be allowed. Now this honest estimate of himself as less than nothing in comparison with his Master is greatly to be imitated by us. John is to be commended and admired for this, but better still he is to be carefully copied. Remember that John was by no means an inferior man. Among all that had been born of women before his time there had not been a greater than he. He was the subject of many prophecies and his office was a peculiarly noble one. He was the friend of the great Bridegroom and introduced Him to His chosen bride.

On these verses see Mat 3:11, Mat 3:12, and Mar 1:7, Mar 1:8, and particularly the note on Joh 3:5 (note).