Hebrew word indicating separation, restraint, abstinence), was designed to render special honor to God, and deepen the religious feelings of the Jews. It is an image of the spiritual consecration of the Christian to God (Rom. 12: 1). Some were devoted by their parents to the life of a Nazarite from their birth, of which custom Samson (Judges 13: 5) and the prophet Samuel (1 Sam. 1: II) are instances. John was invested with the same character by the angel who foretold his birth (Luke 1: 15). This circumstance naturally tended to produce in him, even from childhood, a certain gravity and austereness of character (see Matt. 11: 7, 8). John knew, moreover, as it appears from John 1: 23, that an office had been assigned by the Lord to him alone, of all mortals, even before his birth, which was loftier and more solemn than that of any prophet who went before him (Matt. 11: 9, 11), namely that of being the immediate forerunner or herald of the Messiah, as the ancient prophets had predicted (Isai. 40: 3; Mal. 3: 1; 4: 5; Matt. 11: 10; 17: 12, 13; Luke 1: 17). These circumstances produced contemplative habits in him, a deep feeling of his responsibility, a consciousness of his own insufficiency, and a firm purpose to be faithful to God who had called him, and to consecrate his whole life to the great work which had been assigned to him.— C. Preaching; the word used in the original was primarily applied to the act of a herald or other person who published or publicly proclaimed important tidings (see Mark 145 13: 10; Luke 12: 3); it almost uniformly signifies in the N. Test. the act of announcing, making publicly known, or teaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Luke (3:2) specifies that John had received a regular call; "the word of God came" unto him, as to other prophets whom God sent forth (e. g. Jer. 1: 2; Ezek. 1: 3; 6: 1). As he was, moreover, a member of the order

of Jewish priests, that is, a descendant of Aaron (Luke 1: 5, 62, 63; Exod. 28: 1; Num. 16: 40), no Jew questioned his authority to assume the functions of a priest, namely, to teach and to perform religious rites. Only a portion or the substance of John's preaching is recorded in the N. T. (Luke 3: 18).-D. Wilderness of Judæa. This was a wild and rocky region east of Jerusalem, extending from the Jordan in a southern direction along the western shore of the Dead Sea. It is already mentioned in Judg. 1: 16. The words desert and wilderness, usually employed to designate tracts that are destitute of vegetation, were sometimes applied not to barren wastes but to uninhabited regions which were not entirely destitute of the means of subsistence, but which afforded pasture for cattle, even if not suited for tillage. Thus the "desert place" mentioned in Mark 6: 35, 39, abounded in "green grass" (comp. Ps. 65: 12). This wilderness contained several cities at an early period (Josh. 15: 61, 62: Judges 1: 16). It was also in this wilderness that Josephus, the Jewish historian, spent three years with his teacher Banus, "having no other food than that which grew of its own accord" (Life, § 2). It is hence apparent that the locusts and bees, which, according to ver. 4, furnished John with food, could easily exist there in large numbers. In Isai. 7 22, the abundance of honey is described as a feature of a desolate country.

2 Saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

A. Repent ye. "John's preaching was intended to teach the Jews that their descent from Abraham could not secure them from deserved punishment, that they were all under sin, (Rom. 3: 9), that neither circumcision nor any works of the law would avail anything or justify the sinner (Gal. 2: 16; 6: 15), and that the law gave

a knowledge of sin (Rom. 3: 20; 7: 7), but could not give peace to the conscience (Hebr. 9: 9; 10: 1), as it could not take away sins (Hebr. 10: 11). Therefore he baptized the people unto repentance, and directed them. to Christ, through whom alone remission of sins and peace with God could be obtained."-LUTHER. John begins his preaching with a loud call to repentance, like the Saviour (Mark. 1: 15) and the apostles (Mark. 6:12; Luke 24: 47; Acts 2: 38; 3: 19; see also Rev. 2: 5, 16). Repentance is often explained to be "a change of mind"; but this phrase does not fully give the Gospel sense of the word. Passages like 2 Tim. 2: 25; Acts 8: 22; 2 Cor. 7: 10; Luke 13: 3, with many others, teach the following lessons:-the duty of repentance is imposed on all men (Acts 17: 30), inasmuch as all are by nature sinners (Eph. 2 : 3); they are required to learn and understand the greatness of their guilt and danger; this knowledge is accompanied by deep feeling, namely, sorrow for sin and grief, produced by the revelation of God's displeasure. Then, the sinner to whom the divine message is addressed, and who is at the same time made acquainted with God's gracious plan of salvation through Christ, is led by his awakened conscience and distressed heart to seek the offered means of salvation, that is, to come to Christ. This deep, heartfelt conviction of sin, and this desire for pardon through the atonement of Christ, as the only means of salvation, constitute essentially Gospel repentance. It is evident that the basis of the whole change is faith, in varying degrees of clearness and power; indeed, the remark is true that there can be no genuine repentance which is unconnected with a hope for the remission of sins as announced by John (Luke 3: 3), that is, which is not accompanied by faith. While the sinner believes that the danger exists, he also believes

that he may escape if he chooses God's appointed way. This faith becomes more and more clear, until by the aid of the divine Spirit, who is in truth the author of this whole work of grace in the soul, it assumes distinctly the character of faith in the crucified Redeemer. The result which this faith produces, as it gradually advances in depth and efficacy, is the actual, cordial return of the sinner to God, and his consecration to the Redeemer's service. Strictly speaking, therefore, Repentance implies sorrow for sin and faith in Jesus Christ, and is wrought by the Spirit through the means of grace.-B. The kingdom of heaven: see Excursus I. The kingdom here mentioned, which is not of this world (John 18: 36), is described in Dan. 7: 13, 14, as the Messiah's kingdom.—The motive which is assigned by John for performing the duty claims attention. He seems to say: The grace of God is first offered; He loved us first, while we were yet enemies (1 John 4:19; Rom. 5:8, 10). Now let such divine compassion and goodness lead you to repentance (Rom. 2: 4). Your repentance will not render you deserving of the kingdom of heaven-you will not thereby earn it, but it will fit you to enter it, after divine pity has brought it near to you. The glory and honor of man's salvation belong exclusively to Christ.-C. At hand, literally, has come near (as in Rom. 13: 12), alluding to the approaching public appearance of the Saviour, who shortly afterwards commenced His public ministry.

3 For this is he that was spoken of by Isaiah the prophet, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make ye ready the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

A. For this . . . prophet Isaiah, who lived seven centuries before John. Matt., who relates many events. which fulfil predictions of the O. Test., here informs his readers that John the Baptist is the individual crying in

the wilderness, to whom Isaiah refers in ch. 40: 3-5. The same explanation is given both by John himself in his answer to the deputation sent to him by the leaders of the Jews (John 1: 19–24), and also by Christ (Matt. II 10). Matt. furnishes only a portion of the passage, with the whole of which his Jewish readers were familiar; Luke quotes it more fully in 3: 4-6, for the sake of his gentle readers. Isaiah had previously announced the national afflictions which were approaching, and which would result in that awful catastrophe, the Babylonish Captivity, ch. 39: 6. He is then commanded to comfort. the distressed people by the promise of a gracious deliverance. Now that divine grace which pardons sin is revealed in its highest glory, not when it merely restores liberty and temporal prosperity to impoverished exiles and oppressed bond-servants, but when it bestows the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ (Rom. 6: 23) on sinful mortals," who, through fear of death, were all their lifetime subject to bondage" (Hebr. 2: 15). The true consolation, as administered by the prophet, accordingly consists in a prediction of the appearance of the Messiah, the saviour of the world, whose coming the voice of John proclaimed. This is the general sense of the prophecy. -B. The voice . . . wilderness the voice of one is heard, crying, etc. The prophet, with the same minuteness with which the parting of the Saviour's garments. under the cross is elsewhere predicted (Ps. 22: 18; Matt. 27: 35), here points to the wilderness (see above, ver. 1, D), from which the voice of John proceeds.-C. Prepare

straight. It was the custom of oriental monarchs, when they travelled with a large retinue or army, to send forward pioneers who levelled and repaired the roads. The prophet refers to this practice not simply as an illustration of the facilities which God would afford the cap