Commentary - Luke 3:1-20

Bird's-eye view

In this pivotal section, Luke the historian anchors the beginning of the gospel action to the bedrock of secular history. This is not a myth or a fable; it is an invasion. The Word of God detonates in the wilderness, coming to a rough-hewn prophet named John, the son of a priest. John's ministry is the great preparation, the road crew for the coming King, as prophesied by Isaiah. His message is a thunderclap of repentance, a call for Israel to turn from its sins and be washed in the Jordan, signifying a new start. He directly confronts the nation's misplaced confidence in its ethnic heritage, warning that judgment is not just coming, but is already poised at the root of the tree. The repentance he demands is not an emotional spasm but a practical, ethical transformation that affects a man's wallet, his job, and his use of power. John clearly distinguishes himself from the one who is to come, the Messiah, who will bring a baptism of Spirit and fire, a baptism of ultimate cleansing and ultimate judgment. The chapter ends by showing the inevitable collision between a true prophet and a corrupt king, a collision that lands John in prison but does not stop the gospel he proclaimed.

This passage establishes the essential prelude to the ministry of Jesus. It defines the nature of true repentance, it sets the stage for the coming judgment on first-century Israel, and it introduces the person of Christ as one who is infinitely greater than the greatest of the prophets. John is the last voice of the old covenant, preparing the way for the Lord of the new.

Outline

Context In Luke

Following the carefully constructed birth narratives of John and Jesus in chapters 1 and 2, Luke now fast-forwards about thirty years. He has established the miraculous origins and identities of both John the Baptist and Jesus. Now, he launches the public phase of God's redemptive plan. Chapter 3 serves as the formal inauguration of the gospel era. John's ministry is the bridge between the Old and New Covenants. He is the fulfillment of Malachi's prophecy of the coming Elijah (Mal 4:5-6) and Isaiah's prophecy of the voice in the wilderness. His work is to prepare a people for the Lord. This chapter, therefore, is the immediate context for the appearance of Jesus, who will be baptized by John at the end of this chapter and then begin His own public ministry. Luke, writing to Theophilus, is meticulously laying out the historical and theological foundation for everything Jesus is about to do and say.

Key Issues

The Word in the World

Luke is a careful historian, and he wants us to know that the story he is telling is not a myth. It did not happen "once upon a time." It happened in real time, on our calendar, in our world. He nails the coming of John's ministry to the wall of secular history with no less than seven historical personages. This is the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar, a date we can fix. Pontius Pilate, Herod, Philip, Lysanias, Annas, Caiaphas, these were all real men, with real power, presiding over a real and messy political situation. And into this world, the world of cynical Roman governors, petty Herodian tetrarchs, and corrupt religious leaders, the word of God came. It did not come to the emperor in Rome, or to the high priest in the temple. It came to John, son of Zechariah, in the wilderness. This is how God always works. He bypasses the established centers of human power and prestige and speaks His word in the margins, in the wilderness, in order to remake the world from the outside in.

Verse by Verse Commentary

1-2 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John, the son of Zechariah, in the wilderness.

Luke is not just setting a scene; he is making a profound theological point. The gospel is an invasion of occupied territory. He lists the political rulers, from the emperor down to the local tetrarchs, to show us who was running the world. Then he mentions the religious rulers, Annas and Caiaphas, who were running the temple. By all human standards, these were the men in charge. But the true word, the word that creates and directs history, came not to them, but to a man in the desert. God's kingdom arrives unbidden and uninvited by the powers that be. Note the irregularity of the high priesthood, "during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas." There was only supposed to be one high priest, but the office had become a corrupt political appointment, with Annas, the patriarch, pulling the strings behind his son-in-law Caiaphas. Into this corrupt and compromised situation, the true word of God appears, signaling that the old order is finished.

3-4 And he came into all the district around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins; as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, “THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, ‘MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT.

John's ministry had a central message: repentance. And it had a central sign: baptism. This wasn't a brand new ritual. Jews practiced ceremonial washings, and Gentiles converting to Judaism were baptized. But John's baptism was different. He was calling Jews to be baptized like Gentile converts, implying that their ethnic identity alone was not enough to save them. They needed to repent, to turn around, to start over. This baptism was for the forgiveness of sins, not because the water itself washed away sin, but because it was the outward sign of a repentant heart that was ready to receive the forgiveness the Messiah would bring. Luke immediately connects this to Isaiah 40. John is the prophetic voice, the herald announcing the arrival of the King. His job is to prepare the road, to get the people ready for the Lord's visitation.

5-6 EVERY RAVINE WILL BE FILLED, AND EVERY MOUNTAIN AND HILL WILL BE BROUGHT LOW; THE CROOKED WILL BE STRAIGHT, AND THE ROUGH ROADS SMOOTH. AND ALL FLESH WILL SEE THE SALVATION OF GOD.’ ”

This is the language of radical reordering. When a king was coming, the roads were prepared. This preparation is a metaphor for repentance. The mountains of pride and self-righteousness must be brought low. The valleys of despair and hopelessness must be filled in. The crooked paths of sin and deceit must be made straight. The rough ways of injustice and strife must be smoothed out. This is what repentance does. It levels the landscape of the human heart to make a fit highway for God. And the result of this preparation is cosmic in scope: all flesh will see the salvation of God. John's ministry, and the ministry of the one he announces, is not just for Israel, but for the whole world.

7-8 So he was saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham.

John was not a seeker-sensitive preacher. He greets the crowds with a blistering insult: "You brood of vipers." He saw that many were coming out for baptism for the wrong reasons, perhaps as a kind of spiritual fire insurance. They wanted to flee the wrath to come, which was the impending judgment on apostate Israel that would culminate in A.D. 70, but they did not want to truly repent. So John challenges their motives and attacks their chief security: their bloodline. They thought being a descendant of Abraham made them safe. John demolishes this. True children of Abraham are those who share his faith, which manifests in repentance and obedience. God's covenant promises are not tied to DNA. God is so free and powerful that He could create children for Abraham out of the rocks on the riverbank if He wanted to. Salvation is by sovereign grace, not by race.

9 But indeed the axe is already laid at the root of the trees; therefore, every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”

The time for games is over. Judgment is not a distant threat; it is imminent. The axe is not just sharpened; it is laid at the root. The nation of Israel is the tree being evaluated. The criterion for judgment is fruit. Not leaves, not heritage, not religious talk, but fruit. A life that does not produce the fruit of repentance will be judged. The imagery of being cut down and thrown into the fire is a clear picture of the covenantal judgment that Jesus would also speak of, a judgment that fell upon that generation in the destruction of the temple and the city of Jerusalem.

10-11 And the crowds were questioning him, saying, “Then what should we do?” And he would answer and say to them, “The man who has two tunics is to share with him who has none; and he who has food is to do likewise.”

John's sharp preaching had its intended effect. The people are cut to the heart, and they ask the most important question: "What should we do?" John's answer is stunningly practical. Repentance is not an abstract feeling. It has hands and feet. It affects your possessions. If you have two coats, and your brother has none, the fruit of repentance is giving him one of yours. This is not a command for communism, but a command for radical, sacrificial generosity born from a changed heart.

12-13 And tax collectors also came to be baptized, and they said to him, “Teacher, what should we do?” And he said to them, “Collect no more than what you have been ordered to.”

Tax collectors were despised as traitors and thieves, working for Rome and notorious for extorting money from their own people. When they ask what to do, John does not tell them to quit their jobs. He tells them to do their jobs righteously. "Stop cheating." Repentance for them meant becoming honest in their vocation. The gospel does not necessarily pull us out of our secular work; it transforms how we conduct ourselves within it.

14 And soldiers were also questioning him, saying, “What should we also do?” And he said to them, “Do not take money from anyone by force, or extort anyone, and be content with your wages.”

Soldiers, likely Jews serving one of the Herods, also come. Their temptation was to use their power and their weapons to abuse people and shake them down for money. Again, John does not tell them to become pacifists. He tells them to stop their extortion and bullying. "Be content with your wages." Repentance for a soldier means exercising his authority justly and without greed. For each group, repentance meant turning from their characteristic sins and living righteously in their particular station in life.

15-16 Now while the people were in a state of expectation and all were reasoning in their hearts about John, as to whether he was the Christ, John answered, saying to them all, “As for me, I baptize you with water, but One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the strap of His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

John's powerful ministry created a buzz. The people were in a state of expectation, wondering if he might be the Messiah. A lesser man might have been tempted by this, but John's humility is profound. He immediately clarifies his role. He is nothing compared to the one who is coming. He is not even worthy to perform the lowliest task of a slave for Him, which was to untie his master's sandals. He then contrasts his baptism with the Messiah's. John's is a preparatory baptism with water. The Messiah will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire. This is a baptism of two-fold effect: the outpouring of the Spirit for purification and salvation, and the outpouring of fiery judgment on the unrepentant.

17 His winnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clear His threshing floor and to gather the wheat into His barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

John continues the theme of separation and judgment. The Messiah is coming like a farmer at harvest time. The threshing floor is Israel. With His winnowing fork, He will toss the grain into the air. The heavy, valuable wheat will fall to the ground to be gathered into the barn, representing the salvation of the faithful remnant. The light, worthless chaff will be blown away by the wind and burned with unquenchable fire. This is a vivid picture of the discriminating judgment the Messiah would bring upon that generation, separating the true believers from the apostate nation.

18-20 So with many other exhortations he proclaimed the gospel to the people. But when Herod the tetrarch was reproved by him because of Herodias, his brother’s wife, and because of all the wicked things which Herod had done, Herod also added this to them all: he locked John up in prison.

Luke summarizes John's entire ministry, with all its warnings of wrath and calls for repentance, as proclaiming the gospel, or good news. The good news is that the King is coming, and therefore we must get right with Him. This gospel is not just a private, spiritual message. It has public, political implications. John confronted Herod the tetrarch for his specific, public sin of taking his brother's wife. A true prophet does not trim his message to please the powerful. And the powerful often respond not with repentance, but with persecution. Herod's response to being called out for his wickedness was to add another sin to his list: he imprisoned the prophet of God. This foreshadows the conflict that Jesus Himself would face.

Application

The ministry of John the Baptist is not a mere historical curiosity; it is a template for the church's proclamation. First, we must ground our message in the real world. The gospel is not a set of abstract principles; it is news about something that happened in human history under Tiberius Caesar and Pontius Pilate. Second, our call must be a call to repentance. A gospel without repentance is no gospel at all. We must warn men to flee the wrath to come, and that means turning from their sins in a substantive way. Third, we must confront the false securities of our age. For the Jews, it was their ethnic heritage. For moderns, it might be their nationality, their political tribe, their supposed goodness, or their religious affiliation. Like John, we must say that God is not impressed, and He demands fruit. Fourth, our ethics must be practical. Repentance must show up in how we handle our money, how we do our jobs, and how we treat those over whom we have power. Finally, all our preaching must point away from ourselves and to the supreme greatness and glory of Jesus Christ. We are not worthy to untie His sandals. He is the one with the winnowing fork. He is the one who saves and He is the one who judges. Our job is simply to prepare the way of the Lord.