Jesus Verse by Verse

an expanded commentary on the Gospel of Matthew

Jesus Verse by Verse...

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3:6 Baptized... in the river- Baptism [Greek baptizo] means to dip, to immerse- not to sprinkle. So baptism was performed in a river. Note 3:16 out of the water.
3:7 Offspring of vipers- They were the descendants of the snake spoken of in Gen. 3:15. There will always be opposition between those in Christ, the descendant of the woman, and the descendants of the snake. We will be temporarily wounded by them, but we will triumph in the end.
3:9 Within yourselves- The Bible is aware of how we are likely to respond. God’s concern is with our state of mind, how we think within. For this is the ultimate source of human sin.
3:12 Unquenchable fire- not literally. A symbol of complete destruction (Jer. 17:27).
3:15 Jesus was baptized as an adult by immersion- as an example to us. We should also be baptized.