Why didn't John the Baptist commit himself to Jesus as a disciple? - Document (2024)

Date: Winter 2008

From: Biblical Theology Bulletin(Vol. 38, Issue 4)

Publisher: Biblical Theology Bulletin, Inc

Document Type: Critical essay

Length: 3,637 words

Abstract

In the Synoptic Gospels a significant interval seems to exist between the time John the Baptist was arrested, his hermeneutic suspicion about Jesus' messiahship, and his killing. John's Gospel notes how two of John's disciples join Jesus as his disciples and yet how after this both John and Jesus continued functioning with their respective communities of disciples and, indeed, if you follow one redaction, with their respective baptisms. There is no biblical evidence indicating that John the Baptist ever became a disciple of Jesus, even though it seems he had plenty of time to do so. In fact, to this day, a community of disciples of John the Baptist still exists in the Middle East. A more critical reading of Luke and, especially, Matthew points to the possibility that John's "pre-understanding" vis-a-vis the Messiah kept him from making the leap of faith to become a disciple of Jesus.

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In the "Interpretation of the Bible in the Church," the Pontifical Biblical Commission (q.v.) discusses "pre-understanding." This notion refers to ways we approach a biblical text with certain mindsets that cannot find verification in the text itself. This presents a "danger," according to the PBC. It notes that in "Catholic exegesis, the risk is that of attributing to biblical texts a meaning which they do not contain but which is the product of a later development within the tradition. The exegete must beware of such a danger" (§513).

Aware that this "pre-understanding" may color our own "received" notions about John the Baptist, his story as well as that of his disciples, yet building on 25 points raised in the four Gospel accounts, I have concluded that nothing in the scriptures shows either that John "followed" Jesus as a disciple or that any but two of his disciples ever became Jesus' disciples. This leads one to question John's real effectiveness vis-a-vis being the "Precursor" as well as his ability (or willingness?) to influence others to follow Jesus. This leads us to probe the "why?" of this article's title.

A Compilation of What the Various Texts Tell Us about John the Baptist

First, let us create a kind of history of what the four Gospels tell us about John the Baptist, especially in terms of his disciples and those of Jesus.

He was the son of Zechariah (Luke 1:40ff; 3:2) and Elizabeth, a relative of Mary, the Mother of Jesus (Luke 1:36).

He was chosen by God (John 1:6-8) to be the Precursor of Jesus and to give testimony to him (John 1:19ff). This is confirmed by his unique conception, his quickening in the womb of his Mother at her encounter with Mary as well as the circ*mstances and the name given him at his birth (Luke 1:36-80).

As an adult he had withdrawn from the wider society, establishing his base in "the wilderness" of Judea (Mark 1:4; Matt 3:1, 11:7; Luke 3:2, 4; 7:24), "across the Jordan" (Mark 1:5, 6; Matt 3:5-6; Luke 3:3; John 1:28, 3:26,10:40).

He saw himself as...

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