Thanks to the writings of the prophet Daniel and information in the Gospels, we can estimate that John the Baptist's ministry began in April of the year 26. These sources suggest that he left his family home after the death of his parents, already elderly when he was born, to settle in the Judean wilderness.
According to some interpretations, John the Baptist may have preached to the crowds on the Temple esplanade during the great festivals in Jerusalem. Towards the end of his ministry, he seems to have stopped making these pilgrimages, a point we examine further below. His life and clothing reminded his contemporaries of the great prophet Elijah, raising many questions. Seeking answers, many found him preaching near Bethany beyond the Jordan.
Matthew specifies that John the Baptist began his ministry in the Judean wilderness, and the apostle John tells us that he later settled on the banks of the Jordan at Bethany beyond the river, introducing a new baptism. While many see him as the messiah, he clearly states that they are mistaken and that his ministry consists solely in preparing for the Messiah's imminent coming.
This explanation accounts for the crowds around him. People believed they had found the Messiah in him. He thus naturally became the one crying out in the wilderness, announcing the coming of the long-awaited, hoped-for Messiah. He embodied the priestly Messiah who precedes the royal Messiah.
It would be mistaken to think that John the Baptist's success came from proposing a new doctrine. His preaching rested on announcing the coming of the royal Messiah, Jesus. Jesus therefore had to meet John the Baptist.
Mark begins his account by quoting several prophets, including Malachi 3.1 and Isaiah 40.3. This is his text's only reference to prophets apart from Jesus' direct quotations.
For Mark, the author of the second Gospel, everything begins with John the Baptist's arrival. He mentions John chiefly because he announced Jesus' coming. John the Baptist thus introduces the central figure of Mark's account: Jesus, the Messiah.
Tensions between the disciples of John the Baptist and those of Jesus are documented (John 3.25). Mark emphasises that John's mission was limited to announcing the coming of someone far greater than himself: Jesus, the Messiah.
Mark thus puts each person's place in salvation history into perspective. Indirectly, he asks John the Baptist's disciples a fundamental question: will they follow the servant who announces the Master's coming, or choose Jesus, the one true Master?
Luke alone provides these essential historical details to place his events within secular history. He seeks to show that the chronology of Jesus the Messiah's life fits harmoniously into world history.
Thus there are not two separate chronologies, one of the world with its rulers, kings and emperors, and another of Jesus the Messiah. There is a single historical reality in which the Messiah naturally takes his place.
Luke seems to have had documents now lost. The almost two thousand intervening years have erased evidence on which he relied when writing. This does not mean, however, that his information contains errors in dates or names.
Theophilus, like the earliest readers, was not shocked by references they knew and could still verify at the time. On the contrary, this highlights the quality of Luke's investigation.
The precision of these details helps confirm the truthfulness of the prophet Daniel's writings and establish a chronology of the reported events. We explore this further in the appendices mentioned at the beginning of this passage.