Mark 1:2-4 - As it is written

1:2,3

“As it is written in the Isaiah the prophet”. The two quotes actually come from Malachi 3:1 and Isaiah 40:3. It was common to just name the major prophet, Isaiah in this case. Mark makes relatively few Old Testament quotations, unlike Matthew. These two quotations are introducing John the Baptist. Although John the Baptist had a relatively short ministry, and was nowhere near as significant as Jesus, he did have an enduring effect. In Acts 19:1-7 we read of the Ephesian dozen who had only had John’s Baptism.

The two prophets, Malachi and Isaiah, could be said to cover judgement and mercy. These were two aspects of Jesus’ ministry, and it is so important that we give proper weight to both of them. There is such a tendency to think only of mercy when thinking of Jesus. This is both inconsistent with what Jesus actually did and said, but also means that we never truly appreciate the extent and depth of God’s mercy in Christ.

1:4

Mark makes it clear that John the Baptist was a fulfilment of these passages. He was sent by God to prepare the way for the Lord. So how did he go about preparing the way? Hr preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Baptism signified a change of life, converts to Judaism were baptised. So baptism in itself was not unique, it is the significance that matters. So in John’s case it was repentance and forgiveness, Christian baptism signifies being baptised into Christ’s death and resurrection (Rom 6:1-14).