When all the people were being baptized
This phrase sets the scene for a significant moment in the ministry of John the Baptist. The Greek word for "baptized" is "βαπτίζω" (baptizō), which means to immerse or submerge. Baptism here symbolizes repentance and preparation for the coming Messiah. Historically, this was a time of great expectation among the Jewish people, who were eagerly awaiting the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies regarding the Messiah. The act of baptism by John was a public declaration of repentance and a desire to be cleansed from sin, aligning with the Jewish tradition of ritual purification.

Jesus was baptized too
This phrase marks a pivotal moment in the life of Jesus, as He identifies with humanity's need for repentance, despite being sinless Himself. The Greek word "Ἰησοῦς" (Iēsous) is the Hellenized form of the Hebrew name Yeshua, meaning "Yahweh is salvation." Jesus' baptism signifies His willingness to fully embrace His mission as the Savior. It also serves as a model for believers, demonstrating the importance of obedience and humility. Theologically, this act foreshadows His death, burial, and resurrection, which are central to the Christian faith.

And as He was praying
Prayer is a recurring theme in the Gospel of Luke, highlighting Jesus' intimate relationship with the Father. The Greek word for "praying" is "προσεύχομαι" (proseuchomai), indicating a deep, earnest communication with God. This moment of prayer underscores the importance of seeking divine guidance and strength, especially at significant junctures in life. It also reflects Jesus' dependence on the Father, setting an example for believers to follow in their spiritual journey.

heaven was opened
The opening of heaven signifies divine revelation and approval. In the Jewish context, an open heaven represents God's presence and favor. This moment marks the beginning of Jesus' public ministry, with heaven's affirmation of His identity and mission. The imagery of an open heaven also evokes the prophetic visions of the Old Testament, where God's glory and purposes are revealed to His people. It serves as a reminder of the accessibility of God's grace and the promise of His kingdom breaking into the world.

1. Jesus
The central figure in this passage, Jesus is the Son of God who comes to be baptized, marking the beginning of His public ministry.

2. John the Baptist
Although not mentioned directly in this verse, John is the one performing the baptisms, including that of Jesus.

3. The People
The crowd present at the baptism, representing those who were coming to John for repentance and baptism.

4. Heaven
The realm of God, which opens as a divine sign during Jesus' baptism.

5. The Baptism Event
A significant moment marking the inauguration of Jesus' ministry and the divine approval of His mission.The Humility of Jesus
Jesus' willingness to be baptized, despite being sinless, demonstrates His humility and identification with humanity. We are called to emulate His humility in our own lives.

The Importance of Prayer
Jesus was praying as heaven opened. This highlights the importance of prayer in our spiritual lives, inviting divine interaction and guidance.

The Affirmation of Jesus' Mission
The opening of heaven signifies God's approval and the beginning of Jesus' public ministry. We should seek God's affirmation in our own callings and missions.

The Role of Baptism
Baptism is a significant act of obedience and public declaration of faith. It symbolizes repentance and the beginning of a new life in Christ.

The Trinity Revealed
Although not fully detailed in this verse, the subsequent verses reveal the presence of the Trinity: the Father (voice from heaven), the Son (Jesus), and the Holy Spirit (descending like a dove). This underscores the unity and distinct roles within the Godhead.(21-22) Now when all the people were baptized.--See Notes on Matthew 3:13-17. St. Luke's account is the shortest of the three first Gospels, but it adds here, as afterwards in his report of the Transfiguration, the fact that our Lord was "praying" at the time of the divine attestation to His Sonship. (See Introduction.)

Verses 21, 22. - The baptism of Jesus. Verses 21, 22. - Now when all the people were baptized. This is the shortest account of the first three Gospels of this event. Two circumstances related are, however, peculiar to St. Luke - the fact that he ascended "praying" from the water, and the opening words of this verse, which probably signify that on this day Jesus waited till the crowds who were in the habit of coming to John had been baptized. Jesus also being baptized. There is a curious addition to the Gospel narratives of the baptism of the Lord preserved by Jerome. He tells us he extracted it from the Hebrew Gospel used by the Nazarenes, a copy of which in his day was preserved at Caesarea. "Lo, the mother of the Lord and his brethren said to him, John the Baptist is baptizing for the remission of sins; let us go and be baptized by him. But he answered and said unto them, In what have I sinned, that I should go and be baptized by him? unless, indeed, it be in ignorance that I have said what I have just said." It is, no doubt, a very ancient traditional saying, and is perhaps founded on some well-authenticated oral tradition. If St. Luke knew of it, he did not consider it of sufficient importance to incorporate it in his narrative. In St. Matthew's account of the "baptism," John at first resists when asked to perform the rite on his kinsman Jesus. His knowledge of Jesus at this time was evidently considerable. He was acquainted, of course, with all that had already happened in his "cousin's" life, and probably it had been revealed to him, or told him by his mother (Luke 1:43), that in the Nazareth Carpenter, the Son of Mary, he was to look for the promised Messiah, with whose life-story his was so closely bound up. The answers to the question, What was the reason of Jesus' baptism? have been many. In this, as in many things connected with the earthly life of our Lord, there is much that is mysterious, and we can never hope here to solve these difficulties with any completeness. The mystic comments of the Fathers, though not perfectly satisfactory, are, however, after all the best of the many notes that have been made on this difficult question. Bishop Wordsworth sums them up well in his words: "He came to baptize water, by being baptized in it." Ignatius ('Ad. Eph.,' 18, beginning of the second century) writes, "He was baptized that, by his submission to the rite, he might purify the water." Jerome, in the same strain, says, "He did not so much get cleansing from baptism, as impart cleansing to it." It would seem that Jesus, in submitting to the rite himself, did it with the intention of sanctifying the blessed sacrament in the future. And praying. Peculiar to St. Luke. This evangelist on eight other occasions mentions the praying of Jesus. The heaven was opened, and the Holy Ghost descended... upon him. While he was praying and gazing up into heaven, the deep blue vault was rent asunder, and the Sinless One gazed far into the realms of eternal light; and as he gazed he saw descend a ray of glory, which, dove-like, brooded above his head, and then lighted upon him. This strange bright vision was seen, not only by him, but by the Baptist (John 1:32, 33). That the form of a dove absolutely descended and lighted upon Jesus seems unlikely; a radiant glorious Something both Jesus and the Baptist saw descending. John compares it to a dove - this cloud of glory sailing through the clear heaven, then, bird-like, sinking, hovering, or brooding, over the head of the Sinless One, then lighting, as it were, upon him. In likening the radiant vision to a dove, probably John had heard of the rabbinical comment (it is in the Talmud) on Genesis 1:2, that the Spirit of God moved on the face of the waters like a dove. Milton has reproduced the thought -

"And with mighty wings outspread
Dove-like sat'st brooding on the vast abyss."

(Paradise Lost,' 1:20.) John, for want of a better simile, reproduced the image which he had doubtless heard from his teacher in the Law, when he desired to represent in earthly language the Divine Thing which in some bodily form he had seen. In the early Church there was a legend very commonly current - we find it in Justin Martyr ('Dialogue with Trypho,' 88), and also in the Apocryphal Gospels - that at the baptism of Jesus a fire was kindled in Jordan. This was doubtless another, though a more confused memory of the glory-appearance which John saw falling on the Messiah. And a voice came from heaven; better rendered, out of heaven. We read in the Talmud that "on the death of the last prophets - Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi - the Holy Spirit departed from Israel; but they (i.e. Israeli were availing themselves of the daughter (echo) of a voice, Bath-Kol, for the reception of Divine communications" ('Treatise Yoma,' fol. 9, col. 2). In the Gospels there is a mention of the heavenly voice being again heard at the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:5), and during the last week of the earthly ministry (John 12:28-30). In the story of Israel the Persons of the everblessed Trinity were pleased to manifest themselves on various occasions to mortal eye and mortal ear. Very frequently to the eye, in the visible glory of the pillar of cloud and fire in the desert journeys; in the glorious light which shone in the holy of holies, first in the tabernacle of the wanderings, then in the temple; in the flame as in the burning bush, and in the visions of Isaiah and Ezekiel; in appearances as in the meeting with Abraham and with Joshua. To the ear the word of the Lord spoke, amongst others, to Abraham, Moses, Samuel, and the later prophets. So in this, the transition period of Messiah, the visible glory of God and the audible voice of God were again seen and heard by mortal man. Jerome calls attention here to the distinctness of each of the Persons of the blessed Trinity, as shown in this baptism of the Messiah. "The mystery of the Trinity is shown in the baptism of Christ The Lord is baptized, the Spirit descends in the likeness of a dove, the voice of the Father is heard bearing witness to his Son, and the dove settles on the head of Jesus, lest any one should imagine that the voice was for John and not for Christ." We may with all reverence conclude that, after the hearing of the voice from heaven, "the Messianic self- consciousness would undoubtedly expand with rapidity, both intensively and extensively, into complete maturity. That self- consciousness, it must be borne in mind, would necessarily, so far as this human side of his Being was concerned, be subject, in its development, to the condition of time" (Dr. Morrison, on Matthew 3:17).

Parallel Commentaries ...

When
δὲ (de)
Conjunction
Strong's 1161: A primary particle; but, and, etc.

all
ἅπαντα (hapanta)
Adjective - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 537: All, the whole, altogether. Absolutely all or every one.

the
τὸν (ton)
Article - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

people
λαὸν (laon)
Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2992: Apparently a primary word; a people.

were being baptized,
βαπτισθῆναι (baptisthēnai)
Verb - Aorist Infinitive Passive
Strong's 907: Lit: I dip, submerge, but specifically of ceremonial dipping; I baptize.

Jesus
Ἰησοῦ (Iēsou)
Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 2424: Of Hebrew origin; Jesus, the name of our Lord and two other Israelites.

was baptized
βαπτισθέντος (baptisthentos)
Verb - Aorist Participle Passive - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 907: Lit: I dip, submerge, but specifically of ceremonial dipping; I baptize.

too.
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

And
καὶ (kai)
Conjunction
Strong's 2532: And, even, also, namely.

as He was praying,
προσευχομένου (proseuchomenou)
Verb - Present Participle Middle or Passive - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 4336: To pray, pray for, offer prayer. From pros and euchomai; to pray to God, i.e. Supplicate, worship.

heaven
οὐρανὸν (ouranon)
Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3772: Perhaps from the same as oros; the sky; by extension, heaven; by implication, happiness, power, eternity; specially, the Gospel.

was opened,
ἀνεῳχθῆναι (aneōchthēnai)
Verb - Aorist Infinitive Passive
Strong's 455: To open. From ana and oigo; to open up.


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NT Gospels: Luke 3:21 Now it happened when all the people (Luke Lu Lk)