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In our discussion of the two baptisms, we will discover that John’s Baptism and Jesus’ Baptism were for two different purposes and groups of people. Let’s define baptism and explain where the practice originated? The English word, “baptism” is not a translation but a transliteration of the Greek word “baptizo”. Baptizo literally means to submerge, plunge and overwhelm. This definition gives us the sense that when a person is being baptized in water then they are submerged into, plunged into and “overwhelmed by” water. “Although the term “baptism” is not used to describe the Jewish rituals, the purification rites in Jewish laws and tradition, called “Tvilah,” have some similarity to baptism and the two have been linked. The “Tvilah” is the act of immersion in naturally sourced water, called a “Mikvah”. A Mikvah is described as a bath in which certain Jewish ritual purifications are performed. Origin in the Jewish Bible and other Jewish texts, immersion in water for ritual purification was established for restoration to a condition of “ritual purity” in specific circumstances. For example, Jews who (according to the Law of Moses) became ritually defiled by contact with a corpse had to use the Mikvah before being allowed to participate in the Holy Temple. Immersion is required for converts to Judaism as part of their conversion. Immersion in the Mikvah represents a change in status in regards to purification, restoration, and qualification for full religious participation in the life of the community, ensuring that the cleansed person will not impose uncleanness on the property or its owners. It did not become 14
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April - June 2020
One River customary, however, to immerse converts to Judaism until after the Babylonian Captivity.” In the book of Acts 19:1–7 a notable incident took place. The apostle Paul was ministering in the city of Ephesus and came across twelve believers. He asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” To which
John’s and Jes they then replied, “We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.” Paul was puzzled and further enquired, “Into what then were you baptized?” They then responded, “Into John’s baptism.” Paul began to explain what was the purpose of John’s baptism. He told them, “John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe
