EVANS The Baptism of John in a Typological Context 55
Malachi speaks of the coming messenger who will prepare the way of
the Lord:
Behold, I send my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord
whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; the messenger of the
covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of
hosts. (Mai. 3.1)The first part of this passage is linked with Isa. 40.3 in Mk 1.2-3, which in
some way is connected with John's ministry. Jesus is said to have applied
this verse to John (cf. Mt. 11.10 = Lk. 7.27). Although the form of the
tradition that we now have is conditioned by the LXX and perhaps Chris-
tian interests as well, it does provide a modicum of evidence that in the
earliest circles of John, including his associate Jesus, the Baptist was
viewed as the fulfillment of the prophecy of Mai. 3.1.^12
There are also found in Malachi several images of fiery judgment, which
at points cohere with the message that the New Testament Gospels attributeto John.
(^2) But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he
appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like fullers' soap;^3 he will sit as a
refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine
them like gold and silver, till they present right offerings to the LORD (Mai.
3.2-3).
(^19) For behold, the day comes, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant
and all evildoers will be stubble; the day that comes shall burn them up,
says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.^20
But for you who fear my name the sun of righteousness shall rise, with
healing in its wings (Mai. 3.19-20a [Eng. 4.1-2a]).
We immediately think of John's warning of the coming wrath (Mt. 3.7 =
Lk. 3.7), which is so close, one might say, 'even now the axe is laid to the
- One could argue that the saying was generated by a desire to portray John in
terms of the fulfillment of prophecy and as Jesus' precursor. However, the latter point is
not actually made in the Q tradition. Also in favor of the authenticity of this Q tradition
are the assertions that John is 'more than a prophet' (Mt. 11.9 = Lk. 7.26) and that
'among those born of women no one is greater than John' (Mt. 11.11 = Lk. 7.28).
Statements such as these are potentially problematic for early Christology, especially in
view of the fact that Jesus referred to himself as a prophet (cf. Mk 6.4); i.e. does this
mean that John is greater than Jesus? Moreover, there is nothing christological in this Q
tradition, which makes it all the more unlikely to have been a creation of the early
Church. R. Bultmann, The History of the Synoptic Tradition (Oxford: Basil Blackwell,
1972), p. 165, thinks Mt. 11.7-1 la may very well constitute a genuine utterance of Jesus.