Questions From Prison

[Red Priest]

I have been thinking about the biblical character John the Baptist lately and reading over those scripture passages dealing with him and have a question about him concerning a question that he posed from prison. He directed this inquiry to Jesus himself via his own disciples (two of them that he chose for this task). Here is the passage:

Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see:

According to my understanding of the chronology of events this occurs after the twelve have been chosen, after Jesus' preaching and healing ministry have begun, and most importantly after his baptism by John the Baptist (with the accompanying miraculous events of the descent of the Holy Spirit and the voice of the Father from heaven).

So why do you think John was uncertain about Jesus in this situation after all that he had seen? Were John's expectations different from what was actually occuring then? The answer is probably simple but not really apparent to me at this point.

[Darth Executor]

I think he just wanted reassurance. As time passes doubt can set in. Also, I'm not sure but does it actually say that John knew Jesus was the MESSIAH?

[Red Priest]

I think he just wanted reassurance. As time passes doubt can set in. Also, I'm not sure but does it actually say that John knew Jesus was the MESSIAH?

I don't think the word "Christ" is actually used by John himself, but I think it would have been assumed about him given the events surrounding their meeting, i.e. Christ (the anointed one) being anointed by none other than the Holy Spirit while the Father in heaven ratifies this occurance audibly. We know that John understood that he was the Son of God as well as "the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world"; the one who was to come after him and would continually "increase" while he himself would "decrease". John knew that this was the one whom he was "preparing the way" for as he had been commissioned.

I see at least two possiblities for this inquiry by John. The first being that their truly was a view of the messiah and the Son of God/Lamb of God being two separate personalities and John subscribed to this view. The other is that John may have been down on his luck given his current circumstances and couldn't understand why these things were so, yet if anyone would seem to be safe from doubting it would naturally be John the Baptist, the "greatest born among women".

[Darth Executor]

The other is that John may have been down on his luck given his current circumstances and couldn't understand why these things were so, yet if anyone would seem to be safe from doubting it would naturally be John the Baptist, the "greatest born among women".

I do think this is it. John may be "greatst born among women" but he's not perfect.

Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see:

Notice how Jesus tells them to show John these things AGAIN. Jesus is well aware that John knew them already.

[Sparko]

The way I read the passage is...

John heard about the miracles Jesus was doing. So he sent a couple of his disciples to Jesus. Perhaps these were two doubters?

Anyway I see it as THEM asking Jesus if he is the one that John told them was to come. Not JOHN asking through them.

Maybe it happened something like this...

John's Disciples: Yo, John, are you SURE this Jesus is the messiah? Why are you sitting in jail if he is?

John: Jesus IS the Messiah. He is doing miracles fortold in the scriptures. Go and ask him yourself.

trudge..trudge...trudge..

D1: you ask him.

D2: no, you ask him. oops here he is..

D2: Uh excuse me. but Are You he who should come, or do we look for another?

and the rest is scriptural history.


my bible commentaries seem to back up this idea:

Wesley: He sent two of his disciples - Not because he doubted himself; but to confirm their faith.

Gill: he sent two of his disciples, who might be the most prejudiced against Christ, because of the increase of his followers, and the decrease of their master's; and because he did not live such an austere life as John did; and who, notwithstanding all that they had heard, and their master had told them of Jesus, were not easily persuaded that he was the true Messiah. Moreover, two of them were sent, both because it was more honourable to Christ, and that they might be proper witnesses of what they saw and heard; and since it was not so much for himself, as for the sake of his disciples, that these messengers were sent.

[Red Priest]

D.E., I believe that this is the simplest explanation for what we see here. Yet there is another element that I can't neglect. I can't get over the fact of John's reputation as a prophet. He was for the most part unconcerned with the inconveniences place upon him by his calling, including imprisonment. It's hard to imagine prison really being a problem for him unless he believed that it was conceptually incompatible with the presence of the messiah. If that is true then its appears likely that he did feel genuinely surprised by Jesus' actions which prompts his questioning.

Glad you mentioned the reiterative tone of the quote of Jesus' reply in vs.4, because I was going to bring it up later. From this I think it is probable that Jesus felt that John's questions were unecessary given what had already occured and presupposing John did doubt Jesus' motives or abilities it was really unjustified.

Sparko, I am sure your script is much more enjoyable to read than those stuffy commentaries but the idea of each seems to be different from what is actually given us in the verses. I think it reads clear enough to prove that John himself was of primary concern in asking his question because of new information he received in prison. The disciples hardly seem necessary at all had John not been in imprisoned, they were just relaying the information. If John's disciples truely doubted Jesus' identity I don't think they would have gone to the very one they were uncertain of to clear up that uncertainty. If John said it, then as far as they were concerned, it should have been so. Also, Jesus' answer to the disciples doesn't stop with the disciples, he directs them to "go and tell John", who according to the commentaries cited was already convinced. Finally, the NASB translators actually add a helpful word in vs. 2, "Now when John in prison heard of the works of Christ, he sent word by his disciples...". The question was not for or by John's disciples, but for John himself.

[Red Priest]

I wanted to add this small note. According to the Tektonics.org site in this article: http://www.tektonics.org/af/berryr01.html#is403, it was proposed that John did in fact question the ministry of Jesus out of his own concern for the answer. It also states that John may have subscribed to the view of the jewish peasantry that the messiah would obliterate all of Israel's enemies upon arrival and that this would include freeing John from prison. Also, it is suggested he could have been displaying the assumptions of the Essenes that their would in fact be two messiahs and that Jesus may have only been the first, however I think that is unlikely due to John's question of whether or not Jesus was the "one" that should be expected or should they look for "another" (one).

Anyhow, it does appear to me (with my twenty-first century western viewpoint) a bit odd that John was not more clued in to the inner workings of the comming messiah; and not only John but the disciples also. I guess God had a very narrow role for John to play in revealing the messiah and wasn't concerned in explaining any more details to him than what would be necessary in carrying out that role? This messianic misunderstanding (Christ's mission in his first advent contrasted with that of his second) in general has been difficult for me to understand; could be a good topic for another thread?