The Life of John the Baptist

By Christian George

John the Baptist, the first biblical prophet to appear in 400 years of Israel’s history, would lay the foundation for the ministry of Jesus. In the only mention of John outside the New Testament, first century historian Josephus explains that John became such a threat to the stability of the Roman Empire that the governor of Judea “decided that it would be much better to strike first and be rid of him before his work led to an uprising.” What events in John’s life led to his execution?

[2] According to Luke, the man about whom Jesus would say, “Truly I tell you,among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater” (Matthew 11:11),was the son of a priest named Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth1（音译）撒迦利亚和以利沙伯。, who was a relative of Mary the mother of Jesus.

[3] Boys who were born into priestly families typically became priests themselves. However, John did not work in the temple in Jerusalem. Instead, he preached and baptized in the wilderness of the desolate Judean mountains.

施洗者约翰，《圣经》中以色列历史上400年间出现的第一位先知，为耶稣的传教事工打下基础。《新约》文本之外唯一对其有过记录的是公元1世纪的历史学家约瑟夫，他写道，约翰对罗马帝国的稳定造成了威胁，导致犹太王“决定先下手为强，在在其传教活动酿成起义之前先除掉他”。那么，约翰一生里究竟做了哪些事情而被斩首？

[2]根据路加的记述，耶稣提到一个人时曾说：“我实在告诉你们，凡妇人所生的没有一个兴起来大过他的”（又见《马太福音》11∶11）；那个人就是祭司撒迦利亚和以利沙伯的儿子，以利沙伯还是耶稣的母亲马利亚的亲戚。

[3]生于祭司家庭的男孩一般都会成长为祭司，然而约翰并没有在耶路撒冷的圣殿里尽祭司的职分，却一直在偏僻的犹太荒野传道、施洗。由于约翰为父母年迈时所生，他很可能被“艾塞尼”信徒领养。这些犹太苦行者生活在死海沿岸地带，以生活方式严格守道而著称。他们发誓独身一生、远离城市、财务共享，乃至吃饭不语，连安息日也不歇息。由于执着于仪式化的圣洁，他们每天都要浸入水中好几次。

Because John was born to elderly parents, it’s possible the he was adopted by the Essenes2（音译）艾塞尼，古犹太人中推崇苦修的神秘教派。, a group of Jewish ascetics3ascetic禁欲主义者。who lived in communities along the Dead Sea. Essenes were known for their disciplined lifestyles. They took vows of celibacy, ate in silence, shared possessions, avoided large cities and did not relieve themselves on the Sabbath. Obsessed with ritual purity, they immersed themselves in water several times a day.

[4] Matthew and Mark paint a picture of John that is consistent with this way of life. John’s clothing was rugged4rug-ged粗糙的；结实的。and improvised5improvised简易的；临时凑成的。—the hair of a camel for a tunic and an unworked animal skin tied around his waist. For protein, John ate from any of 800 species of wild locusts—roasted, boiled or dipped in honey. If John had taken the Nazirite6古希伯来人中的苦修者。该字希伯来文的意思是“立约的人”，与神立约的人。他在神面前因为约而受拘束，不饮酒不近色，不剪头发不剃胡子。vow, his hair and beard would have been long, unkempt7unkempt（头发）蓬乱的，未加梳理的。and likely matted8matted缠结的。from exposure to the elements9elements（常用复数）天气，尤其是风雨。.

[5] Many believed that John was sent by God to pave the way for a king who would overthrow the Roman occupation of Israel. Several years before Jesus launched His ministry, John was preaching this dangerous idea—the inauguration10inauguration开始；开创。of the kingdom of God.Two things were required of citizens of this kingdom: repentance and baptism.Immersion was nothing new for Jews.But John popularized it by baptizing Jews—including Jesus—in the Jordan River.

[4]马太和马可福音书里描绘的约翰就按这种方式生活，他的穿着可谓粗糙简陋——骆驼毛做的外衣和没有加工过的动物皮子腰带。蛋白质呢，800种野生蝗虫任他吃，可烤可煮可蘸蜜。假如约翰发过誓要做“拿细尔”，那么他的头发和胡子肯定会很长，并且由于长年暴露于户外，也很可能蓬乱缠结。

[5]很多人认为约翰是受神差遣，为一位“总督”推翻罗马对以色列的统治铺路打先锋。耶稣开始传教几年之前，约翰就在宣讲如此耸人听闻的主张——开启神的国度。成为神国公民需要具备两个条件：忏悔和受洗。浸入水里对犹太人而言一点也不新鲜，但是约翰将其推广开来——他在约旦河给犹太人施洗，耶稣也是其中之一。

[6] When John criticized Herod’s unlawful divorce and incestuous11incestuous乱伦的。remarriage to Herodias, he was arrested and sent to a fortified palace overlooking the Dead Sea. The Gospel of Mark records that after two years of imprisonment,John was beheaded.

[7] The last glimpse we get of John in the Gospels is of a man resolved to die in his cell12cell小牢房。but eager to ask Jesus one final question: “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else? ”(Matthew 11:3) ■

[6]约翰谴责希律王与前妻非法离婚，与兄嫂希罗底乱伦再婚，遭到逮捕，被送入一座俯瞰死海的要塞式皇宫。据《马可福音》记载，囚禁两年之后，约翰被斩首。

[7]福音书里最后一次提到约翰，是他决意坐死牢里，但急于问耶稣最后一个问题：“那将要来的是你吗？还是我们等候别人呢？”（《马太福音》11∶3） □