New King James Version®, Copyright© 1982, Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
Commentaries:
<< John 3:22 John 3:24 >>
John 3:23
John 3:23, Matthew 3:16, and Acts 8:38 give conclusive proof that the original method of baptism was by immersion. John needed an abundance of water to cover his followers completely. Jesus' example shows that He "came up . . . from the water" because He had been in it. Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch "went down into the water." In addition, "baptize," from the Greek baptizo, means "to immerse," "plunge into" or "put into." Two entirely different words are used in the Greek text to refer to pouring (cheo) or sprinkling (rantizo).
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Basic Doctrines: Water BaptismRelated Topics: Baptism | Baptism as Symbol of Death | Baptism by Immersion | Baptizo | Basic Doctrines | Basic Doctrines: Baptism | Cheo | Immersion, Baptism by | Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch | Pouring | Rantizo | Sprinkling
<< John 3:22 John 3:24 >>
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