Matthew 3:11

John baptized in water "in connection with" repentance. [Note: Carson, "Matthew," p. 104.] However the One coming after him, the King, would baptize with the Holy Spirit (cf. Joel 2:28-29) and fire (cf. Malachi 3:2-5). The Malachi prophecy speaks of fire as a refining or purifying agent, not as an instrument of destruction. Both prophecies involve the nation of Israel as a whole primarily.

Are these two different baptisms or one? This is a very difficult question to answer because the arguments on both sides are strong. [Note: See Hagner, pp. 51-52.] In both interpretations baptism connotes both immersion, in the metaphorical sense of placing into something, and initiation.

The construction of the statement in the Greek text favors one baptism. Usually one entity is in view when one article precedes two nouns joined by a conjunction. [Note: Robertson, p. 566.] This would mean that the one baptism Jesus would perform would be with the Holy Spirit and fire together. This apparently happened on the day of Pentecost initially (Acts 2:3-4).

The fire in Malachi’s prophecy probably refers to purification and judgment. The purification emphasis is in harmony with Malachi’s use. This has led many scholars to conclude that the fire baptism that John predicted is not the one at Pentecost. [Note: E.g., Edersheim, 1:272; M’Neile, p. 29; Toussaint, p. 70; Carson, "Matthew," p. 105; and James Morison, A Practical Commentary on the Gospel According to St. Matthew, p. 36. See also John Proctor, "Fire in God’s House: Influence of Malachi 3 in the NT," Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 36:1 (March 1993):12-13.] They believe that the time when Jesus will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire to fulfill these prophecies concerning Israel is yet future from our viewpoint in history. It will happen at His second advent. It would have happened at His first advent if Israel had accepted Him. Jesus’ baptism of His disciples on the day of Pentecost was a similar baptism, they say. However, it was not the fulfillment of these prophecies since they involved Israel and "the day of the Lord" specifically (cf. John 14:17; Acts 2; 1 Corinthians 12:13). [Note: See Renald E. Showers, Maranatha: Our Lord, Come! A Definitive Study of the Rapture of the Church, pp. 30-40, for an excellent discussion of "the day of the Lord."]

The context, which speaks of blessing for the repentant but judgment for the unrepentant, tends to favor two baptisms (Matthew 3:8-10; Matthew 3:12; cf. Acts 1:5; Acts 11:16). In this case the fire would refer primarily, if not exclusively, to judgment. [Note: Those who favor this view include Walvoord, Matthew: . . ., p. 32; Barbieri, p. 25; and Wiersbe, 1:17.] The baptism with the Holy Spirit would refer to Spirit baptism that will happen when Israel accepts her Messiah (Isaiah 44:3; Joel 2:28-32). A foretaste of that baptism occurred on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2). The baptism with fire would refer to Jesus’ judgment of unrepentant Israel (cf. Matthew 3:12). After Israel’s rejection of Jesus, it became clear that this national judgment will happen primarily at His second coming. This fiery judgment might also refer to unrepentant individuals when they reach the end of their lives.

All things considered it seems probable that John was referring to one baptism that took place initially on the day of Pentecost but which will find complete fulfillment at Jesus’ second coming.

The rabbis taught that, even if one was a slave, loosening another person’s sandal was beneath the dignity of a Jew. [Note: The rabbinic writing Mekilta de Rabbi Ishmael, Nezikin 1 on Exodus 21:2, cited by Bock, Jesus according . . ., p. 83.] So by saying he was unworthy to unloose Jesus’ sandals, John meant that he was unworthy of even the most humiliating service of Jesus.