“Heaven was Opened” – Jesus, Spirit, and the Divine King (Part 1-Setting)
The setting of Jesus’ baptism in Luke’s synoptic account varies in a most interesting way than that of the Mark and Matthew. Chapter 3 changes setting from the infancy narratives of John and Jesus, forerunner and Son of the Most High, to the outset of their ministry. We would anticipate what comes next: the preaching and baptism of John and the baptism of Jesus, which is the beginning of the gospel of the Son of God in Mark. This subsequent shift is the case in the narrative of Luke. What is interesting about Luke is the almost abrupt shift from the infancy narrative of chapter 2 to an entirely new setting.
The setting of Luke’s baptismal accounts is important. There is a particular context by which the author wishes for us to approach the ensuing events. He says it is during the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate, Herod, Phillip, Lysanias, and the priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas. This firmly roots the following narrative in the political history of Rome and her emperor who ruled the known world, the pertinent regional governors significant to the narrative including the so-called “king of the Jews” Herod, and the head priestly figures of Israel. This is important to remember as the baptismal narrative (including the preaching of John and his baptism, the repentant Romans, the imprisonment of John, and the subsequent baptism and recognition of Jesus, and the following genealogy) ensues as it is firmly positioned amongst the great rulers of Rome and Palestine in history; Caesar the “son of God”, Herod “the King of the Jews”, and Annas and Caiaphas the “priests of God”.
So when do we get the rest of the series??