John The Baptist And Jesus Bible Story

In the days of Herod who was the king of Judaea there was a priest, his name was Zacharias.
Elisabeth was his wife she was of the daughters of Aaron.

Luke 1:6-11 (KJV)

6.) And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.
7.) And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were [now] well stricken in years.

8.) And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest's office before God in the order of his course,
9.) According to the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord.
10.) And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.

11.) And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.

Now when Zacharias saw the angel he was very frightened. The angel of the Lord told him not to be afraid, and that his wife would conceive.

The angel told him that he would have a son and that he was to name him John. He said that they would have joy and that many would rejoice at his birth.
Also that he would be great in the Lords eyes, and would be filled with the Holy Ghost in the womb. He was meant to prepare a people for the Lord.

They were both old and he questioned the angel in unbelief. Because of that he was unable to speak until the child was born. They all wondered what took him so long and when he came out he could not speak.

When his duties were done he went home and lo and behold Elisabeth conceived. I cannot imagine being so old and giving birth, but they were overjoyed because finally they would have their longed for son.

Scripture from Luke 1 King James Bible

Now when the child was born there was great rejoicing among them and all of there friends and relatives.

When it came time to name him they all assumed he would be named Zacharias.

Elisabeth said no, we shall call him John.

So they asked him what name he wanted for the child and gave him a tablet to write on and he wrote.

His name is John.

As soon as he wrote down his name he was able to speak and he praised God.

Fear came on all those around him for they heard his sayings throughout all of the hill country of Judaea. These sayings were laid up in their hearts and they said what kind of child shall this be, for the hand of the Lord was with him.

And then Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost and he prophesied.



Luke 1:68 (KJV)

68.) Blessed [be] the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people,
69.) And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David;
70.) As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began:

71.) That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us;
72.) To perform the mercy [promised] to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant;
73.) The oath which he sware to our father Abraham,

74.) That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear,
75.) In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.
76.) And thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare his ways;

77.) To give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins,
78.) Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us,
79.) To give light to them that sit in darkness and [in] the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.



From before his birth he was destined to prepare the way for the Lord. He grew and was strong in the spirit and he stayed in the desert until he was shown unto Israel. There prayers had indeed been answered in a mighty way.

Scripture from Luke 1 King James Bible

Mark 1: 1 (KJV)

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God;

2.) As it is written in the prophets, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.
3.) The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

4.) John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.
5.) And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins.
6.) And John was clothed with camel's hair, and with a girdle of a skin about his loins; and he did eat locusts and wild honey;

7.) And preached, saying, There cometh one mightier than I after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose.
8.) I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.
9.) And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan.

10.) And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him:
11.) And there came a voice from heaven, [saying], Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.



As soon as John Baptized Jesus a voice came from heaven. Imagine the shock and awe of that moment. All of these things happening are not only miracles but also fulfilling old testament prophecy.

12.) And immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness.
13.) And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him.
14.) Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,

15.) And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.



It just amazes me how these things took place, I wonder if the people present realized the importance of these things and the impact it would have on everyone every generation from then on.

It says the spirit drove him into the wilderness for forty days of being tempted by the devil. I have always wondered how the spirit drove him, I still wonder about that.

Scripture from Mark 1 King James Bible

Now Jesus went into the city of Nain with many of his disciples and a large number of people. When he came to the gate of the city there was a man being carried out and he was dead.

He was the only son of his mother who was a widow, and there were many people with her. When the Lord saw her he had compassion for her and said not to weep.

He reached out and touched the cot and those that were carrying him stopped. He told the young man to rise and he sat up and began to speak and then he delivered him to his mother.

And fear came on all of them and they glorified God and said a great prophet had risen among them, saying God had visited his people.

This is what was said throughout all of Judaea and the region.



Luke 7: 18 (KJV)

18.) And the disciples of John shewed him of all these things.
19.) And John calling [unto him] two of his disciples sent [them] to Jesus, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?
20.) When the men were come unto him, they said, John Baptist hath sent us unto thee, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?

21.) And in that same hour he cured many of [their] infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits; and unto many [that were] blind he gave sight.
22.) Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached.
23.) And blessed is [he], whosoever shall not be offended in me.

24.) And when the messengers of John were departed, he began to speak unto the people concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness for to see? A reed shaken with the wind?
25.) But what went ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? Behold, they which are gorgeously apparelled, and live delicately, are in kings' courts.
26.) But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? Yea, I say unto you, and much more than a prophet.

27.) This is [he], of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.
28.) For I say unto you, Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist: but he that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.
29.) And all the people that heard [him], and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John.

Scripture from Luke 7 King James Bible

Matthew 14: 1 (KJV)

At that time Herod the tetrarch heard of the fame of Jesus,

2.) And said unto his servants, This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead; and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him.
3.) For Herod had laid hold on John, and bound him, and put [him] in prison for Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's wife.
4.) For John said unto him, It is not lawful for thee to have her.

5.) And when he would have put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they counted him as a prophet.
6.) But when Herod's birthday was kept, the daughter of Herodias danced before them, and pleased Herod.
7.) Whereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatsoever she would ask.

8.) And she, being before instructed of her mother, said, Give me here John Baptist's head in a charger.

9.) And the king was sorry: nevertheless for the oath's sake, and them which sat with him at meat, he commanded [it] to be given [her].
10.) And he sent, and beheaded John in the prison.
11.) And his head was brought in a charger, and given to the damsel: and she brought [it] to her mother.

12.) And his disciples came, and took up the body, and buried it, and went and told Jesus.
13.) When Jesus heard [of it], he departed thence by ship into a desert place apart: and when the people had heard [thereof], they followed him on foot out of the cities.


Now John was sent as a messenger to go before Jesus and announce his coming. Jesus himself said there was no greater prophet than him. I can imagine that as he sat in prison he wondered what would happen next and that maybe Jesus would save him.

When John asked "19.) And John calling [unto him] two of his disciples sent [them] to Jesus, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?"

In my opinion it seems as if he was trying to say hey remember me, maybe with a touch of sarcasm. I love how he answers, by showing his many miracles and saying " 23.) And blessed is [he], whosoever shall not be offended in me."

A lesson learned for everyone that would read this for many years, even so Jesus still saw John as the greatest prophet that ever lived and gave him props for fulfilling his purpose.

Even with all of our flaws, if we keep our eyes on him and love him with all of our hearts. We to can fulfill our purpose and be rewarded for it. If not now than when we meet him in heaven.

Scripture from Matthew 14 King James Bible