John 1:29-34

Behold the Lamb of God…Hosanna in the highest blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.

Heaven and earth are filled with Your glory. 

John 1:29-34

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.’ 31 I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with water.”

32 And John bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. 33 I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.”

Jesus is the Lamb of God—the lamb provided by God to atone for the sins of the world in a way no animal ever could. This reference foreshadows Jesus’ death as the ultimate fulfillment of the annual Passover sacrifice. The Lamb’s role in taking away sin alludes to the Servant imagery in Isaiah 53:12. In Exodus 12, each family is commanded to sacrifice a lamb without blemish on the 14th day of the first month. The blood of the lamb was spread with a hyssop branch on the doorposts and lintel of the entry to each house. The lamb’s blood protected Israel’s households from the judgment of the 10th plague, the death of the firstborn. The lamb was to be killed and cooked whole: none of the bones were to be broken. John’s symbolism clearly places Jesus in the role of Passover lamb, including the day of His death and the treatment of His body.

The purpose of John’s ministry was preparing the way for the coming of the Messiah. The Gospel of John tends to use “Israel” as a positive label for God’s chosen people, identified ultimately by their beliefs, not ancestry. John did not know Jesus was the Messiah until God revealed it to him. John the Baptist is functioning as a formal legal witness to Jesus’ identity. Faithlife Bible.

Undoing the sandal strap was the job of a slave. The Jewish Talmud says, “Everything that a servant will do for his master a scholar shall perform for his teacher, except the menial task of loosing his sandal thong.” Thus John was saying that “Jesus Christ is the living Lord and I am the voice, His servant and slave. Actually, I’m not even worthy to be His slave.”

In the OT, the Israelites sacrificed lambs at the Passover feast and as offerings. Jesus Christ is the Lamb that God would give as a sacrifice for the sins not only of Israel, but of the whole world.

John and Jesus were cousins, so they probably knew each other. But John apparently did not know that Jesus was the Messiah. All John knew was that he was to baptize with water and that the Messiah would be made known to Israel through him. God had given John a sign by which he would know the Messiah, namely, the descending of the Holy Spirit as a dove. NKJ Bible.

Matthew 3:11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

Mark 1:8 I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

Luke 3:16 John answered, saying to all, “I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

Acts 1:5 for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”