Church Fathers Commentary Luke 3:15-17

"And as the people were in expectation, and all men reasoned in their hearts concerning John, whether haply he were the Christ; John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but there cometh he that is mightier than I, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you in the Holy Spirit and [in] fire: whose fan is in his hand, thoroughly to cleanse his threshing-floor, and to gather the wheat into his garner; but the chaff he will burn up with unquenchable fire." — Luke 3:15-17 (ASV)

Origen of Alexandria: It was fitting that more deference should be paid to John than to other men, for he lived as no other man did. Therefore, they most rightly regarded him with affection, but they did not keep within proper bounds; hence it is said, But while the people were in expectation... whether he were the Christ.

St. Ambrose of Milan: Now what could be more absurd than that he, who was imagined to be someone else, should not be believed in his own person? He whom they thought to have come through a woman is not believed to have come through a virgin, while in fact the sign of the divine coming was placed in the childbearing of a virgin, not of an ordinary woman.

Origen of Alexandria: But love is dangerous when it is uncontrolled. For whoever loves someone ought to consider the nature and reasons for that love, and not love more than the object deserves. For if he passes the proper measure and bounds of love, both the one who loves and the one who is loved will be in sin.

Greek Expositors: And so, John did not glory in the high regard everyone had for him, nor did he seem to desire the deference of others in any way, but instead embraced the deepest humility. Hence it follows, John answered.

The Venerable Bede: But how could he answer those who secretly thought he was the Christ, unless it was because they not only thought this, but also (as another Evangelist declares) sent priests and Levites to him and asked him whether he was the Christ or not?

St. Ambrose of Milan: Alternatively, John saw into the secrets of the heart. But let us remember by whose grace he did this, for it is a gift of God to reveal things to man, not a human virtue. Human ability is assisted by the divine blessing, rather than being capable of perceiving such things by any natural power of its own.

Quickly answering them, he proved that he was not the Christ, for his works were visible operations. As a person is composed of two natures, soul and body, the visible part of the mystery is sanctified by what is visible, and the invisible part by what is invisible. By water the body is washed; by the Spirit the soul is cleansed of its stains. It is permitted for us also to have the sanctifying influence of the Deity breathed upon us in the very water of baptism.

Therefore, there was one baptism of repentance and another of grace. The latter was by both water and the Spirit, while the former was by one only. The work of man is to produce repentance for his sin; it is the gift of God to pour in the grace of His mystery. Devoid of all envy for Christ’s greatness, he declared not by word but by deed that he was not the Christ. Hence it follows, There comes one mightier than I after me.

In these words, mightier than I, he makes no comparison, for there can be none between the Son of God and a man. Instead, he says this because while there are many who are mighty, no one is mightier than Christ. Indeed, he was so far from making a comparison that he adds, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Matthew says, Whose shoes I am not worthy to bear. Therefore, if it is worthwhile to understand any difference in these expressions, we can only suppose that John said one at one time and the other at another time, or both together: to bear his shoes, and to loose the latchet of his shoes. In this way, though one Evangelist may have related one phrase and the others another, all have related the truth. But if John intended nothing more by speaking of our Lord's shoes than to show His excellence and his own humility, then whether he said loosing the latchet of the shoes, or bearing them, those who used their own words to express the same meaning of humility by mentioning the shoes have still kept the same sense.

St. Ambrose of Milan: By the words, Whose shoes I am not worthy to bear, he shows that the grace of preaching the Gospel was conferred upon the Apostles, who were shod for the Gospel. He seems to say this, however, because John frequently represented the Jewish people.

St. Gregory the Great: But John declares himself unworthy to loose the latchet of Christ’s shoes, as if he openly said, "I am not able to reveal the footsteps of my Redeemer, for I do not presume to unworthily take the name of bridegroom for myself." This is because it was an ancient custom that when a man refused to marry the woman he was supposed to, whoever came to her as the next of kin with the right to marry her was to loose his shoe. Or, because shoes are made from the skins of dead animals, our Lord, in becoming flesh, appeared as if with shoes, taking upon Himself the dead flesh of our corruption. The latchet of the shoe is the connecting point of the mystery. John, therefore, cannot loose the latchet of the shoe because he is not able to fathom the mystery of the Incarnation, even though he acknowledged it by the Spirit of prophecy.

St. John Chrysostom: And having said that his own baptism was only with water, he next shows the excellence of the baptism brought by Christ, adding, He shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. By this very metaphor, he signifies the abundance of grace. For he does not say, "He shall give you the Holy Spirit," but He shall baptize you. And again, by adding the word "fire," he shows the power of grace. And just as Christ calls the grace of the Spirit "water"—meaning by water the resulting purity and the abundant consolation brought to minds capable of receiving Him—so also John, by the word "fire," expresses the fervor and integrity of grace, as well as the consuming of sins.

The Venerable Bede: The Holy Spirit may also be understood by the word "fire," for He kindles with love and enlightens with wisdom the hearts that He fills. Hence, the Apostles also received the baptism of the Spirit in the appearance of fire. There are some who explain that we are now baptized with the Spirit, but hereafter we shall be baptized with fire. They argue that just as we are now truly born again for the remission of our sins by water and the Spirit, so then we shall be cleansed from certain lesser sins by the baptism of purifying fire.

Origen of Alexandria: Just as John was waiting by the river Jordan for those who came to his baptism—driving some away, saying, O generation of vipers, but receiving those who confessed their sins—so shall the Lord Jesus stand in the fiery stream with the flaming sword. Whoever, after the close of this life, desires to pass over to Paradise and needs purification, He may baptize him with this bath and bring him over to Paradise. But He will not baptize with the bath of fire anyone who does not have the seal of the former baptisms.

St. Basil the Great: But because he says, He shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit, let no one consider a baptism valid in which only the name of the Spirit has been invoked. For we must always keep undiminished the tradition that has been sealed to us in life-giving grace. To add anything to it or take anything from it excludes one from eternal life.

Greek Expositors: By these words, then, He shall baptize with the Holy Spirit, he signifies the abundance of His grace and the fullness of His mercy. But lest anyone should suppose that while it is in the Creator's power and will to bestow grace abundantly, He will have no reason to punish the disobedient, he adds, whose fan is in his hand. This shows that He is not only the rewarder of the righteous, but also the avenger of those who speak lies. The fan expresses the swiftness of His judgment. For He does not use a lengthy trial process to pass sentence, but in an instant and without any delay, He separates those who are to be condemned from the company of those who are to be saved.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: By the following words, And he will throughly purge his floor, the Baptist signifies that the Church belongs to Christ as her Lord.

The Venerable Bede: For the floor represents the present Church, in which many are called, but few are chosen. The purging of this floor is carried on individually even now, whenever a perverse offender is either cast out of the Church for his open sins (by the hands of the priesthood) or is condemned by divine judgment after death for his secret sins. And at the end of the world, it will be accomplished universally, when the Son of Man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend.

St. Ambrose of Milan: By the sign of a fan, then, the Lord is declared to possess the power of discerning merits, since when the grain is winnowed on the threshing floor, the full ears are separated from the empty ones by the trial of the blowing wind. Hence it follows, And he will gather the wheat into his garner. By this comparison, the Lord shows that on the day of judgment He will discern the solid merits and fruits of virtue from the fruitless lightness of empty boasting and vain deeds, and will place those of more perfect righteousness in His heavenly mansion. For that is indeed the more perfect fruit which was considered worthy to be like Him who fell as a grain of wheat, so that He might bring forth fruit in abundance.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: But the chaff signifies those who are trifling and empty, blown about and liable to be carried away by every blast of sin.

St. Basil the Great: But they are mixed in with those who are worthy of the kingdom of heaven, just as the chaff is mixed with the wheat. This mixture, however, is not based on their love of God and neighbor, nor on their spiritual gifts or temporal blessings.

Origen of Alexandria: Alternatively, because the wheat and chaff cannot be separated without the wind, He has the fan in His hand, which reveals some to be chaff and others to be wheat. For when you were like the light chaff (that is, unbelieving), temptation showed you to be what you did not know you were. But when you bravely endure temptation, the trial does not make you faithful and enduring; rather, it brings to light the virtue that was hidden in you.

Gregory of Nyssa: But it is well to know that the treasures which, according to the promises, are laid up for those who live righteously are such as human words cannot express, as eye has not seen, nor the ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man to conceive. And the punishments that await sinners bear no proportion to anything that now affects the senses. And although some of those punishments are called by names we use, their nature is very different. For when you hear of "fire," you are taught to understand something different from ordinary fire by the following expression: that is not quenched.

St. Gregory the Great: The fire of hell is wonderfully expressed here. Our earthly fire is kept up by heaping wood on it and cannot live unless supplied with fuel. The fire of hell, on the contrary, though a bodily fire that burns the bodies of the wicked who are put into it, is not sustained by wood but, once created, remains unquenchable.