Matthew Henry Commentary Luke 3:1-14

"Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judaea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, in the highpriesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came unto John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. And he came into all the region round about the Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance unto remission of sins; as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make ye ready the way of the Lord, Make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, And every mountain and hill shall be brought low; And the crooked shall become straight, And the rough ways smooth; And all flesh shall see the salvation of God. He said therefore to the multitudes that went out to be baptized of him, Ye offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And even now the axe also lieth at the root of the trees: every tree therefore that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. And the multitudes asked him, saying, What then must we do? And he answered and said unto them, He that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none; and he that hath food, let him do likewise. And there came also publicans to be baptized, and they said unto him, Teacher, what must we do? And he said unto them, Extort no more than that which is appointed you. And soldiers also asked him, saying, And we, what must we do? And he said unto them, Extort from no man by violence, neither accuse [any one] wrongfully; and be content with your wages." — Luke 3:1-14 (ASV)

The scope and design of John's ministry were to bring the people from their sins and to their Savior. He came preaching, not a sect or party, but a profession; the sign or ceremony was washing with water. By the words used here, John preached the necessity of repentance for the remission of sins, and that the baptism of water was an outward sign of that inward cleansing and renewal of heart, which accompany or are the effects of true repentance, as well as a profession of it.

Here is the fulfillment of the Scriptures, Isaiah 40:3, in the ministry of John. When a way is made for the gospel into the heart, by taking down high thoughts and bringing them into obedience to Christ, by leveling the soul and removing all that hinders us in the way of Christ and His grace, then preparation is made to welcome the salvation of God. Here are general warnings and exhortations which John gave.

The guilty, corrupted race of mankind has become a generation of vipers, hateful to God and hating one another. There is no way of fleeing from the wrath to come but by repentance; and by a change in our way, the change of our mind must be shown. If we are not really holy, both in heart and life, our profession of religion and relation to God and His church will be of no avail to us at all; the more severe will our destruction be if we do not bring forth fruits meet for repentance.

John the Baptist gave instructions to various kinds of people. Those who profess and promise repentance must show it by reformation, according to their positions and circumstances. The gospel requires mercy, not sacrifice; and its design is to engage us to do all the good we can and to be just to all people. And the same principle which leads people to forgo unjust gain, leads them to restore what is gained by wrongdoing.

John tells the soldiers their duty. People should be cautioned against the temptations of their occupations. These answers declared the present duty of the inquirers and immediately formed a test of their sincerity. Since no one can or will accept Christ's salvation without true repentance, the evidence and effects of this repentance are marked out here.