by sight until the day when He came to be baptized." The difficulty connected with these words of John will be considered fwlly at the 33d verse.
[That he should he made manifest to Israd^ t&c] John here declares that the great end of his ministry was, that this wonder- ful Person, whom he had just pointed out, should be manifested and made known to the Jews. He did not come to form a party of his own, or to baptize in his own namr^. The whole object of his preaching and baptizing was now betore his hearers, it was simply to make known to Israel the Mighty One, the Lamb of God, whom they now saw.
32. — [And John hare record^ These words seem to denote a pubhc and solemn testimony borne by John to the fact, that our Lord had been visibly acknowledged by God the Father as the Messiah. If his hearers would have further proof that this Person, to whom he was pointing them, was really the Christ, he would tell them what he had seen with his own eyes. He would bear witness that he had seen visible proofs that this Person was really the Messiah.
[/saw.] This means, "At the time when our Lord was baptized, I saw this heavenly vision." Whether any beside John saw this vision, and heard the voice of the Father, which accom- panied it, may well be doubted. At any rate, if they did, they did not understand either what they saw or heard.
[The Spirit descending^ &c'\ This means that John saw something coming down from heaven after the manner of a dove flying downwards, and that what he saw was the Holy Spirit, graciously revealing Himself in a visible manner.
[It abode upon him.] This means that the heavenly vision of the Holy Spirit rested upon Christ at the time of His baptism. It lighted down upon Him as a dove would settle down, and did not leave Him.
I cannot satisfy myself that the expression " like a dove " in this verse, means that any dove was really seen by John, when our Lord was baptized. All the four Gospel-writers describe an appearance "like a dove." St. Luke distinctly speaks of "a bodily shape." That something visible was seen by John is plain, and that its appearance descending on our Lord, resembled tlie downward flight of a dove, is also plain. But I am unable to see that the Holy Ghost took upon Him the actual form of a dove.
Some think, as Augustine, that the likeness to a dove was especially employed at this time, to answer the figure of Noah's flood. He says, " As a dove did at that time bring tidings of the