The purpose of John’s baptism was to prepare God’s people to meet Christ through repentance and faith, and hence required confession of faith. John’s baptism showed the remission of sins and entrance into the kingdom. No sacrifice was involved, foreshadowing the sufficiency of the coming sacrifice of the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29, John 1:35).
John’s baptism must be seen in light of his ministry as a whole. He prepared the people to meet Christ through repentance and faith. Therefore, he only baptized those who confessed their faith.1 The baptism of John must also be seen in light of the already established practice of proselyte baptism. Non-Jews were unclean and had to participate in a Levitical cleansing ritual upon entering the Jewish community (see, for example Pesachim 8:8 in the Talmud and Mishnah). In this way the baptism of John signified the remission of sins and entrance into God’s kingdom, which has now arrived in all of its glory.2
It is also noteworthy that with the baptism of John there is no sacrifice involved, as John directly points to the completely sufficient sacrifice of the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, and which fulfills all the sacrifices which foreshadowed it.3
5 Les habitants de Jérusalem, de toute la Judée et de tout le pays des environs du Jourdain, se rendaient auprès de lui;