“But what did you go out to see?” (Matt. 11:8, NKJV)
The amazing finding discussed in the last teaching, that the second, third and fourth letters of the Hebrew alphabet spell the word garment, is of utmost importance, especially in the light of our discussion regarding the camel hair garment of John the Baptist. Our readers should at this point already suspect that this garment has a wider symbolic meaning which is crucial, and that John the Baptist as prototypical figure is absolutely central, especially in the light of Jesus’ words in Matt. 11:11: “Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”
[Just to illustrate the wondrous mystery of the Hebrew language with another example of the importance of John the Baptist. If the third and second letter are read together as a word, in other words as the road the camel walked, it forms the word locust, one of the two sources of food sustaining John the Baptist in the desert (Matt. 3:4)! If one looks at the Hebrew spelling of his other source of food, honey, it is spelled as follows: dalet + bet + shin (דּבשׁ) – remember that one reads Hebrew from right to left. If you use the dalet (= door = Jesus – John 10:9) to complete the bet, the tabernacle/temple that God built (= you – 1 Cor. 3:16), and it is added to the shin (which represents Christ and the Holy Spirit – look at the flames on the letter, for instance, and read John 16:7), it is the honey of revelation that John the Baptist lived from!]
To return to the prototypical meaning of John the Baptist’s garment of camel hair. In the following passage Jesus presents the key to the matter by placing the “hard” garments of the prophet in the context of someone who has given up everything, including any luxurious clothes, in order to be clothed with Christ! (This expression will be examined in more detail at a later stage.) Read Matt. 11:7-12 with care: “As they departed, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John: ‘What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? But what did you go out to see? A man clothed in soft garments? Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses. But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet. For this is he of whom it is written: “Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You.” Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.’”
No less than three times Jesus asks the same question: “What did you go out to see?” As with his pressing question repeated thrice to Simon Peter (John 21:15-17), and Peter’s denial of Jesus, which also happened three times (Matt. 26:75), this invasive question asked thrice is also a clear message of utmost importance. In Richard D. Patterson’s article,‘The Use Of Three In The Bible’ he emphasises that this reiteration engages “readers in exploring the full significance of the events or details of the passage at hand.”
- Selah: Try to understand what Jesus meant concerning the garments of John the Baptist.
- Read: 2 Kings 18:9-19:37; Ps. 46, 80 & 135.
- Memorise: 46:4.
