PERHAPS THE MOST PIVOTAL EVENT of the story of ancient Israel was the exodus from Egypt. God heard the outcry of his covenant people, and demonstrated in no uncertain terms that they belonged to him. But the covenant relationship had two sides. The perennial question raised by the memory of the exodus was whether the people would be faithful to God in return. Would they continue to be grateful for their freedom, and trust him as they wandered in the wilderness? Would they keep themselves from idolatry in times of conquest and in times of peace? Once they had taken possession of the land God promised to Abraham and his descendants, would they continue to follow his ways?

Well… if you’ve read the Old Testament, you know how it all turned out. Time and time again, the people and even many of their rulers became disobedient, claiming allegiance to God but living in ways that dishonored his name. God sent one prophet after another to call them to repentance, but the prophets were often reviled and persecuted. Eventually, both the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah fell to foreign invaders, and many of the people were taken away into exile. After a time, some returned. But they never stopped living under the thumb of some foreign power.

By the time of Jesus, the oppressor was Rome. Understandably, the Jews longed for a Messiah who would reestablish the glory days of King David, freeing them from what they would have considered the tyranny of the empire. But the ancient question of their faithfulness remained. Whether they realized it or not, they still needed a prophet who would call them to repent.

That prophet would be John the Baptist.

In chapter 1 of his gospel, Luke narrated first the prediction of John’s birth, then the prediction of Jesus’ birth, followed by the stories surrounding the birth of each in turn. Luke ended that chapter with this description of John: “And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the wilderness until he appeared publicly to Israel” (vs. 80, NIV). In chapter 2, Luke turned to the story of Jesus, taking us from his birth in Bethlehem to a vignette from his boyhood. Again Luke says, “And the child grew and became strong,” this time in reference to Jesus (vs. 40), and with an emphasis on the wisdom for which he would later become famous.

In chapter 3, Luke swivels the spotlight back to John. Here’s how the chapter begins:

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar—when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and Traconitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene—during the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness. He went into all the country around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. (Luke 3:1-3, NIV)

If all Luke wanted to do was to keep the plot moving, he could just as well have begun with the sentence, “The word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness.” That sentence neatly picks up all the threads of the earlier narrative. It places John in the wilderness, where we left him at the end of chapter 1. It identifies him as the son of Zechariah, who had a prominent role in that chapter. And it continues Luke’s emphasis on the central role of God in the story. John doesn’t just begin his prophetic ministry; the word of God comes to him.

Before that sentence, however, Luke points to the historical context of that ministry. He begins by saying that God’s word came to John “in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar.” Was he intending to give us a specific date? Perhaps. But if so, it’s not clear what year that was. His predecessor, Augustus, the first emperor of Rome, died in 14 AD, which would place the beginning of John’s ministry in 28 or 29 AD. But Tiberius reigned alongside Augustus before the latter died, which is why many believe John’s ministry began earlier, in 26 AD.

Which is correct? It depends on who you ask.

But dating doesn’t seem to be the issue here: politics is. Luke names the powers that form the backdrop to his story, beginning most broadly with the empire, then narrowing it down to regional government, and finally to those who held direct religious authority over the Jews. Most of the people he names will show up later in the gospels: Pontius Pilate, of course, but also “Herod tetrarch of Galilee,” also known as Herod Antipas, and his brother Philip. Both were sons of Herod the Great by different mothers. As we’ll see shortly, Herod Antipas has an immediate role to play in this chapter: he is the one to have John arrested.

Annas and Caiaphas will also have a role to play, particularly in the later arrest and crucifixion of Jesus. Though technically, there could only be one high-priest, Luke’s words seem to suggest that both men wore that mantle at the same time. How can that be? Because again, Luke is describing the political reality: while officially, Caiaphas was the high-priest, unofficially, his father-in-law Annas—the former high-priest—was still pulling the strings.

All of this helps sketch the context in which the Jews found themselves, the context in which John’s words called them to repent and be faithful. Luke sees in John a fulfillment of the words of Isaiah 40:3-5:

A voice of one calling in the wilderness,
“Prepare the way for the Lord,
    make straight paths for him.
Every valley shall be filled in,
    every mountain and hill made low.
The crooked roads shall become straight,
    the rough ways smooth.
And all people will see God’s salvation.” (Luke 3:4-6)

Physically, people had to leave their immediate environment to go out to the arid wilderness where John preached his message of repentance. But one could also say that their sociopolitical environment was its own kind of spiritual wilderness, demanding intentional, faithful living. Isaiah had called God’s people to prepare for the coming of God; Matthew, Mark, and Luke all see John as calling people to prepare their hearts for the coming of Jesus. That is, after all, what the angel Gabriel had predicted: that John would “make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (Luke 1:17).

Any believer in any time or place may find themselves in a social wilderness. The powers that be at every level of society can both oppress and tempt. And the ancient question still remains: will God’s people be faithful? Will they make a straight and smooth way for the Lord into their lives and hearts?