The Meaning of Matthew 3:6 Explained

Matthew 3:6

KJV: And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.

YLT: and they were baptized in the Jordan by him, confessing their sins.

Darby: and were baptised by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

ASV: and they were baptized of him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And  were baptized  of  him  in  Jordan,  confessing  their  sins. 

What does Matthew 3:6 Mean?

Study Notes

sins
Sin.
sinned
Sin, Summary: The literal meanings of the Heb. and (Greek - ἀλεκτοροφωνία sin," "sinner," etc)., disclose the true nature of sin in its manifold manifestations. Sin is transgression, an overstepping of the law, the divine boundary between good and evil Psalms 51:1 ; Luke 15:29 , iniquity, an act inherently wrong, whether expressly forbidden or not; error, a departure from right; Psalms 51:9 ; Romans 3:23 , missing the mark, a failure to meet the divine standard; trespass, the intrusion of self-will into the sphere of divine authority Ephesians 2:1 , lawlessness, or spiritual anarchy 1 Timothy 1:9 , unbelief, or an insult to the divine veracity John 16:9 .
Sin originated with Satan Isaiah 14:12-14 , entered the world through Adam Romans 5:12 , was, and is, universal, Christ alone excepted; Romans 3:23 ; 1 Peter 2:22 , incurs the penalties of spiritual and physical death; Genesis 2:17 ; Genesis 3:19 ; Ezekiel 18:4 ; Ezekiel 18:20 ; Romans 6:23 and has no remedy but in the sacrificial death of Christ; Hebrews 9:26 ; Acts 4:12 availed of by faith Acts 13:38 ; Acts 13:39 . Sin may be summarized as threefold: An act, the violation of, or want of obedience to the revealed will of God; a state, absence of righteousness; a nature, enmity toward God.

Context Summary

Matthew 3:1-12 - The Herald Prepares The Way
Matthew's Gospel heralds the Kingdom. We are allowed to see and listen to the forerunner, whose voice again awoke the hearts of men with prophetic utterance after a silence of four hundred years. He leaps into the arena with the suddenness of Elijah.
His message was twofold-the need for repentance and the announcement of the nearness of the Kingdom; it thrilled his generation with a strange wonder and interest. All of the southern part of the country seemed to empty itself into the Jordan valley. Yes, if a man is not a reed shaken by the wind, not effeminate in court dress, not a copy but an original, who speaks what he sees and knows of God, men will come to Him in every age.
To us also John the Baptist must come, if we shall properly appreciate the Redeemer. We must expose ourselves to the fire, the ax, the winnowing-fan, that we may learn what we really are and come, like Paul, to reckon our own righteousness as loss, if only we may win Christ and be found in Him. [source]

Chapter Summary: Matthew 3

1  John preaches: his office, life, and baptism
7  He reprimands the Pharisees,
13  and baptizes Jesus in Jordan

Greek Commentary for Matthew 3:6

And they were baptized [και εβαπτιζοντο]
It is the imperfect tense to show the repetition of the act as the crowds from Judea and the surrounding country kept going out to him It is a pity that baptism is now such a matter of controversy. Let Plummer, the great Church of England commentator on Matthew, speak here of John‘s baptising these people who came in throngs: “It is his office to bind them to a new life, symbolized by immersion in water.” That is correct, symbolized, not caused or obtained. The word “river” is in the correct text, “river Jordan.” They came “confessing their sins” Note εχ — ex It was a never to be forgotten scene here in the Jordan. John was calling a nation to a new life. They came from all over Judea and even from the other side of El Ghor (the Jordan Gorge), Perea. Mark adds that finally all Jerusalem came. [source]
Were baptized [ἐβαπτίζοντο]
See on Mark 7:4. [source]
Confessing their sins [ἐξομολογούμενοι τὰς ἁμαρτίας αὐτῶν]
The words imply: 1. That confession was connected with baptism. They were baptized while in the act of confessing. 2. An open confession, not a private one to John ( ἐξ , compare Acts 19:18; James 5:16). 3. An individual confession; possibly a specific one. (See Luke 3:10-15.) [source]

Reverse Greek Commentary Search for Matthew 3:6

Mark 1:5 Confessing []
See on Matthew 3:6. [source]
Mark 1:4 Preached the baptism of repentance [κηρυσσων βαπτισμα μετανοιας]
Heralded a repentance kind of baptism (genitive case, genus case), a baptism marked by repentance. See note on Matthew 3:2 for discussion of repent, an exceedingly poor rendering of John‘s great word metanoias He called upon the Jews to change their minds and to turn from their sins, “confessing their sins” See note on Matthew 3:6. The public confessions produced a profound impression as they would now.Unto remission of sins (μετανοιας — eis aphesin hamartiōn). This is a difficult phrase to translate accurately. Certainly John did not mean that the baptism was the means of obtaining the forgiveness of their sins or necessary to the remission of sins. The trouble lies in the use of εχομολογουμενοι τας αμαρτιας αυτων — eis which sometimes is used when purpose is expressed, but sometimes when there is no such idea as in Matthew 10:41 and Matthew 12:41. Probably “with reference to” is as good a translation here as is possible. The baptism was on the basis of the repentance and confession of sin and, as Paul later explained (Romans 6:4), was a picture of the death to sin and resurrection to new life in Christ. This symbol was already in use by the Jews for proselytes who became Jews. John is treating the Jewish nation as pagans who need to repent, to confess their sins, and to come back to the kingdom of God. The baptism in the Jordan was the objective challenge to the people. [source]
Luke 22:6 Promised [ἐξωμολόγησεν]
See on Matthew 3:6; and Matthew 11:25. The idea is that of an open andfair consent or pledge. [source]
Acts 19:18 Confessed and shewed [ἐξομολογούμενοι καὶ ἀναγγέλλοντες]
The two words denote the fullest and most open confession. They openly ( ἐξ ) confessed, and declared thoroughly ( ἀνά , from top to bottom) their deeds. See on Matthew 3:6. [source]
Romans 14:11 Shall confess to God [εχομολογησεται τωι τεωι]
Future middle of εχομολογεω — exomologeō to confess openly (εχ — ex) with the accusative as in Matthew 3:6. With the dative as here the idea is to give praise to, to give gratitude to (Matthew 11:25). [source]
Philippians 2:11 Confess [ἐξομολογήσεται]
See on Matthew 3:6; see on thank, Matthew 11:25; see on Romans 14:11. The verb may also be rendered thank, as Matthew 11:25; Luke 10:21, that meaning growing out of the sense of open, joyful acknowledgment. The sense here is that of frank, open confession. [source]
James 5:16 Confess [ἐξομολογεῖσθε]
The preposition ἐξ , forth, out, impliesfull, frank, open confession, and so in every case of its use in the New Testament. See on Matthew 3:6. [source]
1 John 1:9 Confess [ὁμολογῶμεν]
From ὁμός , one and the same, and λέγω , to say. Hence, primarily, to say the same thing as another, and, therefore, to admit the truth of an accusation. Compare Psalm 51:4. The exact phrase, ὁμολογεῖν τὰς ἁμαρτίας confessthe sins, does not occur elsewhere in the New Testament. Compare ἐξομολογεῖσθαι ἁμαρτίας ( παραπτώματα ) Matthew 3:6; Mark 1:5; James 5:16. See on Matthew 3:6; see on Matthew 11:25; see on Luke 22:6; see on Acts 19:18; see on James 5:16. [source]

What do the individual words in Matthew 3:6 mean?

and were being baptized in the Jordan River by him confessing the sins of them
καὶ ἐβαπτίζοντο ἐν τῷ Ἰορδάνῃ ποταμῷ ὑπ’ αὐτοῦ ἐξομολογούμενοι τὰς ἁμαρτίας αὐτῶν

ἐβαπτίζοντο  were  being  baptized 
Parse: Verb, Imperfect Indicative Middle or Passive, 3rd Person Plural
Root: βαπτίζω  
Sense: to dip repeatedly, to immerse, to submerge (of vessels sunk).
Ἰορδάνῃ  Jordan 
Parse: Noun, Dative Masculine Singular
Root: Ἰορδάνης  
Sense: the one river of Palestine, has its course of little more than 200 miles (300 km), from the roots of Anti-Lebanon to the head of the Dead Sea.
ποταμῷ  River 
Parse: Noun, Dative Masculine Singular
Root: ποταμός  
Sense: a stream, a river.
ἐξομολογούμενοι  confessing 
Parse: Verb, Present Participle Middle, Nominative Masculine Plural
Root: ἐξομολογέω  
Sense: to confess.
ἁμαρτίας  sins 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Feminine Plural
Root: ἁμαρτία  
Sense: equivalent to 264.
αὐτῶν  of  them 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Plural
Root: αὐτός  
Sense: himself, herself, themselves, itself.