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What is Baptism?

The word baptism is derived from a Greek word, baptisma. In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word is usually tabal, “to dip,” as we see in Leviticus 14:6, 16, and 51. The Septuagint, which is the Greek translation of the Old Testament, renders tabal as bapto, “to baptize.” The Septuagint acted as an official Hebrew-Greek dictionary. So while we do not see the word baptize anywhere in our English translations of the Old Testament, we do see the word tabal used many times, which is rendered as bapto (“to baptize”).

In other words, John the Baptist did not invent baptism. It was practiced in the time of Moses when the priests washed their hands and feet to cleanse themselves at the laver that stood in the outer court. However, in such cases, the usual Hebrew word is rakhats, “washing” (Exodus 30:18; 40:30). Nonetheless, just as the brazen altar was the place of justification for sin, so also the laver was the place of baptism.

Naaman, the Syrian general, was healed of leprosy after Elisha instructed him to “go and wash in the Jordan seven times” (2 Kings 5:10). The Hebrew word for “wash” is rakhats. Naaman then “went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan” (2 Kings 5:14). Here the word tabal is used, which, as we have shown, is the word usually rendered bapto in the Septuagint.

So we see that tabal and rakhats mean essentially the same thing. To “wash” does not specify the manner of washing. To “dip” is more specific. Yet there is a third Hebrew word that is often used that draws attention to the mode of baptism. This word is naza, “to sprinkle.” We see this word used in Leviticus 4:6, where we read, “the priest shall dip [tabal] his finger in the blood and sprinkle [naza] some of the blood seven times before the Lord.”

The baptizer’s finger was dipped, but the one being baptized was sprinkled.

Three Baptisms

There were three types of baptism: oil, blood, and water. The example in Leviticus 4:6 was a baptism of blood (to cleanse the soul). There was also a baptism of oil in Exodus 29:21, where oil was to be sprinkled on the garments of the priests to consecrate them. This was a spiritual anointing. Finally, there was a baptism of water, sprinkled upon the unclean, for “the cleansing of the flesh” (Hebrews 9:13).

This was a baptism where ashes of the red heifer were mixed with water and sprinkled upon the unclean. In later years, this was done just outside the eastern gate of Jerusalem, on the side of the Mount of Olives, to cleanse those who were entering the outer court of the temple in the city. So also, when Jesus healed the ten lepers, He told them to “go and show yourselves to the priests” (Luke 17:14). This was to undergo the cleansing ritual that Moses had established in Leviticus 14 for the cleansing of lepers.

Cleansing Lepers

Leprosy is a biblical type of mortality because it is a slow death. Lepers were treated as if they were dead, and so if anyone touched a leper, he became unclean and had to undergo a cleansing ritual for seven days. Hence, when a man was healed of leprosy, he was still required to undergo a seven-day time of cleansing (Leviticus 14:7) and was pronounced fully clean on the eighth day (Leviticus 14:10, 11).

The ritual involved two birds, one of which was killed over running (chay, “living”) water, and other was to be dipped in the blood of the first bird and let loose into the open field (Leviticus 14:4, 5, 6, 7). The first bird, of course, could not possibly provide enough blood to immerse the second bird. To “dip” (tabal) obviously did not mean to immerse but to smear the second bird with the blood of the first.

As for the leper himself, we read in Leviticus 14:7,

⁷ He shall then sprinkle seven times the one who is to be cleansed from the leprosy and shall pronounce him clean…

The leper was to be baptized with the water at hand over which the first bird was killed. This was to be running water, because it signified “living” water. Some of this living water was to be used to sprinkle the ex-leper seven times, pronouncing him “clean” (and alive). In other words, the priest bore witness that God had indeed healed the leper (Leviticus 14:3).

This shows another truth of Scripture—that baptism is a ritual where men bear witness that God has already healed the person’s leprosy (i.e., mortality). In other words, baptism is not what saves or justifies a sinner or a non-believer. It is an earthly witness to something that God has already done prior to the baptism.

So also, we see that God’s firstborn son, Israel, was justified by faith in the blood of the Lamb at Passover in Egypt and only later was baptized at the Red Sea. 1 Corinthians 10:1, 2 says,

¹ For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea; ² and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.

First, we see that God instituted baptism at least as far back as the time of Moses. As I said earlier, baptism did not begin with John the Baptist. As a priest, John was very familiar with baptism, for there is no doubt that he witnessed many baptisms in the temple.

Second, we see that Israel was baptized when they crossed the Red Sea, following the pillar of cloud. I often wonder if Paul was using a bit of humor here. The Israelites were baptized “under the cloud,” while the Egyptians were baptized “in the sea.” It is known to scholars that the Egyptian priests used to immerse their candidates in a coffin until they literally drowned. Then they were taken out and revived. They referred to this as passing from death to life.

No doubt Moses himself had been immersed into the Egyptian mystery religion while he was still young. So it is striking that he did not command that anyone should be immersed as a mode of baptism. Instead, most baptisms were performed at the laver, which was outfitted with faucets by which the priests would wash their hands and feet (Exodus 40:31). It is apparent that they did not dive into the laver to immerse themselves, for then they would have rendered that water unclean. They could not change the water every time someone was baptized.

Washing was done by pouring and sprinkling from above, signifying that this cleansing originated from God in heaven. Isaiah 32:15 says, “Until the Spirit is poured out upon us from on high.” Again, we read in Ezekiel 36:25, 26,

²⁵ Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. ²⁶ Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in within you…

This shows the true meaning of baptism. It is to cleanse us from the “filthiness” of sin and “from all your idols.” It is to give us “a new heart” and “a new spirit.” Paul tells us that it signifies putting the old man to death so that as new beings, we can “walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). Passing from death to resurrection life is pictured in a leper being healed and cleansed by the sprinkling of water.

Old and New Covenant Baptism

The main difference between Old and New Covenant baptism is the fact that the Israelites were baptized “into Moses” (1 Corinthians 10:2), whereas Christians are baptized into Christ. Until the time of Christ, people were baptized into Moses. This included John the Baptist himself, who baptized the people into repentance. Some years later, when Paul went on his first missionary trip to Corinth, he came across Apollos (Acts 19:1), who was following John’s example of baptism.

Acts 19:2-6 says,

² He said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said to him, “No, we have not even heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.” ³ And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” And they said, “Into John’s baptism.” ⁴ Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, Jesus.” ⁵ When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. ⁶ And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came upon them…

Many do not realize that John’s baptism was “into Moses,” or perhaps “in the name of Moses,” according to the authority of Moses. Moses was a prophetic type of Christ who led the people out of Egypt at Passover. So also Jesus, in His first appearance, was crucified at Passover to lead us out of the house of sin’s bondage.

In His second appearance, He comes as Yeshua/Joshua to lead us into the Kingdom. To do this requires a second baptism. The first was their Red Sea crossing; the second is their Jordan crossing. Old Covenant baptism, pictured by the Red Sea, did not impart the Holy Spirit to them, and for this reason, the followers of Apollos knew nothing of the Holy Spirit. Likewise, the Israelites did not come to the feast of Pentecost until they arrived at Mount Sinai. This was a separate experience, distinct from the Red Sea.

Hence, under the New Covenant, our baptism should include the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the Power by which we may “walk in newness of life.” As for the mode of baptism, I do not believe it has changed. Certainly, the symbolism remains unchanged. But we should also know that over and beyond the symbolism of baptism, with its living water, sprinkling, and pouring, it is really a matter of faith. The mode of baptism is of secondary importance.

Israel’s baptism at the Red Sea took them fully out of Egypt, taking them to the other side of the Red Sea (Gulf of Aqaba) toward the land of Midian. The importance of baptism is seen in the fact that their feast of Passover was conducted in Egypt, where they were justified, but their baptism fully delivered them from the Egyptian army.

As Christian believers, our baptism accomplishes this on a greater level, for we are delivered from a greater house of bondage through the Passover where Christ was crucified. Yet the real focus of baptism is not upon death but upon the resurrection. Recall that Israel’s Red Sea experience prophesied of Christ’s resurrection, even as their Passover in Egypt had prophesied of His death on the cross.

So while baptism into Moses was accomplished by physical water, baptism into the name of Jesus is about the outpouring of the Spirit, which give us “newness of life.” Yet in both cases, it is expressed in Scripture in terms of “sprinkling” in order to cleanse us from death (as ex-lepers). The promise in Joel 2:28 is, “It will come about after this that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind.” Again, verse 28 says, “I will pour out My Spirit in those days.”

This was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2:1, 2, but there is yet a greater fulfillment of this promise in our time that will only increase until His Spirit has been poured out upon all mankind.