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Spoke 3

Matthew 3 Leviticus

In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias [Isaiah], saying, "The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight." And the same John had his raiment of camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.

Matthew 3

Scripture links John the Baptist to the Holy Spirit since before he was born, for he was "filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb." Jesus testified of his special position, saying "Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist" and "this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee." Also, John baptized the Lord Jesus and witnessed of "the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove."

It is for these reasons, and many more, that John bore the sign of Gimel, wearing "a raiment of camel's hair."

The link between the Wheel and the chapter sequence of Matthew is particularly striking and rich here in Chapter 3. Every event described in this chapter resonates strongly with many, if not most, themes found on Spoke 3. The associations are so dense that it best to simply scan the entire chapter verse-by-verse.

The alphabetic sequence is the most obvious correlation to the Wheel. Just as Beyt first occurs in Matthew 2 in the form Bethlehem, so Gimel first occurs here in Matthew 3 in the form camel.

The clothing, in particular the animal skin (leathern girdle), hearkens back to Genesis 3 when Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, discovered they were naked and God made them "coats of skins."

The locusts that John ate are specifically declared kosher in the dietary laws detailed in Leviticus, Book 3, which also gives the prohibitions against exposing one's nakedness. Continuing with Matthew 3, we read (vss. 5-7):

Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

The appearance of the viper is a type of the Serpent that figures do prominently in Genesis 3 with the Fall of Adam and Eve and the entrance of sin into the world. Continuing (vss. 8-10)

Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

Bringing forth fruits echoes Day 3, when God said "Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so." This theme is amplified by the specific reference to trees that bear good or bad fruit.

In the believer's walk with God, this fruit is called "The Fruit of the Spirit." Continuing (vss.11-12):

I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

These verses describe three kinds of baptism: 1) with Water, 2) with the Holy Spirit, and 3) with Fire. For those who do not receive the fire of God's Spirit, there is the warning of the "unquenchable fire" of God's wrath. Continuing (vss. 13-17):

Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

Little need be said of the obvious connection between these verses and Spoke 3, which was designed to reveal the nature and character of the Holy Spirit.

Here now is a Table gathering the results of this brief overview:

Camel	Literal Meaning of the Third Letter Gimel
Clothing	A major theme of Spoke 3, introduced in Genesis 3.
Food	Created on Day 3. The Levitical dietary laws which specifically allow locusts as food in Book 3.
Baptism	Water, Fire, and the Holy Spirit.
Viper	Hearkens back to Gensis 3 and the Serpent
Bring forth Fruits	John warned that we bring forth fruits meet for repentance. This links back to Day 3 and the creation of trees bearing fruit.
Fire and Water	John warned that we would receive either the fire of the Spirit or be thrown in to the "unquenchable fire" of God's wrath.
Holy Spirit	Holy Spirit came upon Jesus when He was Baptized.

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