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Mat_3:3. Γάρ ] “Causa, cur Johannes ita exoriri tum debuerit, uti Mat_5:1-2, describitur, quia sic praedictum erat,” Bengel.
Does not belong to John’s discourse, Mat_3:3, so that by οὗτος he points to himself, as Er. Schmid, Raphel, Fritzsche, Paulus, Rettig in the Stud. u. Krit. 1838, p. 205 f., maintain, since so prominent a self-designation has no basis in the connection (Joh_1:23; on the other hand, Joh_6:50; Joh_6:58); further, the descriptive present ἐστί is quite in keeping with παραγίνεται in Mat_3:1; and αὐτὸς δέ , Mat_3:4, is quite in keeping with the sense of the objectively and generally delivered prophetic description (the voice of one calling, and so on), and leads to the concrete person thereby intended.
ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ ] belongs in the original text to ἑτοιμάσατε , and in the LXX. also there is no reason for separating it from it; but here it belongs to βοῶντος , according to Mat_3:1 : κηρύσσων ἐν τῇ ἐρήμῳ . This in answer to Rettig, Hofmann, Weissag. u. Erf. II. p. 77 f., and Delitzsch.
The passage, Isa_11:3, quoted according to the LXX., contains historically a summons to prepare the way for Jehovah, who is bringing back His people from exile, and to make level the streets which He is to traverse, after the analogy of what used to take place in the East when rulers set out on a journey (Wetstein and Münthe). In this the evangelist recognises (and the Baptist himself had recognised this, Joh_1:23) the typically prophetic reference to John as the prophet who was to call on the Jews to prepare themselves by repentance for the reception of the Messiah (whose manifestation is the manifestation of Jehovah). In Isaiah, the voice which calls is that of a herald of Jehovah, who desires to begin his journey; in the Messianic fulfilment, it is the voice of the Baptist.
Faith in a God-sent forerunner runner of the Messiah, based on prophecy (Mal_3:1; Luk_1:17; Luk_1:76) and confirmed by Jesus Himself (Mat_11:10, Mat_17:11), and attested as realized in the appearance of the Baptist, had in various ways (see Bertholdt, Christol. p. 58) assumed the form of the expectation of the return of one of the ancient prophets. Comp. Mat_16:14; Joh_1:21.