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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Joh_3:22-24
22After these things Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He was spending time with them and baptizing. 23John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there; and people were coming and were being baptized- 24for John had not yet been thrown into prison.
Joh_3:22 "came into the land of Judea" This early ministry in both Judea and Galilee is not discussed in the Synoptic Gospels. The Gospels are not chronological biographies of Christ. See Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart, How to Read the Bible For All Its Worth, pp. 127-148.
▣ "He was spending time with them" Jesus preached to the crowds but dialogued extensively with His disciples. He poured Himself into them. This methodology is the focus of two wonderful books by Robert E. Coleman, The Master Plan of Evangelism and The Master Plan of Discipleship, both of which emphasize Jesus' personal involvement with a small group!
▣ "and baptizing" We learn from Joh_4:2 that Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples did. Jesus' message was initially very similar to the message of John the Baptist. It was an OT message of repentance and preparation. The baptism mentioned here is not Christian baptism but a baptism symbolizing repentance and spiritual receptivity.
Joh_3:23 "John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim" The location of this site is uncertain.
1. some believe it was in Perea in the transJordan area
2. some believe it was in northeast Samaria
3. some believe it was three miles east of the city of Shechem
Because "aenon" seems to mean "stream," #3 fits best. Whatever the exact location, Jesus was ministering in Judea and John was somewhere a short distance to the north of Him.
Joh_3:24 "for John had not yet been thrown into prison" It is uncertain why this chronological item is added at this point. Some say it is an attempt to synchronize John's chronology with that of the Synoptics (cf. Mat_14:1-12; Mar_6:14-29). It functions as a means of dating this encounter in the life of Christ.