The Bible Says
Luke 3:21-22 Meaning

The parallel Gospel accounts for Luke 3:21-22 are Matthew 3:13-17 and Mark 1:9-13. And though not exactly a parallel, John 1:29-34 also describes aspects that are closely related to Luke 3:21-22.

In Luke 3:21–22, as Jesus is baptized and prays, heaven opens, the Holy Spirit descends upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice from heaven declares Him to be God’s beloved Son in whom He is well-pleased.

In the previous verse, Luke concluded his account of John the Baptist’s public ministry as the Messianic forerunner when he described John’s imprisonment by Herod (Luke 3:19-20). Herod’s imprisonment largely curtailed and functionally concluded John’s public interactions and baptisms.

But John continued to be a light for Jesus even from prison until his execution.

For instance, John was able to get and receive at least some messages from prison (Matthew 11:2-3, Luke 7:18-19). And John was able to teach and share truth with Herod, who enjoyed conversing with John, even though he did not believe him (Mark 6:20). It also may have been during his imprisonment that John met and evangelized “Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward” (Luke 8:3a). Joanna became a leading financial supporter of Jesus’s ministry (Luke 8:3).

To learn more about John the Baptist, see The Bible Says article: “Who was John the Baptist?”

But before Luke moves on in his chronological account of Jesus’s life (Luke 1:3b), he describes Jesus’s baptism which took place before John was imprisoned.

Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus was also baptized (v 21a).

In this context, the opening expression—now when—indicates that what Luke is about to describe took place before John was imprisoned and while he was still baptizing people.

The term all the people refers to the Jewish people of Israel—the people for whom the Messiah was initially sent and to whom the Messiah’s forerunner was sent to prepare the way (Isaiah 40:3, Malachi 3:1, Matthew 3:1-3, Luke 3:3-6).

John was baptizing in the Jordan River (John 1:28) and people from all over Judea and Jerusalem were coming to be baptized by him to repent of their sins (Mark 1:4-5, Luke 3:1) and to prepare their hearts for the coming Messiah and His kingdom (Matthew 3:2).

The reason Luke writes all the people instead of just “some of the people” is because large crowds came to be baptized. Luke uses this expression to indicate that multitudes were coming to be baptized. In this context, all the people does not mean every single person in Israel.

While John was baptizing all the people before his imprisonment, Jesus also came to John and was baptized by him. Mark writes that Jesus came from his home in Nazareth, located in the northern district of Galilee to be baptized “by John in the Jordan” (Mark 1:9).

Matthew writes that when Jesus came to be baptized by John, John tried to prevent Him:

“John tried to prevent Him, saying, ‘I have need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?’”
(Matthew 3:14)

The reason John tried to prevent Jesus from being baptized by him was because he recognized the great righteousness of his cousin, and that Jesus had no sins of which He needed to repent. In saying “I have need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?” (Matthew 3:14b), John was confessing that Jesus was far more righteous than himself—the Messianic forerunner.

It is worth pointing out that at the time John said this, he still did not know that Jesus, his cousin, was the Messiah. God had told John about a divine sign He would give him to reveal the Messiah’s identity. Until this moment, John had not seen the sign:

“I did not recognize Him, but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, ‘He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the One who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.’”
(John 1:33)

Thus, when John tried to prevent Jesus from being baptized by him, John did so because of Jesus’s perfect righteousness, and not because he knew that his cousin was the Messiah. This also shows how Jesus perfectly kept the Law before He began His ministry as the Messiah.

Matthew writes Jesus’s reply to John’s attempt to not baptize Him:

“Permit it at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.”
(Matthew 3:15b)

Jesus does not correct John and say, “No, I am a sinner who is in need of baptism.” But He does say that it is right for Him to be baptized and to publicly identify Himself with the Messianic kingdom.

John consented and baptized Jesus (Matthew 3:15).

Luke writes: Jesus was also baptized. The context of Luke 3 and Luke’s use of the word also implies that John was the individual who baptized Jesus.

Apparently, Jesus was praying just after or while He was being baptized.

…and while He was praying, heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased” (vv 22b-23).

Luke writes that three remarkable things occurred while Jesus was praying at His baptism.

1. heaven was opened;
   
   
2. and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove;
   
   
3. a voice came out of heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”

Matthew and Mark both observe the same things (Matthew 3:16-17, Mark 1:10-11).

1.  HEAVEN WAS OPENED

The first sign which Luke describes at Jesus’s baptism is that heaven was opened.

The Greek word translated as heaven in verse 21 is οὐρανός (G3772—"ouranos,” pronounced “ou-ran-ós). This word can refer to:

• The physical sky or atmosphere (where the birds fly or clouds move),

• The cosmic heavens (the stars and celestial realm), or

• The spiritual dwelling place of God—the unseen, divine realm.

In this context, the expression—heaven was opened—means a dramatic change in the skies. This dramatic change could describe something like a sudden burst of rain, or it could refer to a supernatural parting of the physical sky that unveiled the heavenly realm.

Whatever the precise manifestation, the fact that the heaven opened the moment Jesus was baptized signaled that something extraordinary was occurring. God was marking the beginning of His Son’s public ministry with divine affirmation.

In Scripture, whenever heaven is opened, it signifies that God is personally revealing Himself, His will, His judgment, or pouring out His blessing (Isaiah 64:1, Ezekiel 1:1, Acts 7:55-56, 10:11-13, Revelation 4:1, 19:11).

Two significant passages that describe the opening of heaven in scripture that foreshadow Jesus’s divine nature and mission are Genesis 28:10-17 and Psalm 78:23-24.

Jacob’s Vision of the Ladder
(Genesis 28:10-17)

“He had a dream, and behold, a ladder was set on the earth with its top reaching to heaven; and behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. And behold, the LORD stood above it and said, ‘I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie, I will give it to you and to your descendants.’”
(Genesis 28:12-13)

Jacob saw a ladder between earth and heaven, which was opened to revealed God’s presence. This vision signified how God’s covenant promise to Jacob’s fathers would also be extended to him.

Jacob’s vision at Bethel, where he saw a ladder set on the earth with its top reaching to heaven and the angels of God ascending and descending on it, foreshadowed the person and work of Jesus Christ. In that vision, God revealed that there would be a connection between heaven and earth, between God and man.

Jesus later identified Himself as that very ladder when He told Nathanael:

“You will see the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”
(John 1:51)

The opening of heaven at Jesus’s baptism serves as a divine allusion to Jacob’s dream, signifying that in Christ, God’s dwelling and blessing have come down to humanity. Through Jesus, heaven and earth are permanently joined. Jesus is the living bridge between God and man. He is the One through whom divine revelation, fellowship, and salvation flow.

God’s Provision of Manna from Heaven
(Psalm 78:23-24)

“Yet He commanded the clouds above and opened the doors of heaven; He rained down manna upon them to eat and gave them food from heaven.”
(Psalm 78:23-24)

God nourished and sustained the children of Israel as they wandered in the wilderness by sending them manna—bread (Exodus 16:4, 14-15, Deuteronomy 8:3). The psalmist recounts the LORD’s miraculous provision by saying that He “opened the doors of heaven” (Psalm 78:24).

The manna in the wilderness pointed forward to Jesus as the true and greater provision from heaven. When God “opened the doors of heaven” and “rained down manna” (Psalm 78:23–24), He revealed Himself as the One who sustains His people with life-giving nourishment from above. That miraculous bread was temporary—it satisfied physical hunger for a day—but it foreshadowed the day when God would again open heaven to give the “Bread of Life” (John 6:32–35).

At Jesus’s baptism, heaven was opened once more as the LORD revealed His ultimate provision for humanity: Jesus, His beloved Son empowered by the Holy Spirit. Just as manna descended to meet Israel’s daily need, Jesus descended from heaven to meet humanity’s eternal need. The opened heavens at His baptism signify that God has again broken the barrier between heaven and earth, now sending the living Bread who gives life to the world.

The opening of the heavens was a dramatic sign that drew attention to Jesus’s baptism and its importance. But it was not the only sign.

2.  THE HOLY SPIRIT DESCENDED IN THE FORM OF A DOVE

The second sign which Luke describes at Jesus’s baptism is that the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove.

The Holy Spirit is God. The Holy Spirit is the third Person of the Trinity, coequal and coeternal with the Father and the Son. He is not an impersonal force but a divine Person who possesses intellect, will, and emotion. The Holy Spirit is perfectly united with God the Father and God the Son in essence and purpose.

Here at Jesus’s baptism, the Holy Spirit descends from the heavens upon Jesus in bodily form—like a dove.

In the Bible, a dove represents peace, purity, gentleness, and the presence of God’s Spirit.

The first mention of a dove in the Old Testament is found in the story of Noah’s ark, when a dove returns with an olive leaf (Genesis 8:8-12). Its appearance symbolizes the end of God’s judgment and the restoration of peace to the earth.

A dove also is mentioned as an acceptable form of sacrifice to God—especially by those who were considered poor (Leviticus 5:7, 12:8). As a sacrifice, doves were offered as symbols of purity and innocence.

Here at Jesus’s baptism, the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in bodily form like a dove to signify God’s divine approval of Jesus as He begins His public role as the Messiah. The dove is a physical or bodily manifestation of the Holy Spirit’s presence at this moment.

The Holy Spirit descending upon Jesus in the form of a dove was also a specific sign to John the Baptist that Jesus was the Messiah he had been preparing for.

Until this moment, even though John was the Messianic forerunner, he did not know the Messiah’s identity (John 1:31, 33a). John only knew the Messiah was in the world (Matthew 3:2, 3:11). But God gave John a sign by which to recognize the Messiah. John said:

“He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, ‘He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the One who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.’”
(John 1:33b)

The Holy Spirit descending on Jesus was God’s promised sign to John, that Jesus was the Messiah. And John recognized this at once,

“John testified saying, ‘I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon Him… I myself have seen, and have testified that this [Jesus] is the Son of God.”
(John 1:32, 34)

Once John recognized Jesus as the Messiah, he boldly proclaimed of Him:

“Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is He on behalf of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.’”
(John 1:29b-30)

The Holy Spirit descending upon Jesus like a dove also connects to what John had previously taught about Messiah:

“He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
(Matthew 3:11, Mark 1:8).

The Holy Spirit’s descent upon Jesus when He was baptized is visible evidence that Jesus is fully equipped to fulfill His declared role of baptizing with the Holy Spirit.

3.  THE VOICE FROM HEAVEN

The third and final sign which Luke describes at Jesus’s baptism is that a voice came out of heaven, saying: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”

The voice that came out of heaven was the voice of God the Father.

The fact that the voice came out of heaven meant it did not come from anyone standing on earth, but from the direction of the skies which were dramatically opened and from which the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Jesus.

At the moment of Jesus’s baptism all three Persons of the Godhead are active: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

• Jesus is God the Son in human form. Jesus was obedient to His Father’s mission and was baptized.

• The Holy Spirit is God the Spirit. The Holy Spirit descended in bodily form as a dove upon Jesus, God the Son.

• The voice that came out of heaven was God the Father. The voice said to Jesus, who is God the Son: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”

The Trinity’s active participation at Jesus’s baptism is significant because it demonstrates His divine nature as the Son of God and the divine mission He came to accomplish as the Son of Man. It is a divine inauguration of the life and ministry of Jesus.

Jesus’s baptism is one of relatively few places in the Bible that explicitly mentions all Three Persons of the Godhead all at once. Other occasions include:

• The Creation Account
  Genesis 1 mentions God the Father, the Spirit, and the spoken Word.
  
  
• Jesus’s Promise to Send the Disciples a Helper
  On the night He was betrayed, Jesus told the disciples about the Helper—the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send (John 14:26).
  
  
• Peter’s Sermon at Pentecost
  “Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear.”
  (Acts 2:33)
  
  
• Paul refers to all three Persons of the Godhead to the Galatians
  “Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!”
  (Galatians 4:6)
  
  
• Some translations of 1 John explicitly mention the Trinity
  “For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one.”
  (1 John 5:7 NKJV)

What the Voice Declared:

The voice coming out of heaven declared: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”

God the Father was well-pleased with Jesus’s life. This statement indicated that God whole-heartedly approved of Jesus’s life and choices up to this point.

Jesus had done no “full-time ministry” that we know of during the thirty years or so (Luke 3:23a) that He had lived thus far.

Jesus was the firstborn son of Mary (Luke 2:7) and was raised by her and Joseph (Luke 3:23b) in the town of Nazareth (Luke 2:39). As a child, Jesus “continued to grow and become strong, increasing in wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him” (Luke 2:40). As Jesus grew from boyhood to manhood, “Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men” (Luke 2:52).

Before His baptism, Jesus worked as a carpenter (Mark 6:3) and he seemed to have learned this trade from Joseph (Matthew 13:55a).

The Greek word that is translated as “carpenter” in Matthew 13:55 and Mark 6:3 is “τέκτων” (G5045 - pronounced: “ték-ton”). It means “craftsman” or even “construction worker.” The nearby Roman city of Sepphoris was being rebuilt during Jesus’s childhood and early adult life and was only a few miles’ walk from Nazareth, so it is plausible that Jospeh and Jesus worked in the rebuilding of this city.

During all this time, in all that He was doing—learning, growing, providing for His family after Joseph’s death, interacting in His community, keeping the Law—Jesus lived in perfect harmony with the commands and will of God (Matthew 5:17). Jesus’s perfect faithfulness is what caused God to say that He was well-pleased with His Son.

God’s approval of Jesus’s daily life is consistent with Biblical admonitions for us to do all we do as “unto the Lord” (1 Corinthians 10:31, Ephesians 6:7, Colossians 3:23-24).

Who heard the Voice from Heaven?

The Bible does not make it clear who exactly heard the voice from heaven and its statement at Jesus’s baptism. It may have been everyone, or it may have been only Jesus and John.

Luke and Mark's accounts say that the voice spoke directly to Jesus saying, "You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased" (Mark 1:11b). The Gospel of John only mentions the sign of the Holy Spirit descending upon Jesus and does not mention the voice from heaven.

But John the Baptist also heard the voice from heaven.

In Matthew's account, the voice from heaven used a third-person phrase: “This is” (Matthew 3:17) when referring to Jesus, instead of a direct second-person pronoun: “You are” (Mark 1:11, Luke 3:22).

Matthew’s phrase indicates that at least someone other than Jesus heard what the voice from heaven said when He was baptized. If anyone else heard the voice, it most likely would have included John the Baptist. Any others who might have been present may or may not have heard it.

It is possible that one voice spoke and Jesus heard it speaking to Himself even as John (and others) heard it speaking about Jesus.

What is clear from the Gospel accounts is that a voice from heaven spoke which affirmed that Jesus was God’s Son.

After writing about Jesus’s baptism, Luke then gives Jesus’s genealogy tracing His lineage (most likely through Mary) all the way back to Adam, the first human (Luke 3:23-38).