John was chosen by God to be the messenger of Jesus' birth His mission was to prepare the people for the teachings of Jesus
A prophetic figure concerned about righteous behavior and purification, mentioned in the New Testament and in Josephus Because his concerns align so well with those of the Qumran community, some have suggested that he might have spent time in that sect, but there is no hard evidence to prove this
born miraculously as the son of the priest Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth, the cousin of Mother Mary, mother of Jesus A staunch ascetic and denouncer of religious hypocrisy, he baptized Jesus and others at the river Jordan, while announcing that he was only the forerunner of Christ who would baptize with fire Jesus referred to him as the reincarnation of Elijah (Matt 11 13-14) He was executed by Herod Antipas
The son of Zechariah, a priest, and Elisabeth (Luke 1: 5-24, 56-80), John was an ascetic who preached the imminence of judgment and baptized converts in the Jordan River as a symbol of their repentance from sin (Matt 3: 1-12; Mark 1: 2-8; Luke 3: 1-18) The Gospel writers viewed him as an Elijah figure and forerunner of the Messiah (Luke 1: 17; Matt 11: 12-14; John 1: 15, 9-34; 3: 22-36) who baptized Jesus but also recognized his superiority (Matt 3: 13-17; Mark 1: 9-11; Luke 3: 21-22) When imprisoned by Herod Antipas, he inquired whether Jesus were the expected "one who is to come " Jesus' answer was equivocal, but he praised John's work as fulfilling prophecy (Matt 11: 2-19; Luke 7: 24-35) At his step-daughter Salome's request, Herod had John beheaded (Matt 14: 6-12; Mark 6: 17-29) Some of John's disciples later became Christians (John 1: 37; Acts 18: 25)
(New Testament) a preacher and hermit and forerunner of Jesus (whom he baptized); was beheaded by Herod at the request of Salome
Patron saint of missionaries He was sent "to prepare the way of the Lord " In Christian art he is represented in a coat of sheepskins, in allusion to his life in the desert; either holding a rude wooden cross, with a pennon bearing the words, Ecce Agnus Dei, or with a book on which a lamb is seated; or holding in his right hand a lamb surrounded by a halo, and bearing a cross on the right foot