Matthew 3:13 - 17

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?”

15 But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him.

16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

Jesus spent most of his young life in the town of Nazareth, which was in the province of Galilee.

In beginning his public ministry he felt it necessary to be baptized, John was the one preparing the way for him and his work was in Judea at the Jordan river.

John stated in John 1, he did not know who the son of God was until he saw the spirit descending like a dove out of heaven (John 1:33).

If being baptized for remission of sins had been the only reason for Christ to be baptism, then Jesus would not have needed to come to John because he was perfect, he never committed sin.

John may not have known Jesus was the son of God, but as a cousin, perhaps close cousin, he had a high respect for Jesus and felt enough to say that he needed to be baptized by Jesus instead of him baptizing Jesus.

But Jesus showed there was more to being baptized than having his sins washed away. He told John he needed to be baptized to fulfill all righteousness. “Fulfill” was from a Greek word meaning “to perform, or execute.” “Righteousness” is from a word meaning “integrity, virtue, purity of life, uplrightness, correctness in thinking, feeling and acting.” (The same words are used in all of these verses, verse 15, Matthew 5:6, 10, 20, and Matthew 6:33.)

Christ did not need to repent or confess of sins because he was perfect, but after explaining to John the need to perform or act on his integrity. John had no more objections and performed the baptism.

This verse shows the correct definition of baptism, the only reason to come up from the water was if He was immersed down into the water.

Neither Matthew or John in their accounts of the baptism list any other human witness of the event other than John the baptist and he was permitted to see the “spirit of God” coming down from heaven like in the form of a dove to land on Christ.

If only John and Jesus saw the spirit descend and alight on Jesus, then they were the only ones who heard God's approval and acknowledgement of Jesus being his son. Perhaps that is why “hear him” is not added here as it is in the “transfiguration.” (Matthew 17:5) Jesus was just beginning his work so it was not the time to give the command to listen to him.