John 1:24

καὶ ἀπεσταλμένοι ἦσαν ἐκ τῶν Φαρισαίων. This gives us the meaning “And they had been sent from,” which is not so congruous with the context as “And they who were sent were of the Pharisees”; because apparently this clause was inserted to explain the following question (John 1:25): τί οὖν βαπτίζεις … ὁ προφήτης; Founding on Zechariah 13:1, “In that day there shall be a fountain opened for sin and for uncleanness,” and on Ezekiel 36:25, “then will I sprinkle clean water upon you,” they expected a general purification before the coming of the Messiah. Hence their question. If John was not the Messiah, nor the prophet, nor Elias in close connection with the Messiah, why did he baptise? Lightfoot (Hor. Heb., p. 965) quotes from Kiddushin “Elias venit ad immundos distinguendum et ad purificandum”. See also Ammonius and Beza quoted in Lampe. In reply to this objection of the Pharisees (John 1:26) John says: ἐγὼ βαπτίζω … τοῦ ὑποδήματος, “I for my part baptise with water”; the emphatic “I” leading us to expect mention of another with whom a contrast is drawn. This contrast is further signified by the mention of the element of the baptism, ἐν ὕδατι; a merely symbolic element, but also the element by baptism in which preparation for the Messiah was to be made. And John's administration of this precursory baptism is justified by the fact he immediately states, μέσος ὑμῶν στήκει ὃν ὑμεῖς οὐκ οἴδατε. Had they been aware of this presence (ὑμεῖς emphatic) as John was aware of it, they could not have challenged the baptism of John, because it was the divinely appointed preparation for the Messiah's advent. This scarcely amounts to what Lampe calls it, “nova exprobratio ignorantiae Pharisaeorum” (Isaiah 42:19; Isaiah 29:14), because as yet they had had no opportunity of knowing the Christ. μέσος ὑμῶν. There is no reason why the words should not be taken strictly. So Euthymius, ἦν γὰρ ὁ Χριστὸς ἀναμεμιγμένος τότε τῷ λαῷ. ὀπίσω μου ἐρχόμενος, denoting the immediate arrival of the Messiah and John's close connection with Him. He is further described relatively to John as inconceivably exalted above him, οὗ οὐκ εἰμὶ … ὑποδήματος. The grammatical form admitting both the relative and pers. pronoun is Hebraistic. ἄξιος ἵνα also stands instead of the classical construction with the infinitive. Talmudists quote the saying: “Every service which a servant will perform for his master, a disciple will do for his Rabbi, except loosing his sandal thong”.