11:2-3 Why did John the Baptist who knew who Jesus was, send his disciples to ask Jesus if He really was the Messiah?

The general consensus among Bible scholars is that John could not understand that if Jesus could raise the dead and do so many other miracles, why he (John) had to languish in prison (cp Mt 4:12; 14:1-4).

In the light of his circumstances, John’s faith that Jesus was the Messiah began to wane and he needed Jesus to reassure him that He was indeed the one sent from God.

This happens to many Christians when they are being persecuted for their faith – their faith wanes too. But Jesus was able to reassure John by sending John’s disciples back to him with first-hand accounts of the miracles Jesus was performing, which proved who He was (cp Mt 11:4-6).

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