The Meaning of Matthew 3:5 Explained

Matthew 3:5

KJV: Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan,

YLT: Then were going forth unto him Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region round about the Jordan,

Darby: Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the country round the Jordan,

ASV: Then went out unto him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about the Jordan;

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Then  went out  to  him  Jerusalem,  and  all  Judaea,  and  all  the region round about  Jordan, 

What does Matthew 3:5 Mean?

Context Summary

Matthew 3:1-12 - The Herald Prepares The Way
Matthew's Gospel heralds the Kingdom. We are allowed to see and listen to the forerunner, whose voice again awoke the hearts of men with prophetic utterance after a silence of four hundred years. He leaps into the arena with the suddenness of Elijah.
His message was twofold-the need for repentance and the announcement of the nearness of the Kingdom; it thrilled his generation with a strange wonder and interest. All of the southern part of the country seemed to empty itself into the Jordan valley. Yes, if a man is not a reed shaken by the wind, not effeminate in court dress, not a copy but an original, who speaks what he sees and knows of God, men will come to Him in every age.
To us also John the Baptist must come, if we shall properly appreciate the Redeemer. We must expose ourselves to the fire, the ax, the winnowing-fan, that we may learn what we really are and come, like Paul, to reckon our own righteousness as loss, if only we may win Christ and be found in Him. [source]

Chapter Summary: Matthew 3

1  John preaches: his office, life, and baptism
7  He reprimands the Pharisees,
13  and baptizes Jesus in Jordan

What do the individual words in Matthew 3:5 mean?

At that time were going out to him Jerusalem and all - Judea the region around the Jordan
Τότε ἐξεπορεύετο πρὸς αὐτὸν Ἱεροσόλυμα καὶ πᾶσα Ἰουδαία περίχωρος τοῦ Ἰορδάνου

Τότε  At  that  time 
Parse: Adverb
Root: τότε  
Sense: then.
ἐξεπορεύετο  were  going  out 
Parse: Verb, Imperfect Indicative Middle or Passive, 3rd Person Singular
Root: ἐκπορεύομαι  
Sense: to go forth, go out, depart.
Ἱεροσόλυμα  Jerusalem 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Neuter Plural
Root: Ἱεροσόλυμα  
Sense: denotes either the city itself or the inhabitants.
  - 
Parse: Article, Nominative Feminine Singular
Root:  
Sense: this, that, these, etc.
Ἰουδαία  Judea 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Feminine Singular
Root: Ἰουδαία  
Sense: in a narrower sense, to the southern portion of Palestine lying on this side of the Jordan and the Dead Sea, to distinguish it from Samaria, Galilee, Peraea, and Idumaea.
περίχωρος  region  around 
Parse: Adjective, Nominative Feminine Singular
Root: περίχωρος  
Sense: lying round about, neighbouring.
Ἰορδάνου  Jordan 
Parse: Noun, Genitive Masculine Singular
Root: Ἰορδάνης  
Sense: the one river of Palestine, has its course of little more than 200 miles (300 km), from the roots of Anti-Lebanon to the head of the Dead Sea.