The synoptics make Jesus come to John, before he had played any public part.

But if it is true, as they state, that John recognized Jesus from the first and welcomed him, it must be supposed that Jesus was already a somewhat renowned teacher.

The fourth Gospel brings Jesus to John twice, the first time while yet unknown, the second time with a band of disciples.

Without touching here the question of the precise journeys of Jesus (an insoluble question, seeing the contradictions of the documents and the little care the evangelists had in being exact in such matters), and without denying that Jesus might have made a journey to John when he had as yet no notoriety, we adopt the information furnished by the fourth Gospel (iii.

22, and following), namely, that Jesus, before beginning to baptize like John, had formed a school.