And behold, a voice from heaven said, This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased. The voice from heaven — the bat qol of Jewish tradition, the divine voice that speaks from heaven — identifies Jesus with a statement that combines two Old Testament texts. This is my beloved Son echoes Psalm 2:7, the royal coronation psalm where God declares to the anointed king: you are my Son, today I have begotten you. With whom I am well pleased echoes Isaiah 42:1, the servant song: here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight. Jesus is simultaneously the Davidic king of Psalm 2 and the servant of Isaiah 42 — the one who will reign and the one who will suffer. The Trinity is present: the Son in the water, the Spirit descending, the Father speaking. Before his ministry begins, Jesus is publicly identified and commissioned by the voice of God.

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