<p>13:24 <i>After John had first preached before his coming the baptism of repentance</i>- Paul's mention of John in Acts 13:24,25 apparently adds nothing to his argument; it seems out of context. But it surely indicates the degree to which John was never far below the surface in Paul's thinking. Having been raised in Jerusalem, surely Paul as a young man would have heard John's preaching. It was the source of the goads against which he later kicked. Paul alluded to some parts of the Gospels much more than others, and an example of this is the way in which he alluded so extensively to the passages related to John the Baptist. I would suggest that the reason for this is that he saw John as somehow his hero, one for whom he had a deep respect. In doing so he was sharing the estimation of his Lord, who also saw John as one of the greatest believers. There are many 'unconscious' links between Paul's writings and the records of John, indicating how deeply the example and words of John were in Paul's mind (e.g. Mt. 3:7 = 1 Thess. 1:10; 5:9; Jn. 3:31 = 1 Cor. 15:47). Or consider how John said that wicked Jewry would be &quot;hewn down&quot; (Mt. 3:10); Paul uses the very same word to describe how the Jewish branches had now been &quot;cut off&quot; (Rom. 11:22,24). Paul saw himself as being like the best man, who had betrothed the believers to Christ (2 Cor. 11:2,3)- just as John had described himself as the friend of the bridegroom (Jn. 3:28).</p><p><i>To all the people of Israel</i>- This usage of &quot;all&quot; is hardly literal. If John's witness was counted as reaching &quot;all Israel&quot;, we can understand the fulfilment of the great commission as likewise meaning that the Gospel must go to <i>people from</i> all nations, rather than to every individual.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;As John preached repentance with a deep sense of his own unworthiness, so did Paul, with exactly that same sense (Acts 13:24,25 = 17:3; 20:21; 26:20).</p>