The passage
      v9. This verse parallels verse 5. John, the forerunner, calls out Israel to gather at the water's edge in preparation for the coming of the Messiah. The day of reckoning is come; the day of judgement is at hand. It was in leaving Egypt through the waters of the Red sea that the children of Israel first met the living God at Mt. Sinai and where they were confirmed as God's unique people. From Nazareth in Galilee, a place of lawless Judaism, secularized, syncretized, comes a true Israelite. He heeds the call and comes to John by the river Jordan. Although he, of all those who come, has no need to undergo a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, he none-the-less faces God on behalf of a broken people. On behalf of the "lost" he undertakes a repentance acceptable to God. In the perfection of this one true Israelite there will grow a new Israel, gathered to him by grace through faith.
      v10-11. The Exodus theme continues as the reader is given an insight into the divine confirmation of Jesus' unique sonship; he is the only faithful one, the true Israel, the messiah. As the people of Israel gathered before Mt. Sinai, the heavens were rent and God spoke, so again the heavens are torn asunder and God speaks. Now, a new son is confirmed, a son faithful through and through. In Jesus, the new Israel, God's new community (represented by the dove) will be built in the power of God's Spirit. "Because you are my unique Son, I have chosen you for the task upon which you are about to enter", N.B. Stonehouse.
      v12-13. The faithful son, the new Israel, is now thrown into the midst of a cosmic struggle between Satan and God. Jesus is driven into the wilderness and there, like Israel of old, is tested. Mark implies that Jesus stands the test, yet unlike Matthew and Luke, Mark does not say the test ends after the forty days. Nor does he give us any details, other than Jesus was "with the wild animals." The wilderness is Satan's realm, a place of horror, loneliness, where wild beasts roam. Jesus, the true Israel, must struggle through the darkness to the promised land. Yet, just as the angels ministered to Elijah during his forty days in the wilderness, so they minister to Jesus. For Mark, Jesus' wilderness struggle is but a foretaste of the coming three years which will involve an unending assault from demonic forces. As Jesus is sustained and affirmed in the wilderness, so he is sustained through the wilderness of his ministry. Thus is constituted the new Israel of God, a people who stand the test in Jesus.

The baptism (Epiphany 1)
        As I lay me down to sleep
        I pray the Lord my soul to keep
        If I die before I wake
        I pray the Lord my soul to take.

      Some of the old Victorian prayers are quite beautiful. The most amazing fact about them is that they were commonly said throughout the English speaking world. It's still possible to meet older people and find that their mother said this or a similar prayer to them on tucking them into bed. Prayers of faith were part of the culture, part of everyday life.
      We could debate forever and a day the value of such a culturally-driven faith. Were the children, who innocently prayed such prayers, saved? What of the parents? Sin was just as rife in the late 1800's as it is today, yet the majority of people in English speaking societies had at least formal ties with the Christian faith. The evidence is they could pray the prayer themselves and believe it.
      Of course, we have no place seconding-guessing God. Only he knows his sheep. Culturally developed religious attitudes seem highly suspicious to we twenty-first century technocrats were everything is so black and white. Yet, the truth is that no person's penitent approach to the Lord is worthy in itself. As our righteousness is filthy rags, so is our repentance and faith. So, who are we to judge? The worth of our approach to God relies on the worth of Christ's approach. His baptism signified a repentance perfect beyond measure and thus pleasing to God. He had no need to repent, but as the representative "Son" his repentance covers our poor and sorry attempts.

Discussion
      How can Jesus undertake a baptism of repentance when he is not a sinner?

The wilderness (Lent 1)
      Lent is a replay of Elijah's and Jesus' wilderness experience. It is all about repentance. On Ash Wednesday we hear the words "turn away from sin and rely on the grace of God." So, in the old English Collect we pray "Forgive the sins of all who are penitent; create and make in us new and contrite hearts." We must turn away from our own godless independent self-reliance, and we must turn to the living God in dependent reliance. Repentance involves turning away from self to Jesus. So Lenten penance is all about refocusing on Jesus, getting the weight of our life back with Jesus.
      To help with this shift we have to focus on an element of our life that we don't often look at. God's creation is a wondrously beautiful thing, a grand experience. Yet, there is a wilderness to it. When things go wrong, sickness and worries abound, then the horror and loneliness of wilderness is close to us. We sense the ravenous animals about us. It is for this reason that the ancient liturgical services for Ash Wednesday carry the words, "remember, O man, you are dust and to dust you will return", Gen.3:19. Oh yes, the touch of "father time." So, we first need to accept the call of the wilderness for our soul and face the darkness and the loneliness of our loss. We have to return to the desert of our sinful self and so feel Satan's touch.
      It is then we can repent, turn to Jesus, rest on him, look to him, rely on the one in whose perfect repentance we rest. Yet, once we have done this we will find ourselves driven "out into the desert." The more we look to Jesus, the more the powers of darkness will test our will to stand firm in our faith. Yet, we are not alone in this time of testing. Even the Angels will attend us, or as Jesus put it, "I will be with you always, even to the end of the age."

v9
      egeneto (ginomai) "-" - it came to pass. Used to introduce a new episode. "Now it was in those days", Moffatt; "it happened", NAB.
      en ekeinaiV taiV hJmeraiV "at that time" - in those days. "It was then that Jesus came from Nazareth into Galilee", Barclay.
      hlqen (ercomai) aor. "came" - Jesus' coming from Nazareth to John at the Jordan river parallels v5.
      ebaptisqh (baptizw) aor. pas. "was baptized" - was immersed. Here of immersed in water. The debate, as to why it was necessary for Jesus to undergo John's baptism, a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, is inconclusive. The study above takes the line that Jesus, as corporate Israel, underwent a flawless act of repentance, symbolized in water baptism, on behalf of those who will come to believe in him. Jesus' enigmatic commentary in Matthew 3:15, "it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness", does little to clear the air. The Exodus symbolism of Israel passing through the waters and moving out into the wilderness to be tested, does seem to be reflected in the gospel narrative, and this symbolism intern reinforces the idea that Jesus is undertaking a corporate act on our behalf.
      eiV "in" - into. "In the river Jordan", with the sense "into".

v10
      euquV adv. " -" - immediately. Mark often uses the word to tie together two related episodes
      anabainwn (anabainw) pres. part. "was coming" - coming up, going up. Coming up out of the water, possibly a temporal participle, "as soon as Jesus came up out of the water", CEV.
      ek .... apo "out of" - Variant is "from".
      touV ouranouV (oV) pl. "heaven" - the heavens. The abode of God, BAGD. Possibly "he saw the sky parting asunder", Weymouth.
      scizomenouV (scizw) pres. pas. part. "torn open" - being rent apart, split, divided, opened. Probably passive, rather than middle, "opening themselves."
      katabainon (katabainw) pres. part. "descend" - coming down, descending
      eiV auton .... ep auton "on him" - to, into him. The variant "upon him" is to be preferred, although the preposition eis can be taken as "upon". None-the-less, Luke may intend "came down and entered into him", BAGD.
      wJV "like [a dove]" - like, as. Either, descending as a dove would descend, or descending looking like a dove, ie "like a dove" modifies "the Spirit." Probably the latter alternative.
      peristeran (a) "a dove" - pigeon, dove. An illusive image. Either the divine is being represented as a bird like creature coming to rest on Jesus, or the dove, as a common symbol of Israel at the time, serves to identify Jesus as the new Spirit-filled corporate Israel. The second option seems best, although we wouldn't want to bet our lives on it.

v11
      ek "from [heaven]" - out of, from. "A voice from God's dwelling place." Presumably the voice of God.
      The divine words are usually regarded as a melding of Psalm 2:7 and Isaiah 42:1, and serve as a divine confirmation of Yahweh's suffering servant who is the conquering messiah. These divine words do not appoint Jesus to the role of God's servant, he already is, has been and continues to be. The words are a public confirmation of Jesus' messianic credentials for all who read this gospel. As noted above, the words may actually reflect Genesis 22:2. If the gospel account is representing Jesus as corporate Israel, then it is likely that the allusion is to Gen.22:2. "Because you are my unique Son, I have chosen you for the task upon which you are about to enter", Stonehouse.
      mou oJ agaphtoV "whom I love" - the beloved son of me. Certainly pushing toward the idea of "unique son / only son", given that the Hebrew "only" is often translated by the same Greek word in the LXX, but obviously in messianic terms rather than filial terms. Presumably modifying "son", but a two-way bet is possible; "the beloved and only son", Barclay.
      eudokhsa (eudokew) aor. "I am well-pleased" - I am well pleased. A timeless aorist, therefore best represented with a present tense. Possibly, "I think it good", even "I am resolved", so "I have chosen you", or in gentler terms, "on you my favor rests", Barclay. If the meaning "well pleased" is adopted, Gundry suggests that the word carries enthusiasm. The divine is over-the-top with Jesus; "in you I take delight", REB.

v12
      ekballei (ekballw) pres. "sent [him] out" - sent out, thrust out/forth, cast out, drive out. The historic present tense of a very forceful word. "The Spirit drove him immediately into the desert", Moffatt; "compelled", Barclay; "impelled", Weymouth.
      thn erhmon (oV on) "the desert" - desolate place. A place of testing and confrontation with the divine, but also often seen as a haunt for evil powers; "the wilderness", REB.