When the Jewish people became apostate in the times of Malachi, who was the last Old Testament prophet, the Holy Spirit left the world. The proof is in the Savior's words to his disciples: "If I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you." And one of the witnesses said, "The Holy Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified." During the long night of apostacy between Malachi and Zechariah, there was a time when "all were gone out of the way;" "when there were none that did good, no, not one;" "when darkness covered the earth, and gross darkness the people;" when they had not so much as "the dayspring from on high, to give knowledge of salvation by the remission of sins." "The temple of God was a den of thieves." The commandments of God were made void through the traditions of men, and there was not a people upon the earth prepared for the Lord, worthy of his introduction among them AS THE SON OF GOD. The dignity of his person, consequent upon his being the Son of God, along with his purity, rendered it improper for him to be manifested, in his introduction as the Son of God, to a den of thieves. So a people must be prepared for the occasion. Hence John the Baptist was sent from God to prepare or make ready a people for the Lord. He was the "dayspring from on high," sent to give knowledge of salvation unto the people by the remission of their sins, but the ultimate of his work is expressed in these words: "But that he, Christ, might be made manifest unto Israel, therefore came I baptizing with water." Which was as much as to say, He will not be made manifest to Israel unless a people in Israel is made ready for him. Therefore John was his forerunner, to prepare the way before him.
In doing this work he proclaimed the kingdom of God is at hand, and "preached the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins." And many people were prepared for the Lord, and finally he is acknowledged, from the eternal world, as the Son of God, while he is yet in the presence of all those who were present at his baptism and heard John say, "Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world." The Savior now calls about him twelve disciples, and they make and baptize many more disciples. John the Baptist and Jesus Christ, as prophets, were under the influence of the Holy Spirit, and were engaged in the grandest work ever known among men. But, so far as a wicked world was concerned, it must be redeemed from moral pollution first, and then await the day of Pentecost for the gift of the Holy Spirit. Thus keeping before our minds his relations to men, we ask what was his work and relations from Pentecost and onward? On that day he came upon the disciples, who were already converted and pardoned; so it was not for _those purposes_ that they were baptized in the Holy Spirit. Jesus had said to them, long before this, "Now ye are clean through the words which I have spoken unto you." And the wicked Jews had "closed their eyes and stopped their ears, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their hearts and be converted and healed." And Satan himself took the word out of the hearts of some "lest they should believe and be saved."