Precede to prepare. What or who comes before is to make ready for the One who is to come after. In today's Scripture passages, we have Elijah and John the Baptist who prepare the way for the coming of the Lord. Both are prophets in the correct sense of the word - they proclaim with great energy. Elijah is like fire, his words like a flaring torch. After delivering his prophecies, he is taken up in a whirlwind of fire which is another sign of his fiery life. His words turn people back to God.

Similarly, John the Baptist also speaks God's word with deep conviction to the point that he is beheaded for what he stands for - truth and justice. His fiery words prepare the way for Christ. His words turn people back to God in repentance.

Yet after the coming of the One who is longed for, Christ also goes through the same fate as the ones who precede to prepare for Him. Jesus says of Himself, "The Son of Man will suffer similarly at their hands" (Mt 17:12). We, who follow after Christ, bear our own crosses after Him. Thus, those who precede in order to prepare, the one who is longed for, and those who follow after, all suffer, because we base our lives on Him who suffered but rose again to glory.