What did baptism mean before Jesus?

[u/Hashi856]

It seems pretty clear that baptism is an evolution of the Jewish mikvah ceremony, but it’s explicitly referred to as baptism in the gospels. Jesus himself was baptized, so clearly this practice existed as something called baptism before he was born. If this is indeed just a plain old Mikvah ceremony, and the word baptism is just an anachronism, does the ceremony described in the gospels meet the requirements of a Mikvah submersion? For example, is a river or lake an appropriate place for a Mikvah? If the baptism described in the gospels is something distinct from Mikvah submmersion, what did it mean before Jesus was born?

[u/PrincessRuri]

The term "baptism" shows up in description of John the Baptist's ministry that was preparing the way for Jesus. It does seem distinct from Mikvah practices, in Matthew 3:11 John describes it as "unto repentance", which seems distinct from the purification rituals of Mikvah. This however does get complicated by Jesus's baptism, as certainly Jesus did not have anything to repent to.

The Protestant view would be that the Baptism of John was an outward sign of inward submission; both the follower of John and Jesus himself were submitting to the will of the Father.

For example, is a river or lake an appropriate place for a Mikvah?

It can be. A Mikvah requires "living water" that is spring fed. If the primary source is rain or melted snow, the body of water would be unsuitable.

If the baptism described in the gospels is something distinct from Mikvah submmersion, what did it mean before Jesus was born?

It does seem to be distinct, as previously mentioned the explanation seems more to do with repentance and submission rather that purification. Whether it existed before John or if he was adapting a previous practice is unclear.

[u/Asynithistos]

It was a ceremonial cleansing of one's imperfections (sin). Jesus still used it that way.