UNIT 5: JESUS AND THE GOSPEL OF MARK

Unit 5 of CST100 surveys Jesus and the Gospel of Mark. The main sections for Unit 5 are:

The recommending readings from the Bible for this unit of material is: The Gospel According to Mark.

Sources for Studying Jesus

Jesus left no written records of his own. None of the New Testament books were written during his lifetime. Jesus is mentioned occasionally in non-Christian historical sources, but the majority of references to Jesus' life come from Christian sources, mainly the four canonical Gospels.

Non-Christian sources for the life of Jesus

Some brief details about Jesus’ life are known from various non-Christian sources, but these details are meager. Two of the most famous references to Jesus by outsiders to the early Church are comments made by the Jewish historian Josephus and the Roman historian Tacitus.

In Josephus's Antiquities of the Jews 18.3.3 written ca. AD 93, the following statement is found about Jesus of Nazareth:

  • "Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man; for he was a doer of wonderful works, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ. And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him; for he appeared to them alive again the third day; as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him. And the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day." (source: William Whiston's translation at www.ccel.org/j/josephus/josephus.htm)

The statement must be treated cautiously. Josephus's works were copied by Christian scribes (not Jewish scribes). These Christian scribes evidently embellished Josephus's original wording with overtly Christian statements. According to Origen (d. AD 254), who comments on this very passage in Contra Celsum 1.47 and Commentary on Matthew 10.17, Josephus did not believe that Jesus was the Christ. The statement above transcribed through the hands of Christian scribes includes the opposite wording, "He was the Christ." The underlined phrases above are considered to be part or all of Josephus's original statement about Jesus. The phrases not underlined are considered to be embellishments made by Christian scribes.

A better picture of Josephus's take on Jesus is seen two books later in Antiquities of the Jews 20.9.1:

  • ". . . he [Ananus] assembled the sanhedrim of judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James . . ."

This statement is in the context describing the death of James, the brother of Jesus. Josephus refers to Jesus essentially as the "so-called Christ." In other words, Josephus acknowledge that some Jews considered Jesus to be the Christ while others did not.

The Babylonian Talmud contains a few references to Yeshu (generally considered to be Jesus of Nazareth). Sanhedrin 43a of the Babylonian Talmud mentions that Yeshu "was hanged on Passover eve" because "he had practiced sorcery and led Israel astray and enticed them into apostasy." The reference to "being hanged" could be a reference to crucifixion. The reference to sorcery may be a reference to miracles, especially exorcisms. The same passage also states, "Our rabbis taught: Yeshu had five disciples --Mattai, Nakkai, Netzer, Buni and Todah." This statement may refer to Jesus' apostles mentioned in the Gospels.

The main statement regarding Jesus from a Roman pen comes from Tacitus's Annals of Rome (written ca. AD 115-117). Tacitus tells the history of the first emperors of Rome in his Annals of Rome. When describing Rome burning in AD 64, Tacitus, Annals of Rome 15.44 explains who the Christians were that Nero had charged with arson:

  • "Consequently, to get rid of the report [that Nero had burned Rome], Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name [Christian] had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their center and become popular." (source: www.perseus.tufts.edu)

The statement is important because it is a non-Christian confirmation of some historical details found in the Gospels. Tacitus places the death of Jesus in the times of Tiberius (AD 14-37) and at the hands of Pontius Pilate (AD 26-36) just as the Gospels do. "Christus" is the Latin spelling of "Christ." The "extreme penalty" would at least be execution, if not crucifixion. Tacitus obviously didn't think too highly of Christianity because he calls it "an evil" and another bothersome "superstition" that the city of Rome tended to attract.

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Christian sources for the life of Jesus

The earliest Christian documents that mention Jesus are Paul's letters (ca. AD 51-65). These, however, provide little information about the life of Jesus, especially since Paul did not see the life or death of Jesus for himself. A few times, Paul mentions the traditions about Jesus that had been passed on to him by word of mouth, traditions regarding such things as the last supper (1 Cor. 11:25-27) and the death of Jesus (1 Cor. 15:3-8). But these references are few and far between. If our understanding of Jesus' life were based only on what Paul mentions, we would only have a paragraph at most.

The Four Gospels were written after Paul's letters in the last third of the first century (ca. 65-100). Most New Testament specialists consider the Gospels to be a genre to themselves. They were not intended to be biographies in the modern sense of the word. The Gospel writers were not trying to tell everything that Jesus was known to have said and done. The Fourth Gospel explicitly states that it is selective of what it mentions about Jesus:

  • "Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book [the Gospel of John]." (John 20:30)
  • "But there are also many other things that Jesus did; if every one of them were written down, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written." (John 21:25)

This selectivity can be seen in other Gospels as well. In Matthew 11:21, Jesus condemns the Galilean towns of Chorazin and Bethsaida for not believing his miracles done there, but the Gospel of Matthew never mentions Jesus doing a miracle there. Obviously, according to Jesus' own statement, he must have done something significant in those places even though it is never mentioned in the Gospel of Matthew.

Each of the four Gospels emphasizes the story of Jesus in a way that culminates in a Passion Narrative (the story of Jesus' death). The four Gospels focus on the death of Jesus, it's significance, and the events that led to it. Thus, the four Gospels are "back-end" oriented. The opening two chapters of Matthew and Luke describe episodes about Jesus' infancy, but other than those four chapters nothing in any of the Gospels describes Jesus' life until his baptism by John in the Jordan River when he was around thirty years old (see Lk. 3:23). Even the material about Jesus' public ministry is focused on the end of it. Anywhere from one-fourth to one-half of the material in each of the Gospels is focused on the last week of Jesus' life (see Mark 11-16; Matthew 21-28; Luke 19-24; John 13-21). The Gospels were not trying to record everything Jesus ever said and did; instead, they were focusing on the significance of Jesus' death and the events that led to it.

The Gospels are often described as "portraits" of the life of Jesus because they interpret the significance of Jesus' life as they tell their story. Each Gospel writer (often called an "evangelist" since a Gospel is a "euangelion" in Greek) paints a different picture of Jesus that would meet the needs of the originally intended audience of the particular Gospel. For example, the Gospel of Mark focuses on the high cost of following Jesus because the original audience probably was Christians in Rome suffering under Nero's persecution in the AD 60s. The Gospel of Luke focuses on the inclusion of outcasts because Theophilus (to whom Luke was writing) was a Gentile and would have been an outsider to Jewish things. The Gospel of Matthew focuses on Jesus interpreting the Law and fulfilling Jewish expectation since it was probably written to Christian Jews who struggled with non-Christian Jews over these issues. The Gospel of John explicitly states its purpose to paint the portrait of Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God:

  • "Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book [the Gospel of John]. But these [signs] are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name." (John 20:30-31)

Thus, the four Gospels often differ in details about the activities and words of Jesus, and even the order of events because each Gospel writer was painting a portrait of Jesus with the purpose of meeting the needs of its intended audience. Compare, for example, if three different biographies of Lyndon B. Johnson were written to three different target audiences: one being residents of Selma, Alabama; one being Vietnam veterans; and one being NASA retirees. Each biography would be based on the same individual (LBJ) but each would be strikingly different as each author interpreted what the crucial events of LBJ's administration would be for each target audience. In the same way, the Gospels were written to the meet the needs of different "target" audiences in the first-century world.

Before the Gospels were written, information about Jesus (including sayings, teachings, and important events) was passed around orally through the preaching (Greek, kerygma) of early Christians. This word-of-mouth information was treasured in the early Church. An example of this oral material (often called agrapha, Greek "unwritten") is in Acts 20:35. As Paul was preaching to church leaders from Ephesus, he offhandedly mentions a statement of Jesus:

  • "remembering the words of the Lord Jesus, for he himself said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'" (Acts 20:35).

Paul attributes this statement to Jesus even though none of the four Gospels ever records the statement. It was known only through the oral information that circulated about Jesus. Just how treasured this oral material about Jesus became can be seen in the words of Papias, bishop of Hierapolis around AD 135 (quoted in Eusebius's Church History 3.39.4):

  • "If, then, any one came, who had been a follower of the elders, I questioned him in regard to the words of the elders,-what Andrew or what Peter said, or what was said by Philip, or by Thomas, or by James, or by John, or by Matthew, or by any other of the disciples of the Lord, . . . For I did not think that what was to be gotten from the books would profit me as much as what came from the living and abiding voice."

Papias indicates that even though he was only about a hundred years removed from the time of Jesus, he was having a difficult time finding second-hand, word-of-mouth testimony about the disciples of Jesus. Papias preferred this second-hand information to the "books." The "books" is probably a reference to the Gospels (whether or not in their final form as we now have them today) or possibly to the books of the Septuagint.

Since eyewitnesses were dying off, Christians began to produce written accounts about Jesus in the last half of the first century. This was probably not done sooner because most early Christians would have expected Jesus to return very soon, such as within their lifetime (see 1 Thess. 4:13-17; 1 Cor. 7:29-31; 2 Pet. 3:8-10). But as time moved on, Christians wrote down the information about Jesus for the sake of further generations of Christians.

An account of the life of Jesus became known as "gospel" (Greek, euangelion). "Gospel" is an Old English word that translates the Greek word euangelion, which means "good news." Originally, the term referred to the proclamation of good news (such as in Mk. 1:14 where Jesus proclaims the "gospel"). Eventually, the term came to refer to a written document about the life of Jesus since the message about Jesus was considered the good news.

The Gospels themselves say little about how they were written or even who wrote them. All four Gospels are anonymous. None of them ever identify the name of the author in the text. The titles, such as "The Gospel According to Mark," were added to each document later when the Gospels were collected together. The titles helped distinguish one Gospel over and against the others after they had been collected together. The titles are not so much statements of authorship as they are statements of source according to early Church tradition (in other words, they are the Gospels "according to," not necessarily "written by").

The Gospels According to Matthew, Mark, and Luke are so similar in the content, wording, and arrangement of their material that they are known as the Synoptic Gospels (Greek, "seen together"). Ninety percent of the material in Mark is also found in Matthew and Luke. In some passages, whole episodes are nearly verbatim the same. This is especially noteworthy since this high degree of verbal similarity occurs in Greek whereas Jesus would have spoken in Aramaic. Because of these detailed similarities, most New Testament specialists believe that the Synoptic Gospels are based on each other in some way or another.

Virtually all New Testament specialists believe that the Gospel of Mark was written first and that Matthew and Luke were based on Mark. Since Mark is the shortest Gospel, it is much more likely that Mark was written first and Matthew and Luke included additional material above and beyond what Mark had written. It is unlikely that Mark was based on Matthew or Luke because it would be difficult to explain why Mark never mentions important episodes found in Matthew and Luke such as the birth of Jesus, resurrection appearances of Jesus, and most of Jesus' teaching including the Sermon on the Mount (see Matthew 5-7; cf. Luke 6:20-49). In parallel passages, Matthew and Luke tend to improve Mark's rough grammar and style. This also indicates that Mark was written before Matthew or Luke.

If Mark was written first, this explains the similarities that Mark has to Matthew and Luke. Nevertheless, there are many striking similarities between Matthew and Luke, which have no corresponding passage in Mark (the so-called "double tradition"). Most of these passages are comprised of Jesus' teachings. Therefore, many New Testament specialists think that there may have been a document in the early Church that no longer exists that was a collection of Jesus' teachings. This source is usually designated as "Q" (from the German quelle, "source"). This Q document would have been used by Matthew and Luke to enhance their Gospels with material about Jesus' teachings above and beyond Mark. Q would then explain the close similarities between Matthew and Luke that are not in Mark. No manuscript evidence exists for Q. Some New Testament scholars even think Q was not a written document but just an oral collection of sayings that was repeated as a group. If Q did exist as a document, it probably would have fallen out of use simply because its material would already be found in Matthew and Luke. A similar fate almost befell the Gospel of Mark. Early Christians greatly neglected Mark simply because they preferred to read Matthew which they thought contained Mark plus a whole lot more!

The majority of New Testament specialists, therefore, hold to the "Two-Source Hypothesis" to explain the origins of the Synoptic Gospels. The Two-Source Hypothesis states that the Gospels of Matthew and Luke based their material on two common sources: Mark and Q. The Gospel of John is quite independent from the Synoptic Gospels. Even in the few similar episodes that do exist between John and the Synoptics, the wording and details are quite different. The Gospel of John is generally considered to have been written independently from the Gospels of Mark, Matthew, and Luke.

The Gospel of Luke is the only Gospel to describe its method of composition:

  • "Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed on to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, I too decided, after investigating everything carefully from the very first, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the truth concerning the things about which you have been instructed." –Luke 1:1-4

This passage describes a process similar to what is theorized with the Two-Source Hypothesis. The author indicates that he is aware that other Gospels had been written before he wrote his. The author states that he was not an eyewitness to the life of Jesus. Instead, he is basing his information on sources that he investigated. The author indicates that he has attempted to improve on his sources by producing "an orderly account" for Theophilus.

Originally, each Gospel was a document of a particular early Christian community. Eventually, the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John were collected as a group. In the second century, the early Church rejected attempts to make one of these four Gospels to be the only Gospel. For example, around AD 150, Marcion (who was later rejected as a heretic for other reasons) attempted to make an edited version of the Gospel of Luke to be the only Gospel. On the other hand, the early Church also rejected attempts to harmonize the Four Gospels into one unabridged account. For example, around AD 150, Tatian compiled his Diatessaron (Greek, "through the four") to be a synthesis of all four Gospels into one. Instead of going in the direction of either Marcion or Tatian, the early Church recognized the unique contributions of each of the four Gospels in terms of distinct themes, emphases, and structure.

Other gospels were written by early Christian communities. Most of these were produced by groups that were later considered to be heretics, such as the Gnostics. Often these apocryphal gospels were written in the name of famous early disciples such as Thomas or Peter to enhance the credibility of the book. The Church rejected these apocryphal gospels as distortions of the Jesus described in the four canonical Gospels.

Apocryphal Gospels

Infancy Gospels:

  • The Infancy Gospel of Thomas
  • The Proto-Gospel of James

Sayings Gospels:

  • The Gospel of Thomas

Revelatory Discourses:

  • The Apocryphon of John
  • The Apocryphon of James
  • The Epistle of the Apostles

Narrative Gospels:

  • The Gospel of the Nazarenes
  • The Gospel of the Egyptians
  • The Gospel of the Ebionites
  • The Gospel of Peter
  • The Gospel of Philip
  • Egerton Papyrus 2
  • Marcion’s Gospel
    (a redaction of the Gospel of Luke)

The Gospel of Thomas is one of the most famous apocryphal gospels. A copy of it written in Coptic was found in the 1940s in Egypt. It is a collection of 114 sayings supposedly said by Jesus and recorded by Thomas. Some of the sayings are similar to statements found in the Synoptic Gospels. The Early Church, however, rejected the Gospel of Thomas as an apocryphal Gospel. Early Christian writers mention other apocryphal gospels such as the Gospels of the Nazarenes, of the Egyptians, and of the Ebionites, but no complete copy of these exists today.

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The Gospel According to Mark

Since the four Gospels differ in content, wording, and arrangement of their story of Jesus, it is difficult to combine the details of each Gospel into one harmonized portrait of the life of Jesus. In this course, the four Gospels will be examined individually so students can see the individual portrait of Jesus in each Gospel. Since Mark is the earliest of the Gospels, Mark will be studied first. Matthew and Luke will then be studied to see what each of those Gospels says about Jesus above and beyond Mark's description. Finally, the Gospel of John will be examined since it is quite independent from the Synoptic Gospels. Hopefully, students will gain an appreciation for the distinct portrait that each Gospel writer makes of the life of Jesus.

Background and Historical Context

The majority of New Testament specialists think that the Gospel According to Mark was the earliest of the four canonical Gospels to be written. Church tradition states that John Mark (see Acts 12:12, 25; 15:37-39) wrote this Gospel in Rome based on the preaching of Peter (see Papias's statement quoted in Eusebius's Church History 3.39.15). Internal evidence from the text of the Gospel itself indicates that the anonymous author wrote this Gospel outside of Palestine most likely between AD 65-73. It's very likely that this Gospel was composed to encourage early Christians in Rome to remain committed to Jesus even in the face of martyrdom when Nero was persecuting Christians (see Tacitus, Annals of Rome 15.44).

Internal Evidence for the Origination of the Gospel of Mark:

  • Translation of Aramaic expressions into Greek (Mark 3:17; 5:41; 7:11, 34; 15:22, 34)
  • Use of Latin terms (Mark 5:9, 15; 6:37; 12:15, 42; 14:5; 15:16, 39)
  • Explanation of Jewish customs (Mark 7:2-4)
  • Allusions to suffering (Mark 8:31-38; 9:31; 10:33-34)
  • The imminence of the destruction of Jerusalem (Mark 12:1-12; 13:1-37)
  • References to a context outside of Palestine at a later time (Mark 9:41; 10:12)
  • Mention of Rufus and Alexander (Mark 15:21)

Major Passages Unique to the Gospel of Mark:

  • Parable of the seed growing secretly (Mk. 4:26-29)
  • Healing of the deaf mute (Mk. 7:32-37)
  • Healing of the blind man in Bethsaida (Mk. 8:22-26)
  • The young man that fled naked (Mk. 14:51-52)

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Introduction to Jesus as the Son of God (Mark 1:1-15)

The Gospel of Mark opens with Mark’s picture of John the Baptist. The Old Testament (Mk. 1:2-3; Isa. 40:3; Mal. 3:1; 4:5) is cited to show John as one who prepared the way for Jesus’ coming. John the Baptist was baptizing people in the Jordan River and preaching a message of repentance for the forgiveness of sins (Mk. 1:4-5). John the Baptist resembles Elijah (see Mk. 1:6; 2 Kgs. 1:8; Mal. 4:5-6) and proclaims that someone greater than he was coming (Mk. 1:7-8).

According to Mark, the inaugural episode of Jesus’ public ministry was when John the Baptist baptizes Jesus in the Jordan River (Mk. 1:9-11). Jesus comes up from the water, the Spirit of God descends on him like a dove, and a divine voice declares Jesus to be the Son of God (Mk. 1:11; cf. Isa. 42:1; Ps. 2:7). Since Mark never describes Jesus having a miraculous birth (as Matthew and Luke do), this episode is an important scene in the Gospel of Mark. The Spirit descends on Jesus which makes him an "anointed one" (cf. Hebrew, "messiah" and Greek, "christ") and Jesus is recognized as the Son of God (see Mk. 1:1, 11).

Immediately after his baptism, Jesus spends forty days in the wilderness being tempted (Mk. 1:12-13). Mark does not describe the nature of the temptations as Matthew and Luke do (see Mt. 4:1-11; Lk. 4:1-13). Jesus emerges victorious in this struggle over the demonic realm of Satan. Jesus' experience in the wilderness echoes those of Moses (see Exod. 24:18; 34:28) and Elijah (see 1 Kgs. 19:4-18), who had been empowered through intense, solitary experiences for forty days on a mountain. Jesus returns to Galilee empowered to preach that God’s kingdom was imminent (Mk. 1:14-15).

After introducing the reader to Jesus as the Son of God, Mark’s Gospel essentially divides into two major sections based on geography. First, Mark describes a positive start to Jesus’ preaching and activity in Galilee which was in northern Palestine (1:16-9:50). In Galilee, Jesus performs numerous mighty deeds and large crowds throng to him. Then, Mark describes what would have been a surprising, unexpected end to Jesus and his message when he suffers and dies in Jerusalem (10:1-16:8). The Gospel of Mark (unlike the Gospel of John) describes Jesus making only one journey to Jerusalem.

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Jesus and the "Kingdom of God"

Early on, Mark describes Jesus performing numerous mighty deeds (Greek, dynameis) such as exorcisms and healings. By mentioning so many mighty deeds, Mark is asserting that God’s power was evident in Jesus’ ministry and that God’s kingly rule (the "kingdom of God") was breaking into history in a decisive way, just as Jesus had preached. Jewish readers would have noticed the striking similarity between the miracles of Jesus in Mark’s Gospel (especially, the healings, resuscitations, and feedings) and those of Old Testament heroes such as Moses, Elijah, and Elisha (see Exod. 16:1-36; 1 Kgs. 17:14-24; 2 Kgs. 4:1-8:6). This is significant because the Jewish expectation of a messiah had strong connections to both Moses (see Deut. 18:15-18) and Elijah (see Mal. 4:5-6).

Jesus’ Mighty Deeds (dynameis) in Mark
  • Casting out a demon in the Capernaum synagogue (1:23-28)
  • Healing Peter’s mother-in-law of a fever (1:30-31)
  • Many healings and exorcisms (1:32-34)
  • Many exorcisms (1:39)
  • Healing a leper (1:40-45)
  • Healing a paralytic (2:1-12)
  • Healing a man’s withered hand (3:1-6)
  • Many healings and exorcisms (3:7-12)
  • Calming a storm on the sea (4:35-41)
  • Casting demons out of "Legion" (5:1-20)
  • Resuscitating Jairus’s daughter (5:21-24a, 35-43)
  • Healing a woman’s hemorrhage (5:24b-34)

·  Healing a few sick at Nazareth (6:5)

·  Feeding 5000 (6:30-44)

·  Walking on water (6:45-52)

·  Many healings (6:53-56)

·  Exorcism for a Syro-Phoenician woman’s daughter (7:24-30)

·  Healing a deaf mute (7:32-37)

·  Feeding 4000 (8:1-10)

·  Healing a blind man in Bethsaida (8:22-26)

·  Healing an epileptic child by exorcism (9:14-29)

·  Healing blind Bartimaeus in Jericho (10:46-52)

·  Cursing a fig tree (11:12-14, 20-25)

Readers notice that Mark describes virtually all of Jesus' mighty deeds occurring in and around Galilee (1:14-9:50). According to Mark, after beginning his public ministry with so many mighty deeds in Galilee, Jesus does not do these same kinds of things in Jerusalem (11:1-16:8). Based on his actions in Galilee, many people would have hoped that Jesus might demonstrate this same kind of power in Jerusalem against Pontius Pilate and the Romans (see Mt. 26:53). To the surprise of many, Jesus doesn't. Instead, he suffers and dies.

The miracles in Mark’s Gospel describe God’s reign breaking in and usurping the realm of evil spirits that haunted people of the ancient world. Many of the healings in Mark are described as exorcisms in which demons are cast out. In these exorcisms, Mark mentions that these evil spirits recognized Jesus’ authority and messianic identity even though he silenced them (1:23-27, 34; 3:11-12; 5:6-7; 9:20).

To facilitate the inbreaking of the kingdom of God, Jesus calls disciples to follow him (1:16-20; 2:14; 8:34; 10:21). From these followers, Jesus appoints twelve specific disciples to be his apostles (3:13-19). These apostles were used to expand the groundswell of the kingdom of God through their preaching and mighty deeds (3:14-15; 6:6b-13; 9:38-41). Having twelve apostles would be significant to indicate that a new "Israel" (a new people of God) was being established.

Unlike the other three Gospels, Mark contains little information about Jesus' teachings. There are a few parables in Mark (see 4:1-34; 12:1-12) but Matthew and Luke contain far more. In Mark, there is only one discourse (13:1-37) which is parallel to longer versions of it found in Matthew 24-25 and Luke 21. Mark does record some short, pithy statements (essentially, "one-liners") that Jesus made (2:20-21, 27-28; 9:1, 42-50; 10:14-15, 23-25). Instead of teachings, Mark focuses on Jesus' actions.

The Parables in Mark Chapter 4:

  • "The Parable of the Sower and the Soils" (4:1-9, 13-20) teaches that some would accept the message about the kingdom of God while others would not.
  • "The Parable of the Seed Growing Secretly" (4:26-29) teaches that the kingdom of God was undetected in its growth until it would burst onto the scene in a major way.
  • "The Parable of the Mustard Seed" (4:30-32) teaches that the kingdom of God would have seemingly insignificant origins but would expand into a major movement.

In Mark (as well as Matthew and Luke), Jesus frequently refers to himself as "son of man." Prior to Jesus, others had used this distinctly Jewish phrase with various connotations. In Hebrew poetry (see Job 25:6; 35:8; Pss 8:4; 80:17; 144:3; 146:3), the phrase "son of man" was used as a synonym for any mortal human being. In the book of Ezekiel, the LORD repeatedly addresses the prophet Ezekiel as "son of man." In Jewish apocalypses (see Daniel 7:13-14; 2 Esdras 13; 1 Enoch 37-71), however, the phrase "son of man" denotes an apocalyptic figure divinely sent and coming in clouds to establish God’s kingdom on earth. Most likely, the phrase "son of man" in the Gospel of Mark has this apocalyptic connotation because often the words and phrases used with it are similar to Daniel 7:13-14 (see Mk. 8:38; 13:26; 14:62).

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Opposition to Jesus in Galilee

Early on, Mark introduces the reader to the opponents of Jesus and his message. In a series of five controversy stories (2:1-3:6), Mark describes the growing opposition to Jesus from Jewish leaders in Galilee. Later (11:27-12:37), Mark describes further opposition in Jerusalem which is even more intense.

Opposition to Jesus in Galilee:

(1) Some Jewish scribes question Jesus’ authority to forgive sins when Jesus heals a paralytic (Mk. 2:1-12; Mt. 9:1-8; Lk. 5:17-26).

(2) Some Jewish scribes and Pharisees criticize Jesus for associating and eating with tax collectors and sinners (Mk. 2:13-17; Mt. 9:9-13; Lk. 5:27-32).

(3) Jesus’ spirituality is criticized since he did not regularly fast from food like the disciples of John the Baptist and those of the Pharisees (Mk. 2:18-22; Mt. 9:14-17; Lk. 5:33-39).

(4) Some Pharisees criticize Jesus for not keeping the Sabbath laws when his disciples picked grain on the Sabbath while walking through a field (Mk. 2:23-28; Mt. 12:1-8; Lk. 6:1-5).

(5) Some Pharisees criticize Jesus for not keeping the Sabbath laws since he deliberately healed a man’s deformed hand on the Sabbath (Mk. 3:1-6; Mt. 12:9-14; Lk. 6:6-11).

"The Pharisees went out and immediately conspired with the Herodians against him [Jesus], how to destroy him." – Mark 3:6

Early on, Mark describes John the Baptist being beheaded by Herod Antipas (1:14; 6:14-29). This event foreshadows that Jesus too might not be received but ultimately might suffer utter rejection and death.

According to Mark, the Pharisees and scribes repeatedly confront Jesus since he did not follow their traditions and rituals (1:22; 2:5-6, 16, 18, 24; 7:1-5). At times, the Pharisees and scribes specifically try to provoke Jesus by testing him (8:11; 10:2; 11:27-28; 12:13). Mark repeatedly describes these leaders as plotting to kill Jesus (3:6; 11:18; 12:12; 14:1, 10-11).

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How Jesus Was Misunderstood

The Gospel of Mark focuses on how Jesus' identity and mission were unknown or misunderstood. Mark seems to be answering the question, "How could Jesus be the messiah if he ends up rejected by his own people and crucified?" Many people in the first century rejected the thought that Jesus could have been the Son of God because his life seemed to end in such an ignominious way. Most Jewish people would have expected the messiah to have nationalistic interests and to be a political conqueror like Judas the Maccabee.

The Gospel of Mark poignantly portrays Jesus as the Son of God. Even though Mark doesn't describe Jesus being born as the Son of God (as Matthew and Luke do), in the opening episode, Jesus is declared to be the Son of God at his baptism by a voice from heaven (Mk. 1:9-11). His identity as the Son of God is then confirmed and reaffirmed by the many mighty deeds that Jesus did. By the time the reader has read the nine chapters about Jesus' activities in and around Galilee, there remains little doubt that Mark has verified that Jesus is the Son of God as seen in the impressive things he did.

Nevertheless, Mark indicates that most of the people around Jesus misunderstood his identity and mission. Repeatedly Mark describes Jesus' attempts to maintain privacy and demand silence about his activities. Mark attributes most of this secrecy as an effort to prevent problems caused by large crowds (see 1:45; 2:1-4; 3:7-10, 20, 31-32; 4:1; 5:24, 27-34; 6:31-34; 53-56; 7:24; 8:1-3; 9:30-32). Nevertheless, the Gospel of Mark repeatedly emphasizes Jesus seeking privacy, secrecy, and silence about his message and activities.

Jesus explains the parables only privately to the disciples, not to the crowds:

  • "When he was alone, those who were around him along with the twelve asked him about the parables. And he said to them, 'To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside, everything comes in parables; in order that they may indeed look, but not perceive, and may indeed listen, but not understand; so that they may not turn again and be forgiven.'" (Mark 4:10-12)
  • "With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples." (Mark 4:33-34)

Jesus silences the demons that identify him:

  • "Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, 'What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.' But Jesus rebuked him, saying, 'Be silent, and come out of him!'" (Mark 1:23-25)
  • "And he cured many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him." (Mark 1:34)
  • "Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and shouted, 'You are the Son of God!' But he sternly ordered them not to make him known. (Mark 3:11-12)

Jesus often demands that nothing be said of his mighty deeds:

  • After healing a man from leprosy: "After sternly warning him he sent him away at once, saying to him, 'See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.' But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word, so that Jesus could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter." (Mark 1:43-45)
  • After raising Jairus’ daughter: "He strictly ordered them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat." (Mark 5:43)
  • After healing a deaf man: "Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it." (Mark 7:36)
  • After healing a blind man: "Then he sent him away to his home, saying, 'Do not even go into the village.'" (Mark 8:26)
  • After Jesus was transfigured: "As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead." (Mark 9:9)

Despite the attempts to maintain secrecy, word gets out about Jesus. Mark then explains that Jesus' actions and activities were repeatedly misunderstood:

  • Jesus’ own family try to restrain him because people thought he was crazy (3:19b-21, 31-35).
  • The religious leaders attribute his ability to do mighty deeds, especially the exorcisms, to demonic sources (3:22-30).
  • When Jesus teaches in the synagogue of his own hometown of Nazareth, the people take offense at his message and activity since he was merely a carpenter whose family they knew (6:1-6a).
  • The crowds are confused by Jesus' parables since they are explained privately only to his disciples (4:10-12, 33-34).
  • The disciples who are closest to Jesus do not even correctly understand him. The disciples are repeatedly rebuked for their lack of faith and perception (4:13, 40-41; 6:50-52; 7:17-19; 8:14-21; 9:30-32).

Repeatedly, Mark is showing how Jesus could be the messiah and still end up rejected. Basically, Mark says that Jesus was the messiah but everyone misunderstood his identity and mission.

The episode at Caesarea Philippi is a decisive turning point in the Gospel of Mark (8:27-33). Caesarea Philippi was a town north of Galilee at the foot of Mount Hermon. According to Mark, Jesus asks the disciples about the public opinion of Jesus' identity. They respond by saying that some think he is John the Baptist, Elijah, or one of the prophets (cf. 6:14-15). Then Jesus asks the disciples about their personal opinion of his identity. Peter boldly declares, "You are the Christ" (8:29). Consistent with the other passages in Mark about the messianic secret, Jesus charges the disciples to say nothing about this (8:30).

For the first time in the Gospel of Mark, Jesus begins to tell his disciples at Caesarea Philippi that they are heading to Jerusalem where he will be rejected by the religious leaders and killed (8:31). There had been foreshadowing of this earlier in the Gospel of Mark (2:20), but this explicit statement is the first of three "Passion Predictions" in which Jesus pulls the disciples aside and teaches them that he will be rejected and killed in Jerusalem (see 8:31-33; 9:30-32; 10:32-34). Each time, the disciples don't understand.

Here at Caesarea Philippi, Peter is confused as to why Jesus would be rejected and killed. He had just stated that Jesus was the Christ. But Peter would have thought of a "christ" as a political deliverer who might free the Jewish people from their subjugation to Rome. Peter would have thought of a messiah in terms of someone like Judas the Maccabee who had successfully taken on the Seleucid rulers from Antioch in the 160s BC. Peter therefore rebukes Jesus for suggesting the idea that he would be rejected and killed (8:32). Jesus, however, rebukes Peter for disputing the idea that Jesus would suffer and die (8:33).

This episode at Caesarea Philippi (8:27-33) serves as the turning point in the Gospel of Mark as the focus shifts towards the impending crisis in Jerusalem where Jesus would suffer and die. Jesus begins instructing his disciples that they too must accept suffering and martyrdom if they are going to follow him (8:34-38; 10:38-40). The disciples were expected to sacrifice all in order to follow Jesus (10:17-31).

Shortly after the episode at Caesarea Philippi, Jesus is transfigured into a heavenly appearance on a mountain and he converses with Moses and Elijah (9:2-8). Peter, James, and John witness the episode, but they do not understand what happened (9:6, 10) and are told to keep it a secret (9:9-10). The transfiguration is an important episode because it shows that Jesus' teaching about his suffering and death are in continuity with the Law and Prophets (Moses and Elijah, respectively). Similar to Jesus' baptism (1:9-11), a voice from heaven again declares that Jesus is the Son of God (9:7) but this time the voice commands the disciples to listen to Jesus. The voice implies that the disciples should accept Jesus' teaching about his suffering and death even though it seemed contrary to their expectation of a messiah. The voice from heaven as well as the appearance of Moses and Elijah confirm that Jesus' suffering and death were part of a divine plan, even though it contradicted the standard Jewish expectation of a messiah in the first century.

Later as Jesus and the disciples are heading to Jerusalem, two disciples (James and John) ask for prestigious positions when Jesus establishes his kingdom in what they expect to be glory and power (10:35-37). Again, the disciples seem to be thinking in terms of Jesus being a conquering political messiah. Jesus, however, responds by questioning their willingness to endure the same kind of suffering and death he was facing (10:38-40). Like the episode at Caesarea Philippi, Jesus shifts their focus from conquering to suffering.

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Opposition to Jesus in Jerusalem (11:1-13:37)

Jesus makes a triumphal entry into Jerusalem as he arrives to celebrate Passover (Mk. 11:1-11). Mark's description of Jesus riding a colt would be significant because Jewish Christians would see implicit scriptural fulfillment in such a detail (see Zech. 9:9). The people of Jerusalem cheer Jesus into the city as a conquering hero:

  • "Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David! Hosanna in the highest heaven!" (Mark 11:9-10 quoting Ps. 118:25-26)

"Hosanna" in Aramaic literally means "save us" or "deliver us" -- the implication being "from the Romans." When the people of Jerusalem spread coats and leafy branches in the road, they are welcoming Jesus as a conquering king in the same way that city had celebrated the arrival of Jehu (2 Kings 9:13), Judas the Maccabee (2 Macc. 10:7), and Simon (1 Macc. 13:51). The city hails Jesus as being divinely sent as the conquering king to reestablish the long-awaited kingdom of David.

According to Mark, one of Jesus' first actions in Jerusalem is to cleanse the Temple, which served as a blatant challenge to the Temple establishment (chief priest, scribes, and elders). Jesus enters the Temple courts and drives out the animal sellers and moneychangers (Mark 11:11, 15-19). These business enterprises were originally established to help Jewish pilgrims to worship at the festivals. It was considered sacrilegious to give foreign coins (since they had depictions of Gentile rulers) in the Temple treasury. Sacrificial animals used at Passover were expected to have no wounds or scars (see Exod. 12:5). Selling animals and exchanging currency in the Temple would help Jewish pilgrims from foreign lands meet these regulations. Jesus, however, expels all these business enterprises from the Temple courts declaring that the religious rulers had made the Temple a den of robbers (see Jer. 7:1-11) when it was supposed to be a house of prayer for all the Gentiles (see Isa. 56:7). Jesus' actions and words imply a complete rejection of the Temple and its ultimate destruction (see Mark 12:9, 32-34; 13:1-2; 14:57-58; 15:29; Acts 6:13-14). According to Mark (11:18), Jesus' audacious actions in the Temple solidify the religious leaders in their opposition against him.

Interwoven in Mark's narrative about Jesus cleansing the Temple is the curious episode in which Jesus curses a fig tree outside of Jerusalem. Mark progressively alternates the scenes between the Temple (11:11) and the fig tree (11:12-14) and back to the Temple (11:15-19) and the fig tree (11:20-24). Such a literary technique implies that the significance of Jesus' actions against the fig tree is wrapped up in the significance of the Temple cleansing. By itself, the fig-tree episode seems especially odd since it's the only destructive miracle attributed to Jesus in the four Gospels. Also, it seems petty and trivial to destroy a tree for not having figs, especially when it wasn't even the season for figs (11:13). Most likely, Jesus' actions are a dramatic act to make a point similar to the way that Hebrew prophets such as Hosea (1:1-3:5), Isaiah (20:1-6), Jeremiah (27:1-28:17), and Ezekiel (4:1-5:17) made a point by doing outrageous things. Most likely, cursing the fig tree for not having fruit represents a rejection of the Temple for not serving its purpose (see Mark 11:17; 12:32-34; 15:38).

Mark describes Jesus engaging in six debates during his last fateful week in Jerusalem (11:27-13:37). These debates angered the religious leaders to the point that they plotted Jesus' death (see Mk. 12:12).

Jesus' Debates in Jerusalem:

(1) In Mark 11:27-33, the chief priests, scribes, and elders question Jesus about the source of his authority to cleanse the Temple. Jesus turned the tables on them by asking them what they considered to be the source of John the Baptist's authority to baptize.

(2) In Mark 12:1-12, Jesus tells the "Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard." This allegory accused the Jewish leaders of rejecting and killing God’s prophets and even God's Son (Jesus).

(3) In Mark 12:13-17, the Pharisees and Herodians try to trap Jesus by asking him a question about paying taxes to the Romans. Jesus astutely answers that paying taxes to Caesar is insignificant compared to the more important matter of submitting oneself to God.

(4) In Mark 12:18-27, the Sadducees try to trap Jesus on a question about the resurrection in a yarn about a childless widow who was married seven times. Jesus responds based on Exodus 3:6-16 that God is (not "was") the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

(5) In Mark 12:28-34, a scribe questions Jesus regarding what he thought was the greatest commandment in the Law. Jesus answers that it's to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love your neighbor as yourself.

(6) In Mark 12:35-37, Jesus challenges the religious leaders by asking an interpretive question about how David could call his own descendant (the Messiah) "Lord" in Ps 110:1.

Mark 13:1-37 is often called the "Little Apocalypse" because Jesus converses privately with four disciples about the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple which occurred four decades later in AD 70 (13:1-4). The discourse functions as Jesus' farewell address in the Gospel of Mark to encourage the readers to remain faithful to the bitter end. The discourse includes many apocalyptic themes such as military aggression (13:7-8), natural disasters (13:8), religious persecution (13:9-13), religious apostasy (13:5-6, 14, 21-22), intense suffering (13:14-20), cosmic disturbances (13:24-25), and a divine intrusion into history (13:26-27). Early disciples would have expected the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple to coincide with the coming of the son of man and the end of the world (see especially Luke's explicit interpretation of Mark 13:14-19 in Luke 21:20-24 as being the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in AD 70).

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Jesus as the Suffering Son of God (14:1-16:8)

Mark 14:1-16:8 is the "Passion Narrative" in the Gospel of Mark. Each of the four Gospels has a Passion Narrative that describes the consecutive events that led to the death and resurrection of Jesus. Prior to the Passion Narrative, the death of Jesus had been implicitly (2:20; 12:6-11) and explicitly predicted (8:31-33; 9:30-32; 10:32-34, 45) in the Gospel of Mark. Throughout the Gospel of Mark, mention is also made of the plotting behind the scenes to arrest and kill Jesus (3:6; 11:18; 12:12). In chapters 14-15, those events now play out.

To this point, the Gospel of Mark has demonstrated Jesus' identity as the Son of God. At his baptism, a voice from heaven addresses Jesus as the Son of God (1:11). Occasionally, demons identified Jesus as the Son of God (3:11; 5:7). At the transfiguration, a voice from heaven names Jesus as the Son of God (9:7). In the "Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard" (12:1-12), Jesus describes himself as the Son of God who was rejected by the leaders of Jerusalem. Jesus' numerous mighty deeds throughout the first nine chapters of Mark establish his credentials as the Son of God. Mark leaves little doubt in the mind of the readers that Jesus is the Son of God. This is important because Jesus' death alone would have seemed so scandalous that many would have considered it impossible for Jesus to have been the Son of God since he had been crucified.

Since Jesus had done so many mighty deeds in Galilee (1:14-9:50), readers would expect Jesus to do the same kinds of powerful things in Jerusalem -- but he doesn't. Instead of conquering, he is crucified. The original readers of the Gospel of Mark would have found this to be a startling, unexpected end to Jesus' life. Modern readers are so familiar with the simple fact of Jesus' death that it's difficult to think of it any other way. (Compare, for example, how the world before April 1912 would have considered the Titanic incapable of sinking, but after the fact, it's almost impossible to think of the Titanic any other way.)

The concept of a "crucified Christ" or a "suffering Son of God" would have seemed like an oxymoron in the first century. On the one hand, the "christ" (by any messianic title, whether "son of David," "Son of God," "son of man," etc.) was expected to be a deliverer for the Jewish people. Literally, the Hebrew word "messiah" and the Greek word "christ" translate as "anointed one" in English. Most Jews thought that this "anointed one" would be divinely appointed to the task of delivering the Jewish people and reestablishing a glorious kingdom on earth. The expectation would have been for this "anointed one" to free the Jewish people from the Romans much the same way that Judas the Maccabee had successfully freed the Jewish people from Antiochus Epiphanes and the Seleucid dynasty in the 160s BC.

On the other hand, crucifixion was the most humiliating and demeaning form of execution in the ancient world. The victim was tied or nailed naked to a tree or poles and left exposed to the elements until death occurred. Crucifixion was so barbaric that the Romans rarely executed any of their own citizens in this way. To think that the christ would suffer by crucifixion would have seemed to be an extremely ridiculous contradiction of terms (see 1 Cor. 1:18-2:5). However, that's exactly how the Gospel of Mark describes Jesus -- as the "suffering Son of God" or the "crucified Christ."

As the Jewish festival of Passover approaches, the religious leaders (designated as the chief priests, scribes, and elders) conspire to kill Jesus (14:1-2). During a meal at the house of a leper, an unnamed woman (ironic in light of 14:9!) enters and anoints Jesus' head with a lavish amount of expensive perfume (14:3-5). The anointing is significant because it marks Jesus as an "anointed one" (see 1 Sam. 10:1; 2 Kings 9:6) and it provides Jesus a proper burial in advance of his death (14:8; 16:1). When Jesus scolds the disciples for their superficial attempt to rebuff the woman (14:4-9), Judas Iscariot becomes so disgruntled that he decides to deliver Jesus into the hands of the religious authorities (14:10-11).

On the first day of the festival, Jesus sends two disciples ahead to prepare the Passover meal in an upper room (14:12-16). While eating the Passover meal with his disciples, Jesus states his awareness of an unnamed betrayer (Judas) in their midst (14:17-18). The disciples are shocked and begin questioning themselves as to who it might be (14:19-21). Jesus radically reinterprets the elements of the Passover Seder to be a new sacred meal to commemorate his own impending death (14:22-25; see also 1 Cor. 11:23-25). Jesus announces that this would be his last meal with them due to the impending events that the night held (14:25). The meal is concluded with a hymn (14:26), which traditionally would have been one of the Hallel Psalms (Pss. 115-118).

As the group proceeds outside the walls of Jerusalem to the Mount of Olives (14:26), Jesus predicts that all the disciples would desert him. Peter insists otherwise, but Jesus predicts that Peter would deny Jesus three times that very night (14:27-31). Jesus and the disciples then enter Gethsemane outside the eastern side of Jerusalem. Jesus agonizes in prayer that he might not have to suffer but still he is willing to submit himself to such an outcome (14:32-42). Nearby, Peter, James, and John cannot stay awake. This episode would have encouraged early readers of the Gospel of Mark to face possibility of martyrdom resolutely the same way that Jesus did.

Judas and a gang of men from the Temple arrive. Judas greets Jesus with a kiss to indicate whom they are to arrest (14:43-46). After a brief fight by one of the disciples (who is then rebuked by Jesus), Jesus is arrested without further incident. The disciples all flee because they would not want to be arrested without resistance as they saw Jesus doing (14:43-52).

The Jewish council comprised of the chief priests, scribes, and elders then examines Jesus (14:53). As high priest, Caiaphas leads the interrogations. Outside, Peter is repeatedly asked about his association with Jesus and Peter denies knowing Jesus three times (14:54, 66-72). The Gospel of Mark interweaves Jesus' interrogation inside with scenes of Peter's interrogation outside in order to contrast the proper and improper ways that early Christians were supposed to respond to persecution and threats (as seen in Jesus and Peter, respectively).

The council is unable to find testimony sufficient and consistent enough to condemn Jesus (14:55-59). Jesus remains silent throughout the irregular proceedings (14:60-61a). Finally, the high priest challenges Jesus with the decisive question, "Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?" Jesus responds, "I am and you will see the son of man seated at the right hand of Power and coming with the clouds of heaven." Jesus' response is loaded with messianic language from the pivotal messianic passages Daniel 7:13-14 and Psalm 110:1. (Note: The terms "Blessed One" and "Power" were respectful ways to refer to God that avoided pronouncing God's name.) The high priest announces that Jesus has committed blasphemy and was therefore worthy of execution.

Probably since the Jewish council would not have had the authority to execute Jesus, in the morning Jesus is handed over to the Roman Procurator, Pontius Pilate. Pilate finds nothing criminal about Jesus (15:1-5). Pilate attempts to settle the matter about Jesus by making an amnesty gesture. To the crowds in Jerusalem he offers the freedom of either Jesus or a rebel convicted of murder named Barabbas (15:6-15). Pilate consents to the crowd’s demand for Barabbas to be released and Jesus to be crucified. The episode is significant because it explains how Jesus dies by a Roman form of execution (crucifixion) even though Jesus is found innocent by the Roman authority in the land. The episode implicates the chief priests for the death of Jesus while exonerating Pilate (see especially 15:10-11, 15).

At first, Jesus was given a brutal whipping, which was known as flogging (15:15). Then, the Roman soldiers abuse Jesus with a purple robe and a crown of thorns while mocking him as "king of the Jews" (15:16-20). Weakened from this mistreatment, the Roman soldiers force Simon of Cyrene to carry Jesus’ crossbeam to the place of execution (15:21). Jesus is then crucified outside the city at a place known as "Golgotha" in Aramaic or "skull" in English (Latin, calvaria from which "Calvary" is derived). The official charge on the cross reads, "King of the Jews" (15:26). The phrase "King of the Jews" is mentioned five times in the narratives (15:2, 9, 12, 18, 26) to highlight the irony that Jesus actually is king of the Jews, just not the type of king most expected.

According to Mark, at 9 a.m. on Friday, Jesus is crucified (15:25). He endures further reproach from bystanders and passersby (15:27-32). Mark states that darkness covers the land from noon to 3 p.m. This would have been an ominous, apocalyptic sign of divine judgment. At 3 p.m., Jesus shouts in Aramaic, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Bystanders misunderstand the shout as a call for help from Elijah just before Jesus dies (15:33-37). The shout is actually a quotation of the opening words of Psalm 22 which draws attention to the many coincidences between Jesus' death and this particular Psalm of Lament (see especially Ps. 22:1, 6-8, 14-21a). When Jesus dies, the curtain of the Temple was torn in two (15:38), which for Mark probably signifies divine judgment on the Temple establishment due to the death of Jesus.

In the most ironic turn of events, the Roman centurion who stood facing Jesus as he dies declares, "Truly this man was God's Son!" (15:39). The irony of this single verse is so rich that it serves as the climax to the entire Gospel of Mark. Finally in the Gospel of Mark, a human being -- someone other than a demon (3:11; 5:7) or the voice from heaven (1:11; 9:7) -- recognizes and declares Jesus to be the Son of God despite his crucifixion. Ironically, this lone confessor was a Gentile who would have had little concept of a Jewish messiah. Also ironically, the Roman centurion confesses Jesus to be God's Son while watching him die -- which was the aspect of Jesus' life that most felt had eliminated Jesus from even being considered the messiah. While Peter (8:27-33), James and John (10:35-40) might have recognized Jesus' greatness, they could not understand why Jesus would suffer and die. The Roman centurion, on the other hand, recognizes Jesus to be the Son of God while he was in the very act of suffering and dying.

After Jesus dies, a member of the Jewish council named Joseph of Arimathea, who is secretly sympathetic toward Jesus, secures the body of Jesus and places it in his own tomb (15:40-47). Some women who had been followers of Jesus watch from a distance as the Sabbath dawns (i.e., sundown or around 6 p.m. on Friday evening). The women have no opportunity to give Jesus a proper burial until first light on Sunday morning (i.e., after the Sabbath had ended at sundown on Saturday evening). On Sunday morning, they go to the tomb to do so. To their surprise, the tomb is already open and empty. A young man dressed in white tells them that Jesus has been raised and that they are to tell his disciples that he is going before them to Galilee (16:1-8). Instead of obeying these instructions, the women leave the tomb terrified and say nothing to anyone (16:8).

The Gospel of Mark ends without mentioning Jesus appearing to anyone after his resurrection. Nevertheless, the empty tomb scene in Mark signifies God’s approval of Jesus despite the death he suffered. The last word about Jesus in the Gospel of Mark was not his ignominious death on a Roman cross but his divine vindication and exaltation through an empty tomb.

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The Ending of Mark

At this point (16:8), the Gospel of Mark ends. Jesus makes no resurrection appearances as he does in Matthew, Luke, John, or Acts. The ending of Mark seems abrupt when compared to Matthew, Luke, and John; however, one must remember that Mark was the earliest of the Gospels to have been written so Mark would not have seemed incomplete to the original readers. It should also be noted that Mark begins abruptly (compared to Matthew and Luke) without mentioning any details about Jesus' birth or childhood (cf. Matthew 1-2, Luke 1-2).

The last verse (16:8) of the Gospel of Mark has been the subject of much debate. No mention is made of how word about Jesus' resurrection ever got to the male disciples or the rest of the church. Word spread soon because within a few years, early Christians were reciting traditions about Jesus death, burial, resurrection, and appearances (as seen in 1 Cor. 15:3-8, which was written around AD 54).

The earliest manuscripts of the Gospel of Mark end at 16:8 with no further text. After the Gospels of Matthew, Luke, and John were collected with Mark into a four-fold Gospel canon, the ending of Mark would have looked extremely terse. Because of this, two different endings were added in later manuscripts of the Gospel of Mark. The so-called "shorter ending" is found in a few manuscripts, while many Greek manuscripts add a so-called "longer ending." This longer ending (16:9-20) became so widespread that it appears today in most copies of the Bible in English -- although most modern translations use brackets or notes to indicate that these verses are not found in the earliest copies of Mark. Most likely, the original edition of Mark’s Gospel ended at 16:8 and scribes "rounded off" the seemingly abrupt ending of Mark by compiling endings based on episodes known from Matthew, Luke, John, and Acts.

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Key Terms and Concepts for Review:

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Where to Next?

Unless otherwise noted, scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible [NRSV], copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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