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Notes on the International Sunday School Lessons
Spring 2003
by Jarl K. Waggoner
Lesson 1 - Mark 1:9-26
1:9 - "was baptized of John" - Jesus' baptism by John did not indicate He was repenting of sin, as was the case with others (cf. 1:4), but that he was identifying with sinners and accepting His redemptive role as their Substitute (BKC, 25; WBC, 934; Tasker, Matthew, 49).
1:10 - "Spirit like a dove" - All three members of the Trinity as represented at Jesus' baptism (cf. 1:11). The Holy Spirit is represented in the form of a dove. The dove is not merely a metaphor but a bodily form the Spirit took (Luke 3:22). The Spirit's coming "on Jesus empowered Him for His messianic mission (cf. Acts 10:38) and the task of baptizing others with the Spirit, as John predicted (Mark 1:8)" (BKC, 105).
1:11 - "in whom I am well pleased" - The voice was clearly that of the Father, even though he is not named here. The Father's pleasure is especially directed to the Son's willingness to accept his divine mission, as evidenced by his baptism (Hend., 44).
1:12 - "driveth him into the wilderness" - "Driveth" is a strong word that is used of the casting out of demons (Robt., 1:255). The same Spirit who anointed Jesus drove him into the wilderness, where he would be tempted by Satan (v. 13).
1:13 - "tempted of Satan" - In the "wilderness," or "desert," Jesus was tempted by Satan. The fuller account is found in Matthew 4:1-11 and Luke 4:1-13.
1:14 - "After . . . John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee" - Jesus' public ministry in Galilee began after John was imprisoned (NIVBC, 141). This was about a year after the baptism and temptation of Jesus.
1:15 - "kingdom of God is at hand" - The kingdom was near ("at hand") because the king was present. The nature of the kingdom Jesus proclaimed is a matter of debate. See BKC (24) for discussion of issues. The concept of the kingdom refers to "God's sovereign activity of ruling over His Creation" (BKC, 107). "The Jews naturally understood His reference to the kingdom of God to be the long-awaited messianic kingdom." Clearly, the future messianic (millennial) kingdom is and was a part of the kingdom Jesus proclaimed, but the term had broader connotations, referring to God's rule over the earth and in the hearts of people (MacArthur, Gospel according to Jesus, 118). Repentance was the requirement for entrance into this kingdom.
1:18 - "they forsook their nets and followed him" - Simon (Peter) and Andrew had met Jesus previously (John 1:35-42), about a year before. Jesus' call to them in Mark 1:17 was a call to a more permanent relationship as those who would be trained to be "fishers of men."
1:22 - "taught as one that had authority" - Jesus' teaching amazed his hearers because he did not quote other teachers as the scribes did.
1:24 - "Art thou come to destroy us . . . Holy One of God" - The demon ("unclean spirit") spoke not only for itself but for all the demonic forces, using the plural "us." The demon recognized Jesus' holiness and power.
Lesson 2 - Mark 2:3-12, 14-17
2:4 - "uncovered the roof" - Most houses had flat roofs with access from an outside stairway. Roofs were made of parallel beams covered with branches, straw, and hardened mud (Hend., 88).
2:5 - "When Jesus saw their faith" - This faith was that of both the paralytic and his friends. Their faith was seen in their works (Stein, Luke, 176).
2:5 - "thy sins be forgiven" - Jewish teaching often associated sickness or calamity with personal sin (cf. John 9:1-3). Some suggest that Jesus' words pointed to sin as the ultimate source of human sickness without indicating the man's condition was the result of personal sin (BKC, 112). While this is possible, it is clear that Jesus did not connect the man's condition with his sin. Jesus was concerned primarily with the man's spiritual condition and thus pronounced his sins forgiven.
2:6 - "scribes" - Scribes were experts in the Mosaic law and are called "lawyers" in the NT. They "belonged mainly to the party of the Pharisees, but as a body were distinct from them" (NBD, 1151).
2:9 - "[Which] is easier to say . . . Thy sins be forgiven . . . or to say, Arise, and take up thy bed, and walk?" - The scribes no doubt considered it easier to say one's sins are forgiven, because it could not be verified as a healing could be. In reality, both "require omnipotent power . . . Jesus decides, however, that if, as the scribes reason, a miracle in the physical sphere is required in order to prove to them his 'authority' (right plus power) in the spiritual realm, then let them see this miracle!" (Hend., 91).
2:10 - "Son of man" - This was Jesus' favorite self-designation. He often uses it as a synonym for "I," though the background in Daniel 7:13 gives it messianic overtones. Hendriksen (91) says it reveals something with reference to him, while "concealing even more, especially to those not thoroughly acquainted with the Old Testament. . . . The term characterizes Jesus as the Sufferer."
2:10-11- "that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins" - "The subsequent healing verified the claim to grant forgiveness. As surely as actual healing followed Jesus' statement 'Get up' (v.11), so actual forgiveness resulted from 'your sins are forgiven'" (NIVBC, 144).
2:14 - "Levi the son of Alphaeus" - Levi is another name for Matthew (cf. Matt. 9:9; Mark 3:18). Another disciple named James is said to be the son of a man named Alphaeus (Mark 3:18), though it is doubtful he and Levi were brothers (Hend., 93).
2:14 - "receipt of custom" - This was a tax collector's booth (cf. NIV). It was a place where tax collectors collected tariffs on merchandise passing along the highway (Hend., 94).
2:15 - "publicans and sinners" - "Publicans" were tax collectors. These were Jewish people who collected taxes for the Romans. They were employed by Romans who had contracted for the right to collect taxes in the various provinces. The system was often abused by those who collected taxes far in excess of what Rome required in order to enrich themselves. As such publicans were greatly despised and considered traitors (NBD, 1065). "Sinners" probably refers to Jews who did not keep the Mosaic law and follow the traditions of the Pharisees (BKC, 113; Stein, Luke, 182).
2:15 - "there were many, and they followed him" - Some have taken this to refer to Jesus' disciples in general (cf. NIV), though it is probably best taken as a specific reference to the publicans and sinners who had begun to follow him (Cole, 69; Hend., 96; cf. NASB).
2:17 - "I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance" - The scribes and Pharisees could not deny that the sinners Jesus called and was associating with were in need of repentance. The "righteous" were those like the scribes and Pharisees who wrongly considered themselves righteous. Such people saw no need to repent (BKC, 113; NIVBC, 148).
Lesson 3 - Mark 4:36-41; 5:2-13
4:36 - "other little ships" - These were boats presumably occupied by those who wanted to follow along.
4:37 - "great storm" - The Sea of Galilee is especially susceptible to sudden, violent storms (NIVBC, 154).
4:38 - "carest thou not that we perish?" - The disciples's question was a stinging criticism of Christ (Hend., 178) and indicates that "they did not know who he really was" (NIVBC, 154).
4:39 - "Peace, be still" - This is a rather mild translation of Jesus' words, which was a strong command meaning, "Be silent! Be muzzled and remain so!" (BKC, 122).
4:40 - "how is it that ye have no faith?" - NIV's, "Do you still have no faith?" is better (cf. NRSV). That is, Jesus was asking whether they still lacked faith after all they had seen. Their fear was a result of a lack of faith. "The disciples were not rebuked for having no faith at all but for lacking sufficient faith. They lacked sufficient faith to realize that if they were in the Lord's presence, they need not have feared. No harm could come upon them when they were in the presence of the Master of nature" (Stein, Luke, 253).
4:41 - "feared exceedingly" - Literally, this is "feared (with) great fear." Whereas the fear Jesus addressed in verse 40 may have related, at least in part, to the disciples' fear of dying in the sea, the fear here is one of awe at the power they had seen demonstrated by Jesus (Hend., 180). This is a "reverence that overtakes people in the presence of supernatural power" (BKC, 122).
5:2 - "when he was come out of the ship" - Jesus and the disciples had just crossed the Sea of Galiee, arriving in the "country of the Gadarenes" (v. 1). There is considerable debate about the exact location of this region (cf. Hend., 187-8), but it is clearly on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee, an area that was predominantly Gentile and within the Decapolis area (cf. v. 20).
5:2 - "a man with an unclean spirit" - According to Matthew 8:28, there were two demon-possessed men. Mark, however, focused only on one. "'Unclean' means 'evil' (cf. Luke 7:21; 8:2 with 4:33, 36). The unclean spirits are morally filthy" (Hend., 188).
5:6 - "worshipped" - This word is commonly used for worship and thus translated that way. However, it means to prostrate oneself before another (BAG, 723), and that is all that is meant here (Hend., 190; cf. NASB; NIV). The parallel passage uses a different word and indicates only that the man fell down before Jesus (Luke 8:28).
5:7 - "torment me not" - The demon speaking through the man immediately recognized Jesus and pleaded that the Lord not send him to his final punishment then (Matthew 8:29 adds, "before the time," that is, before the eschatological judgment).
5:9 - "What is thy name?" - This is the only instance in which Jesus spoke to a demon. Various answers have been given for why he asked the question here, but it seems likely it was to let both the onlookers and the demoniac himself know the seriousness of the man's condition-Jesus was not dealing with just a single demon here (Hend., 191-2).
5:10 - "out of the country" - This may have been a simple request on the part of the demons not to be sent out of that region where they were comfortable and could so freely torment people (BKC, 123). It seems likely, however, that the request is the equivalent of the request in Luke 8:31 not to be sent into the "deep," or the "abyss," the bottomless pit that serves as a prison for certain demons (2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6). See Plummer, 143. "They feared being returned to the place of detention to remain in a disembodied state until the judgment" (WBC, 997).
5:12 - "Send us into the swine" - The demons "knew they were subject to Jesus' command, and in a desperate attempt to avoid being consigned to a disembodied state until final judgment, they made this appeal" (BKC, 123).
5:13 - "the herd ran . . . into the sea . . . and were choked in the sea" - Why did the demon-possessed pigs rush into the sea and drown? "Was it simply a yearning to destroy? Was it perhaps a sinister hope that the owners of the herd, seeing their property destroyed, would be filled with antagonism toward Jesus? The answer has not been revealed" (Hend., 193). The destruction of the herd, however, proved that the demons had left the man (Plummer, 143; Cole, 98; Stein, Luke, 257).
Lesson 4 - Mark 6:1-13
Background - Luke 4:16-30 records a similar visit of Jesus to Nazareth. Some believe that visit occurred at an earlier time, and the visit recorded in Mark 6:1-6 and Matthew 13:53-58 occurred later in Jesus' ministry (Robertson, Harmony of the Gospels, 77). Others, however, see all three accounts as recording the same event (Hend., 220).
6:1 - "went out . . . and came into his own country" - Jesus departed from Capernaum (cf. 5:21-43) and traveled to "his own country," that is, Nazareth, some 20 miles away.
6:2 - "From whence hath this man these things?" - Although the people who heard Jesus were "astonished," they questioned the source of his teaching and miracles. "Only two were possible: His source was God, or Satan (cf. 3:22)" (BKC, 126; cf. NIVBC, 158).
6:3 - "Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary?" - The people of Nazareth considered Jesus a common person like themselves and resented his being hailed as a rabbi and miracle worker. By identifying him as Mary's son, they may have been disparaging him since "it was not customary among Jews to describe a man as the son of his mother" (NIVBC, 158).
6:4 - "A prophet is not without honour, but in his own country" - This was a proverbial saying. By it Jesus acknowledged that he was a prophet and that his rejection in his hometown was not unexpected.
6:5 - "he could do there no mighty work" - This is not an absolute statement, for Mark goes on to say Jesus healed a "few sick folk" there. The scarcity of miracles was due to the people's unbelief. Either Jesus chose not to work miracles in this "climate of unbelief" (NIVBC, 158; Hend., 224), or because of their unbelief few came to seek healing (BKC, 127).
6:8-9 - "take nothing . . . no scrip . . . not . . . two coats" - "Only that which is absolutely necessary must be taken along on the trip. Why? Because God will provide. The disciples . . . must place their faith entirely in him" (Hend., 227). "Scrip" refers to a leather bag used for carrying provision (Vine's, 665 "wallet"). The disciples were instructed not to take an extra tunic, which was normally used as a covering at night. "They were to depend on God to provide food and shelter through the hospitality of Jewish households" (BKC, 128).
6:8-9 - There is an interpretive problem here in regard to the parallel passages in Matthew 10:9-10 and Luke 9:3. Matthew and Luke forbid taking a staff, and Matthew forbids sandals. In both cases, the idea is probably that they were not to take an extra staff or pair of sandals (Hend., 228-9; BKC, 128).
6:10 - "there abide till ye depart" - The disciples were to stay where they were first offered hospitality. They were not to seek or accept more comfortable accommodations. This injunction would protect their reputations (NIVBC, 159).
6:11 - "shake off the dust under your feet" - Jewish people often performed this symbolic act when leaving Gentile territory. It showed "that they were dissociating themselves from it. This would tell Jewish hearers they were acting like pagans in rejecting the disciples' message" (BKC, 128).
6:13 - "cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them" - The casting out of demons authenticated their message of repentance (cf. 6:7). "Oil" was often used medicinally in NT times (cf. Luke 10:34), but here it probably was used symbolically of the presence and power of the Holy Spirit (Hend., 231-2).
Lesson 5 - Mark 7:1-15
7:2 - "defiled, . . . unwashen hands" - The disciples of Jesus did not follow the Pharisaic tradition of ceremonial hand washing before meals. "Defiled" was a term "denoting whatever was contaminated according to their religious rituals and thus was unfit to be called holy or devoted to God" (BKC, 132).
7:3 - "they wash their hands" - Verses 3 and 4 form a parenthetical statement designed to inform Mark's Gentile readers of the Jewish practice the scribes and Pharisees were concerned with here. It involved an elaborate ritual in which water was poured over the hands (Hend., 272-3).
7:3 - "the tradition of the elders" - This refers to the so-called oral law that the Pharisees claimed was given to Moses on Mt. Sinai. It was a "great mass of oral tradition that had arisen about the law. Its purpose was to regulate a person's life completely, and it was passed on from one generation to the next as binding regulations" (NIVBC, 162).
7:4 - "when they come from the market" - Here "Mark gives an example of the custom. After being in the marketplace and coming into contact with Gentiles or even nonobservant Jews, the Pharisees would wash themselves to ensure their ritual cleanness" (NIVBC, 162).
7:6 - "Esaias (Isaiah) prophesieth of you hypocrites" - Jesus was not saying Isaiah had prophesied the actions of the scribes and Pharisees but that Isaiah's characterization of the people of his own day was equally applicable to the Jesus' critics (WBC, 1002). Hypocrite was a word that referred to an actor. In Greek and Roman plays, actors wore masks to portray various characters. Thus, the word came to be used metaphorically, as Jesus used it here, to mean one whose outward appearance hid his true intentions (Vine's, 316). In the case of the scribes and Pharisees, their words honored God, but their hearts were far from God.
7:8 - "laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men" - The Pharisees equated their own man-made traditions with the doctrines of God (v. 7). In so doing, they set aside God's commandments. "This is not an overstatement, for the Pharisees viewed oral tradition as being more authoritative than the written law of the OT" (WBC, 1002).
7:10 - "For Moses said, . . ." - Here Jesus gives an example of how the Pharisees set aside God's commands in order to keep their own traditions (v. 9). The two laws Jesus referred to are in Exodus 20:12 and 21:17.
7:11 - "It is Corban" - "Corban" referred to a gift devoted to God. According to Pharisaic tradition, a person could declare what he intended to give to his parents to be "corban" and thus devoted to God's service. As such, it could not be used for any other purpose, including the care of parents. "By devoting the gift to God, a son did not necessarily promise it to the temple nor did he prevent its use for himself. What he did was to exclude legally his parents from benefiting from it" (NIVBC, 162). As Hendriksen says, "What was thus unjustly withdrawn from the parents was not necessarily offered to God at all. The one who shouted, "(It's) corban" could simply keep it for himself" (279).
7:13 - "making the word of God of none effect" - The verb means to "make void" and was used of annulling contracts (BAG, 33; Plummer, 184).
7:15 - "nothing from without a man, . . . can defile him; but the things which come out of him . . . defile the man" - Here Jesus was saying that "moral defilement is spiritual, not physical" (WBC, 956). Outward practices and things (such as food) do not make one morally unclean. Sin comes from within the heart (cf. Mark 7:20-23). His words also "demonstrated the true spiritual intent of the laws regarding clean and unclean food in the Mosaic Law. . . . A Jew who ate 'unclean' food was defiled not by the food, but by his disobeying God's command" (BKC, 134).
Lesson 6 - Mark 11:1-9, 15-18
11:1 - "Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount of Olives" - The Mount of Olives was directly east of Jerusalem and overlooking the city. Bethany was on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives, about two miles from Jerusalem. The exact location of Bethphage is unknown but it apparently was between Bethany and Jerusalem on the Mount of Olives (Hend., 432; Old ISBE, 451).
11:2 - "village over against you" - This is probably Bethphage "since Jesus had lodged in Bethany the previous night" (WBC, 965; cf. NIVBC, 93). Robt (1:165), however, suggests it was Bethany.
11:2 - "ye shall find a colt" - Matthew 21:2 mentions a donkey along with the colt. Jesus rode the colt; the colt's mother naturally was taken along (Hendriksen, Matthew, 763). Jesus' knowledge of the colt may have come by means of His omniscience, or it is possible this was all prearranged. As "Lord" Jesus had the right to requisition the colt for His use (Hend., 433).
11:2 - "whereon never man sat" - This was an unbroken animal, "by God reserved for sacred use" (Hend., 432). "Such animals were regarded as especially suitable for sacred purposes (cf. Nu 19:2; Dt 21:3; 1Sa 6:7)" (NIVBC, 178).The donkey was symbolic of peace and humility (BKC, 67; WBC, 965). Jesus' riding the donkey fulfilled Zechariah 9:9, a messianic prophecy.
11:8 - "branches" - Only John 12:13 identifies these as palm branches.
11:9 - "Hosanna" - Hosanna literally means "save now" (cf. Ps. 118:25). "In time it became an invocation of blessing and even an acclamation, the latter being the meaning here" (NIVBC, 94; cf. BKC, 68). This expression, along with "Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord," is taken from Psalm 118:25-26. This messianic psalm of praise was sung at the Passover. The quotation from it and the designation of Jesus as the Son of David was a clear declaration (at least of the hope) that Jesus was the Messiah (Hend., 438; WBC, 965). Of course, ultimately Jesus was rejected because He did not fulfill their concept of the Messiah.
11:10 - "Blessed be the kingdom of our father David" - The people hoped for a restoration of the Davidic kingdom in Christ. "But their enthusiasm was for a ruling Messiah and a political kingdom" (BKC, 156).
11:15 - "Jesus went into the temple" - Jesus' cleansing of the temple took place on the day following the triumphal entry (Mark 11:11-17).
11:15 - "cast out those that them that sold and bought" - See Hendriksen (446-454) and Edersheim (1:367-374) for description of the temple-market. Merchants had set up shop in the Court of the Gentiles and were selling, apparently at inflated prices, sacrificial animals to the pilgrims who came to Jerusalem for the Passover. In addition, the temple tax had to be paid in Jewish coins, and money changers were profiting from exchanging money in this same area.
11:16- "carry any vessel through the temple" - Jesus prevented people from using the temple as a short-cut (Hend., 453).
11:17 - "house of prayer . . . den of thieves" - Jesus quoted from Isaiah 56:7 and Jeremiah 7:11. Jeremiah's sermon in Jeremiah 7 condemning the people for persisting in their sinful lifestyles while continuing to offer their sacrifices and to believe the temple assured them of protection. Again in Jesus' day, the temple had become a "den of thieves" when it (especially the Court of the Gentiles) should have been a house of prayer for all people (Hend., 454).
Lesson 7 - Mark 14:12-25
14:12 - "first day of unleavened bread, when they killed the passover" - The one-day Passover was followed immediately by the seven-day Feast of Unleavened Bread. The two observances came to be viewed as one, and the terms were used interchangeably (cf. Luke 22:1). Here, the "first day of unleavened bread" was the day of Passover, as indicated by the note that this was "when they killed the passover" (NIVBC, 192).
14:13 - "two disciples" - The two disciples Jesus sent to make Passover preparations were Peter and John (cf. Luke 22:8).
14:13 - "a man bearing a pitcher" - While Jesus' instructions may indicate divine foreknowledge, it seems more likely that he had made prior arrangements to secure a room for the Passover meal. A man carrying a pitcher of water served as a unique signal to the disciples because this was work a woman normally did (BKC, 176).
14:18 - "as they sat" - This is properly translated "as they were reclining" (Robt., 1:382; cf. e.g., NASB). People normally ate in a reclining position around a low table (NIVBC, 192).
14:18 - "One of you . . . shall betray me" - The announcement of the betrayal is placed after the institution of the Lord's Supper in Luke, but before it in Matthew 26:21-25 and Mark 14:18-21. The question is: Which account is chronological on this point? NIVBC (278) believes it is Luke and that Judas was present for the institution of the Lord's Supper. It is probably more commonly assumed that Matthew and Mark are presenting the events chronologically and that Judas left before the Lord's Supper was instituted by the Lord (cf. John 13:27-30). See New Scofied Study Bible (1038) for chronology of Last Supper (cf. Edersheim, 2:507-510).
14:20 - "one of the twelve, that dippeth with me in the dish" - This was simply a repetition of what Jesus had said in verse 18. One "that dippeth with me in the dish" is the same as "one who eats with me." He was emphasizing the treachery of the betrayer (BKC, 177). John 13:26 tells us that Jesus actually specified Judas by handing him a piece of bread dipped in the dish.
14:21 - "as it is written of him" - Christ's rejection had been foretold in Scripture (cf. Ps. 22; Isa. 53).
14:22 - "This is my body" - The bread represented Christ's physical body, which would be given for his own. It speaks of his death, as does the cup.
14:24 - "blood of the new testament (covenant)" - "The cup is understood as representing sacrificial blood that inaugurates and seals a new covenant" (Stein, Luke, 544). The new covenant, prophesied in Jeremiah 31:31-34 and unlike the old covenant that required continual sacrifices, "provided a perfect sacrifice and made possible both justification and regeneration (Heb 8:6-13)" (WBC, 978).
14:25 - "until . . . I drink it new in the kingdom of God" - Jesus was looking ahead to the millennial kingdom, when he again will join his disciples in a festal meal. "There were traditionally four cups drunk at the Passover feast, each cup relating to one of the four promises in Exodus 6:6-7. The third cup ('I will redeem you') was the one Jesus used for the Lord's Supper, a picture of the redemption He would accomplish. The fourth cup will not be fulfilled until the kingdom is established" (Wiersbe, Meet Your King, 192).
Lesson 8 - Mark 15:21-24, 34-37; 16:1-8
15:21 - "cross" - This was either the crossbeam (BKC, 187) or the entire cross (Hend., 648).
15:21 - "Simon a Cyrenian" - Cyrene was in North Africa and had a sizeable Jewish population (cf. Acts 2:10). Thus Simon may well have been a Jew in the city for the Passover. Some connect his son, Rufus, with the man mentioned in Romans 16:13, since Alexander and Rufus are mentioned by Mark as if they would be familiar to Mark's Roman audience (Hend., 649).
15:22 - "Golgotha" - Golgotha is the Aramaic name (cf. John 19:17); Calvary is the Latin name (Luke 23:33). Both names mean "skull." The place was so-named perhaps because it was a place of death or because the place resembled a skull as does one outcropping in the area (NBD, 181).
15:23 - "wine mingled with myrrh" - This was apparently an anesthetic designed to deaden the pain of crucifixion. After tasting it (Matt. 27:34), Jesus refused it. Most commentators surmise that his refusal was motivated by his desire to "face suffering and death in full control of all His faculties" (BKC, 188).
15:34 - "At the ninth hour Jesus cried . . . Eloi, Eloi, . . . my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" - The ninth hour was 3:00 p.m. Mark recorded the Aramaic words Jesus spoke (recalling Ps. 22:1)and then translated them. "The full import of this cry cannot be fathomed. But certainly its basis lay not in the physical suffering primarily, but in the fact that for a time Jesus was made sin for us (II Cor 5:21); and in paying the penalty as the sinner's substitute, he was accursed of God (Gal. 3:13). God as Father did not forsake him (Lk 23:46); but God as Judge had to be separated from him if he was to experience spiritual death in the place of sinful men" (BKC, 983). "If we ask in what ontological sense the Father and Son are here divided, the answer must be that we do not know because we are not told" (NIVBC, 130).
15:35 - "he calleth Elias" - It is not clear whether the people misunderstood Jesus' words or intentionally misconstrued them (cf. Hendriksen, Matthew, 972-3). A Jewish tradition held that Elijah came to help righteous sufferers (NIVBC, 201).
15:36 - "vinegar . . . to drink" - The offer of a drink was in response to Jesus' cry, "I thirst" (John 19:28). "Vinegar" was the cheap wine that soldiers drank (Old ISBE, 3051).
15:36 - "Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take him down" - Apparently in reply to others, the man who offered Jesus a drink said, "Now leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to take him down" (NIV). Perhaps others wanted to prevent him from offering the drink (NIVBC, 201).
15:37 - "cried out with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost" - The loud cry was probably, "It is finished" (John 19:30). "Gave up the ghost" is literally "breathed out" (Robt., 1:396). He voluntarily "breathed his last" (NASB) and died (cf. John 10:18).
16:1 - For harmony of post-resurrection events, see Walvoord, Jesus Christ Our Lord (192-5).
16:1 - "Mary Magdalene, and Mary . . . and Salome" - Also in this group were Joanna and other women (Luke 24:10).
16:4 - "the stone was rolled away" - The women found that the stone covering the tomb's entrance had been removed from it. According to Matthew 28:2-4, an earthquake had occurred and an angel had rolled the stone back. The guards, who had witnessed this, had apparently fled the scene before the women arrived.
16:5 - "a young man" - This was an angel, as made clear by the parallels in Matthew and Luke. Luke 24:4 says there were two angels. Mark mentions only the one that spoke to the women.
16:6 - "he is risen" - Upon seeing that the stone had been removed from the tomb, Mary Magdalene departed to tell Peter and John (John 2:2-10). She was not present to hear the angel's words that Jesus had risen from the dead.
16:7 - "he goeth . . . into Galilee . . . as he said" - Jesus had promised to meet them in Galilee after his resurrection (Matt. 26:32; Mark 14:28).
16:8 - "neither said they any thing to any man" - The shock and fear engendered by the encounter with the angel rendered the women speechless, but only for a while. Matthew 28:8-9 and Luke 24:9 make it clear they eventually overcame these emotions and reported to the disciples.
Lesson 9 - Mark 5:22-36, 41-42
5:22 - "one of the rulers of the synagogue" - Jairus was a "lay official responsible for the physical management of the synagogue building and the worship services. He was a respected leader in the community" (BKC, 124).
5:23 - "My little daughter lieth at the point of death" - Luke 8:42 adds that his daughter was about twelve years old and was his only child. Matthew 9:18 records that Jairus said his daughter was dead ("has just died," NASB). "Matthew has summarized several details. Mark and Luke recorded that Jairus first said she was dying, and later was informed by messengers that she had died" (WBC, 944).
5:25 - "an issue of blood" - "This may have been a chronic menstrual disorder or a uterine hemorrhage. Her condition made her ritually unclean" (BKC, 124). See Leviticus 15:25.
5:30 - "virtue had gone out of him" - "Virtue" is dunamis, a word normally translated "power" (Robt., 1:299-300; BAG, 206). It should be so understood here, and most modern translations translate it this way (cf. NIV; NASB; NKJV; NRSV).
5:30 - "Who touched my clothes?" - Hendriksen (208) suggests the essence of the question is "Who touched me meaningfully?" "She had 'believed with her heart.' But she had not as yet 'confessed with her mouth' (Rom. 10:9). It was in order to bring about this favorable change that Jeus immediately turned around in the crowd and asked [the question]."
5:34 - "Thy faith hath made thee whole" - The idea is not that her faith caused the healing but that her faith "caused her to seek healing from Jesus. Faith, confident trust, derives its value not from the one who expresses it, but from the object in which it rests" (BKC, 125; cf. Hend., 210).
5:36 - "As soon as Jesus heard the word" - Jesus overheard the report of the messengers, who told Jairus his daughter was dead (v. 35). The Greek word can mean either "overhear" or "ignore" (BAG, 624). Many commentators and versions take it in the latter sense (cf. Hend., 211; NIV). Both ideas may well be present: Jesus overheard the message but disregarded its implications (Robt., 1:301-02; BKC, 125).
5:36 - "Be not afraid, only believe" - The Greek present imperatives could be rendered, "Stop fearing; just keep on believing" (cf. BKC, 125; Plummer, 151).
5:41 - "Talitha cumi" - This is Aramaic for "Little girl, arise." Mark translates it for his Roman audience.
5:42 - "they were astonished" - Jesus was accompanied into the girl's presence by her parents and three disciples-Peter, James, and John (Luke 8:51).
5:43 - "that no man should know it" - The warning not to tell others about the healing was probably given because: (1) Jesus was not ready at this time for a public proclamation that he was the Messiah, perhaps because it might be regarded as political (WBC, 944); or (2) He did not want " multitudes thronging to Him merely for the purpose of physical healing. . . . Jesus came primarily for spiritual healing, not physical healing" (BKC, 40).
Lesson 10 - Mark 7:24-37
7:24 - "went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, . . . and would have no man know it" - Jesus went into Phoenicia, apparently to rest, teach his disciples, and get away for a while from the crowds and the Pharisees (cf. vv. 1-23).
7:26 - "The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician" - She was a Gentile (Greek) from Syrophoenicia. Phoenicia was administratively a part of Syria at this time. Matthew uses the broader term, calling her a "woman of Canaan." Matthew 15:22 says that she called Jesus "Son of David," indicating that she believed Jesus to be the Messiah, even though there is no evidence she was a proselyte (WBC, 957; Hendriksen, Matthew, 622).
7:26 - "she besought him" - The verb is imperfect, indicating that the woman was repeatedly asking him to heal her daughter (Robt., 1:326; cf. NASB).
7:27 - "It is not meet (proper) to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs" - This statement "supposes that the 'children' are the people of Israel and the 'dogs' are Gentiles. His concern is one of precedence; the children get fed first" (NIVBC, 76). Jesus' response was a test of the woman's faith. It pointed out "that at this time all were dependent on Israel for Messiah and his blessings" (WBC, 957). In addition, "Here in Phoenicia he had to be careful not to give the impression that he was abandoning Israel" (Ibid.).
7:27 - "dogs" - This is not the usual word for wild scavengers but the word for little dogs that were kept as household pets (Vine's, 181; WBC, 957).
7:28 - "Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs" - The woman's reply reveals acceptance of the preeminence of the Jews in God's plan and considerable faith. "She does not argue that her needs make her an exception, or that she has a right to Israel's covenanted mercies, or that the mysterious ways of divine election and justice are unfair. She simply asks for help, hopeful that she may be allowed to receive a crumb from the kindness of the Lord" (NIVBC, 76).
7:31 - "unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis" - Jesus and the disciples traveled to the southeastern side of the Sea of Galilee. The Decapolis, made up of ten cities, was an area that was predominantly Gentile (NBD, 304-5).
7:32 - "impediment in his speech" - More literally, this reads "spoke with difficulty" (NASB; BAG, 527; WBC, 1004). "Deaf people, being unable to hear the sounds which they make, often speak very imperfectly, and sometimes cease to attempt to speak at all" (Plummer, 190).
7:33 - "he took him aside" - "The secrecy here observed was partly to avoid excitement and partly to get the attention of the deaf and dumb [man]" (Robt., 1:327).
7:33 - "put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue" - "Jesus used sign language and symbolic acts . . . that uniquely suited the man's needs and caused him to exercise faith" (BKC, 136). "All the actions of verses 33 and 34 were miming [the deaf man's] present need, the course of healing, and the manner in which such healing alone could come, in a way which even a deaf mute could understand" (Cole, 124).
7:36 - "he charged them that they should tell no man . . . they published it" - The charge to be silent about Jesus' healing activity was probably due to the fact that "He wanted to minister in the Decapolis region without being regarded as a popular 'Miracle-worker'" (BKC, 136). The more he told them to keep silent, however, the more they "continued to proclaim it" (NASB). The NASB correctly conveys the continuing force of the imperfect tense.
Lesson 11 - Mark 8:27-35; 9:2-7
8:27 - "Caesarea Philippi" - This area was about 25 miles north of Bethsaida (Mark 8:22). The city itself had been a Greek settlement called Paneas, where the god Pan had been worshiped. Later Herod the Great built a temple to Augustus there, and Philip the Tetrarch had renamed it Caesarea. It was known as Caesarea Philippi to distinguish it from another Caesarea on the Mediterranean coast (NBD, 175).
8:27 - "Whom do men say that I am?" - The question was not asked to obtain information but was preliminary to the important question Jesus was going to ask. Nevertheless, "the question was educational; it would teach the disciples how little effect their mission had had on the large majority of the Jews" (Plummer, 202).
8:28 - "John the Baptist . . . Elias (Elijah). . . One of the prophets" - Cf. Mark 6:14-16. In general, "the crowds believed that Jesus was a very prominent messenger from God, that he was someone who had died and in the person of Jesus had arisen from the dead" (Hend., 324).
8:29 - "Thou art the Christ" - Christ is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew Messiah, which means anointed one. Matthew records that Peter added, "the Son of the living God" (Matt. 16:16). Peter's answer was correct and was commended by the Lord (Matt. 16:17), but moments later Peter proved his concept of the Messiah was very different from Jesus' (Mark 8:32; Matt. 16:22).
8:30 - "tell no man" - "The ideas that clustered around the title 'Messiah' tended to be political and national in nature" (NIVBC, 167). "Christ commanded silence, probably because of the revolutionary ideas connected with the Messianic concept. Christ was not ready at this time to establish an earthly Messianic kingdom" (WBC, 1005) and the "populace as yet would only be politically aroused by such disclosure [that he was the Messiah]" (959). Indeed, even Jesus' disciples had much to learn about the Messiah's work.
8:31 - "Son of man" - See note on Mark 2:10 in lesson 2.
8:31 - "elders . . . chief priests, and scribes" - Together these religious leaders formed the Sanhedrin (WBC, 959).
8:32 - "Peter . . . began to rebuke him" - "The message got through to Peter, but he refused to accept it, for he followed the popular theological and political categories. A suffering Messiah? Unthinkable! The Messiah was a symbol of strength, not weakness. So Peter took Jesus aside and, amazingly, rebuked him" (NIVBC, 1680).
8:33 - "Get thee behind me, Satan . . . thou savourest . .. the things that be of men" - "In speaking to Peter, Jesus is actually addressing Satan; or, if one prefers, is addressing whatever in Peter has been perversely influenced by the prince of evil" (Hend., 328). Peter was worldly minded. He was thinking only the lowly thoughts of men, not God's thoughts.
8:34 - "Whoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me" - The discipleship spoken of here is taken by some as a call to believers to enter a deeper commitment to Christ, or at least an illustration of such a call to deeper commitment. Others equate the call to discipleship with the call of unbelievers to salvation. Context seems to favor the latter. Stein's comment on Luke 14:25 is appropriate: "The conditions of discipleship that follow were not addressed to believers in order to make them apostles but to the crowds. They are therefore conditions for salvation, not conditions for Christians to become a spiritual elite or to reach a new level in their Christian lives" (Luke, 396). To "deny" oneself means to turn away from self-interest, to renounce or disown oneself "as far as being able to merit eternal life is concerned" (WBC, 959). Taking up one's cross was a "figure of suffering and death. . . . Here it pictures the conversion of a sinner who must recognize his own spiritual poverty, and then accept Christ (His person and teaching), even though it will mean assuming, in some sense, suffering that would otherwise not occur" (WBC, 959).
8:35 - "whosoever will save his life shall lose it . . . whosoever shall lose his life for my sake . .. shall save it" - "He who is unwilling to assume the hazards involved in being a disciple of Christ will ultimately lose his life eternally. But the converse is also true" (WBC, 959). Saving one's life here may be equated with clinging tenaciously to his sinful life, which results in losing "whatever remnant of the higher, nobler life was left in him at the beginning" (Hend., 331). Losing one's life is "devoting oneself completely to Christ . . . It is only by losing oneself-looking away from self in order to serve the Master and his 'little ones' (cf. Matt. 25:40)-that one can ever be saved" (331).
9:2 - "After six days" - This was a week after Peter's confession and fulfilled Jesus' words in 9:1. The three disciples were given a preview of the coming (messianic) kingdom of God.
9:2 - "transfigured" - The Greek word is metemorphothe, from which we get our word metamorphosis. It describes a change into another form (NIVBC, 170; Vine's, 639).
9:4 - "Elias (Elijah) with Moses . . . talking with Jesus" - Both Elijah and Moses, like Jesus, "appeared in glory" (Luke 9:31). They were talking with Jesus about his coming "decease" (exodus), probably a reference to his death, resurrection, and ascension (Stein, Luke, 284-5).
9:5 - "let us make three tabernacles" - Peter's hasty suggestion was made in the context of fear (v. 6) and is explained by the fact that he did not know what to say. The problem with the idea of building three booths to commemorate this event probably was that it placed all three-Jesus, Moses, and Elijah-one the same level. As such, it called for the divine rebuke of verse 7.
9:7 - "a cloud . . . overshadowed them" - The cloud represented the presence of God (cf. Exod. 16:10; 19:9; 24:15ff).
9:7 - "This is my beloved Son: hear him" - These words from the Father reassured the disciples (and Jesus) that he loved the Son "in spite of Jesus' coming death" (NIVBC, 179). "Hear him" means "listen to him" or "obey him" (BKC, 143; BAG, 31-32). The words act as a mild rebuke to Peter's suggestion and reinforce the need to obey all Jesus' teaching. Jesus far exceeds Moses and Elijah. "The words of the Son of God have even greater authority than those of Moses and Elijah and therefore need to be heeded all the more" (Stein, Luke, 286).
Lesson 12 - Mark 9:14-29
9:14 - "he saw the scribes questioning them (the disciples)" - Jesus, along with Peter, James, and John, returned from the Mount of transfiguration to find a crowd gathered around the other disciples and the scribes questioning them, or "arguing with them" (NASB; NIV; BAG, 783). Hendriksen (345) suggests that the "scribes were filled with chortling, malicious glee because of the inability of the nine to cure an epileptic boy. So, to use a slang expression, 'they were rubbing it in.'"
9:15 - "the people . . . were greatly amazed" - The amazement may have been "because he arrived at an opportune time for meeting a critical need" (NIVBC, 171). Some apparently have suggested it was because of some "afterglow" of the transfiguration, but there is no evidence for this (Hend., 345).
9:17 - "a dumb spirit" - Better is the NASB's "a spirit which makes him mute."
9:19 - "O faithless generation" - Some argue that this was addressed to Jesus' disciples, whose lack of faith had made them incapable of casting out the demon (NIVBC, 171). "Generation," however, seems a broader term and probably applies to all those gathered there-the father of the child, the scribes, the crowd in general, and the disciples-all of whom exhibited a lack of faith (Hend., 347). BKC (144) takes it as an address to the crowd but especially for the disciples.
9:20 - "when he saw him" - This is best understood as meaning "when the spirit saw Jesus" (NIV).
9:23 - "If thou canst believe" - Jesus made it clear that the question was not whether he could do anything about it but whether the man believed.
9:24 - "help thou mine unbelief" - NIV's "help me overcome my unbelief" conveys the meaning clearly. The man had faith but he realized it was imperfect and he needed Jesus' help.
9:25 - "When Jesus saw that the people came running" - This indicates either that Jesus had withdrawn a ways to talk to the father (BKC, 145) or that people in addition to the original crowd were gathering (NIVBC, 171). Apparently not wanting further publicity, Jesus immediately cast out the demon.
9:28-29- "Why could not we cast him out? . . . This kind can come forth by nothing, but by prayer and fasting" - The disciples wondered why they had not been able to cast out this demon when they had cast out others. In Matthew 17:20, Jesus said it was because of their lack of faith. He then went on to say it was a lack of prayer. The "two go together. Where there is little faith, there is little prayer" (Hend., 351). Jesus' answer suggests that there are different kinds of demons. This particular demon seemed to be especially powerful and required fervent prayer. "Fasting" is omitted from some manuscripts (cf. NIV; NASB), but fasting often accompanied prayer and was a way of "focusing one's attention more fully on God for a specific purpose, for a limited period of time" (BKC, 145).
Lesson 13 - Mark 10:37-52
10:37 - "Grant unto us that we may sit . . . on thy right hand, and . . . on thy left" - On the way up to Jerusalem for the last time, Jesus had spoken again of his coming death and resurrection (vv. 33-34). James and John (v. 35), however, were focused on their personal desire to have the most prominent places in the messianic kingdom, which they apparently thought was soon to be established. Matthew 20:20-21 says their mother came with them and made the request of Jesus.
10:38 - "drink the cup . . . be baptized with the baptism" - Drinking a cup is a figure for fully undergoing an experience (Hend., 411). "Baptism" here carries virtually the same meaning (Tasker, Matthew, 195; WBC, 965). To drink the cup and be baptized with the baptism was to fully endure or be deluged with trouble and suffering (NIVBC, 177). "A request for glory is a request for suffering" (Hend., 411).
10:39 - "Ye shall indeed drink of the cup" - Indirectly, at least, Jesus was foretelling James's martyrdom (Acts 12:1-2) and John's banishment to Patmos (Rev. 1:9) (Hend., 412).
10:41 - "much displeased" - "This jealous reaction (on the part of the other ten disciples) indicates that they also harbored those selfish ambitions" (BKC, 153).
10:42 - "exercise lordship . . . exercise authority" - Both words used here are compounds that stress the idea of not just exercising lordship and authority but exercising them in a domineering and oppressive way (Tasker, Matthew, 195; Robt., 1:162; Vine's 181 [B #2], 46 [B #2]).
10:43-44 - "minister . . . servant" - Trench (Synonyms of the NT, 32) sees the distinction between the two words as being between "minister's" (diakonos) emphasis upon the activity of the work and "servant's" (doulos) emphasis on the relationship to the master.
10:45 - "the Son of man came . . . to minister, and to give his life a ransom" - Jesus used himself as the perfect example of greatness-one who ministered to others and would give his life for them. "Ransom" originally referred to the price paid for the release of a slave (Hend., 415; Robt., 1:163). "Jesus' substitutionary death paid the price that sets people free [from the bondage of sin and death]" (BKC, 154; cf. EDT, 982-3).
10:45 - "for many" - "For" (anti) is a "clear indication of substitution. In his death, Jesus takes the place of the many" (NIVBC, 177). Hendriksen (415) and others argue that it should be translated "in the place of many" (cf. BAG, 72).
10:46 - "as he went out of Jericho" - Luke 18:35 indicates this incident took place as Jesus was approaching Jericho rather than leaving it. "There was an old Jericho and a new Jericho, built by Herod. It is possible that the miracle was done somewhere between the old Israelite city and the new city" (NIVBC, 177; cf. BKC, 154).
10:46 - "blind Bartimaeus" - Matthew 20:30 mentions two blind men, but Mark (as well as Luke) focuses only on the one.
10:47 - "son of David" - This is a messianic title, indicating that Bartimaeus acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah, though, like the disciples, probably did not fully grasp what that really meant (Hend., 419-20).
10:51 - "Lord" - The word the man used was Rabboni, an Aramaic form that was even "mor respectful than Rabbi,and signified 'My great master'" (Vine's, 504; cf. NASB). The only other place this word appears in the Greek NT is John 20:16.
Abbreviations
BAG - Bauer, Arndt, Gingerich, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament
BKC - Walvoord and Zuck, eds., The Bible Knowledge Commentary (New Testament)
Cole - R. A. Cole, The Gospel according to St. Mark
Edersheim - Alfred Edersheim, Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah
EDT - Elwell, ed., Evangelical Dictionary of Theology
Hend - William Hendriksen, The Gospel of Mark
NASB - New American Standard Bible (Updated edition)
NBD - Douglas, ed., New Bible Dictionary
NIV - New International Version
NIVBC - Barker and Kohlenberger, eds., NIV Bible Commentary (New Testament)
NKJV - New King James Version
NRSV - New Revised Standard Version
Old ISBE - Orr, ed., The International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia
Plummer - Alfred Plummer, The Gospel according to St. Mark
Robt. - A. T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament
Vine's - W. A. Vine, Merrill F. Unger, William White, Jr., Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words
WBC - Pfeiffer and Harrison, eds., Wycliffe Bible Commentary
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