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The Gospel According to Mark

Book | Outline | Notes

Mrk 1:11  beginning
  [ par. 1 2 ]
Mrk 1:11 [1]  The writer of this Gospel was Mark, also called John (Acts 12:25), the son of one of the Marys (who was close to the apostle Peter in the church at Jerusalem—Acts 12:12) and the cousin of Barnabas (Col. 4:10). He accompanied Barnabas and Saul in their ministry (Acts 12:25) and joined Paul in the first journey of his ministry to the Gentiles; but he left Paul and turned back at Perga (Acts 13:13). Because of his turning back, Paul refused to take him on his second journey. At that time Barnabas separated himself from Paul, and Mark then joined Barnabas in his work (Acts 15:36-40). However, Mark was close to Paul in Paul’s later years (Col. 4:10; Philem. 24) and was useful to him for his ministry until Paul’s martyrdom (2 Tim. 4:11). He was close to Peter and was probably with him continually, as seen in the fact that Peter considered him his son (1 Pet. 5:13). From the early days of the church his Gospel has been considered a written account of the oral presentation of Peter, who accompanied the Savior in His gospel service from its beginning (vv. 16-18) to its end (14:54, 66-72). Mark’s record is according to historical sequence and gives more details concerning the historical facts than the other Gospels. The entire Gospel is summarized in Peter’s word in Acts 10:36-42.
Mrk 1:11 [2]  John presents the God-Savior, emphasizing the Savior’s deity in His humanity. Matthew presents the King-Savior; Mark, the Slave-Savior; and Luke, the Man-Savior. Matthew, Mark, and Luke are synoptic in portraying the Savior’s humanity in different aspects, with His deity. Since Mark presents the Savior as a slave, he does not tell His genealogy and status, because the ancestry of a slave is not worthy of note. Furthermore, in contrast to Matthew, who presents to us the Savior’s marvelous teachings and parables concerning the heavenly kingdom, and John, who presents His profound revelations of divine truths, Mark’s intention is not to impress us with the Slave’s wonderful words but with His excellent deeds in His gospel service. Mark’s Gospel provides more detail than the other Gospels in order to portray the Slave-Savior’s diligence, faithfulness, and other virtues in the saving service He rendered to sinners for God. In Mark’s Gospel are the fulfillment of the prophecies in Isa. 42:1-4, 6-7; 49:5-7; 50:4-7; 52:13—53:12 concerning Christ as the Slave of Jehovah, and the details of the teaching in Phil. 2:5-11 regarding Christ as the Slave of God. His diligence in labor, His need of food and rest (3:20-21; 6:31), His anger (3:5), His groaning (7:34), and His affection (10:21) display beautifully His humanity in its virtue and perfection, while His lordship (2:28), His omniscience (2:8), His miraculous power, and His authority to cast out demons (v. 27; 3:15), to forgive sins (2:7, 10), and to silence the wind and the sea (4:39) manifest in full His deity in its glory and honor. What a Slave of God! How lovely and admirable! Such a Slave served sinners as their Slave-Savior, with His life as their ransom (10:45), for the fulfillment of the eternal purpose of God, whose Slave He was.

Mrk 1:12  gospel
  I.e., glad tidings, good news (Rom. 10:15). The gospel is the service (ministry) of the Slave-Savior as a Slave of God serving His people. Matthew begins with the kingly generations of Christ the King (Matt. 1:1-17); Luke, with a human genealogy of Jesus the man (Luke 3:23-38); and John, with the eternal origin of the Son of God (John 1:1-2); whereas Mark begins not with the origin of His person but with the beginning of the gospel, the service of Jesus as a lowly Slave of God (Phil. 2:7; Matt. 20:27-28). As a rule, the service, not the person, of a slave is notable. See note 11 in Matt. 1.

Mrk 1:13  Jesus
  This Gospel is a biography of the Slave-Savior, who was God incarnated as a Slave to save sinners. In this compound title, Jesus Christ denotes His humanity and the Son of God, His deity, both of which were adequately expressed by His human virtues and divine attributes in His ministry and move for His gospel service, as recorded in this Gospel.

Mrk 1:14  the
  Some MSS omit, the Son of God.

Mrk 1:1a  Son  Matt. 16:16;  John 1:34;  20:31;  1 John 5:12, 20

Mrk 1:21  Even
  The beginning of the gospel of the Slave-Savior was even as it is written in Isaiah concerning the ministry of John the Baptist. This indicates that John’s preaching of the baptism of repentance was also a part of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It terminated the dispensation of law and replaced it with the dispensation of grace. Hence, the dispensation of grace began with the ministry of John, before the ministry of the Slave-Savior.

Mrk 1:2a  Behold  Mal. 3:1;  Matt. 11:10

Mrk 1:22  I
  Jehovah of hosts (Mal. 3:1).

Mrk 1:23  messenger
  The same Greek word as for angel. So in Rev. 1:20.

Mrk 1:24  Your
  Jesus Christ’s.

Mrk 1:25  prepare
  Lit., furnish. The preaching of the baptism of repentance (v. 4) paved the way for the Slave-Savior to come to sinners (Luke 1:76).

Mrk 1:3a  A  Isa. 40:3;  Matt. 3:3

Mrk 1:31  voice
  The ministry of the gospel of the Slave-Savior began with only a voice, not with a great movement.

Mrk 1:32  wilderness
  The preaching of the gospel of the Slave-Savior began not in any center of civilization but in the wilderness, beyond the influence of human culture. See notes 31 and 12 in Matt. 3.

Mrk 1:33  Prepare
  Lit., make ready. To prepare the way of the Lord is to change people’s mind, turning their mind toward the Slave-Savior, and to make their heart right, straightening every part of their heart through repentance, that the Slave-Savior may enter into them to be their life and take possession of them (Luke 1:17).

Mrk 1:4a  John  Matt. 3:1;  Luke 3:2;  John 1:6

Mrk 1:41  came
  I.e., appeared.

Mrk 1:42b  wilderness  Josh. 15:61;  Judg. 1:16
  John was born a priest (Luke 1:8-13, 57-63); hence, he should have lived a priestly life in the temple, doing the priestly service. But he came to the wilderness and preached the gospel. This indicates that the age of the priesthood, in which sacrifices were offered to God, had been replaced by the age of the gospel, in which sinners are brought to God that God may gain sinners and that sinners may gain God.

Mrk 1:43c  baptism  Acts 10:37;  19:3-4
  Repentance is to change one’s mind, turning it to the Slave-Savior, and baptism is to bury the repenting people, terminating them that the Slave-Savior may germinate them by regeneration (John 3:3, 5-6).

Mrk 1:4d  repentance  Mark 1:15;  Luke 24:47

Mrk 1:44  for
  Or, unto. Repentance with baptism is for, and results in, forgiveness of sins, that the obstacle of man’s fall may be removed and man may be reconciled to God.

Mrk 1:4e  forgiveness  Matt. 26:28;  Acts 2:38;  10:43

Mrk 1:5a  region  Matt. 3:5-6

Mrk 1:51  Judea
  A region with the holy city, the holy temple, and high culture; hence, a region of honor.

Mrk 1:52  baptized
  When people repented through his preaching, John immersed them into the death water to bury them, to terminate them, thus preparing them to be raised up by the Slave-Savior, who germinated them with the Holy Spirit through the confession of their sins. See note 61 in Matt. 3.

Mrk 1:53  Jordan
  See note 62 in Matt. 3.

Mrk 1:5b  confessed  Acts 19:18

Mrk 1:61  clothed
  The way John lived signifies that his living and work were altogether in a new dispensation and were not according to the way of the old religion, culture, and tradition. See note 41 in Matt. 3.

Mrk 1:6a  hair  2 Kings 1:8

Mrk 1:6b  locusts  Lev. 11:22

Mrk 1:6c  honey  Exo. 3:8;  1 Sam. 14:25-27

Mrk 1:71a  He  Matt. 3:11;  John 1:15, 27;  Acts 13:25;  19:4
  Although John preached a baptism of repentance, the goal of his ministry was a wonderful person, Jesus Christ, the Son of God. He did not make himself the center of his ministry, as a magnet attracting others to himself. He realized that he was only a messenger sent by Jehovah of hosts to bring people to His Son, Jesus Christ, and to exalt Him as the goal of his ministry.

Mrk 1:81a  water  John 1:26;  Acts 1:5;  11:16
  Water signifies death and burial for the termination of the repenting people; the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of life and resurrection for the germination of the terminated people. The former was a sign of John’s ministry of repentance; the latter, a sign of the Slave-Savior’s ministry of life. John buried the repenting people in the death water; the Slave-Savior raised them up that they might be regenerated in the Spirit of His resurrection life. The death water, pointing to and signifying the all-inclusive death of Christ, into which His believers are baptized (Rom. 6:3), buried not only the baptized people but also their sins, the world, and their past life and history (just as the Red Sea buried Pharaoh and the Egyptian army for the children of Israel—Exo. 14:26-28; 1 Cor. 10:2) and separated them from the God-forsaking world and its corruption (just as the flood did for Noah and his family—1 Pet. 3:20-21). The Holy Spirit, into whom the Slave-Savior baptized those who believed in Him, is the Spirit of Christ and the Spirit of God (Rom. 8:9). Hence, to be baptized in the Holy Spirit is to be baptized into Christ (Gal. 3:27; Rom. 6:3), into the Triune God (Matt. 28:19), and even into the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:13), which is joined to Christ in the one Spirit (1 Cor. 6:17). It is through baptism in such a water and in such a Spirit that the believers in Christ are regenerated into the kingdom of God (John 3:3, 5, and note 52), into the realm of the divine life and the divine rule, that they may live by the eternal life of God in His eternal kingdom.

Mrk 1:81b  Spirit  Isa. 44:3;  Joel 2:28;  Acts 2:4;  10:45;  1 Cor. 12:13
  See note 81.

Mrk 1:9a  came  vv. 9-11: Matt. 3:13-17;  Luke 3:21-22

Mrk 1:91b  Nazareth  Matt. 2:23;  John 1:45-46;  Mark 1:24;  10:47;  14:67;  16:6
  Galilee was called “Galilee of the Gentiles” and was a region without honor, hence, a despised region (John 7:52; see note 151 in Matt. 4), and Nazareth was a despised city of that despised region (John 1:46). The lowly Slave of God grew up and came out from that source.

Mrk 1:92  baptized
  As a Slave of God, the Slave-Savior too was baptized, signifying that He was willing to serve God and that He would serve not in man’s natural way but through death and resurrection (see notes 131 and 161 in Matt. 3). Such a baptism was the initiation of His service.

Mrk 1:93  in
  Lit., into.

Mrk 1:101a  immediately  Mark 1:12
  Mark’s record of a Slave reflects not the splendor of the status of this Slave’s person but the diligence of His service. The word immediately is used in his record forty-two times, and one more time in alternate MSS.

Mrk 1:102  heavens
  The heavens being opened to the Slave-Savior signifies that His willing offering of Himself as a Slave to God was well accepted by God, and the Spirit’s descending as a dove upon Him signifies that God anointed Him with the Spirit for His service to Him (Luke 4:18-19).

Mrk 1:10b  parted  Gen. 28:17;  Ezek. 1:1;  John 1:51;  Acts 7:56;  10:11;  Rev. 4:1

Mrk 1:10c  Spirit  John 1:32;  Luke 4:18

Mrk 1:103  dove
  See note 164 in Matt. 3.

Mrk 1:104 
  Some MSS add, and remaining.

Mrk 1:11a  voice  Mark 9:7;  John 12:28

Mrk 1:111  You
  See note 171 in Matt. 3.

Mrk 1:11b  Beloved  Eph. 1:6

Mrk 1:11c  delight  Isa. 42:1;  Matt. 12:18

Mrk 1:12a  immediately  Mark 1:10, 18

Mrk 1:121  thrust
  After God’s acceptance and anointing, the first thing the Spirit did with this Slave of God was to thrust Him into a test to prove His integrity.

Mrk 1:12b  wilderness  vv. 12-13: Matt. 4:1-11;  Luke 4:1-13

Mrk 1:131  forty
  A time of testing and suffering (Deut. 9:9, 18; 1 Kings 19:8).

Mrk 1:13a  tempted  Heb. 2:18;  4:15;  1 Thes. 3:5

Mrk 1:132  Satan
  Satan, the enemy of God, was used for the testing and proving of God’s Slave. The animals of the earth, in a negative sense, and the angels from heaven, in a positive sense, also were used for this test.

Mrk 1:13b  angels  Luke 22:43;  Matt. 26:53;  cf. Heb. 1:14;  Acts 12:15

Mrk 1:14a  delivered  Mark 6:17;  Matt. 4:12;  14:3;  Luke 3:20

Mrk 1:141  Galilee
  [ par. 1 2 ]
Mrk 1:141 [1]  John’s imprisonment was a sign of the rejection of the gospel, especially in the region of honor. Hence, the Slave-Savior left that region and returned to the despised region for His service of the gospel. See notes 121 and 151 in Matt. 4.
Mrk 1:141 [2]  The gospel service was initiated in Judea, the region of honor, by the ministry of the Slave-Savior’s forerunner (vv. 1-11); but it was continued in Galilee, the despised region, by the ministry of the Slave-Savior for a period of about three years (v. 14—9:50). In contrast to John’s record in his Gospel (John 1:29-42; 2:13—3:36; 5:1-47; 7:10—11:57), Mark recorded nothing of the Slave-Savior’s ministry in Jerusalem and Judea during that period of time. Mark recorded only the Lord’s leaving of Galilee to go to Jerusalem for the last time (10:1) to accomplish His redemptive work. Then the gospel service was continued by His ministry on the way to Jerusalem and in Jerusalem and its vicinity (10:1—14:42). It was concluded with His redeeming death, His life-imparting resurrection, His ascension for exaltation, and the continuation of His gospel service, carried out by His disciples’ preaching to all the creation (14:43—6:20).

Mrk 1:142b  proclaiming  Matt. 4:17, 23
  The Slave-Savior’s proclaiming was to announce God’s glad tidings to the miserable people in bondage; His teaching (vv. 21-22) was to enlighten the ignorant ones in darkness with the divine light of the truth. His proclaiming implied teaching, and His teaching implied proclaiming (Matt. 4:23). This was the first thing He did in His ministry, and it was the all-embracing structure of His evangelistic service (vv. 38-39; 3:14; 6:12; 14:9; 16:15, 20).

Mrk 1:14c  gospel  Rom. 1:1;  15:16

Mrk 1:143  of
  Some MSS add, of the kingdom. The gospel of Jesus Christ (v. 1) is the gospel of God (Rom. 1:1) and the gospel of the kingdom of God (cf. Matt. 4:23).

Mrk 1:15a  fulfilled  cf. Gal. 4:4

Mrk 1:151b  kingdom  Mark 4:26;  Luke 10:9, 11
  The kingdom of God is the ruling, the reigning, of God with all its blessing and enjoyment. It is the goal of the gospel of God and of Jesus Christ (see notes 32 and 263 in ch. 4). To enter into this kingdom, people need to repent of their sins and believe in the gospel that their sins may be forgiven and that they may be regenerated by God to have the divine life, which matches the divine nature of this kingdom (John 3:3, 5). All the believers in Christ can share the kingdom in the church age for their enjoyment of God in His righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Rom. 14:17). This kingdom will become the kingdom of Christ and of God for the overcoming believers to inherit and enjoy in the coming kingdom age (1 Cor. 6:9-10; Gal. 5:21; Eph. 5:5) that they may reign with Christ a thousand years (Rev. 20:4, 6). Then, as the eternal kingdom it will be an eternal blessing of God’s eternal life for all God’s redeemed to enjoy in the new heaven and new earth for eternity (Rev. 21:1-4; 22:1-5, 14, 17). It was such a kingdom of God that had drawn near and into which the gospel of the Slave-Savior would bring His believers. For this kingdom the Slave-Savior told people to repent and believe in the gospel. See notes 33 in John 3, 281 in Heb. 12, and 34 in Matt. 5.

Mrk 1:152c  Repent  Mark 1:4;  Acts 2:38;  5:31
  The Greek word means have a change of mind. To repent is to have a change of mind with regret for the past and a turn for the future. On the negative side, to repent before God is not only to repent of sins and wrongdoings but also to repent of the world and its corruption, which usurp and corrupt people whom God created for Himself, and to repent of our God-forsaking life in the past. On the positive side, it is to turn to God in every way and in everything for the fulfillment of His purpose in creating man. It is a “repentance unto God,” and is to “repent and turn to God” (Acts 20:21; 26:20). See notes 21 and 22 in Matt. 3.

Mrk 1:153d  believe  John 1:12;  3:16;  Acts 16:31;  Rom. 10:9, 14
  Repentance is mainly in the mind; believing is mainly in the heart (Rom. 10:9). To believe in is to believe into the things in which we believe and to receive into us the things in which we believe. To believe in the gospel is mainly to believe in the Slave-Savior (Acts 16:31), and to believe in Him is to believe into Him (John 3:15-16) and to receive Him into us (John 1:12) that we may be organically united with Him. Such a faith in Christ (Gal. 3:22) is given to us by God through our hearing of the word of the truth of the gospel (Rom. 10:17; Eph. 1:13). This faith brings us into all the blessings of the gospel (Gal. 3:14). Hence, it is precious to us (2 Pet. 1:1). Such a precious faith must be preceded by repentance. See note 161 in ch. 16.

Mrk 1:154  gospel
  This is the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God (v. 1), the gospel of God, and the gospel of the kingdom of God. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, with all the processes He passed through (such as incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension) and all the redemptive work He accomplished, is the content of the gospel (Rom. 1:2-4; Luke 2:10-11; 1 Cor. 15:1-4; 2 Tim. 2:8). Hence, the gospel is of Him. The gospel was planned, promised, and accomplished by God (Eph. 1:8-9; Acts 2:23; Rom. 1:2; 2 Cor. 5:21; Acts 3:15), and it is the power of God unto salvation to all the believers (Rom. 1:16) that they may be reconciled to God (2 Cor. 5:19) and regenerated by Him (1 Pet. 1:3) to be His children (John 1:12-13; Rom. 8:16) and to enjoy all His riches and blessings as their inheritance (Eph. 1:14). Hence, it is the gospel of God. It brings the believers into the realm of the divine ruling that they may participate in the blessings of the divine life in the divine kingdom (1 Thes. 2:12). Hence, it is also the gospel of the kingdom of God. Thus, its full contents are the same as those of the New Testament with all its bequests. When we believe in this gospel, we inherit the Triune God with His redemption, His salvation, and His divine life with its riches as our eternal portion.

Mrk 1:16a  passing  vv. 16-20: Matt. 4:18-22;  Luke 5:1-11

Mrk 1:161b  Sea  Mark 2:13;  3:7;  4:1;  5:1;  6:47;  7:31;  John 6:1
  See note 181 in Matt. 4.

Mrk 1:16c  Simon  John 1:40-42

Mrk 1:162  casting
  See note 182 in Matt. 4.

Mrk 1:163d  net  Matt. 13:47
  Referring to an arc-shaped net.

Mrk 1:18a  immediately  Mark 1:12, 20

Mrk 1:181b  followed  Mark 10:28
  See note 201 in Matt. 4.

Mrk 1:19a  John  cf. John 1:35, 37, 40

Mrk 1:191  mending
  See note 211 in Matt. 4.

Mrk 1:20a  immediately  Mark 1:18, 21

Mrk 1:20b  called  Gal. 1:15

Mrk 1:201  went
  See note 221 in Matt. 4.

Mrk 1:21a  went  vv. 21-28: Luke 4:31-37

Mrk 1:21b  Capernaum  Matt. 4:13;  Mark 2:1

Mrk 1:21c  immediately  Mark 1:20, 23

Mrk 1:211d  synagogue  Mark 1:39;  6:2;  Matt. 4:23
  A synagogue is a meeting place where the Jews read and learn the Holy Scriptures (Luke 4:16-17; Acts 13:14-15).

Mrk 1:212  taught
  Man’s fall into sin broke his fellowship with God, making all men ignorant of the knowledge of God. Such ignorance issued first in darkness and then in death. The Slave-Savior, as the light of the world (John 8:12; 9:5), came as a great light to Galilee, the land of darkness, to shine on the people who were sitting in the shadow of death (Matt. 4:12-16). His teaching released the word of light to enlighten those in the darkness of death that they might receive the light of life (John 1:4). The second thing that the Slave of God did in His service as the Slave-Savior to fallen men was to carry out such teaching (2:13; 4:1; 6:2, 6, 30, 34; 10:1; 11:17; 12:35; 14:49) to bring people out of the satanic darkness into the divine light (Acts 26:18).

Mrk 1:22a  astounded  Mark 6:2;  11:18;  Matt. 7:28-29

Mrk 1:22b  teaching  Mark 4:2

Mrk 1:221  authority
  The self-appointed scribes, who by themselves were teaching vain knowledge, had no authority and no power, but this God-authorized Slave, who by God was teaching realities, had not only spiritual power to subdue people but also divine authority to subject people to the divine ruling.

Mrk 1:23a  immediately  Mark 1:21, 28

Mrk 1:231  spirit
  Not a fallen angel but a demon (vv. 32, 34, 39; Luke 4:33), a disembodied spirit of one of the living creatures who lived in the preadamic age and were judged by God when they joined Satan’s rebellion (see Life-study of Genesis, Message Two). The fallen angels work with Satan in the air (Eph. 2:2; 6:11-12), and these unclean spirits, the demons, move with him on the earth. Both act evilly upon man for the kingdom of Satan. The demons’ possession of people signifies Satan’s usurpation of man, whom God created for His purpose. The third thing the Slave-Savior, who came to destroy the works of Satan (1 John 3:8), did as a part of His service to God was to cast out these demons from the possessed people (vv. 34, 39; 3:15; 6:7, 13; 16:17) that they might be delivered from Satan’s bondage (Luke 13:16), out of Satan’s authority of darkness (Acts 26:18; Col. 1:13), into God’s kingdom (v. 15). Five cases are recorded in this Gospel to illustrate this (vv. 23-27; 5:2-20; 7:25-30; 9:17-27; 16:9).

Mrk 1:241  What
  Lit., What to us and to You? (a Hebrew idiom).

Mrk 1:24a  do  Mark 5:7

Mrk 1:24b  Nazarene  Mark 10:47;  14:67;  16:6

Mrk 1:24c  know  Mark 1:34;  Acts 19:15

Mrk 1:24d  Holy  Luke 1:35;  John 6:69

Mrk 1:25a  rebuked  Mark 9:25;  cf. Mark 4:39

Mrk 1:25b  quiet  Mark 1:34;  Luke 4:41

Mrk 1:26a  unclean  Mark 1:23

Mrk 1:26b  convulsing  Mark 9:20, 26

Mrk 1:26c  loud  Mark 5:7;  Acts 8:7

Mrk 1:27a  amazed  Mark 2:12;  5:42

Mrk 1:27b  new  Acts 17:19

Mrk 1:271c  authority  Mark 3:15
  It was not power but authority that cast out the demon. For His service the Slave-Savior had divine authority not only to teach people (v. 22) but also to cast out demons.

Mrk 1:27d  obey  Mark 4:41

Mrk 1:28a  immediately  Mark 1:23, 29

Mrk 1:29a  house  vv. 29-34: Matt. 8:14-16;  Luke 4:38-41

Mrk 1:30a  mother-in-law  cf. 1 Cor. 9:5

Mrk 1:301  fever
  This may signify a person’s unbridled temper, which is abnormal and intemperate.

Mrk 1:30b  immediately  Mark 1:28, 29, 42

Mrk 1:31a  holding  Mark 5:41;  9:27;  Acts 3:7

Mrk 1:311  left
  Sickness issues from sin and is a sign of man’s abnormal condition before God because of sin. The fourth thing the Slave-Savior did to rescue the sinners, as another part of His gospel service, was to heal their sick condition physically and spiritually and restore them to normality (v. 34; 3:10; 6:5, 13, 56) that they might serve Him. Nine cases are recorded in this Gospel to illustrate such healing (vv. 30-31, 40-45; 2:3-12; 3:1-5; 5:22-43; 7:32-37; 8:22-26; 10:46-52).

Mrk 1:312  served
  First she was healed, then she served.

Mrk 1:33a  gathered  Mark 2:2

Mrk 1:341  healed
  See note 311.

Mrk 1:34a  diseases  Matt. 4:23

Mrk 1:342  cast
  See note 231. So in v. 39.

Mrk 1:34b  not  Mark 1:25;  3:12

Mrk 1:343  they
  Some MSS read, they knew Him to be Christ.

Mrk 1:34c  knew  Mark 1:24

Mrk 1:35a  early  Luke 4:42

Mrk 1:351b  prayed  Matt. 14:23;  Luke 5:16
  To fellowship with God, seeking God’s will and pleasure for His gospel service. The Slave-Savior performed the evangelistic service not by Himself, independent of God and according to His own will, but according to God’s will and pleasure by being one with God to fulfill His purpose (see note 382).

Mrk 1:38a  elsewhere  Luke 4:43

Mrk 1:381b  preach  Isa. 61:1
  See note 142.

Mrk 1:382  this
  As the Slave of God, the Slave-Savior served God in His gospel to carry out not His own will or the people’s proposal but the will of God, who had sent Him (John 6:38; 4:34).

Mrk 1:38c  came  cf. John 16:28

Mrk 1:39a  synagogues  Mark 1:21;  6:2;  Luke 4:44

Mrk 1:401a  leper  vv. 40-44: Matt. 8:2-4;  Luke 5:12-14
  [ par. 1 2 ]
Mrk 1:401 [1]  A leper portrays a typical sinner. Leprosy is the most contaminating and damaging disease, much more serious than a fever (v. 30), causing its victim to be isolated from God and from men (see notes 21 and 31 in Matt. 8). The cleansing of the leper signifies the recovering of the sinner to the fellowship with God and with men. This was the consummating part of the Slave-Savior’s gospel service according to the record of this chapter.
Mrk 1:401 [2]  The Slave-Savior’s gospel service to God comprised (1) preaching (vv. 14-15, 38-39) to announce the glad tidings to the miserable people in bondage; (2) teaching (vv. 21-22) to enlighten the ignorant ones in darkness with the divine light of the truth; (3) casting out demons (vv. 25-26) to annihilate Satan’s usurpation of man; (4) healing man’s sick condition (vv. 30-31) that man might serve the Slave-Savior; and (5) cleansing the leper (vv. 41-42) to recover the sinner to the fellowship with God and with men. What a wonderful and excellent work!

Mrk 1:40b  falling  Mark 10:17;  Matt. 17:14

Mrk 1:40c  cleanse  cf. Lev. 13:45-46;  14:9, 19-20

Mrk 1:411  compassion
  The Slave-Savior’s compassion and willingness, issuing from His love, were dear and precious to the hopeless leper.

Mrk 1:412  stretching
  Showing His sympathy and intimacy toward the miserable leper, whom no one dared to touch.

Mrk 1:413  cleansed
  Not only healed (see note 311) but cleansed. Like other diseases, leprosy requires healing; like sin (1 John 1:7), it also requires cleansing because of its filthy and contaminating nature.

Mrk 1:42a  immediately  Mark 1:29, 30, 43

Mrk 1:42b  cleansed  cf. 2 Kings 5:1, 10, 14;  Luke 4:27

Mrk 1:43a  charging  Matt. 9:30

Mrk 1:441  say
  Such a charge, given throughout the record of the Slave-Savior’s evangelistic service, is quite striking (5:43; 7:36; 9:9). It is similar to what was prophesied in Isa. 42:2 concerning His quiet character. He wanted His work to be done within the limits of a move that was absolutely according to God’s purpose and that was not promoted by man’s excitement and propaganda. See note 261 in ch. 8.

Mrk 1:44a  priest  Lev. 14:2-32;  Luke 17:14

Mrk 1:45a  proclaim  Mark 7:36;  Matt. 9:31

Mrk 1:451  matter
  Lit., word.

Mrk 1:452  no
  Man’s activity, which is according to the natural concept, frustrates the Slave-Savior’s service, which is according to God’s purpose.

Mrk 1:45b  deserted  2 Cor. 11:26

Mrk 1:45c  came  Mark 2:2, 13;  3:7;  John 6:2

Mrk 2:11  He
  [ par. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ]
Mrk 2:11 [1]  The five incidents vividly recorded in 2:1—3:6 form one particular group, showing how the Slave-Savior as the Slave of God carried out His gospel service to care for the needs of fallen people, who had been captured by Satan and carried away from God and the enjoyment of God, that they might be rescued from their captivity and might be brought back to God as their enjoyment.
Mrk 2:11 [2]  (1) As God with divine authority, He forgave the sins of the victim of sickness that He might release him from Satan’s oppression (Acts 10:38) and restore him to God. The scribes considered this to be against the theology of their religion (vv. 1-12).
Mrk 2:11 [3]  (2) As a Physician to the sick and miserable people, He feasted with the tax collectors, who were disloyal and unfaithful to their race, and with sinners, who were despised and isolated from society, that they might taste the mercy of God and be recovered to the enjoyment of God. This was condemned by the self-righteous yet merciless scribes of the Pharisees (vv. 13-17).
Mrk 2:11 [4]  (3) As a Bridegroom with the sons of the bridechamber, He caused His followers to be merry and happy without fasting. Thus He annulled the practice of the disciples of John (the new religionists) and the Pharisees (the old religionists) so that His followers could be delivered from the practices of their religion into the enjoyment of God’s Christ as their Bridegroom, with His righteousness as their outer clothing and His life as their inner wine in God’s New Testament economy (vv. 18-22).
Mrk 2:11 [5]  (4) He allowed His followers to pick the ears of grain in the grainfields on the Sabbath so that they could satisfy their hunger. Thus, apparently they broke God’s commandment concerning the Sabbath, but actually they pleased God because the hunger of Christ’s followers was satisfied through Him, as the hunger of David and his followers had been satisfied with the bread of the Presence in the house of God. This indicates that in God’s New Testament economy, it is a matter not of keeping the regulation of religion but of enjoying satisfaction in and through Christ as the real Sabbath rest (vv. 23-28).
Mrk 2:11 [6]  (5) On the Sabbath He healed a man who had a withered hand, caring not for the keeping of the Sabbath but for the health of His sheep. Thus He indicated that in God’s New Testament economy it is a matter not of keeping regulations but of imparting life. For this He was hated by the Pharisees, the religionists (3:1-6).
Mrk 2:11 [7]  All five merciful and living ways taken by the Slave-Savior to carry out His gospel service contradicted the formal and traditional religion and were therefore abhorred by the fleshly, stubborn, and lifeless religious leaders.

Mrk 2:1a  Capernaum  Mark 1:21

Mrk 2:12  at
  Or, in the house.

Mrk 2:2a  gathered  Mark 1:33, 45

Mrk 2:31a  paralytic  vv. 3-12: Matt. 9:2-8;  Luke 5:18-26
  Signifying a sinner paralyzed by sin, one who is unable to walk and move before God.

Mrk 2:41  removed
  Their zeal in seeking the Slave-Savior’s healing compelled the seekers to break through the proper barrier—a wild act. See note 21 in Matt. 9.

Mrk 2:4a  roof  1 Sam. 9:25;  Neh. 8:16;  Acts 10:9

Mrk 2:42  mat
  A small mattress or pad. So in vv. 9, 11, and 12.

Mrk 2:51a  faith  Mark 10:52;  Matt. 8:10, 13;  9:22, 29;  15:28;  Luke 7:50;  17:19;  18:42;  Acts 14:9
  Faith here, which issues from hearing the word of Christ (Rom. 10:17), indicates that the seekers had heard of the Slave-Savior.

Mrk 2:52  Child
  This loving word spoken by the Slave-Savior implies kindness; in this His human virtue was expressed.

Mrk 2:53  sins
  Sins are the cause of sickness. The Slave-Savior’s word here touched the cause of sickness so that a healing effect could come. Once the sins had been forgiven, the sickness was healed.

Mrk 2:5b  forgiven  Luke 7:48;  James 5:15

Mrk 2:61  scribes
  The scribes and Pharisees, as the religionists of the old and dead religion, were motivated and used by Satan, the enemy of God, to oppose, resist, and frustrate the gospel service of the Slave of God throughout His ministry (vv. 16, 24; 3:22; 7:5; 8:11; 9:14; 10:2; 11:27; 12:13, 28). They thought that they were worshipping God and were zealous for Him, not knowing that the very God of their forefathers—Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—was immediately in front of them in the form of a Slave who desired to serve them. Blinded by their traditional religion from seeing Him in the divine economy, they plotted to kill Him (3:6; 11:18; 14:1); and they actually did kill Him (8:31; 10:33; 14:43, 53; 15:1, 31).

Mrk 2:7a  blaspheming  Mark 14:64;  John 10:36

Mrk 2:7b  sins  Psa. 32:5;  Isa. 43:25

Mrk 2:71  God
  The reasoning scribes, who considered themselves to be according to the Scriptures and theology, acknowledged the Slave-Savior merely as a man, even a despised Nazarene (John 1:45-46), not realizing that the One who forgave the sins of the paralytic was the very forgiving God incarnated in the form of a lowly man (see note 32 in Matt. 9), who came as a Slave to serve them with His salvation.

Mrk 2:8a  immediately  Mark 1:42, 43;  2:12

Mrk 2:81b  knowing  John 2:25
  The Slave-Savior knew the seekers’ faith, the sick one’s sins (v. 5), and the scribes’ inward reasoning; this indicates that He was omniscient. Such omniscience, which manifested His divine attribute, unveiled His deity, showing that He is the omniscient God. See note 21 in ch. 11.

Mrk 2:91  easier
  See note 51 in Matt. 9.

Mrk 2:10a  Son  Mark 2:28

Mrk 2:101  Man
  The Slave-Savior was the very God incarnated. As such, He did not consider being equal with God a treasure to be grasped. Outwardly, He was in the likeness and fashion of man, even in the form of a slave, but inwardly, He was God (Phil. 2:6-7). He was the Slave-Savior, and the God-Savior as well. Hence, He had not only the ability to save sinners but also the authority to forgive their sins. In this incident, although He as God forgave people’s sins, He asserted that He was the Son of Man. This indicates that He was the true God and a real man, possessing deity and humanity. In Him men could see both His divine attributes and His human virtues.

Mrk 2:111  Rise
  See note 52 in Matt. 9. This was the healing of the paralytic. See note 311 in ch. 1.

Mrk 2:11a  take  John 5:8

Mrk 2:121  rose
  This is the fulfillment of the Slave-Savior’s word, “Rise, take up your mat.” It was easier to say, “Your sins are forgiven,” than to say, “Rise and take up your mat and walk.” Since the latter word was fulfilled, surely the former also, the easier one, had been fulfilled. This is strong evidence that the Slave-Savior has authority to forgive sins on earth.

Mrk 2:122  took
  See note 62 in Matt. 9.

Mrk 2:123  went
  See note 63 in Matt. 9.

Mrk 2:12a  amazed  Mark 1:27;  5:42

Mrk 2:12b  glorified  Luke 7:16

Mrk 2:13a  sea  Mark 1:16;  3:7

Mrk 2:13b  crowd  Mark 1:45;  3:7-9;  5:24

Mrk 2:131  taught
  See note 212 in ch. 1.

Mrk 2:141  And
  For vv. 14-17, see notes in Matt. 9:9-13.

Mrk 2:142a  tax  vv. 14-17: Matt. 9:9-13;  Luke 5:27-32
  A tollhouse, where taxes for the Romans were collected. Matthew was one of the tax collectors (Matt. 10:3), probably in a high position. Tax collectors were condemned, despised, and abhorred by the Jews (Luke 18:11; Matt. 5:46 and note 2). Yet Matthew was called by the Slave-Savior and was later chosen and appointed as one of the twelve apostles (3:18). What mercy!

Mrk 2:143  followed
  As an answer to the Slave-Savior’s call, this action implied that he was abandoning his dirty job and his sinful life.

Mrk 2:15a  tax  Matt. 11:19;  Luke 15:1-2;  18:10-14

Mrk 2:161a  scribes  Acts 4:5;  23:9
  See note 61. The scribes were self-righteous in condemning the Slave-Savior for His feasting with tax collectors and sinners.

Mrk 2:171  physician
  This indicates that the Slave-Savior considered Himself a Physician to the people who were sick with sins.

Mrk 2:17a  come  Luke 19:10;  1 Tim. 1:15

Mrk 2:17b  righteous  Luke 15:7

Mrk 2:172  sinners
  This indicates that the Slave-Savior, as the Savior of sinners, came to save only sinners.

Mrk 2:181  And
  For vv. 18-22, see notes in Matt. 9:14-17.

Mrk 2:18a  disciples  Matt. 11:2;  14:12;  Luke 11:1;  John 1:35;  3:25

Mrk 2:18b  fasting  Luke 18:12

Mrk 2:18c  said  vv. 18-22: Matt. 9:14-17;  Luke 5:33-38

Mrk 2:18d  Why  Mark 2:24;  7:5;  Matt. 9:11

Mrk 2:19a  bridegroom  John 3:29;  Matt. 25:1

Mrk 2:20a  days  Luke 17:22

Mrk 2:22a  old  Josh. 9:4

Mrk 2:231  And
  For vv. 23-28, see notes in Matt. 12:1-8.

Mrk 2:23a  passed  vv. 23-28: Matt. 12:1-8;  Luke 6:1-5

Mrk 2:23b  Sabbath  Gen. 2:2;  Deut. 5:15;  Ezek. 20:12;  Isa. 58:13-14

Mrk 2:23c  ears  Deut. 23:25

Mrk 2:241  Pharisees
  See note 61.

Mrk 2:24a  Sabbath  Mark 3:4;  Luke 13:14;  14:3;  John 5:9-10;  9:14, 16

Mrk 2:24b  not  Exo. 20:10;  Deut. 5:14

Mrk 2:25a  never  Matt. 21:16

Mrk 2:251b  David  1 Sam. 21:1-6
  Implying that the Slave-Savior is the real David, the King of the coming kingdom of God.

Mrk 2:26a  Abiathar  2 Sam. 8:17;  1 Chron. 24:6

Mrk 2:26b  bread  Exo. 25:30;  Lev. 24:5-9

Mrk 2:26c  eat  Exo. 29:33

Mrk 2:27a  Sabbath  Exo. 23:12

Mrk 2:271  not
  Man was not created for the Sabbath; rather, the Sabbath was ordained for man that he might enjoy it with God (Gen. 2:2-3).

Mrk 2:27b  Sabbath  Col. 2:16

Mrk 2:28a  Son  Mark 2:10

Mrk 2:281  Lord
  This shows the Slave-Savior’s deity in His humanity. He, the Son of Man, was the very God who had ordained the Sabbath, and He had the right to change what He had ordained concerning the Sabbath.

Mrk 3:11  And
  For vv. 1-6, see notes in Matt. 12:9-14.

Mrk 3:1a  man  vv. 1-6: Matt. 12:9-14;  Luke 6:6-11

Mrk 3:2a  watching  Luke 14:1;  20:20

Mrk 3:2b  Sabbath  Mark 2:24

Mrk 3:2c  accuse  Mark 14:55-56;  15:3-4

Mrk 3:4a  lawful  Luke 14:3

Mrk 3:41  save
  This implied that the Slave-Savior was the Emancipator, who set the suffering one free from the bondage of religious ritual.

Mrk 3:42  life
  Lit., soul.

Mrk 3:5a  looking  Mark 3:34;  5:32;  10:23

Mrk 3:51  anger
  Toward the opposers the Savior’s anger was exercised, and He was greatly grieved at their hardness; but toward the sick His compassion was exercised, and He restored the withered member. His anger and grief may be considered the expression of the genuineness of His humanity, whereas His compassion and healing were a merging of His human virtue with His divine power, which were manifested simultaneously to men. Thus, His deity in His humanity was again expressed before men. See note 141 in ch. 10.

Mrk 3:5b  hardness  Mark 10:5;  Rom. 11:25;  Eph. 4:18;  Heb. 3:8

Mrk 3:5c  Stretch  cf. 1 Kings 13:4

Mrk 3:52  restored
  See note 311 in ch. 1. The restoration of the withered hand displayed the power of the Slave-Savior’s deity.

Mrk 3:61  Pharisees
  See note 61 in ch. 2.

Mrk 3:6a  immediately  Mark 2:12;  4:5

Mrk 3:6b  counsel  Matt. 22:15

Mrk 3:6c  Herodians  Mark 12:13;  Matt. 22:16

Mrk 3:6d  destroy  Mark 11:18;  12:7;  14:1

Mrk 3:7a  sea  Mark 2:13;  4:1

Mrk 3:7b  followed  Matt. 12:15

Mrk 3:8a  Tyre  Matt. 11:21

Mrk 3:8b  multitude  Matt. 4:25;  Luke 6:17;  Mark 2:13

Mrk 3:91a  boat  Mark 4:1;  Luke 5:3;  John 6:22;  21:8
  The Slave-Savior needed first the sea (v. 7) and then a little boat to escape the pressing of the crowd, indicating that the crowd’s thronging Him was a frustration to His gospel service.

Mrk 3:9b  throng  Mark 5:24

Mrk 3:101  healed
  See note 311 in ch. 1.

Mrk 3:102a  afflictions  Mark 5:29;  Matt. 4:23;  Luke 7:21
  Lit., scourges. A metaphor for afflictions, calamities.

Mrk 3:103  pressed
  Lit., fell upon.

Mrk 3:10b  touch  Mark 5:27;  6:56;  Matt. 9:20-21;  14:36;  Luke 6:19

Mrk 3:11a  unclean  Mark 1:23, 26;  Luke 4:33

Mrk 3:11b  cried  Luke 4:41;  8:28

Mrk 3:11c  Son  Mark 1:1;  Matt. 14:33

Mrk 3:121  charged
  The demons’ crying out concerning the Slave-Savior was a further frustration to His gospel service. He charged them not to make Him known.

Mrk 3:12a  not  Mark 5:43;  Matt. 12:16

Mrk 3:13a  called  Matt. 10:1;  Luke 6:13;  9:1;  Mark 6:7

Mrk 3:141  appointed
  This was for the spreading of the Slave-Savior’s gospel service.

Mrk 3:142  twelve
  See note 122 in Rev. 21.

Mrk 3:143  whom
  Some MSS omit, whom He also named apostles.

Mrk 3:144  preach
  See note 142 in ch. 1.

Mrk 3:15a  authority  Mark 1:27;  6:7

Mrk 3:151  cast
  See note 231 in ch. 1. To preach (v. 14) the gospel was to minister God to people; to cast out demons was to keep Satan away from people. These constituted the main purpose of the Slave-Savior’s gospel service.

Mrk 3:161  And
  For vv. 16-19, see notes in Matt. 10:2-4.

Mrk 3:16a  twelve  vv. 16-19: Matt. 10:2-4;  Luke 6:14-16;  Acts 1:13

Mrk 3:162  gave
  Lit., placed on, or, put on. So in v. 17.

Mrk 3:16b  Peter  John 1:42;  Matt. 16:18

Mrk 3:17a  Zebedee  Mark 1:19

Mrk 3:17b  John  Mark 5:37

Mrk 3:171  Boanerges
  Greek from Aramaic. A name added to James and John because of their impetuosity (cf. Luke 9:54-55; Mark 9:38 and note).

Mrk 3:18a  Matthew  Matt. 9:9

Mrk 3:19a  Judas  John 6:71;  13:26

Mrk 3:191  betrayed
  Lit., delivered Him up. So throughout the book.

Mrk 3:201  He
  Some MSS read, they came.

Mrk 3:20a  house  Mark 7:17;  9:28

Mrk 3:202b  not  Mark 6:31
  This indicates the busyness, diligence, and faithfulness of the Slave-Savior as the Slave of God in His evangelistic service.

Mrk 3:21a  relatives  Mark 3:31

Mrk 3:211  He
  “He is beside Himself” was an exclamation expressing the natural concern for the Slave-Savior on the part of His relatives. It opened the way for the scribes to blaspheme Him (v. 22).

Mrk 3:21b  beside  Acts 26:24;  2 Cor. 5:13

Mrk 3:221  And
  For vv. 22-30, see notes in Matt. 12:24-32.

Mrk 3:222  scribes
  See note 61 in ch. 2.

Mrk 3:22a  Jerusalem  Mark 7:1;  Matt. 15:1

Mrk 3:22b  said  vv. 22-30: Matt. 12:24-32;  Luke 11:15-23

Mrk 3:22c  has  John 7:20;  8:48, 52;  10:20

Mrk 3:223d  Beelzebul  Matt. 10:25
  This was a word of blasphemy ushered in by the exclamation of natural concern in v. 21.

Mrk 3:224e  ruler  Matt. 9:34;  John 12:31;  Eph. 2:2
  The Slave-Savior cast out demons, the evil workers for the dark kingdom of Satan, yet the opposers said that He did it by the ruler of the demons. What a subtlety of the evil one, who motivated these evil opposers to say this! They were the co-workers of the evil one and even were one with him.

Mrk 3:241a  kingdom  Matt. 12:26;  Acts 26:18;  Col. 1:13
  This indicates that Satan has not only a house but also a kingdom. His house is a house of sin (1 John 3:8, 10), and his kingdom is a kingdom of darkness (Col. 1:13). The sinners belong to both his house and his kingdom. The demons belong to his kingdom and possess people for his kingdom.

Mrk 3:27a  plunder  Isa. 49:24

Mrk 3:271  goods
  Sinners kept in Satan’s house for his kingdom. The Slave-Savior bound Satan, the strong man, and entered into his house to plunder the sinners so that through regeneration they could be brought into the house of God (Eph. 2:19) for the kingdom of God (John 3:5).

Mrk 3:272b  binds  Matt. 16:19
  This indicates that while the Slave-Savior was doing the gospel service, He was binding the strong man, Satan. The gospel service is a warfare to destroy Satan and his kingdom of darkness.

Mrk 3:28a  forgiven  Luke 24:47;  Acts 5:31;  10:43

Mrk 3:28b  blaspheme  1 Tim. 1:13

Mrk 3:291  Holy
  This shows that the Slave-Savior’s gospel service, especially in casting out the demons to destroy the dark kingdom of Satan, was by the Holy Spirit, with whom He was anointed and by whom He was being led continuously in His move (Luke 4:18, 1; Mark 1:12).

Mrk 3:29a  Spirit  Luke 12:10;  cf. Heb. 10:29;  Acts 7:51

Mrk 3:292  everlasting
  A sin that will not be forgiven forever.

Mrk 3:31a  His  vv. 31-35: Matt. 12:46-50;  Luke 8:19-21

Mrk 3:311  mother
  After the opposers’ blasphemy, which was instigated by Satan, the relatives of the Slave-Savior came again to trouble Him with their natural concern for Him. Undoubtedly, this too was motivated by the evil one.

Mrk 3:31b  brothers  Mark 6:3;  John 2:12;  7:3, 5, 10;  Acts 1:14;  1 Cor. 9:5;  Gal. 1:19

Mrk 3:31c  they  Mark 3:21

Mrk 3:331  Who
  See note 481 in Matt. 12. This indicated the Slave-Savior’s rejection of His relatives’ natural concern. To defeat the evil one’s schemes and to fulfill His gospel service, He refused to remain in any relationship in the natural life. This displayed His absoluteness for God in His humanity.

Mrk 3:34a  looking  Mark 3:5

Mrk 3:34b  brothers  Rom. 8:29;  Heb. 2:11-12

Mrk 3:351a  does  Matt. 7:21
  See note 501 in Matt. 12.

Mrk 3:352  My
  Through His gospel service the Slave-Savior made the believing sinners His spiritual relatives, who became His many brothers (Rom. 8:29; Heb. 2:11) in the house of God (Heb. 3:5) and His many members for the building up of His mystical Body (Eph. 5:30; 1 Cor. 12:12) to do the will of God.

Mrk 4:11  And
  For vv. 1-12, see notes in Matt. 13:1-15.

Mrk 4:12  teach
  See note 212 in ch. 1. So for taught in the next verse.

Mrk 4:1a  beside  vv. 1-12: Matt. 13:1-15;  Luke 8:4-10

Mrk 4:1b  sea  Mark 3:7;  5:1

Mrk 4:1c  boat  Mark 3:9

Mrk 4:2a  teaching  Mark 1:22;  12:38

Mrk 4:31a  sower  Isa. 55:10
  Signifying the Slave-Savior (Matt. 13:37), who was the Son of God coming to sow Himself as the seed of life (see note 263) in His word (v. 14) into men’s hearts that He might grow and live in them and be expressed from within them.

Mrk 4:32  sow
  This sowing was the Slave-Savior’s proclaiming of the gospel of God, which brought in the kingdom of God (1:14-15). It was, as in v. 26, the sowing of the seed of life in the word (v. 14) spoken by the Slave-Savior, indicating that His gospel service was to sow the divine life into the people whom He served. The growth of this life depends on the condition of the ones served, and its issue differs according to their various conditions, as portrayed in this parable.

Mrk 4:5a  immediately  Mark 3:6;  4:15, 16, 17

Mrk 4:6a  rose  James 1:11

Mrk 4:7a  thorns  Jer. 4:3

Mrk 4:8a  bore  John 15:5, 16;  Col. 1:6

Mrk 4:8b  hundredfold  Mark 4:20;  Gen. 26:12

Mrk 4:9a  ears  Matt. 11:15;  Rev. 2:7

Mrk 4:10a  alone  Mark 4:34

Mrk 4:111a  mystery  Rom. 16:25-26;  Eph. 3:3
  God’s economy concerning His kingdom was a hidden mystery, which has been unveiled to the Slave-Savior’s disciples. Yet since the nature and character of the kingdom of God are wholly divine, and the elements through which it is brought forth are the divine life and the divine light (see notes 31, 261, and 211), the kingdom of God, especially in its reality as the genuine church in this age (Rom. 14:17), is still entirely a mystery to the natural man. Divine revelation is required to understand it.

Mrk 4:11b  outside  Col. 4:5;  1 Thes. 4:12

Mrk 4:112  are
  Or, are done, become.

Mrk 4:11c  parables  Matt. 13:34-35

Mrk 4:12a  seeing  Isa. 6:9-10;  Ezek. 12:2;  Acts 28:26;  Rom. 11:8

Mrk 4:12b  not  Mark 8:17, 21;  Matt. 13:19

Mrk 4:12c  turn  John 12:40;  Acts 3:26;  28:27

Mrk 4:131  know
  The first know here denotes the inward, subjective understanding; the second denotes the outward, objective knowledge.

Mrk 4:13a  parable  vv. 13-20: Matt. 13:18-23;  Luke 8:11-15

Mrk 4:14a  sower  Matt. 13:37

Mrk 4:14b  word  Mark 4:33;  Acts 8:4;  James 1:21;  1 Pet. 1:23

Mrk 4:15a  immediately  Mark 4:5, 16

Mrk 4:16a  hear  Mark 6:20;  Ezek. 33:31-32

Mrk 4:17a  for  John 5:35;  cf. Gal. 1:6

Mrk 4:17b  stumbled  Matt. 11:6

Mrk 4:19a  anxieties  Matt. 6:25, 27, 28

Mrk 4:19b  deceitfulness  Heb. 3:13

Mrk 4:19c  riches  Mark 10:23;  Matt. 19:23;  Luke 18:24;  1 Tim. 6:9, 10, 17

Mrk 4:20a  bear  Mark 4:8

Mrk 4:211a  lamp  Matt. 5:15;  Luke 8:16;  11:33
  The lamp here, which shines light, indicates that the Slave-Savior’s gospel service not only sows life into the people whom He serves but also brings light to them. Hence, such a divine service issues in the believers as luminaries (Phil. 2:15) and the churches as lampstands (Rev. 1:20) that shine as His testimony in this dark age and consummate in the New Jerusalem, which has the outstanding characteristics of life and light (Rev. 22:1-2; 21:11, 23-24).

Mrk 4:212  bushel
  See note 151 in Matt. 5.

Mrk 4:213  lampstand
  See note 152 in Matt. 5.

Mrk 4:22a  hidden  Matt. 10:26;  Luke 12:2

Mrk 4:23a  ears  Mark 4:9

Mrk 4:241  With
  In Matt. 7:2 and Luke 6:38 this word is applied to the way we treat others. Here it is applied to the way we hear the word of the Lord. The measure that can be given to us by the Lord depends on the measure of our hearing. As much as we can hear, that much He will give.

Mrk 4:251a  has  Matt. 25:29;  Luke 19:26
  The word here, as in Matt. 13:10-13 and Luke 8:18, is concerned with how we hear the word of the Lord.

Mrk 4:261a  kingdom  Mark 1:15;  4:30;  John 3:3, 5;  Acts 1:3;  14:22;  28:31;  Rom. 14:17;  1 Cor. 6:9-10
  The kingdom of God is the reality of the church, which is brought forth by the resurrection life of Christ through the gospel (1 Cor. 4:15). Regeneration is the entrance to the kingdom (John 3:5), and the growth of the divine life within the believers is the kingdom’s development (2 Pet. 1:3-11). See note 151 in ch. 1.

Mrk 4:262  man
  The Slave-Savior as the sower. See note 31.

Mrk 4:263b  seed  vv. 26-29: cf. Matt. 13:24-26, 30
  The seed of the divine life (1 John 3:9; 1 Pet. 1:23) sown into the Slave-Savior’s believers, indicating that the kingdom of God, which is the issue and goal of the Slave-Savior’s gospel, and the church in this age (Rom. 14:17) are a matter of life, the life of God, which sprouts, grows, bears fruit, matures, and produces a harvest; they are not a matter of lifeless organization produced through man’s wisdom and ability. The apostles’ words in 1 Cor. 3:6-9 and Rev. 14:4, 15-16 confirm this.

Mrk 4:271  sleeps
  The words sleeps and rises night and day and how, he does not know should not be applied to the Slave-Savior. This verse illustrates the spontaneity of the growth of the seed (cf. v. 28).

Mrk 4:272  lengthens
  I.e., grows.

Mrk 4:281  earth
  I.e., the good earth (v. 8), signifying the good heart that was created by God (Gen. 1:31) so that His divine life can grow in man. Such a good heart works together with the seed of the divine life sown into it, allowing the seed to grow and bear fruit spontaneously for the expression of God. The word here enables us to have faith in this spontaneity. Thus, here, in contrast to Matt. 13:24-30, tares are not mentioned, on the negative side.

Mrk 4:282  by
  Or, spontaneously.

Mrk 4:29a  immediately  Mark 4:17;  5:2

Mrk 4:291b  sickle  Rev. 14:15;  Joel 3:13
  Signifying the angels sent by the Lord to reap the harvest (Rev. 14:16; Matt. 13:39).

Mrk 4:301  And
  For vv. 30-32, see notes in Matt. 13:31-32.

Mrk 4:30a  kingdom  Mark 4:26;  9:47

Mrk 4:302  present
  Some MSS read, compare.

Mrk 4:31a  mustard  vv. 31-32: Matt. 13:31-32;  (17:20);  Luke 13:18-19

Mrk 4:321  greater
  What is signified by the seed in vv. 3 and 26 and the lamp in v. 21 discloses the nature and inward reality of the kingdom of God; whereas what is signified by the mustard seed’s becoming great, contrary to its kind, and the birds’ roosting under its shade speaks of the corruption and outward appearance of the kingdom of God.

Mrk 4:331  parables
  These parables display the Slave-Savior’s divine wisdom and knowledge (Matt. 13:34-35).

Mrk 4:33a  word  Mark 4:14

Mrk 4:33b  able  cf. John 16:12;  1 Cor. 3:2;  Heb. 5:12

Mrk 4:34a  parable  John 16:25

Mrk 4:34b  privately  Mark 4:10

Mrk 4:35a  go  Mark 6:45;  Matt. 8:18;  14:22

Mrk 4:361  And
  For vv. 36-41, see notes in Matt. 8:23-27.

Mrk 4:36a  boat  vv. 36-41: Matt. 8:23-27;  Luke 8:22-25

Mrk 4:37a  windstorm  John 6:18

Mrk 4:37b  boat  Mark 6:47

Mrk 4:381  sleeping
  The Slave-Savior was sleeping and resting in the boat, which was being beaten by the windstorm, while the disciples were threatened by the storm. This indicates that He was above the threatening windstorm and was not bothered by it. As long as the disciples had Him with them in their boat, they should, by faith in Him (v. 40), have shared His rest and enjoyed His peace.

Mrk 4:391a  rebuked  Psa. 104:7;  cf. Mark 1:25;  Luke 4:39
  While the disciples were following Him, the Slave-Savior, as a man with divine authority, controlled the storm that threatened them.

Mrk 4:39b  ceased  Mark 6:51

Mrk 4:39c  great  Psa. 65:7;  89:9;  107:29

Mrk 4:40a  cowardly  John 14:27

Mrk 4:40b  faith  Mark 11:23

Mrk 4:411a  obey  Mark 1:27
  This not only displayed the Slave-Savior’s divine authority but also testified that He was the very Creator of the universe (Gen. 1:9; Job 38:8-11). He is the Creator, the One who has the authority!

Mrk 5:11  And
  For vv. 1-20, see notes in Matt. 8:28-34. In Mark the record of these events is much more detailed than in Matthew. This is strong evidence that Mark’s Gospel, as a biography of the Slave of God, stresses His work instead of His word, giving more details than the other Gospels.

Mrk 5:1a  side  Mark 5:21;  1:16;  2:13;  4:1

Mrk 5:1b  Gerasenes  vv. 1-20: Matt. 8:28-34;  Luke 8:26-39

Mrk 5:2a  immediately  Mark 4:29;  5:29, 30

Mrk 5:2b  unclean  Mark 1:23;  Rev. 18:2

Mrk 5:31  tombs
  Tombs are places connected with death and Hades (Psa. 88:3, 5).

Mrk 5:6a  worshipped  Matt. 8:2

Mrk 5:7a  loud  Mark 1:26;  Acts 8:7

Mrk 5:71  he
  This indicates that the possessed man was usurped by the unclean spirit to the extent that he was being used by the spirit as if he were the spirit himself.

Mrk 5:72  What
  Lit., What to me and to You? Some versions render it, “What do You have to do with me?”

Mrk 5:7b  with  1 Kings 17:18

Mrk 5:7c  Most  Gen. 14:18-19;  Num. 24:16;  Psa. 57:2;  Dan. 3:26;  Luke 1:32;  6:35;  Acts 16:17;  Heb. 7:1

Mrk 5:7d  adjure  Matt. 26:63

Mrk 5:81  spirit
  See note 231 in ch. 1.

Mrk 5:9a  Legion  Mark 5:15

Mrk 5:121  they
  Some MSS read, all the demons.

Mrk 5:131  He
  Some MSS read, immediately Jesus.

Mrk 5:15a  legion  Mark 5:9

Mrk 5:17a  depart  Acts 16:39

Mrk 5:201a  Decapolis  Mark 7:31;  Matt. 4:25
  A district of ten cities.

Mrk 5:21a  crossed  Matt. 9:1

Mrk 5:21b  side  Mark 5:1

Mrk 5:221  And
  For vv. 22-43, see notes in Matt. 9:18-26. In this record of the miraculous deeds of the Slave of God in His gospel service, Mark again gives more details than Matthew. It is a vivid presentation, portraying especially the sufferings of the sick, the Slave-Savior’s tenderness and kindness toward them in His saving service, and Peter’s presence.

Mrk 5:22a  one  vv. 22-43: Matt. 9:18-26;  Luke 8:41-56

Mrk 5:22b  rulers  Mark 5:35;  Luke 13:14;  Acts 13:15;  18:8, 17

Mrk 5:23a  lay  Mark 6:5;  7:32;  8:23, 25;  16:18;  Luke 4:40;  13:13;  Acts 9:12, 17;  28:8

Mrk 5:231  healed
  Lit., saved.

Mrk 5:24a  pressed  Mark 5:31;  3:9

Mrk 5:251  woman
  Since this woman’s case is merged with the case of the ruler’s daughter, and since the twelve years of the woman’s sickness are the age of the girl, and both are females, one older, one younger, these cases can be considered a complete case of one person. In this view the girl was born, so to speak, in the woman’s death-sickness and died of it. When the woman’s death-sickness was healed by the Savior, the dead girl rose up from death. This signifies that every fallen person is born in the death-sickness of sin and is dead in sin (Eph. 2:1). When his death-sickness of sin is dealt with by the Savior’s redeeming death (1 Pet. 2:24), he rises up out of death into life (John 5:24-25).

Mrk 5:25a  flow  Lev. 15:25

Mrk 5:25b  twelve  Mark 5:42

Mrk 5:27a  touched  Mark 5:30;  3:10;  6:56

Mrk 5:281  healed
  Or, made whole; lit., saved. Sickness is an oppression exercised over the sick by the devil. Hence, the Slave-Savior’s healing was a saving service rendered to the suffering victim that she might enjoy relief and release from the evil one’s oppression (Acts 10:38). See note 311 in ch. 1.

Mrk 5:29a  immediately  Mark 5:2, 42

Mrk 5:29b  affliction  Mark 3:10

Mrk 5:301a  power  Luke 5:17;  6:19;  Acts 10:38
  The Slave-Savior was God incarnated to be a man (John 1:1, 14). His garments signify His perfect behavior in His humanity—His perfection in His human virtues. To touch His garments was actually to touch Him in His humanity, in which God was embodied (Col. 2:9). By such a touch His divine power was transfused, through the perfection of His humanity, into the one who had touched Him, and it became her healing. The God who dwells in unapproachable light became touchable in the Slave-Savior through His humanity for her salvation and enjoyment. This was the service of the Slave-Savior, as the Slave of God, to the sick sinner.

Mrk 5:30b  touched  Mark 5:27

Mrk 5:311a  pressing  Mark 5:24
  The pressing crowd did not receive anything from the Savior, but the one who touched Him did.

Mrk 5:331  frightened
  Fear is inward, whereas trembling is shown outwardly.

Mrk 5:341  Daughter
  The Slave-Savior’s power in healing expressed His deity (v. 30 and note); His word, given with love and kindness in sympathy, expressed His humanity. In this case His deity and His humanity again were merged for His expression.

Mrk 5:34a  faith  Mark 10:52;  Acts 14:9

Mrk 5:342  healed
  See note 281.

Mrk 5:343  in
  Lit., into.

Mrk 5:34b  peace  Luke 7:50

Mrk 5:344  well
  Or, whole, sound.

Mrk 5:35a  ruler  Mark 5:22

Mrk 5:35b  bother  Luke 7:6

Mrk 5:361  overhearing
  Or, hearing unintentionally, ignoring. Some MSS read, hearing.

Mrk 5:37a  Peter  Mark 9:2;  14:33

Mrk 5:37b  John  Mark 3:17

Mrk 5:39a  sleeping  John 11:11

Mrk 5:40a  putting  Acts 9:40

Mrk 5:41a  took  Mark 1:31;  9:27

Mrk 5:411  Talitha
  Aramaic.

Mrk 5:41b  Arise  Luke 7:14;  cf. John 11:43

Mrk 5:42a  immediately  Mark 5:2

Mrk 5:42b  twelve  Mark 5:25

Mrk 5:42c  amazed  Mark 1:27

Mrk 5:431a  no  Mark 3:12;  9:9;  Matt. 8:4;  9:30;  12:16;  17:9;  Luke 5:14
  See note 441 in ch. 1.

Mrk 6:1a  came  vv. 1-6: Matt. 13:54-58;  Luke 4:16-24

Mrk 6:21  teach
  See note 212 in ch. 1. So for this verb throughout this chapter.

Mrk 6:2a  synagogue  Mark 1:21, 39;  Matt. 4:23;  Luke 6:6;  13:10;  Acts 13:14

Mrk 6:2b  astounded  Mark 6:51;  1:22;  Matt. 7:28

Mrk 6:31  carpenter
  See note 551 in Matt. 13. The blind despisers’ word here may be considered a fulfillment of the prophecy in Isa. 53:2-3 concerning the Slave-Savior: “Like a root out of dry ground. He has no attracting form nor majesty that we should look upon Him, nor beautiful appearance that we should desire Him. He was despised and forsaken of men.” To know Him in that way was to know Him in His humanity according to the flesh (2 Cor. 5:16), not in His deity according to the Spirit (Rom. 1:4). In His humanity He was a root out of dry ground, a sprout from the stump of Jesse and a branch from his roots (Isa. 11:1), a Shoot unto David (Jer. 23:5; 33:15), the Shoot who was a man and the Servant of Jehovah (Zech. 3:8; 6:12), One who came out of the seed of David according to the flesh (Rom. 1:3). In His deity He was the Shoot of Jehovah for beauty and glory (Isa. 4:2), the Son of God marked out in power according to the Spirit (Rom. 1:4).

Mrk 6:3a  brother  Mark 3:31;  Matt. 12:46;  Gal. 1:19

Mrk 6:3b  stumbled  John 6:61

Mrk 6:4a  prophet  John 4:44

Mrk 6:51  not
  See note 581 in Matt. 13.

Mrk 6:5a  lay  Mark 5:23

Mrk 6:52  heal
  See note 311 in ch. 1. So for this verb throughout this chapter.

Mrk 6:6a  marveled  Isa. 59:16

Mrk 6:6b  villages  Mark 6:56;  Matt. 9:35;  Luke 8:1;  13:22

Mrk 6:7a  called  Mark 3:13-15;  Matt. 10:1;  Luke 9:1-2

Mrk 6:71b  authority  Mark 3:15
  See notes 221 in ch. 1 and 12 in Matt. 10.

Mrk 6:8a  take  vv. 8-11: Matt. 10:9-14;  Luke 9:3-5;  10:4-11

Mrk 6:81  no
  See note 91 in Matt. 10.

Mrk 6:91  tunics
  A shirt-like undergarment. So throughout the book.

Mrk 6:101  depart
  Lit., go out from there.

Mrk 6:11a  shake  Acts 13:51;  cf. Neh. 5:13;  Acts 18:6

Mrk 6:111  against
  Or, to.

Mrk 6:121a  proclaimed  Matt. 4:17;  10:7;  Luke 9:6
  See note 142 in ch. 1.

Mrk 6:12b  repent  Mark 1:4, 15

Mrk 6:131  cast
  See note 231 in ch. 1.

Mrk 6:13a  anointed  James 5:14

Mrk 6:14a  heard  vv. 14-29: Matt. 14:1-12;  Luke 9:7-9

Mrk 6:14b  John  Mark 8:28

Mrk 6:141  are
  I.e., are operating and are being manifested.

Mrk 6:15a  Elijah  Mark 9:11

Mrk 6:15b  prophet  Deut. 18:15;  Acts 3:22;  Matt. 21:11;  Luke 24:19

Mrk 6:16a  beheaded  Mark 6:27

Mrk 6:17a  prison  Matt. 11:2;  John 3:24

Mrk 6:17b  Herodias  Luke 3:19-20

Mrk 6:18a  brother  Lev. 18:16;  20:21

Mrk 6:20a  John  Matt. 21:26

Mrk 6:20b  righteous  Luke 1:75;  Eph. 4:24;  Heb. 12:10-11

Mrk 6:20c  heard  Mark 4:16;  12:37

Mrk 6:21a  birthday  cf. Gen. 40:20

Mrk 6:21b  banquet  Esth. 1:3;  2:18

Mrk 6:23a  half  Esth. 5:3, 6;  7:2

Mrk 6:25a  immediately  Mark 5:42;  6:27

Mrk 6:27a  immediately  Mark 6:25, 45

Mrk 6:271b  beheaded  Mark 6:16
  This indicates Satan’s hatred, expressed by the darkness and injustice of the worldly power, toward the faithful forerunner of the Slave-Savior. See note 101 in Matt. 14.

Mrk 6:29a  disciples  Matt. 9:14

Mrk 6:30a  apostles  Matt. 10:2;  Luke 6:13;  17:5;  22:14;  24:10

Mrk 6:30b  reported  Luke 9:10

Mrk 6:31a  deserted  Matt. 14:13

Mrk 6:311  not
  See note 202 in ch. 3.

Mrk 6:31b  eat  Mark 3:20

Mrk 6:321  And
  For vv. 32-44, see notes in Matt. 14:13-21.

Mrk 6:32a  went  vv. 32-44: Matt. 14:13-21;  Luke 9:10-17;  John 6:1-13

Mrk 6:33a  recognized  Mark 6:54

Mrk 6:341  moved
  This exhibited the Slave-Savior’s virtue in His humanity. Such virtue was carried out by the power of His deity (cf. note 431). The virtue in His humanity and the power of His deity were mingled as one, showing that He is both man and God.

Mrk 6:34a  compassion  Mark 8:2;  Matt. 9:36;  15:32

Mrk 6:36a  Send  Matt. 15:39

Mrk 6:37a  give  2 Kings 4:42-44

Mrk 6:371  denarii
  See note 71 in John 6.

Mrk 6:38a  How  Mark 8:5

Mrk 6:391  by
  The Greek phrase denotes dividing into companies at a party. Sitting by companies was equivalent to sitting at tables. This figure implies that the Lord’s feeding of the multitude with bread and fish was like the spreading of a feast to entertain guests.

Mrk 6:401  in
  Lit., garden plot by garden plot. Here, the arrangement of plots in a garden refers figuratively to a group of people arranged in an orderly way. The groups of people sat down in well-ordered square plots, so that they looked like flowering plants arranged in plots in a garden. This figure implies that those who are fed by the Lord are like fragrant, beautiful flower beds (S.S 5:13; 6:2).

Mrk 6:41a  looking  Mark 7:34;  John 11:41

Mrk 6:41b  blessed  Mark 8:7;  14:22

Mrk 6:431  twelve
  This not only displayed the power of the Slave-Savior’s deity as the Creator, who calls things not being as being (Rom. 4:17), but also signifies the bountiful and inexhaustible supply of His divine life (Eph. 3:8; Phil. 1:19).

Mrk 6:451  And
  For vv. 45-51, see notes in Matt. 14:22-32.

Mrk 6:45a  immediately  Mark 6:27, 50

Mrk 6:45b  compelled  vv. 45-51: Matt. 14:22-32;  John 6:16-21

Mrk 6:45c  go  Mark 4:35;  Matt. 8:18

Mrk 6:45d  Bethsaida  Mark 8:22;  Luke 9:10

Mrk 6:46a  mountain  Mark 3:13;  John 6:15

Mrk 6:461b  pray  Mark 1:35;  Luke 5:16;  6:12;  9:28
  See note 351 in ch. 1.

Mrk 6:47a  boat  Mark 4:37

Mrk 6:481  walking
  In 4:38 the Slave-Savior was sleeping in a boat that was being beaten by a windstorm that threatened His followers. Here, He was walking on the sea while His followers, as they rowed, were distressed by the waves of the sea. These incidents indicate that the Slave-Savior, as the Creator and Ruler of the universe (Job 9:8), was not distressed by any circumstance and that He would care for His followers in their troubles while they followed Him in their journey.

Mrk 6:50a  startled  Luke 24:37

Mrk 6:50b  immediately  Mark 6:45, 54

Mrk 6:50c  courage  John 16:33

Mrk 6:501  It
  Lit., I am.

Mrk 6:50d  afraid  Deut. 31:6;  Isa. 41:13;  43:1-2;  Matt. 17:7

Mrk 6:51a  ceased  Mark 4:39

Mrk 6:51b  astonished  Mark 6:2;  7:37

Mrk 6:52a  understand  Mark 8:17-21

Mrk 6:53a  crossed  vv. 53-56: Matt. 14:34-36

Mrk 6:53b  Gennesaret  Luke 5:1

Mrk 6:54a  immediately  Mark 6:50;  7:25

Mrk 6:54b  recognized  Mark 6:33

Mrk 6:55a  mats  Luke 5:18

Mrk 6:56a  villages  Mark 6:6

Mrk 6:56b  marketplaces  Acts 5:15

Mrk 6:561  fringe
  See notes 204 in Matt. 9 and 301 in ch. 5.

Mrk 6:56c  touched  Mark 3:10;  5:27-28;  Luke 6:19;  cf. Acts 19:12

Mrk 6:562  healed
  Or, made whole. See note 281 in ch. 5.

Mrk 7:11  And
  For vv. 1-23, see notes in Matt. 15:1-20.

Mrk 7:1a  Pharisees  vv. 1-23: Matt. 15:1-20

Mrk 7:1b  Jerusalem  Mark 3:22

Mrk 7:21  had
  Some MSS read, seeing…unwashed, they found fault.

Mrk 7:2a  unwashed  Luke 11:38

Mrk 7:31  carefully
  Lit., with the fist.

Mrk 7:3a  tradition  Gal. 1:14;  Col. 2:8

Mrk 7:32  elders
  I.e., ancients, people of the previous generations.

Mrk 7:41  wash
  Lit., baptize. Some MSS have, sprinkle.

Mrk 7:4a  many  Mark 7:13

Mrk 7:4b  dipping  Heb. 9:10;  Matt. 23:25;  Luke 11:39

Mrk 7:42 
  Some MSS add, and couches.

Mrk 7:51  Pharisees
  See note 61 in ch. 2.

Mrk 7:61  hypocrites
  See note 22 in Matt. 6.

Mrk 7:6a  This  Isa. 29:13

Mrk 7:6b  lips  cf. Ezek. 33:31

Mrk 7:71  worship
  Revere. The feeling of awe or devotion is stressed.

Mrk 7:7a  men  Col. 2:22;  cf. Titus 1:14

Mrk 7:81 
  Some MSS add, the dipping of pitchers and cups and many other such similar things you do.

Mrk 7:91a  set  Luke 7:30
  The result of the keeping of tradition is the setting aside of the commandment of God. Furthermore, tradition causes people to set aside the commandment of God “nicely”!

Mrk 7:10a  Honor  Exo. 20:12;  Deut. 5:16

Mrk 7:10b  He  Exo. 21:17;  Lev. 20:9;  Prov. 20:20

Mrk 7:101  let
  Lit., let him decease by death. See note 43 in Matt. 15.

Mrk 7:111  corban
  For the Hebrew word qorban, meaning an offering. Signifying anything offered to God.

Mrk 7:11a  gift  Lev. 1:2

Mrk 7:13a  many  Mark 7:4

Mrk 7:14a  understand  Matt. 13:51

Mrk 7:151  defile
  Make him common, unclean (Acts 11:8). So in the succeeding verses.

Mrk 7:161  If
  Some MSS omit this verse.

Mrk 7:17a  house  Mark 7:24;  3:20;  9:28

Mrk 7:17b  parable  Matt. 13:36

Mrk 7:18a  understanding  Mark 8:17

Mrk 7:19a  stomach  1 Cor. 6:13

Mrk 7:19b  clean  Luke 11:41;  Acts 10:15;  11:9;  Rom. 14:20

Mrk 7:20a  defiles  James 3:6

Mrk 7:21a  heart  Gen. 8:21;  Matt. 9:4;  12:34

Mrk 7:21b  murders  Exo. 20:13

Mrk 7:22a  Adulteries  Exo. 20:14;  Matt. 5:27-28;  1 Cor. 6:9

Mrk 7:22b  covetousness  Exo. 20:17;  1 Cor. 5:11;  6:10

Mrk 7:221  deceit
  Or, guile.

Mrk 7:222  envy
  Lit., a wicked eye. A Semitic expression referring to the eye that intends to do evil and, by extension, to hostility, jealousy, or envy.

Mrk 7:22c  blasphemy  Col. 3:8

Mrk 7:231  wicked
  The wicked things that proceed from within are the evil issues of man’s fallen and sinful nature (v. 21; Rom. 7:18).

Mrk 7:241  And
  For vv. 24-30, see notes in Matt. 15:21-28.

Mrk 7:24a  went  vv. 24-30: Matt. 15:21-28

Mrk 7:24b  Tyre  Mark 7:31

Mrk 7:242  and
  Some MSS omit, and Sidon.

Mrk 7:24c  house  Mark 7:17

Mrk 7:243  no
  The Lord never wanted publicity for Himself.

Mrk 7:25a  unclean  Mark 1:23

Mrk 7:25b  immediately  Mark 6:54;  7:35

Mrk 7:26a  Greek  John 12:20;  1 Cor. 12:13

Mrk 7:261  Syrophoenician
  Syrian by tongue, Phoenician by race (cf. Acts 21:2-3). Since the Phoenicians were descendants of the Canaanites, she was a Canaanite woman (Matt. 15:22). What made her a Greek—religion, marriage, or some other factor—is difficult to determine.

Mrk 7:27a  First  Acts 3:26;  Rom. 1:16

Mrk 7:27b  children  cf. Exo. 4:22;  Deut. 32:6;  1 Chron. 29:10;  Isa. 63:16;  64:8

Mrk 7:27c  bread  John 6:35, 48

Mrk 7:271  little
  Pet dogs, house dogs.

Mrk 7:27d  dogs  Matt. 7:6

Mrk 7:28a  table  Luke 16:21

Mrk 7:29a  go  John 4:50

Mrk 7:291  demon
  See note 231 in ch. 1.

Mrk 7:31a  came  vv. 31-37: Matt. 15:29-31

Mrk 7:31b  Tyre  Mark 7:24

Mrk 7:311c  Galilee  Matt. 4:18;  John 6:1
  See note 291 in Matt. 15.

Mrk 7:312d  Decapolis  Mark 5:20
  A district of ten cities.

Mrk 7:321  one
  Signifying one who is spiritually deaf and dumb, unable to hear the voice of God and to praise Him (Isa. 35:6) and speak for Him (Isa. 56:10). The dumbness of such a person is due to his deafness. The Slave-Savior’s healing salvation is well able to heal the deafness and dumbness of such a one, first by dealing with his ears and then by touching his tongue.

Mrk 7:32a  deaf  Isa. 35:5-6;  43:8-9

Mrk 7:32b  spoke  cf. Matt. 9:32;  Luke 11:14

Mrk 7:32c  lay  Mark 5:23

Mrk 7:331  put
  Or, thrust. The Slave-Savior’s thrusting of His fingers into the deaf one’s ears signifies His dealing with his hearing organ (cf. Isa. 50:4-5; Job 33:14-16), and His touching of his tongue with His spittle signifies His anointing of the dumb one’s speaking organ with the word that proceeds out of His mouth. This was a healing (see note 311 in ch. 1).

Mrk 7:33a  spat  Mark 8:23;  John 9:6

Mrk 7:34a  looking  Mark 6:41

Mrk 7:34b  groaned  Mark 8:12;  John 11:33, 38

Mrk 7:341  Ephphatha
  Aramaic.

Mrk 7:35a  immediately  Mark 7:25;  8:10

Mrk 7:361  not
  See note 441 in ch. 1.

Mrk 7:36a  anyone  Mark 5:43;  9:9;  Matt. 8:4

Mrk 7:36b  proclaimed  Mark 1:45

Mrk 7:37a  astounded  Mark 6:51;  10:26

Mrk 8:11  In
  For vv. 1-10, see notes in Matt. 15:32-39.

Mrk 8:1a  said  vv. 1-10: Matt. 15:32-39;  cf. Mark 6:34-44

Mrk 8:21  moved
  The Slave-Savior’s virtues of compassion, sympathy, and tender care were vividly and sweetly displayed here in His humanity.

Mrk 8:31  faint
  See note 21.

Mrk 8:6a  gave  Luke 22:19;  John 6:11;  Acts 27:35

Mrk 8:8a  surplus  2 Kings 4:43-44

Mrk 8:81  seven
  See note 431 in ch. 6.

Mrk 8:91  there
  Some MSS read, those who had eaten.

Mrk 8:10a  immediately  Mark 7:35;  9:15

Mrk 8:101  Dalmanutha
  Dalmanutha was probably a village in the districts of Magadan (Matt. 15:39). It was likely a place west of the Sea of Galilee.

Mrk 8:111  And
  For vv. 11-21, see notes in Matt. 16:1-12.

Mrk 8:112a  Pharisees  vv. 11-21: Matt. 16:1-12
  See note 61 in ch. 2. So in v. 15.

Mrk 8:113b  sign  Matt. 12:38;  Luke 11:16;  21:11;  John 6:30;  1 Cor. 1:22
  A sign is a miracle that has some spiritual significance.

Mrk 8:11c  tempting  Mark 10:2;  12:15;  John 8:6

Mrk 8:121a  groaned  Mark 7:34
  This too is a virtue of the Lord in His humanity, showing His sentiment toward man.

Mrk 8:122  No
  Lit., If a sign shall be given. A Hebraism, as in Heb. 3:11.

Mrk 8:151a  leaven  Luke 12:1;  1 Cor. 5:6-8;  Gal. 5:9
  See note 331 in Matt. 13. The leaven of the Pharisees was their hypocrisy (Luke 12:1); the leaven of Herod was his corruption and injustice in politics (see note 271 in ch. 6).

Mrk 8:15b  Herod  Luke 13:31-32;  Mark 3:6;  12:13

Mrk 8:161  saying
  Some MSS read, that they had no bread.

Mrk 8:17a  knowing  Matt. 26:10

Mrk 8:17b  understand  Mark 4:12;  7:18

Mrk 8:17c  hardened  Mark 6:52

Mrk 8:18a  not  Isa. 42:18, 20;  Jer. 5:21;  Ezek. 12:2;  Matt. 13:13-14

Mrk 8:19a  five  Mark 6:41

Mrk 8:20a  Seven  Mark 8:6

Mrk 8:21a  understand  Mark 6:52

Mrk 8:22a  Bethsaida  Mark 6:45

Mrk 8:221  blind
  Signifying one who has lost his inner sight, one who is blind spiritually (Acts 26:18; 2 Pet. 1:9).

Mrk 8:231a  took  Mark 5:41;  9:27
  The Slave-Savior’s humanity was expressed here in His intimate and loving care for the needy one. See note 361 in ch. 9.

Mrk 8:232  led
  This may indicate that the Slave-Savior would not allow what He intended to do for this blind man to be seen and known by the crowd, since He charged him not even to enter into the village (v. 26). Spiritually, this may indicate that the Slave-Savior wanted the blind man to have a private and intimate time with Him so that He could infuse him with the element by which his sight could be recovered. All who are spiritually blind need such a time with the Slave-Savior.

Mrk 8:233b  spat  Mark 7:33
  Blindness is related to darkness (Acts 26:18). To see, there is the need of light. The Slave-Savior’s spittle may signify the word that proceeds out of His mouth (see note 61 in John 9), a word that conveys the divine light of life to the receiver for the recovery of his sight. Such spitting by the Slave-Savior, accompanied by His laying on of hands, was much richer than His mere touch, which had been requested for the blind man by his helpers.

Mrk 8:234c  laid  Mark 5:23
  Indicating that the Slave-Savior identified Himself with the blind man in order to transfuse His healing element into him.

Mrk 8:241  see
  This may illustrate a person’s spiritual seeing. In the initial stage of his spiritual recovery, a person may see spiritual things as did this blind man, who saw men as trees, walking. After a further recovery, he sees all things clearly.

Mrk 8:251  restored
  See note 311 in ch. 1.

Mrk 8:261  not
  Throughout His ministry the Slave-Savior, the Slave of God, did not want publicity. See note 441 in ch. 1. Shunning publicity was one of the virtues that He displayed. Such a virtue was sweet and lovely.

Mrk 8:262 
  Some MSS add, nor tell it to anyone in the village.

Mrk 8:271  And
  For vv. 27-29, see notes in Matt. 16:13-16.

Mrk 8:27a  Caesarea  vv. 27-29: Matt. 16:13-16

Mrk 8:27b  Who  Luke 9:18

Mrk 8:28a  John  Mark 6:14;  Matt. 14:2

Mrk 8:28b  Elijah  Mark 9:13;  Luke 9:8;  John 1:21

Mrk 8:29a  Christ  Matt. 1:17;  John 11:27;  20:31

Mrk 8:301  not
  The Slave-Savior did not want to promote Himself.

Mrk 8:30a  anyone  Matt. 16:20;  Luke 9:21

Mrk 8:311  And
  For 8:31—9:1, see notes in Matt. 16:21-28.

Mrk 8:31a  began  8:31–9:1: Matt. 16:21-28;  Luke 9:22-27

Mrk 8:31b  Son  Mark 9:12;  Matt. 17:22-23;  Luke 24:7

Mrk 8:31c  rejected  Mark 12:10;  Luke 17:25;  Acts 4:11;  1 Pet. 2:4

Mrk 8:31d  killed  Mark 9:31;  10:33-34

Mrk 8:31e  three  Matt. 27:63;  12:40;  John 2:19;  cf. Luke 13:32

Mrk 8:31f  rise  Mark 9:9

Mrk 8:32a  openly  John 16:25

Mrk 8:33a  Satan  Matt. 4:10;  cf. John 6:70

Mrk 8:33b  mind  Rom. 8:5-6

Mrk 8:34a  cross  Matt. 10:38-39;  Luke 14:27

Mrk 8:35a  soul-life  John 12:25

Mrk 8:35b  gospel’s  Mark 10:29;  1 Cor. 9:23;  2 Tim. 1:8;  Philem. 13