2:13 Jesus 4 went out again by the sea. The whole crowd came to him, and he taught them.
3:13 Now 11 Jesus went up the mountain 12 and called for those he wanted, and they came to him.
7:1 Now 19 the Pharisees 20 and some of the experts in the law 21 who came from Jerusalem 22 gathered around him.
7:17 Now 23 when Jesus 24 had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about the parable.
8:11 Then the Pharisees 26 came and began to argue with Jesus, asking for 27 a sign from heaven 28 to test him.
9:11 Then 31 they asked him, 32 “Why do the experts in the law 33 say that Elijah must come first?”
9:28 Then, 36 after he went into the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why couldn’t we cast it out?”
1 tc The reading found in almost the entire NT ms tradition is σπλαγχνισθείς (splancnisqei", “moved with compassion”). Codex Bezae (D), {1358}, and a few Latin
2 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
3 sn Touched. This touch would have rendered Jesus ceremonially unclean (Lev 14:46; also Mishnah, m. Nega’im 3.1; 11.1; 12.1; 13.6-12).
4 tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
5 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.
6 sn See the note on Pharisees in 2:16.
7 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.
8 sn See the note on Pharisees in 2:16.
9 tn Grk inserts “against him” after “Herodians.” This is somewhat redundant in English and has not been translated.
sn The Herodians are mentioned in the NT only once in Matt (22:16 = Mark 12:13) and twice in Mark (3:6; 12:13; some
10 tn Grk “destroy.”
11 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
12 tn Or “up a mountain” (εἰς τὸ ὅρος, eis to Joro").
sn The expression up the mountain here may be idiomatic or generic, much like the English “he went to the hospital” (cf. 15:29), or even intentionally reminiscent of Exod 24:12 (LXX), since the genre of the Sermon on the Mount seems to be that of a new Moses giving a new law.
13 tc Western witnesses D W it, instead of reading οἱ παρ᾿ αὐτοῦ (Joi par’ aujtou, here translated “family”), have περὶ αὐτοῦ οἱ γραμματεῖς καὶ οἱ λοιποί (peri autou Joi grammatei" kai Joi loipoi, “[when] the scribes and others [heard] about him”). But this reading is obviously motivated, for it removes the embarrassing statement about Jesus’ family’s opinion of him as “out of his mind” and transfers this view to the Lord’s opponents. The fact that virtually all other witnesses have οἱ παρ᾿ αὐτοῦ here, coupled with the strong internal evidence for the shorter reading, shows this Western reading to be secondary.
tn On the meaning “family” for οἱ παρ᾿ αὐτοῦ (Joi par’ autou), see BDAG 756-57 s.v. παρά A.3.b.β.ב.
sn The incident involving the religious leaders accusing Jesus of being in league with the devil (3:22-30) is sandwiched between Mark’s mention of Jesus’ family coming to restrain him (the Greek word for restrain here is also used to mean arrest; see Mark 6:17; 12:12; 14:1, 44, 46, 49, 51) because they thought he was out of his mind (3:21). It is probably Mark’s intention in this structure to show that Jesus’ family is to be regarded as not altogether unlike the experts in the law [scribes] in their perception of the true identity of Jesus; they are incorrect in their understanding of him as well. The tone is obviously one of sadness and the emphasis on Jesus’ true family in vv. 31-35 serves to underscore the comparison between his relatives and the scribes on the one hand, and those who truly obey God on the other.
14 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
15 sn The name Legion means “thousands,” a word taken from a Latin term for a large group of soldiers. The term not only suggests a multiple possession, but also adds a military feel to the account. This is a true battle.
16 tn Grk “garment,” but here ἱμάτιον (Jimation) denotes the outer garment in particular.
17 tn Grk “on the sea,” “on the lake.” The translation “water” has been used here for stylistic reasons (cf. the same phrase in v. 48).
18 tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
19 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
20 sn See the note on Pharisees in 2:16.
21 tn Or “and some of the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.
22 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
23 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
24 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
25 tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
26 sn See the note on Pharisees in 2:16.
27 tn Grk “seeking from him.” The participle ζητοῦντες (zhtountes) shows the means by which the Pharisees argued with Jesus.
28 sn What exactly this sign would have been, given what Jesus was already doing, is not clear. But here is where the fence-sitters reside, refusing to commit to him.
29 tn Grk “Answering, Peter said to him.” This is redundant in contemporary English and has been simplified to “Peter answered him.”
30 tn Or “the Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”
sn The term χριστός (cristos) was originally an adjective (“anointed”), developing in LXX into a substantive (“an anointed one”), then developing still further into a technical generic term (“the anointed one”). In the intertestamental period it developed further into a technical term referring to the hoped-for anointed one, that is, a specific individual. In the NT the development starts there (technical-specific), is so used in the gospels, and then develops in Paul to mean virtually Jesus’ last name.
31 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
32 tn Grk “And they were asking him, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant and has not been translated.
33 tn Or “Why do the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.
34 tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
35 tc Most
36 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
37 tc The Western text (D it) and a few others have only καί (kai) here, rather than καὶ προσελθόντες Φαρισαῖοι (kai proselqonte" Farisaioi, here translated as “then some Pharisees came”). The longer reading, a specific identification of the subject, may have been prompted by the parallel in Matt 19:3. The fact that the
sn See the note on Pharisees in 2:16.
38 tn In Greek this phrase occurs at the end of the sentence. It has been brought forward to conform to English style.
39 tn The personal pronoun “his” is not in the Greek text, but is certainly implied and has been supplied in the English translation to clarify the sense of the statement (cf. “his wife” in 10:7).
40 tn The particle εἰ (ei) is often used to introduce both indirect and direct questions. Thus, another possible translation is to take this as an indirect question: “They asked him if it were lawful for a man to divorce his wife.” See BDF §440.3.
sn The question of the Pharisees was anything but sincere; they were asking it to test him. Jesus was now in the jurisdiction of Herod Antipas (i.e., Judea and beyond the Jordan) and it is likely that the Pharisees were hoping he might answer the question of divorce in a way similar to John the Baptist and so suffer the same fate as John, i.e., death at the hands of Herod (cf. 6:17-19). Jesus answered the question not on the basis of rabbinic custom and the debate over Deut 24:1, but rather from the account of creation and God’s original design.
41 sn Jesus’ response, Why do you call me good?, was designed to cause the young man to stop and think for a moment about who Jesus really was. The following statement No one is good except God alone seems to point the man in the direction of Jesus’ essential nature and the demands which logically follow on the man for having said it.
42 tn Grk “one beloved son.” See comment at Mark 1:11.
sn The owner’s decision to send his one dear son represents God sending Jesus.
43 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
44 tn Or “the Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”
sn See the note on Christ in 8:29.
45 tn Grk “Pilate asked him again, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant and has not been translated.
46 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
47 sn See the note on Crucify in 15:13.
48 tn Grk “by throwing the lot” (probably by using marked pebbles or broken pieces of pottery). A modern equivalent, “throwing dice,” was chosen here because of its association with gambling. According to L&N 6.219 a term for “dice” is particularly appropriate.
sn An allusion to Ps 22:18.