9:25 Now when Jesus saw that a crowd was quickly gathering, he rebuked 19 the unclean spirit, 20 saying to it, “Mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.”
1 tn Grk “And after warning him, he immediately sent him away and told him.”
2 sn The silence ordered by Jesus was probably meant to last only until the cleansing took place with the priests and sought to prevent Jesus’ healings from becoming the central focus of the people’s reaction to him. See also 1:34; 3:12; 5:43; 7:36; 8:26, 30; and 9:9 for other cases where Jesus asks for silence concerning him and his ministry.
3 sn On the phrase bring the offering that Moses commanded see Lev 14:1-32.
4 tn Or “as an indictment against them”; or “as proof to the people.” This phrase could be taken as referring to a positive witness to the priests, a negative testimony against them, or as a testimony to the community that the man had indeed been cured. In any case, the testimony shows that Jesus is healing and ministering to those in need.
5 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
6 tn Grk “answering, he said to them.” The participle ἀποκριθείς (apokriqeis) is redundant, but the syntax of the sentence has been changed for clarity.
7 tn Here the pronoun ὑμεῖς (Jumeis) is used, making “you” in the translation emphatic.
8 sn The silver coin referred to here is the denarius. A denarius, inscribed with a picture of Tiberius Caesar, was worth approximately one day’s wage for a laborer. Two hundred denarii was thus approximately equal to eight months’ wages. The disciples did not have the resources in their possession to feed the large crowd, so Jesus’ request is his way of causing them to trust him as part of their growth in discipleship.
9 tn Grk “village, and.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
10 tn Grk “on him,” but the word πάλιν in v. 25 implies that Jesus touched the man’s eyes at this point.
11 tn Grk “people’s.”
12 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”
13 tn The Greek negative here (οὐ μή, ou mh) is the strongest possible.
14 tn Grk “will not taste.” Here the Greek verb does not mean “sample a small amount” (as a typical English reader might infer from the word “taste”), but “experience something cognitively or emotionally; come to know something” (cf. BDAG 195 s.v. γεύομαι 2).
15 sn Several suggestions have been made as to the referent for the phrase the kingdom of God come with power: (1) the transfiguration itself, which immediately follows in the narrative; (2) Jesus’ resurrection and ascension; (3) the coming of the Spirit; (4) Jesus’ second coming and the establishment of the kingdom. The reference to after six days in 9:2 seems to indicate that Mark had the transfiguration in mind insofar as it was a substantial prefiguring of the consummation of the kingdom (although this interpretation is not without its problems). As such, the transfiguration was a tremendous confirmation to the disciples that even though Jesus had just finished speaking of his death (8:31; 9:31; 10:33), he was nonetheless the promised Messiah and things were proceeding according to God’s plan.
16 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
17 tn Grk “And answering, Peter said to Jesus.” The participle ἀποκριθείς (apokriqeis) is redundant and has not been translated.
18 tn Or “dwellings,” “booths” (referring to the temporary booths constructed in the celebration of the feast of Tabernacles).
sn Peter apparently wanted to celebrate the feast of Tabernacles or Booths that looked forward to the end and wanted to treat Moses, Elijah, and Jesus as equals by making three shelters (one for each). It was actually a way of expressing honor to Jesus, but the next few verses make it clear that it was not enough honor.
19 tn Or “commanded” (often with the implication of a threat, L&N 33.331).
20 sn Unclean spirit refers to an evil spirit.
21 tn Grk “throw it out.”
22 tn Grk “than having.”
23 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”
24 tn The imperfect ἐδίδασκεν (edidasken) is here taken ingressively.
25 sn A quotation from Isa 56:7.
26 tn Or “a hideout” (see L&N 1.57).
27 sn A quotation from Jer 7:11. The meaning of Jesus’ statement about making the temple courts a den of robbers probably operates here at two levels. Not only were the religious leaders robbing the people financially, but because of this they had also robbed them spiritually by stealing from them the opportunity to come to know God genuinely. It is possible that these merchants had recently been moved to this location for convenience.
28 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”
29 sn A quotation from Deut 4:35.
30 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”
31 tn Grk “the produce” (“the produce of the vine” is a figurative expression for wine).
32 tn Or “Sleep on, and get your rest.” This sentence can be taken either as a question or a sarcastic command.
33 tc Codex D (with some support with minor variation from W Θ Ë13 565 2542 pc it) reads, “Enough of that! It is the end and the hour has come.” Evidently, this addition highlights Jesus’ assertion that what he had predicted about his own death was now coming true (cf. Luke 22:37). Even though the addition highlights the accuracy of Jesus’ prediction, it should not be regarded as part of the text of Mark, since it receives little support from the rest of the witnesses and because D especially is prone to expand the wording of a text.
34 tn This occurrence of the word ἀλέκτωρ (alektwr, “rooster”) is anarthrous and consequently may not point back explicitly to the rooster which had crowed previously in v. 68. The reason for the anarthrous construction is most likely to indicate generically that some rooster crowed. Further, the translation of ἀλέκτωρ as an indefinite noun retains the subtlety of the Greek in only hinting at the Lord’s prediction v. 30. See also NAB, TEV, NASB.
35 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
36 tn Grk “he wept deeply.”
37 sn See the note on Crucify in 15:13.
38 tn The verb here is passive (ἠγέρθη, hgerqh). This “divine passive” (see ExSyn 437-38) points to the fact that Jesus was raised by God.