4:1 Again he began to teach by the lake. Such a large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat on the lake and sat there while 4 the whole crowd was on the shore by the lake.
8:31 Then 8 Jesus 9 began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer 10 many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and experts in the law, 11 and be killed, and after three days rise again.
9:2 Six days later 12 Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John and led them alone up a high mountain privately. And he was transfigured before them, 13
12:28 Now 15 one of the experts in the law 16 came and heard them debating. When he saw that Jesus 17 answered them well, he asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?”
1 tn Grk “he”; the referent (the man who was healed) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
2 sn The strong man here pictures Satan.
3 sn Some see the imagery here as similar to Eph 4:7-10, although no opponents are explicitly named in that passage. Jesus has the victory over Satan. Jesus’ acts of healing mean that the war is being won and the kingdom is coming.
4 tn Grk “and all the crowd.” The clause in this phrase, although coordinate in terms of grammar, is logically subordinate to the previous clause.
5 tn Grk “asked that they might touch.”
6 tc Several important witnesses (Ì45vid א B L Δ 28* pc) lack “and dining couches” (καὶ κλινῶν, kai klinwn), while the majority of
7 sn Verses 3-4 represent parenthetical remarks by the author, giving background information.
8 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
9 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
10 sn The necessity that the Son of Man suffer is the particular point that needed emphasis, since for many 1st century Jews the Messiah was a glorious and powerful figure, not a suffering one.
11 tn Or “and the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.
12 tn Grk “And after six days.”
13 sn In 1st century Judaism and in the NT, there was the belief that the righteous get new, glorified bodies in order to enter heaven (1 Cor 15:42-49; 2 Cor 5:1-10). This transformation means the righteous will share the glory of God. One recalls the way Moses shared the Lord’s glory after his visit to the mountain in Exod 34. So the disciples saw Jesus transfigured, and they were getting a sneak preview of the great glory that Jesus would have (only his glory is more inherent to him as one who shares in the rule of the kingdom).
14 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”
15 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
16 tn Or “One of the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.
17 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
18 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.
19 sn Mark’s wording suggests that both of the criminals spoke abusively to him. If so, one of them quickly changed his attitude toward Jesus (see Luke 23:40-43).