Mark 4:11

4:11 He said to them, “The secret ¹  of the kingdom of God has been given ²  to you. But to those outside, everything is in parables,

Mark 4:19

4:19 but ³  worldly cares, the seductiveness of wealth, ⁴  and the desire for other things come in and choke the word, ⁵  and it produces nothing.

Mark 4:34

4:34 He did not speak to them without a parable. But privately he explained everything to his own disciples.

Mark 5:39

5:39 When he entered he said to them, “Why are you distressed and weeping? The child is not dead but asleep.”

Mark 10:15

10:15 I tell you the truth, ⁶  whoever does not receive ⁷  the kingdom of God like a child ⁸  will never ⁹  enter it.”

Mark 12:6

12:6 He had one left, his one dear son. ¹⁰  Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

Mark 12:29

12:29 Jesus answered, “The most important is: ‘Listen, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.

Mark 13:2

13:2 Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left on another. ¹¹  All will be torn down!” ¹² 

Mark 14:55

14:55 The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death, but they did not find anything.

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¹ tn Grk “the mystery.”

sn The key term secret (μυστήριον, musthrion) can mean either (1) a new revelation or (2) a revealing interpretation of existing revelation as in Dan 2:17-23, 27-30. Jesus seems to be explaining how current events develop old promises, since the NT consistently links the events of Jesus’ ministry and message with old promises (Rom 1:1-4; Heb 1:1-2). The traditional translation of this word, “mystery,” is misleading to the modern English reader because it suggests a secret which people have tried to uncover but which they have failed to understand (L&N 28.77).

² tn This is an example of a “divine passive,” with God understood to be the source of the revelation (see ExSyn 437-38).

³ tn Grk “and.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

⁴ tn Grk “the deceitfulness of riches.” Cf. BDAG 99 s.v. ἀπάτη 1, “the seduction which comes from wealth.”

⁵ sn That is, their concern for spiritual things is crowded out by material things.

⁶ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

⁷ sn On receive see John 1:12.

⁸ sn The point of the comparison receive the kingdom of God like a child has more to do with a child’s trusting spirit and willingness to be dependent and receive from others than any inherent humility the child might possess.

⁹ tn The negation in Greek (οὐ μή, ou mh) is very strong here.

¹⁰ 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.

¹¹ sn With the statement not one stone will be left on another Jesus predicted the total destruction of the temple, something that did occur in a.d. 70.

¹² tn Grk “not one stone will be left here on another which will not be thrown down.”