¹ sn This is a parenthetical comment by the author.

² tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.

³ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.

⁵ sn Note how the author distinguishes healing from exorcism here, implying that the two are not identical.

⁶ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

⁷ sn Why Jesus would not permit the demons to speak is much discussed. Two possibilities are (1) the mere source of the testimony (demonic) and (2) that the title, with its political implications, may have had elements that Jesus wished to avoid until the full nature of his mission was clarified.

⁸ tc The mss vary on what is read at the end of v. 34. Some have “they knew him to be the Christ,” with various Greek constructions (ᾔδεισαν αὐτὸν Χριστὸν εἶναι [hdeisan auton Criston einai] in B L W Θ Ë¹ 28 33^vid 565 2427 al; ᾔδεισαν τὸν Χριστὸν αὐτὸν εἶναι [hdeisan ton Criston auton einai] in [א²] C [˹³ 700] 892 1241 [1424] pc); codex D has “they knew him and he healed many who were sick with various diseases and drove out many demons,” reproducing exactly the first half of the verse. These first two longer readings are predictable expansions to an enticingly brief statement; the fact that there are significant variations on the word order and presence or absence of τόν argues against their authenticity as well. D’s reading is a palpable error of sight. The reading adopted in the translation is supported by א* A 0130 Ï lat. This support, though hardly overwhelming in itself, in combination with strong internal evidence, renders the shorter reading fairly certain.

⁹ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the shift from the thoughts of the experts in the law to Jesus’ response.

¹⁰ tn Grk “they were thus reasoning within themselves.”

¹¹ tn Grk “Why are you reasoning these things in your hearts?”

¹² tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹³ tn Or “heads of grain.” While the generic term στάχυς (stacus) can refer to the cluster of seeds at the top of grain such as barley or wheat, in the NT the term is restricted to wheat (L&N 3.40; BDAG 941 s.v. 1).

¹⁴ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

¹⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

¹⁶ tn “River” is not in the Greek text but is supplied for clarity. The region referred to here is sometimes known as Transjordan (i.e., “across the Jordan”).

¹⁷ map For location see Map1 A2; Map2 G2; Map4 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

¹⁸ sn These last two locations, Tyre and Sidon, represented an expansion outside of traditional Jewish territory. Jesus’ reputation continued to expand into new regions.

map For location see Map1 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.

¹⁹ sn Unclean spirits refers to evil spirits.

²⁰ tn Grk “And he.”

²¹ sn The term apostles is rare in the gospels, found only here and Mark 6:30, Matt 10:2, and six more times in Luke (6:13; 9:10; 11:49; 17:5; 22:14; 24:10).

²² tc The phrase “whom he named apostles” is lacking in the majority of mss (A C² [D] L ˹ 33 Ï latt sy). Several primary Alexandrian and Caesarean witnesses (א B [C* W] Θ Ë¹³ 28 pc co) include the phrase, so the external evidence is strongly in favor of this reading, especially since Alexandrian witnesses tend to witness to the shorter reading. It is possible that the Alexandrian witnesses have inserted these words to bring the text in line with Luke 6:13 (TCGNT 69), but against this is the internal evidence of Mark’s style: Mark tends toward gratuitous redundancy. Thus the inclusion of this phrase is supported by both internal and external evidence and should be regarded as more likely original than the omission.

²³ tc ‡ Many mss read “and your sisters” here after “your brothers” (A D Γ 700 pm it). However, the pedigree of several of the mss which lack this phrase is considerable (א B C K L W Δ Θ Ë^1,13 28 33 565 892 1241 1424 2542 pm lat sy). It seems likely that this phrase was added by an early Western scribe to harmonize this statement with Jesus’ response in v. 35. NA²⁷ has the words in brackets, indicating some doubt as to their authenticity.

²⁴ sn Interestingly, the synoptic parallels each use a different word for Satan here: Matt 13:19 has “the evil one,” while Luke 8:12 has “the devil.” This illustrates the fluidity of the gospel tradition in often using synonyms at the same point of the parallel tradition.

²⁵ sn The word of Jesus has the potential to save if it germinates in a person’s heart, something the devil is very much against.

²⁶ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the response to Jesus’ request.

²⁷ tn It is possible that this prepositional phrase modifies “as he was,” not “they took him along.” The meaning would then be “they took him along in the boat in which he was already sitting” (see 4:1).

sn A boat that held all the disciples would be of significant size.

²⁸ sn Jesus’ authority over creation raised a question for the disciples about who he was exactly (Who then is this?). This verse shows that the disciples followed Jesus even though they did not know all about him yet.

²⁹ sn This section in Mark (4:35-5:43) contains four miracles: (1) the calming of the storm; (2) the exorcism of the demon-possessed man; (3) the giving of life to Jairus’ daughter; (4) the healing of the woman hemorrhaging for twelve years. All these miracles demonstrate Jesus’ right to proclaim the kingdom message and his sovereign authority over forces, directly or indirectly, hostile to the kingdom. The last three may have been brought together to show that Jesus had power over all defilement, since contact with graves, blood, or a corpse was regarded under Jewish law as causing a state of ritual uncleanness.

³⁰ tn The Greek word εὐθύς (euqus, often translated “immediately” or “right away”) has not been translated here. It sometimes occurs with a weakened, inferential use (BDAG 406 s.v. 2), not contributing significantly to the flow of the narrative. For further discussion, see R. J. Decker, Temporal Deixis of the Greek Verb in the Gospel of Mark with Reference to Verbal Aspect (SBG 10), 73-77.

³¹ tn Grk “ran together on foot.” The idea of συντρέχω (suntrecw) is “to come together quickly to form a crowd” (L&N 15.133).

³² tn Or “cities.”

³³ tc The translation here follows the reading προῆλθον (prohlqon, “they preceded”), found in א B (0187) 892 2427 pc lat co. Some mss (D 28 33 700 pc) read συνῆλθον (sunhlqon, “arrived there with them”), while the majority of mss, most of them late (Ì^84vid [A ˹³] Ï sy^h), conflate the two readings (προῆλθον αὐτοὺς καὶ συνῆλθον πρὸς αὐτόν, “they preceded them and came together to him”). The reading adopted here thus has better external credentials than the variants. As well, it is the harder reading internally, being changed “by copyists who thought it unlikely that the crowd on the land could have outstripped the boat” (TCGNT 78).

³⁴ tn Grk “he spoke with them, and said to them.”

³⁵ tn Grk “wherever they heard he was.”

³⁶ tn Grk “except they wash the hands with a fist,” a ceremonial washing (though the actual method is uncertain).

³⁷ tn Grk “but as much as he ordered them, these rather so much more proclaimed.” Greek tends to omit direct objects when they are clear from the context, but these usually need to be supplied for the modern English reader. Here what Jesus ordered has been clarified (“ordered them not to do this”), and the pronoun “it” has been supplied after “proclaimed.”

³⁸ tc ‡ A difficult textual problem is found here, involving three different variants: καὶ λέγουσιν (kai legousin) is found in א pc; οἱ δὲ εἶπον (Joi de eipon) is the reading of Ì⁴⁵ A D W Θ Ë^1,13 33 Ï it; and καὶ λέγουσιν αὐτῷ (kai legousin autw) is supported by B C L (Δ 579 892) 2427 pc. The first two variants would not be translated differently; the third reading, however, would add “to him” after “they replied.” What complicates the issue is that the external evidence is fairly evenly split between the second and third readings, though the first reading is in agreement with the second reading in lacking the dative pronoun. Indeed, another layout of the problem here could treat this as two distinct problems: καὶ λέγουσιν vs. οἱ δὲ εἶπον and αὐτῷ vs. omission of the word. In this second arrangement of the problem, the reading without the pronoun has slightly stronger support (Ì⁴⁵ א A D W Θ Ë^1,13 33 Ï it). Internally, Mark never elsewhere uses the form εἶπον for the third person plural indicative form of this verb (it is always εἶπαν [eipan]). And although only one other time in Mark is the object lacking after λέγουσιν (6:38), it is a similar context (viz., the disciples’ response before Jesus feeds the 5000). Very tentatively, the reading that is followed here is καὶ λέγουσιν. NA²⁷ puts αὐτῷ in brackets, indicating some doubt as to its authenticity.

³⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

⁴⁰ map For location see Map1 D2; Map2 C3; Map3 B2.

⁴¹ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴² tn Traditionally, “scourge him” (the term means to beat severely with a whip, L&N 19.9). BDAG 620 s.v. μαστιγόω 1.a states, “The ‘verberatio’ is denoted in the passion predictions and explicitly as action by non-Israelites Mt 20:19; Mk 10:34; Lk 18:33”; the verberatio was the beating given to those condemned to death in the Roman judicial system. Here the term μαστιγόω (mastigow) has been translated “flog…severely” to distinguish it from the term φραγελλόω (fragellow) used in Matt 27:26; Mark 15:15.

⁴³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “yet” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

⁴⁴ tc Most mss, especially the later ones (A^[*^] W Θ Ë^1,13 Ï sy), have “on the third day” (τῇ τρίτῃ ἡμέρᾳ, th trith Jhmera) instead of “after three days.” But not only does Mark nowhere else speak of the resurrection as occurring on the third day, the idiom he uses is a harder reading (cf. Mark 8:31; 9:31, though in the latter text the later witnesses also have τῇ τρίτῃ ἡμέρᾳ). Further, τῇ τρίτῃ ἡμέρᾳ conforms to the usage that is almost universally used in Matthew and Luke, and is found in the parallels to this text (Matt 20:19; Luke 18:33). Thus, scribes would be doubly motivated to change the wording. The most reliable witnesses, along with several other mss (א B C D L Δ Ψ 579 892 2427 it co), have resisted this temptation.

⁴⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.

⁴⁶ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

⁴⁷ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴⁸ tn Grk “the temple.”

⁴⁹ tn Or “the chief priests, the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.

⁵⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.

⁵¹ tn Grk “answering, they said to Jesus.” The participle ἀποκριθέντες (apokriqentes) is redundant, but the syntax of the phrase has been modified to conform to English style.

⁵² sn Very few questions could have so completely revealed the wicked intentions of the religious leaders. Jesus’ question revealed the motivation of the religious leaders and exposed them for what they really were – hypocrites. They indicted themselves when they cited only two options and chose neither of them (“We do not know”). The point of Mark 11:27-33 is that no matter what Jesus said in response to their question they were not going to believe it and would in the end use it against him.

⁵³ sn Neither will I tell you. Though Jesus gave no answer, the analogy he used to their own question makes his view clear. His authority came from heaven.

⁵⁴ tn On this phrase, see BDAG 844 s.v. ποῖος 2.a.γ. This is exactly the same phrase as in v. 28.

⁵⁵ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁵⁶ tn Or “for the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.

⁵⁷ tn In Greek this is the only infinitive in vv. 38-39. It would be awkward in English to join an infinitive to the following noun clauses, so this has been translated as a gerund.

⁵⁸ sn There is later Jewish material in the Talmud that spells out such greetings in detail. See H. Windisch, TDNT 1:498.

⁵⁹ tn Grk “out of what abounded to them.”

⁶⁰ sn The contrast between this passage, 12:41-44, and what has come before in 11:27-12:40 is remarkable. The woman is set in stark contrast to the religious leaders. She was a poor widow, they were rich. She was uneducated in the law, they were well educated in the law. She was a woman, they were men. But whereas they evidenced no faith and actually stole money from God and men (cf. 11:17), she evidenced great faith and gave out of her extreme poverty everything she had.

⁶¹ tn Or “of the sky”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context.

⁶² tn Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated.

⁶³ tn Grk “three hundred denarii.” One denarius was the standard day’s wage, so the value exceeded what a laborer could earn in a year (taking in to account Sabbaths and feast days when no work was done).

⁶⁴ tn The words “the money” are not in the Greek text, but are implied (as the proceeds from the sale of the perfumed oil).

⁶⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.

⁶⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the flow within the narrative.

⁶⁷ tn Grk “and came.”

⁶⁸ sn The author’s note that the disciples found things just as he had told them shows that Jesus’ word could be trusted.

⁶⁹ tn Grk “while they were reclined at the table.”

sn 1st century middle eastern meals were not eaten while sitting at a table, but while reclining on one’s side on the floor with the head closest to the low table and the feet farthest away.

⁷⁰ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

⁷¹ tn Or “will hand me over”; Grk “one of you will betray me, the one who eats with me.”

⁷² tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

⁷³ tn Or “and scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.

⁷⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

⁷⁵ tn Grk “in the middle.”

⁷⁶ tn Grk “and ministered to him.”

sn Cf. Luke 8:3.

⁷⁷ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

⁷⁸ tn On this term see BDAG 140 s.v. ἄρωμα. The Jews did not practice embalming, so these materials were used to cover the stench of decay and slow decomposition.

sn Spices were used not to preserve the body, but as an act of love, and to mask the growing stench of a corpse.