GOSPEL OF MARK - Chapter 10
Jesus Teaches About Marriage and Divorce 10:1-12
v1 Jesus left Capernaum. He went to the region called Judea and he went into the area east of the River Jordan. Crowds came to him again and, as usual, he taught them. v2 Some Pharisees came and they tested him with the question, ‘Does the law allow a man to divorce his wife?’ v3 Jesus asked them, ‘What command did Moses give to you?’ v4 They said, ‘Moses allowed a man to write an official letter of divorce and to send her away.’ v5 But Jesus replied, ‘Moses wrote this law for you because you are so unkind. v6 From the beginning, “God made them male and female. v7 For this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and he will unite with his wife. v8 And the two shall become like one body.” v9 Therefore, man must not separate what God has joined together.’
v10 When they were back in the house, the disciples asked him about this subject. v11 Jesus told them, ‘Suppose that a man divorces his wife. If he marries someone else, he is guilty of adultery against her. v12 Suppose that a woman divorces her husband. If she marries again, she is guilty of adultery.’
Commentary
Verse 1
Jesus left Capernaum and he went to the south. He went into the area east of the River Jordan. He was at the beginning of his journey to Jerusalem.
Verse 2
The Pharisees’ question was like a trap in several ways:
1. Jesus might speak against divorce. Then, they could say that he was not obeying the Law (Deuteronomy 24:1).
2. There was a difference of opinion about the meaning of the words ‘something not right’ in the wife (Deuteronomy 24:1). Some people followed the teacher Shammai. They said that it meant ‘adultery’. That was the only reason for a divorce. But other people followed Hillel’s opinion. They said that a man could divorce his wife for many reasons. She might have burnt his dinner or talked too much. Or perhaps she was not as beautiful as another woman. Women in the time of Jesus, therefore, did not have any security. Men behaved as if women were property. They were not human people to whom men had a responsibility. Whatever opinion Jesus agreed with would have annoyed some people in the crowd.
3. Jesus might have said that divorce was wrong. But then, he risked the anger of Herod. Herod had already killed John the Baptist because he spoke against Herod’s adultery with Herodias.
Verses 4-5
Jesus said that the Law allowed divorce. But the Law did not say that men and women must divorce. Divorce was not God’s purpose. But it was a way to prevent a bad situation.
Verses 6-7
Jesus used words from Genesis 1:27. He emphasized God’s purpose when he created men and women. They would marry. A man would leave his parents in order to unite with his wife.
Verse 8
‘like one body’ is about more than people’s bodies. It means that man and wife join each other in a unity of spirit and purpose.
Verse 9
God intended marriage to be for life. Christians have different answers about whether divorce is always wrong.
1. Jesus said that the rules in Deuteronomy 24:1-4 were only because of man’s sin. People should have the strict view that divorce is wrong. Jesus said that adultery is the only exception. (See Matthew 19:9.)
2. Jesus told people that God could forgive them for their failures. When a husband and wife relationship seems to have failed, the two people can forgive each other. The only ‘rule’ that Jesus gave was the rule of love. But he showed from Genesis that the ideal of a permanent relationship was God’s original purpose.
Jesus and Children 10:13-16
v13 People were bringing little children to Jesus so that he could touch them. But the disciples told the people to stop. v14 When Jesus saw this, he was very angry. He said to his disciples, ‘Let the children come to me. Do not keep them away. God’s kingdom belongs to people like them. v15 I am telling you the truth. Whoever will not receive God’s kingdom as a little child will not enter it.’ v16 Then he took the children into his arms. He put his hands on them and he blessed them.
Commentary
Verse 13
The disciples thought that children were not important. And they thought that they would not understand Jesus’ words. Jesus was busy and they wanted to protect him from these interruptions.
Verse 14
Jesus was very angry. Christians ought to be angry as well, when adults are unfair to children. Christians should also be angry when adults do not show children any love.
Verse 15
Children are very pleased to receive a gift. People cannot cause God to forgive them by things that they do. They must accept it as a gift. Children trust people and accept their authority. People should trust God in the same way and obey his authority as their king.
Verse 16
Jesus took young children in his arms and he blessed them. That is one reason why Christians began to baptize young children. But many Christians believe that this incident is not at all about baptism. Jesus blessed the children. That is a sign of the joy that members of God’s kingdom can have.
Jesus Teaches About Possessions 10:17-31
1. A rich man refuses to follow Jesus, verses 17-22.
2. Jesus explains the danger of wealth to his disciples, verses 23-27.
3. Jesus teaches his disciples about rewards, verses 28-31.
The Rich Man Makes His Choice 10:17-22
v17 As Jesus began his journey, a man ran up to Jesus. He went on his knees and he asked, ‘Good Teacher, what should I do in order to get eternal life?’ v18 Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call me good? It is God alone who is really good. v19 You know the commandments. Do not kill. Do not be guilty of adultery. Do not steal. Do not make false statements. Do not cheat. Respect your father and mother.’ v20 The man said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, I have obeyed all these commandments since I was a child.’ v21 Jesus felt genuine love for this man as he looked at him. He said to the man, ‘You are without one thing. Go. And sell everything that you have. Give the money to people who are poor. You will have riches in heaven. Then come and follow me.’ v22 The man’s face showed his disappointment. He went away sad because he was very rich.
Commentary
Verse 17
Mark wrote that Jesus was on a ‘journey’. He probably meant the journey that ended in Jerusalem. Matthew describes the man as ‘young’ (Matthew 19:20). Luke says that he was a ‘ruler’ (Luke 18:18). Mark says that he was ‘very rich’ (verse 22). The rich young ruler wanted to know how he could enter the kingdom. He thought that he must do something good.
Verse 18
He had called Jesus ‘good’. Jesus asked him whether he meant it. The word ‘good’ belonged to God alone. Jesus was not saying that he himself was not good. He was asking the man a question. Would he accept Jesus’ reply as if it came from God himself?
Verse 19
The commandments were the last six of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:3-17). They refer to a person’s relationship to society. The sixth one, ‘Do not cheat’, takes the place of ‘Do not feel jealous of your neighbor’s possessions’. A person might have such a strong desire for other people’s things that he would cheat to obtain them. Jesus did not mention the first commandment, ‘You must have no other gods before me.’
Verse 20
The man believed that he had always kept these commandments. He was a citizen who obeyed the law. He had never done anything wrong to other people. We should not do wrong things. But goodness is more than that. He could have been generous with his money. That would have helped other people. But he had not done that. And he had forgotten the first commandment. His first duty was to be loyal to God.
Verse 21
Jesus was honest. The man’s wealth was preventing him from living his life as God intended. And Jesus knew that. ‘You cannot serve God and money’ (Matthew 6:24). So Jesus told him to sell his possessions and to give the money to poor people. Then he could be a friend of God. ‘Eternal life’ begins on earth and it continues in heaven. Jesus invited the man to follow him.
Verse 22
The man had asked Jesus what he should ‘do’ to enter the kingdom. But nobody can ‘earn’ eternal life. It is a gift from God. The man’s possessions were so important to him that he could not follow Jesus. So he could not receive that gift. He gave up the true happiness of eternal life for the temporary pleasures of wealth. He went away sad and disappointed.
Jesus Explains the Danger of Wealth to His Disciples 10:23-27
v23 Jesus looked round and he said to his disciples, ‘It is very difficult for people who have riches to enter the kingdom of God.’ v24 The disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus repeated, ‘Children, it is very hard for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God. v25 It is very hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle.’ v26 The disciples were even more astonished. They said, ‘Then who can God save?’ v27 Jesus looked straight at them and he said, ‘With man, that is impossible, but not with God. Everything is possible with God.’
Commentary
Verse 23
The disciples were astonished at what Jesus said. Many people believe that wealth is a reward from God for good people. And many people believed it then. But Jesus knew the danger of many possessions. They make a person think too much about this world. He then forgets the life of heaven. There are many things of value that money cannot buy. But a person may forget that. There is the temptation to use wealth in a selfish way. Someone may think that his wealth makes him important. Then he may become proud.
Verse 25
What Jesus said about the camel is very funny. So it would make people laugh. Then they would remember it. Some writers try to make it sound more sensible. They suggest that a camel with a big load could not get through a narrow gate into a city. So a man with a ‘load’ of possessions could not enter the kingdom. Other writers suggest that the word for ‘camel’ and the word for a ‘thick string’ are similar. But there are similar words about an elephant in a Jewish book. So Jesus was using words that might have been familiar.
Verse 26
The disciples thought, ‘If the rich people cannot enter the kingdom, it would be very difficult for anyone else.’
Verse 27
It is impossible for anyone to save himself by his own efforts. God saves us by a gift from himself. The man who trusts in his possessions cannot receive the gift. He must trust in God’s love. To accept God’s love makes his entry into the kingdom possible.
Jesus Teaches His Disciples About Rewards 10:28-31
v28 Peter began to say to Jesus, ‘Look! We have left everything and we have followed you.’ v29 Jesus said, ‘I tell you the truth. Some people may have given up a house, brothers or sisters, parents or land for me, and the good news. v30 Then they will receive a hundred times as much in this life. They will have homes and families and land. They will also suffer because people will oppose them. In the world that is to come, they will have eternal life. v31 But many that are first will be last. And the last will be first.’
Commentary
Verse 28
Peter thought that he and the other disciples were not like the rich young man. That man had refused to follow Jesus. But they had left their homes and families in order to follow him.
Verse 29
Peter was perhaps thinking about an equal reward for an equal service. But even in this life, a disciple receives rewards far greater than anything that he has given up. He will become part of the much greater Christian family, the family of God (Ephesians 2:19). Those who obey God are Jesus’ ‘mother and sisters and brothers’ (3:31-35). Jesus had already said that. For example, this was true about Paul. He left his home in Tarsus. But he gained friends wherever he traveled. He wrote about the mother of Rufus as his own ‘mother’ (Romans 16:13).
At the time when Mark wrote his Gospel, Christians were already suffering for their faith. Their reward would not be complete on earth. But the disciples would be able to continue their friendship with God beyond death.
Verse 31
Jesus used these words on other occasions. He was warning people but he was also giving a promise. God does not think about a person in the same way as men and women think about other people and themselves. ‘My thoughts are not your thoughts’, says the Lord (Isaiah 55:8). People whom other people value for their wealth or important place in society may be of less importance in heaven. God will give honor to those whom the world considers of little value.
Jesus Tells Them for the Third Time What Would Happen to Him 10:32-34
v32 They were on the road that went up to Jerusalem. Jesus was walking ahead of them. The disciples were astonished. And those who followed behind were afraid. Again Jesus took the 12 disciples aside. He began to tell them what was going to happen to him. v33 He said, ‘We are going up to Jerusalem. Someone will hand the Son of Man over to the chief priests and the teachers of the Law. They will say that he must die. Then they will hand him over to the Gentiles. v34 The Gentiles will make fun of him and they will insult him. They will hit him with cruel whips and they will kill him. Three days later, he will rise from death.’
Commentary
Verse 32
Jesus had made the lonely and brave decision to go to Jerusalem. He was ahead of his disciples on the road. He was also ‘ahead of them’ in what he understood. Mark seems to speak about two groups of people, the disciples and the other people who followed. Jesus had just talked to them about suffering. So they were afraid that something terrible was going to happen in Jerusalem.
Verses 33-34
Jesus describes in more detail what would happen to him. Mark knew that these things had happened to Jesus. The Jews counted part of a day as a whole day. Jesus died on a Friday and he rose on a Sunday. So Jesus would rise ‘three’ days later.
The Request of James and John 10:35-40
v35 James and John, the sons of Zebedee, approached Jesus. They said, ‘Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask you.’ v36 Jesus said to them, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ v37 They said to him, ‘You will receive great honor. We want to sit, one of us on your right side and one of us on your left, then. Grant us that right.’ v38 But Jesus said to them, ‘You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink? Can you suffer the baptism of pain and trouble that I must suffer?’ v39 They said to him, ‘We can.’ Jesus said to them, ‘You will drink the cup that I drink. And you will suffer the baptism of pain and trouble that I must suffer. v40 But I must not say who should sit at my right hand or my left. These places belong to those that God has prepared them for.’
Commentary
Verse 35
James and John did not understand Jesus’ words about how he must suffer. They showed that by what they said. Immediately afterward they came with their request. Matthew says that it was their mother, Salome, who asked (Matthew 20:20-23). She agreed with her sons’ ambitions. They wanted the chief places in Jesus’ kingdom. They were confident that he would rule as a king. But they were still thinking about a political Messiah. This man would defeat the Romans and then he would establish a political kingdom. They thought that they had the first claim to receive the most important places. With Peter, they had been with Jesus on two special occasions. They saw him raise Jairus’s daughter. They were there on the mountain when Jesus’ face and clothes became bright. They may also have thought that Jesus should give them honor because they were his relatives. Their mother Salome was probably the sister of Mary, the mother of Jesus (Mark 15:40; Matthew 27:56; John 19:25). So they would have been cousins of Jesus.
Verse 38
‘A cup’ was Jewish picture language for an experience that God gave to men. It might be a sad experience. Or it might be a happy one, as in Psalm 23:5 (‘my cup is completely full. So what is in it pours out’). Wicked people had to ‘drink the cup’ of God’s anger (Psalm 75:8). For Jesus, it meant the experience of pain and death.
‘Baptism’ did not mean the same as what John did. It meant a terrible experience. Jesus would feel like a man who was drowning in pain and death. It would be like that of the writer who felt despair. He wrote, ‘All your waves have gone over me’ (Psalm 42:7).
Verse 39
James and John did not really expect that Jesus or they themselves would have to suffer. They said, ‘We can.’ But they ran away when the soldiers arrested him. But after Jesus’ resurrection and the beginning of the Christian church, they did suffer. Herod Agrippa killed James (Acts 12:2). John probably lived to a great age and he may have died a natural death. But he suffered. He may have had to live on the island called Patmos because of his faith (Revelation 1:9). Most Christians think that this John was the same man. Some Christians believe that he was another man.
Verse 40
Jesus said that final decisions belong to God. He did not think that he was unable to make decisions. But while he lived a human life, he did not claim his rights as God. He always obeyed his Father’s wishes.
Jesus Teaches About Servants 10:41-45
v41 The other ten disciples heard about it. And they became angry with James and John. v42 Jesus called them together. He said to them, ‘You know about those who rule over the Gentiles. They rule them with absolute power. Their important officials use their authority over them. v43 But you must not be like that. Anyone who wants to be great among you must be your servant. v44 And anyone who wants to be first must be the slave of everyone. v45 The Son of Man did not come for people to serve him. Instead, he came to serve other people. He came to give his life as the price to make many people free.’
Commentary
Verse 41 The other disciples were angry and jealous. They were no better than James and John. They considered themselves as important.
Verses 42-43
Jesus had to teach them what real greatness is. A person is not ‘great’ just because he has power and authority. However, people in the world do think that. But in Jesus’ kingdom, the ‘great’ person is the person who is a servant.
Verse 44
The word for servant in verse 43 is ‘diakonos’. But here the word is ‘doulos’, which means a ‘slave’. Paul called himself a ‘slave of Jesus Christ’ (Romans 1:1; Philippians 1:1). He said that he had made himself a ‘slave to everyone’ (1 Corinthians 9:19).
Verse 45
Jesus himself came into the world as a servant. His whole life was an example of service. He showed this to his disciples at the Last Supper. He did the work of a slave when he washed their feet (John 13:1-16).
Jesus came in order to give his life. He was willing to die so that he could make people free from sin. The word ‘price’ shows that it was at the great cost of pain and death for himself. He wanted to set all people free.
A Blind Man Receives His Sight 10:46-52
v46 They came to Jericho. Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd. A blind man was sitting by the side of the road and he was asking for money. He was Bartimaeus, whose name means ‘son of Timaeus’. v47 He heard that it was Jesus from Nazareth. So then he began to cry out, ‘Jesus, Son of David, pity me!’ v48 Many people told him to stop. They told him to be quiet. But he shouted even louder, ‘Son of David, pity me!’ v49 Jesus stopped and he said, ‘Call him.’ They called the blind man. They said, ‘Cheer up. Get up. He is calling for you.’ v50 Bartimaeus threw off his coat. He jumped up and he came to Jesus. v51 Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man said to him, ‘Master, let me receive my sight.’ v52 Jesus said to him, ‘Go your way. Your faith has made you well.’ And immediately he could see. And he followed Jesus along the road.
Commentary
Verse 46
Jericho is about 15 miles from Jerusalem. So Jesus was on the last part of his journey. The crowd would be people who were going up to Jerusalem for the Passover. Mark knew the blind man’s name, perhaps because he became well-known among the disciples of Jesus.
Verse 47
Bartimaeus used the words ‘Son of David’. It was one of the names of the Messiah. It meant someone in the family of David. He would be a great king like David and he would defeat the Jews’ enemies. Bartimaeus may not have understood what kind of Messiah Jesus was. But he had the faith to call out for Jesus’ help.
Verse 48
The people told him to stop. They wanted to listen to Jesus, and Bartimaeus was a nuisance. Some people may have been anxious about the words ‘Son of David’. If any Romans had understood that title, there might have been trouble.
Verse 49
Jesus stopped because he was always willing to help someone in need.
Verse 50
Bartimaeus was so eager to get to Jesus that he threw his coat aside. He may have had it on the ground for people to put money in. Many disciples had left their businesses to follow Jesus. Bartimaeus left his coat in order to go to Jesus.
Verse 51
Jesus asked Bartimaeus what he wanted. Jesus knew what he needed. But he wanted Bartimaeus to ask for it himself. God knows our needs, but he wants us to tell him about them (Philippians 4:6).
Verse 52
The Greek word that we have translated ‘made you well’ can mean ‘saved you’. Or it can mean ‘made you whole’. Jesus cured the man’s eyes, but he cured him spiritually as well. Bartimaeus continued to show faith in Jesus because he became a disciple. The story of Bartimaeus is like a picture. Jesus helped him to see. Jesus helps those who have faith to ‘see’ the truth.
|
|
