GOSPEL OF MARK - CHAPTER 14
The Plot to Kill Jesus 14:1-2
v1 It was two days before the Passover and the feast of Unleavened Bread. The chief priests were looking for a way to arrest Jesus in secret. They wanted to kill him. v2 They said, ‘Not during the feast. The people might cause trouble.’
Commentary
Verse 1
The Passover is a feast. At that time, Jews remember how God, by means of Moses, rescued the Jewish people. He rescued them from Egypt, where they were slaves. The feast of unleavened bread was once an agricultural feast when the barley harvest began. (Barley was a kind of corn.) The Jewish writer Josephus estimated that as many as three million Jews would be in the city for the feast. Soldiers came from where they lived in Caesarea. They came in order to make sure that there was no trouble from an excited crowd. There were people who wanted freedom from Rome. It would be easy for them to begin to disturb the peace.
Verse 2
If the priests arrested Jesus in public, the crowd would be on his side. There would be trouble, and the Romans would punish them. They might take away the power of the Jewish leaders.
A Woman Anoints Jesus 14:3-9
v3 Jesus was in Bethany. He was at the table in the house of Simon. Simon had a skin disease. A woman came with a jar of very expensive perfume. It was called nard and it was pure. She broke the jar and she poured the perfume over Jesus’ head. v4 Some of the people there became angry. They said to each other, ‘The perfume should not have been wasted like this. v5 She could have sold this perfume for more than a man’s wages for one year. Poor people could have received the money.’ So they blamed her. v6 But Jesus said, ‘Leave her alone. Stop worrying her! She has done a beautiful thing to me. v7 You always have poor people among you. You can help them whenever you want to. But you will not always have me. v8 She has done what she could. She poured perfume on my body in order to prepare me for burial. v9 What I tell you is true. People will remember what she has done. They will remember it, wherever people preach the gospel in the whole world.’
Commentary
Verse 3
Simon would probably not have shared a meal if he still had a skin disease. Maybe he had recovered. Or perhaps Mark knew that he became ill later. Or perhaps it was in Simon’s house but he was not there. Mark does not say who the woman was. John says that it was Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus (John 12:1-3). It was usual for a host to pour a few drops of perfume on the head of his guests. This woman had a special jar that contained very expensive perfume. This pure perfume came from India. She broke the jar. She did so as a sign that she was using all the perfume. She wanted to show her love by giving as much as possible. Also, people who anointed the body of a dead person left the broken pieces of jar in the rock grave.
Verses 4-5
The people who were there estimated the value of the perfume as more than 300 denarii. A denarius was a coin that paid a man’s wages for a day. So, she was probably ‘wasting’ more than the wages for one year.
Verses 6-7
Jesus answered them with words from Deuteronomy (15:11). ‘You will always have poor people with you.’ They had plenty of opportunities to help poor people. But they did not have much more time to do anything for Jesus. Jesus did not mean that poor people must always be poor. Christians should work to remove the things that make people poor. And they should give generous help to those who are already poor. Jesus said that the woman had done a good thing.
Verse 8
The Jews anointed kings. Samuel anointed David (1 Samuel 16:13). Elisha sent a young man to anoint Jehu (2 Kings 9:6). The word ‘Messiah’ means ‘the anointed man’. So the woman had shown by her action that Jesus was the Messiah. He was the king that the Jews had hoped for. Jesus said that she had anointed him before his burial. Some women came to his grave in order to anoint his body. But they could not do so. He had already risen from death (Mark 16:1-6).
Verse 9
Jesus knew that his disciples would preach the gospel through the whole world. What the woman had done was good news in itself. She had shown that Jesus was king. He would be a king who would die. Her action also reminded Christians of the resurrection that prevented the women from anointing his body.
Judas Plans to Hand Jesus Over 14:10-11
v10 Judas Iscariot was one of the 12 apostles. He went to the chief priests in order to hand Jesus over to them. v11 They were pleased when they heard that. They promised to give him money. Judas looked for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to his enemies.
Commentary
Verses 1-2 and 10-11
record the priests’ wish to kill Jesus and Judas’s plan to help them. The story of the woman who anointed Jesus comes in between. Mark contrasts the generous love of the woman with the hate of Jesus’ enemies.
Verses 10-11
‘One of the 12’ emphasises how wicked Judas’s action was. He should have been loyal to the Master who had chosen him specially. Jesus trusted him as a friend. Nobody knows why Judas agreed to help the priests. He would tell them where they could find Jesus away from the crowds.
Preparations for the Passover Meal 14:12-16
v12 It was the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. It was the time when the priests sacrificed the young sheep for Passover. Jesus’ disciples said to him, ‘We will get ready for you to eat the Passover. Where do you want us to do that?’ v13 So Jesus sent two of his disciples. He told them, ‘Go into the city. A man who is carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him.’ v14 Wherever he goes into a house, say to the owner, “The Teacher says, ‘Where is my guest room? Where can I eat the Passover with my disciples?’ ” v15 He will show you a large upstairs room. It will be furnished and ready. Prepare for us to eat there.’ v16 The disciples set out and they went into the city. They found things exactly as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover meal.
Commentary
Verse 12
The first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread was on the 14th of the month called Nisan. Jews had to remove every sign of yeast from their houses. This was because the Jews escaped from Egypt in a great hurry. They had no time to make bread with yeast in it (Exodus 12:15-19). Yeast makes bread rise. They killed the young sheep on 13th Nisan. A new Jewish day began at 6 in the evening, after sunset.
Verse 13
A man who was carrying a jar of water would be unusual. People who carried water had skin bottles. Women carried jars of water on their heads.
Verse 14
Jesus had made arrangements already. He probably wanted to prevent the authorities and Judas from knowing the place. He calls the room ‘my’ guest room.
Verse 15
An upstairs room would be suitable because they could reach it by an outside stone staircase. We do not know the name of the owner. But the house may have belonged to Mary, the mother of John Mark. Her house was a meeting place for the disciples after the resurrection (Acts 12:12).
Verse 16
The disciples were going to prepare the Passover meal. They would need a young sheep that they had cooked in an oven. The young sheep reminded them of the young sheep that the people killed in Egypt. Its blood on the doorposts of the Jews’ houses made the ‘angel of death’ pass over. Therefore their first-born sons remained alive (Exodus 12:3-8). Special leaves that tasted bitter were necessary. These leaves reminded them how bitter their life had been as slaves in Egypt. They also had a mixture of fruit and nuts called ‘Charosheth’. This mixture was to remind them of the earth from which they had made bricks. Wine at different times in the meal was to remind them of the four promises that God had made (Exodus 6:6-7). ‘I will bring you out. I will free you from being slaves. I will pay the price for you. I will take you for my people.’
The Last Supper 14:17-26
v17 When evening came, Jesus arrived with the 12 disciples. v18 While they were eating at the table, Jesus said, ‘I tell you the truth. One of you who is eating with me will hand me over to my enemies.’ v19 The disciples began to be sad. They said to Jesus, one after another, ‘Is it I?’ v20 Jesus replied, ‘It is one of the 12 disciples. It is the man who puts his bread into the same dish with me. v21 The Son of Man will go exactly as Scripture says about him. But how terrible it will be for that man who hands the Son of Man over to his enemies. It would be better for that man if he had never been born.’
v22 As they were eating, Jesus took bread and he gave thanks for it. He broke the bread and he said, ‘Take it. This is my body.’ v23 And he took a cup of wine. When he had given thanks, he gave it to them. They all drank from it. v24 Jesus said to them, ‘This is my blood of the new agreement between God and people, which I will pour out for many. v25 I tell you the truth. I shall not drink the fruit of the vine again until I drink it in God’s kingdom.’ v26 Then they sang a song to praise God. And they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Commentary
Verse 18
To share a meal was a sign of friendship. To hand a friend over to his enemies is especially wicked. Jesus was probably thinking about the words of Psalm 41:9. ‘Even my close friend has turned against me. He was the man that I trusted. He shared my food.’
Verse 19
The disciples did not suspect Judas. Their question to Jesus meant, ‘I am sure that you cannot mean me.’ They did not expect Jesus to say which disciple he meant.
Verses 20-21
The words ‘one of the 12 disciples’ emphasize again that Judas should have been a loyal friend. There was a dish that contained a mixture of fruit and nuts. People usually put their bread into it in order to eat it.
Jesus’ words were a last appeal to Judas to change his mind. Jesus was also warning him. The fate of the man who handed him over would be terrible. Jesus could have stopped Judas. If the other disciples knew, they would have acted at once. They might even have killed Judas. But Jesus knew that his death on the cross was in the plan of God. However, Judas was responsible for his actions. Nobody forced him to hand Jesus over to his enemies. Jesus knew what Judas planned. But that did not make Judas carry out his plan. To know that something will happen does not make it happen.
Verse 22
Jesus probably used the words of thanks that the head of a family would use before a meal. ‘Thanks be to you, Lord our God, King of the World, who brings food from the earth.’ He broke the bread as a picture of the fact that he was going to give his life for them. He told them to ‘take it’. They were free to accept what Jesus would do for them by his death. God would forgive them because Jesus died.
Verse 23
They all drank from the same cup of wine as a sign of their unity. There were four cups of wine at the Passover meal. Jesus probably used the last one, at the end of the meal. Paul says that Jesus took the cup ‘after supper’ (1 Corinthians 11:25).
Verse 24
Jesus said that the wine was the sign of his blood. He also said that he would pour it out. The old agreement was between God and the Jewish nation. The Jewish people had to obey God’s laws (Exodus 24:3-8). But the Jewish people had spoiled that agreement with God. Jeremiah spoke about a new agreement (31:31-34). Men would want to obey God because of his love for them. The blood of an animal ‘signed’ the old agreement. When Jesus gave his life for men, he would have ‘signed’ the new agreement. It was ‘for many’. The old agreement had been between God and the Jews. The new agreement was for everyone.
Verse 25
In the Passover ceremony, Jews gave thanks that God created ‘the fruit of the vine’. Jesus used the picture language of the Messiah’s splendid dinner. He would drink wine again when he shared in the joy of the new age of the kingdom. So, his final words were words of hope. He knew that death was not the end.
Verse 26
The song was one of the Psalms that the Jews used at feasts. It may have been Psalm 118. They ‘went out’ from the safety of the upper room to the trouble in the world outside. Christians go out from their worship to the world. In the world, they suffer troubles and temptations.
Jesus Warns Peter 14:27-31
v27 Jesus said to his disciples, ‘You will all turn away from me, because it is in scripture, “I will strike the man who looks after the sheep. So then the sheep will scatter.” v28 But after God has raised me up, I will go before you to Galilee.’ v29 Peter said to him, ‘Even if they all turn away from you, I will not.’ v30 Jesus said to him, ‘I tell you the truth. This same night, you will say three times that you do not know me. You will say it before the male chicken calls twice.’ v31 But Peter made a very strong protest. ‘I will not say that, even if I must die with you.’ And all the disciples said the same.
Commentary
Verse 27
The Greek word that we have translated ‘turn away’ here and in verse 29 is ‘skandalizein’. It meant something that was like a trap to catch an animal. It would be easy for Jesus’ disciples to lose their faith in him. It could happen as easily as an animal falls into a trap. He used words from Zechariah (13:7). Sheep soon scatter when there is nobody to look after them.
Verse 28
Jesus would rise again after he died. He was confident about that. He said that he would ‘go before’ them to Galilee. In that country, a man who looked after sheep always went ahead of his sheep. Mark does not record that Jesus appeared to his disciples in Galilee. But Matthew tells us that Jesus met them there (Matthew 28:10, 16). Jesus might also mean that in Galilee he would gather his scattered sheep together. He would still think of the disciples as his ‘sheep’, even after they had disappointed him.
Verse 29
Peter felt confident that he would never leave Jesus. He did not realize that he would be in a situation of great danger. He believed that he was strong, like a rock. But he would be weak. It was easy to say that he would die with Jesus. But when the test came, he was afraid.
Verse 30
The male chicken, or ‘cock’, is a bird that calls very early in the morning. But this ‘cock’ might refer to the Roman soldiers’ trumpet. It sounded at the end of the third period while they were on guard during the night. That would be early morning, about 3 o’clock. Before the night was over, Peter would have failed to keep his promise.
Verse 31
All the disciples said the same as Peter. Perhaps Mark records Peter’s promise and failure in order to encourage Christians in Rome. He was writing when Peter was an important leader in the church. God and Christ had forgiven Peter and later, he preached the gospel with great courage. Other Christians might do wrong things. But they could know that God would forgive them too.
Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane 14:32-42
v32 Jesus and his disciples went to a place called Gethsemane. Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Sit here while I pray.’ v33 He took with him Peter, James and John. He began to be afraid and in great mental pain. v34 He said to them, ‘I am very sad. I feel as if I could die. Stay here, and watch.’ v35 He went a little way on. He fell to the ground. He prayed that, if possible, the hour might pass from him. v36 He said, ‘Abba, everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. But let what you want happen; not what I want.’ v37 He returned to the disciples and he found them asleep. He said to Peter, ‘Simon, are you asleep? Surely you could watch for one hour. v38 Watch and pray. Then you will not fall into sin when you are tempted. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.’ v39 Jesus went away again and he prayed with the same words. v40 Then he came back and he found them asleep. They could not keep their eyes open. They did not know what to say to Jesus. v41 Jesus came back the third time. He said, ‘Go on sleeping now and rest! It is enough. The hour has come. They are about to hand over the Son of Man to wicked people. v42 Get up! Let us go now. Look! The man who is handing me over to my enemies has come.’
Commentary
Verse 32
Gethsemane was a place where there were many olive trees. The name means that there was equipment with which to squeeze the oil from the olives. John said that Jesus often went there with his disciples (John 18:2).
Verses 33-34
Jesus took his three closest friends with him. He was thinking about what would happen. He was completely human as he thought about it. He was still a fairly young man. He had seen people die on crosses. And he knew how terribly they suffered. But he was willing to die in this painful way in order to obey his Father. He asked his friends to keep watching. He wanted them to stay awake.
Verse 35
‘The hour’ meant the time of his death.
Verse 36
He said that ‘everything was possible’. He had faith in the power of God. He used the Aramaic word ‘Abba’. Children used (and still use) this word to speak to their father. It describes a close relationship between father and son. Christians can also call God ‘Abba, my Father’, because they have become God’s children by means of faith in Jesus (Romans 8:15).
‘This cup’ means ‘this pain and trouble’. See the note on 10:38-39. Probably the devil was tempting Jesus to avoid pain and death. But he wanted to obey his Father.
Verses 37-38
Jesus spoke especially to Peter. He called him ‘Simon’ because he was not showing his character as Peter the Rock. Jesus said that they were willing to help him. But they had not been able to control their bodies. They were tired, and they did not understand Jesus’ great struggle against evil spiritual powers.
Verses 39-41
Jesus was disappointed three times that his friends had not prayed with him and for him. Peter later denied three times that he knew Jesus. Perhaps he remembered then how he had failed to pray for strength three times. ‘It is enough’. The time for sleep had ended. Jesus was ready for those who would arrest him.
Verse 42 Jesus knew that Judas was near. And he knew that Judas was going to hand him over to his enemies.
The Arrest 14:43-52
v43 Immediately, while Jesus was still speaking, Judas, one of the 12 disciples, arrived. He had with him a crowd of people who were holding swords and heavy sticks. The chief priests, the scribes and the other leaders had sent them. v44 The man who was handing Jesus over to his enemies had given them a sign. He said, ‘The man whom I kiss is the man. Arrest him and take him away. And guard him well.’ v45 When he arrived, immediately Judas went near to Jesus. He said, ‘Teacher’, and kissed him. v46 Then they seized Jesus and they held him. v47 One of the men who were standing near drew his sword. He struck the chief priest’s servant, and he cut off the servant’s ear.
v48 Then Jesus said to them, ‘You have come out with swords and heavy sticks to seize me as if I were a thief. v49 I have been with you in the Temple day after day. I was teaching there and you did not seize me. But let the scriptures come true.’ v50 And the disciples all left him and they ran away.
v51 A certain young man was following Jesus. He was wearing only a sheet. They seized him. v52 But he left the sheet, and he ran away naked.
Commentary
Verse 43
It was terrible for Judas to hand Jesus over to his enemies. ‘One of the 12 disciples’ again emphasizes that. The Sanhedrin sent soldiers with tools to fight with. It seems that they expected Jesus to oppose arrest. And perhaps they expected his disciples to defend him. They thought that Jesus was trying to establish a political kingdom. They thought that Jesus would try to gain that kingdom by force.
Verses 44-45
It might have been difficult to identify Jesus in the dark among the trees. So, Judas had arranged to kiss Jesus, so that they would know the right person to arrest. He spoke to him as ‘Teacher’. People usually kissed a teacher. That showed that they respected him. But Judas did not give Jesus that sort of kiss. It was a kiss that normally showed great love.
Verse 47
It was Peter who attacked the servant. John tells us that. John also tells us that the servant’s name was Malchus (John 18:10). The chief priest was Caiaphas (John 18:13). Luke tells us that Jesus cured the servant’s ear (Luke 22:51).
Verses 48-49
Jesus said that there had been plenty of opportunity to arrest him in the Temple. They were trying to arrest him in secret, as if he were a thief. Jesus had once accused them of behaving like thieves (Mark 11:17). The scriptures were coming true. Mark does not say which scriptures of the Old Testament they were. Jesus knew that his arrest was in the plan of God. He also said that the disciples would leave him.
Verse 50
His words came true as they rushed away.
Verses 51-52
A young man avoided arrest and he ran away naked. The incident is only in Mark’s Gospel. It is probable that Mark himself was the young man. His home in Jerusalem became a meeting place for disciples (Acts 12:12). It is possible that the Last Supper was in his house. He had followed Jesus and the disciples to the garden because he was curious. Judas did not return to the house before he led the crowd to Gethsemane. Otherwise, Mark might have tried to warn Jesus. But Mark had arrived too late.
Jesus in Front of the Sanhedrin 14:53-65
v53 They took Jesus away to the chief priest. All the chief priests, scribes, and other leaders had gathered there with him. v54 Peter followed from a distance and he went into the place in front of the chief priest’s house. He sat down there with the guards. He was keeping himself warm at the fire. v55 The chief priests and all of the religious leaders were trying to find some evidence against Jesus. They wanted to be able to kill him. But they could not find any suitable evidence. v56 Many witnesses told lies about Jesus. But their stories did not agree with each other.
v57 Then some men stood up and they told this lie against Jesus. v58 ‘We heard him say, “I will destroy this Temple that people have made with their hands. After three days, I will build another one, but I will not make it with hands.” ’ v59 But even they could not make their stories agree. v60 So the chief priest himself stood up in front of them all. He asked Jesus, ‘Have you no answer to the evidence that these men bring against you?’ v61 But Jesus remained silent and he gave no answer. Again the chief priest asked him, ‘Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed Person?’ v62 Jesus said, ‘I am. And you will all see the Son of Man. He will be sitting on the right hand side of power. And you will see him when he comes in the clouds of the sky.’
v63 Then the chief priest tore his clothes and he said, ‘We do not need any more witnesses. v64 You heard his evil words against God. What is your decision now?’ They all said that Jesus was guilty. He deserved to die. v65 Some of them began to send water very quickly out of their mouths over Jesus. They put something over his eyes so that he could not see. Then they hit him and they said, ‘Prophesy! Who hit you?’ And the guards took him and they slapped his face.
Commentary
Verse 53
There were 71 members of the Sanhedrin. It was the chief Jewish court with the power to deal with religious matters. The Court broke many of the rules for giving a judgment. They were meeting in the chief priest’s house. They should have met in a special hall in the Temple area.
Verse 54
Peter had the courage to follow. He wanted to see what would happen to Jesus.
Verses 55-56
No one witness could prove that a man was guilty. Two or three witnesses had to agree with each other in every detail (Deuteronomy 17:6).
Verses 57-58
Some men then accused Jesus of saying that he would destroy the Temple. Jesus had warned that people would destroy the Temple (Mark 13:2). Perhaps they knew about that. They had changed words that John recorded: ‘If you destroy this Temple ---’ (John 2:19-22). John realized that Jesus was speaking about his body. They might destroy the ‘temple’ of his body, but he would rise again.
Verse 61
Jesus did not answer. He knew that any reply would be of no use. The leaders had already decided to kill him. He was like the servant in Isaiah’s poem, ‘He was like a sheep. A sheep is dumb with those who are cutting its wool. So he did not open his mouth’ (Isaiah 53:7). The chief priest’s question was not legal. He should not have asked Jesus to answer a question like that. The priest was very careful not to use the name of God. He said ‘the Blessed Person’. But he was not obeying the rules of a fair court.
Verse 62
‘I am’ was the name of God (Exodus 3:14). Jesus agreed that he was the Messiah. He used words from Psalm 110:1 and Daniel 7:13. They would see his honor when he came with great light. Jesus was confident that he would win in the end.
Verse 63
The chief priest said that Jesus had insulted God. He tore his special clothes as a sign of anger. He was showing that he did not agree with such ‘evil words against God’.
Verse 64
Because there was a death sentence, there should have been a night between the court’s decision and the punishment. Then there would be time for the members of the Sanhedrin to change their minds about the sentence. But the Romans killed Jesus on the same day, because the Jews made false charges against him.
Verse 65
The guards insulted Jesus and they made fun of him as a false prophet. They prevented him from seeing. Then they asked Him to say who had hit Him.
Peter Denies Jesus 14:66-72
v66 Peter was below in the courtyard. One of the chief priest’s women servants came by. v67 She saw Peter as he was warming himself. She looked carefully at him and she said, ‘You also were with Jesus, the man from Nazareth.’ v68 But Peter denied it. He said, ‘I do not know him. Neither do I understand what you are talking about.’ He went out to the entrance to the courtyard. v69 The woman servant saw Peter there. She said again to the people who were standing about, ‘This man is one of them.’ v70 Again he said that he was not. After a little while, those who were standing near said to Peter, ‘You are certainly one of them. You are from Galilee.’ v71 Peter began to ask God to punish him if he was not speaking the truth. He used a most serious promise and he said, ‘I do not know this man that you are talking about!’ v72 Immediately, the male chicken called for the second time. Then Peter remembered what Jesus had said to him, ‘This same night, you will say three times that you do not know me. You will say it before the male chicken calls twice.’ And when he thought about it, he wept.
Verses 66-68
The servant saw Peter as he sat by the fire. She was sure that she recognized him as a friend of Jesus. Some copies of Mark’s book add the words, ‘Just then the male chicken called’ after Peter denied Jesus for the first time. Peter moved away from the light of the fire so that he was not so noticeable.
Commentary
Verses 69-70
The servant told other people that Peter was ‘one of them’. Then someone insisted that Peter certainly was a disciple. He had a different accent because he came from Galilee. His way of speaking showed that he followed Jesus. Jesus came from Galilee.
Verse 71
Peter was very frightened. He said that he did not know Jesus. He said it in the strongest way that he could. He asked God to punish him if he was not telling the truth. He said that he did not know ‘this man’.
Verse 72
The sound of the male chicken or of the Roman trumpet for the second time reminded Peter about Jesus’ words. He was so ashamed that he burst into tears. He had said that he would never stop being loyal to Jesus. He had failed. He wept because he was so sad. He was sad about his lack of courage to be loyal to Jesus as his Master.
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