MARK

The Gospel of Mark shows that Jesus is truly God – powerful, yet sacrificially loving and suffering for you; so follow him even if it means dying for him!

The gospel’s author, John Mark, witnesses Jesus’ arrest and death as a very young man (Mk 14:51). He becomes a follower of Jesus and member of the early church, together with his mother and his relative Barnabas (Act 12:12, Col 4:10). He becomes a co-worker of Barnabas (Act 12:25, 13:13, 15:39) and Paul (2 Ti 4:11) in their missionary work. Finally he becomes Peter’s co-worker and translator in Rome (1 Pe 5:13, church tradition). When the Roman Emperor Nero falsely accuses the church in Rome of setting fire to the city, a horrible and bloody three year persecution starts (64-67 AD). First the church leaders are killed (including Peter and Paul) and then another thousand Christian believers are martyred for their faith (church tradition).

With eyewitnesses like Peter dying, they urgently need to write down their account of Jesus’ life. Mark, as Peter’s co-worker and translator, is the obvious man for the job.

He writes his gospel while hiding in the catacombs primarily for the persecuted Christians in Rome (church tradition). In such a situation they would have many questions and doubts in their hearts: Why is God allowing this persecution and tremendous suffering? If God loves his church, why isn’t he preventing this? Is he powerful, why isn’t he doing something? Is Nero more powerful than Jesus? Is God angry with us? Is this a punishment? Is Jesus really God? Is he really the Savior? Am I dying for a lie?

Mark powerfully answers these questions in his gospel: He shows by recounting many miracles that Jesus truly is all-powerful, that he truly is God: he has power over disease (Mk 1:34 ff), power over nature (Mk 4:40, 6:41), power over evil spirits (Mk 1:34ff) and power even over life and death (Mk 5:41-42). But Jesus uses his great power not to selfishly rule (like Nero), but to serve people sacrificially, to suffer for them, to even die to save them. So Jesus truly is love, he is the suffering servant (Mk 10:45). He conquers in death (Mk 16:19). We, as his followers, must “pick up our cross and follow him“ (Mk 8:34), in suffering and maybe even in death because he is God, a God worthy of our sacrifice.

THE AUTHOR JOHN MARK

• Though the author doesn’t state his name in his gospel, many early church leaders mention in their writings that John Mark, the cousin of Barnabas is the writer of the this gospel. They say that he was the translator of Peter and wrote down what Peter used to preach:

• Church historian Eusebius, quoting from a lost work by Papias who in turn quotes ‘the Elder’, which probably refers to the Apostle John

• Irenaeus early church father in Italy and France 150-200 AD

• Justin Martyr early church apologist in Samaria 150 AD

• an old Latin Manuscript 160-180 AD

• an unknown author writing prologue on an ancient Greek gospel

• Clement of Alexandria church father in Egypt 210 AD

• John Mark is last mentioned as being with Peter in Rome (Rome is code named ‘Babylon‘ here) in 1 Pe 5:13.

• It is therefore not surprising that the gospel of Mark (as Peter preached it) has quite clear parallels of emphasis with other recorded preachings of Peter in the New Testament: such as the person and power of Jesus (Acts 2:14-39, 3:12-26, 4:8-12, 10:34-43).

• Also Peter’s letter ‘1 Peter‘ speaks of enduring suffering as a disciple, as does the Gospel of Mark.

THE LIFE OF JOHN MARK

Mk 3:16 John Mark is not one of the twelve disciples of Jesus who accompanied him all throughout his ministry time

Mark 14:51-52 John Mark as a young man witnessed the arrest and most likely Jesus’ death on the cross as well as his resurrection. Though young at the time, he himself is an eyewitness.

Acts 12:12 The church of Jerusalem meets at Mark’s house. His mother is not only among the believers but hosts the church in a time of persecution – a courageous thing to do.

Col 4:10 John Mark is a ‘relative’, ‘sister’s son’ or ‘cousin’ (the word allows for several translations) of Barnabas, who is an outstanding and influential believer in the first church (Acts 11:22-24, …). Barnabas was an observant Jew, though from Cyprus. Mark definitely was a Jew as well, maybe also originally from Cyprus though now the family seems to live in Jerusalem.

Acts 12:25 John Mark is taken by Barnabas and Paul for ministry to the church in Antioch. He probably was discipled, trained and given a degree of leadership under Barnabas and Paul. Around 47 AD.

Acts 13:13 John Mark is taken along by Barnabas and Paul on their first missionary journey as a helper. He eventually leaves the team, possibly over Paul becoming the team leader. Around 48 AD.

Acts 15:36-41 John Mark becomes the cause of a fight between Barnabas and Paul, which probably made him feel guilty over becoming the reason for a division among leaders. He joins with Barnabas and returns to Cyprus and onward for more missionary work. Around 50 AD.

Philemon 24 Mark is with Paul, most likely Rome in about the year 62 AD.

2 Tim 4:11 Paul: get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful in my ministry. Around 64 AD. It seems that Barnabas’ further trust and discipleship of John Mark has paid off, as Paul now recommends him and is working with him.

1 Peter 5:13 John Mark is present with Peter in Rome, who calls him ‘my son’.

Church history John Mark writes his gospel during Nero’s persecution for the suffering Roman church.

HOW DO WE KNOW WHO MARK’S READERS WERE?

Besides the evidence from church history (see Author John Mark) there are also clues in Mark’s gospel that let us conclude quite a bit about the readers:

• Mark finds it necessary to give his readers explanation of Jewish laws, culture and traditions (see for example Mk 2:26, 7:1-5, 7:11, 12:18, 14:12, 15:42) which shows that the readers are not Jews, and are not really familiar with Jewish law and culture.

• Mark keeps translating Aramaic words (see for example Mk 3:17, 5:41, 7:34, 9:43, 10:46, 14:36, 15:22, 15:34) which shows that the readers are not only not Jews, they also can’t speak Aramaic, which was spoken in the areas of Judea, Syria and the East of the Roman empire. The readers are not from this area.

• The Gospel of Mark as well as the entire New Testament was written in Greek, which was the most commonly used language in the Roman Empire, similar to English being the international language today. Sometimes Mark translates Greek words he uses by Latin words (see for example Mk 12:42 ‘two copper coins (Greek ‘lepta’), which are worth a penny (Latin ‘quadran’)’ or Mk 15:16 ‘the palace’ (Greek), that is the ‘praetorium’ (Latin). Though this is not easily visible in the modern translations, it still shows that the first readers – can speak Greek but their actual mother tongue is Latin.

• Mark uses many Latin technical terms specifically and accurately: In Mk 5:9 he mentions the ‘legion‘ (a unit of a hundred soldiers in the Roman army), in Mk 6:27 a ‘speculator’ (Roman soldier), in Mk 15:15 he describes Jesus’ flogging as ‘flagellare’ (the correct Roman term) and in Mk 15:16 he calls the place Jesus is taken the ‘praetorium’ (the correct term for the Roman governor’s head quarters) and in Mk 15:39 he calls the supervising Roman soldier a ‘centurion’.

• Mark further uses the Roman reckoning of time (4 watches of the guards during the night), not the Jewish one (3 watches of the guards during the night) in Mk 14:17, 14:72, 15:1, 6:48). All this shows that our readers are Romans.

• Mark brings almost no quote of Old Testament prophecy and the few quotes he gives he doesn’t quote from the Hebrew Old Testament but rather from the Greek translation of the Old Testament (called Septuagint, translated in 250 BC in Alexandria).

• Mark mentions persons called Alexander and Rufus by name in Mk 15:21. They are the sons of Simon of Cyrene who carried Jesus’ cross. In Paul’s letter to the Romans a Rufus is mentioned. Most likely this is the same person.

• In summary we can say that our readers are not Jews, do not know Jewish law and culture, they don’t speak Aramaic, they can speak Greek but really their mother tongue is Latin. This makes clear that they are living in Italy.

• Church tradition narrows it down: the first readers were in Rome, during the time of Nero’s persecution.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE FIRST READERS

A SHORT HISTORY OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE

• Rome was founded 753 BC as an alliance of a few Latin villages building a stronghold against the attacks of the surrounding tribes.

• The constitution of this Roman Republic was a Senate with representatives of each family who appoint 2 consuls for a year to carry out specific tasks. This was to curb the power of each consul and to keep everything accountable to the Senate.

• Rome grows, defeats the surrounding tribes and increasingly conquers nearby lands, always trying to achieve an ‘easily defendable border’. This leads to a strong expansion first to include all of Italy, then the Mediterranean Sea, then the far away shores of the Mediterranean. By 146 BC Rome has become the most powerful naval force on the Mediterranean, has conquered Tunisia (Carthago) and Greece and keeps expanding in all directions.

• With the expansion comes much wealth (loot, taxes from the provinces) and many slaves (conquered peoples). The Romans become ‘upper class’, wealthy, accustomed to luxury and cease to work. The government understands it needs to provide ‘bread and games’ for its citizens, provision and entertainment (bloody war games, gladiator fights, chariot races).

• With the expansion comes continual warfare (and with it risk and danger) which lets the government grow more and more both powerful and hierarchical. The Senate is now run by the richest ten families. The proconsuls become military generals with increasing power.

• Finally one popular and victorious proconsul-general demotes the Senate and establishes himself as the ruler of the Empire: Julius Ceasar in 48 BC.

• Rome transitions from a Republic to a tyranny. From now on Julius’ family will rule as a succession of emperors, whether they are good leaders or not:

• • 27 BC – 14 AD Emperor Augustus during his reign Jesus is born

  • 14 AD – 37 AD Emperor Tiberius during his reign Jesus is crucified and rises again

  • 37 AD – 41 AD Emperor Caligula the church continues to spread

  • 41 AD – 54 AD Emperor Claudius during his reign Paul’s missionary journeys start

  • 54 AD – 68 AD Emperor Nero

• Nero is put on the throne as a 17 year old youth by his scheming mother Agrippina. Nero is a people person, a self-declared artist, a person who desperately wants to be popular.

• He lowers the taxes, he organizes art & music contests and lavish games.

• He neglects the military, the government administration and other functions of the emperor. He kills his mother when she wants to be declared empress.

• He becomes increasingly addicted to every pleasure and perversion under heaven, increasingly lawless, arbitrary and murderous.

• He decides to rebuild Rome’s city in great splendor and call it Neropolis. But the city center is congested and full of buildings. In June of 64 AD he secretly has fire set to the city center to burn it down so as to gain space for his building project. The fire gets out of control and two thirds of Rome burns down. When Rome’s population turns on him, he needs somebody to blame the fire on: the unpopular and misunderstood sect of the Christians.

• Nero starts arresting the believers and executing them as the culprits of the devastating fire. He sentences them to violent, public executions (gladiator fights, being burnt at the stake, wild animal feedings etc). Eventually Nero’s vengeance and executions take on such proportions that even Rome is not liking the games any more. Tacitus, a Roman historian hostile to Christianity, says in one of his works that eventually it was clear to all in Rome that the Christians were not dying because of their guilt, but because of Nero’s blood lust.

• This persecution lasts 3½ years, from summer 64 AD till January 68 AD. About a thousand believers die the death of a martyr, including Peter (crucified upside down) and Paul (beheaded).

• By end of 67 AD Rome is on the brink of a revolt, Nero is declared enemy of the state by the senate and his own military generals rise against him. In January 68 AD Nero commits suicide with somebody’s help at age 32.

A SHORT SUMMARY OF THE ROMAN RELIGION

• The Romans basically believed in a world animated and influenced by spirits or gods (Animism).

• As the centuries went by, the worship of several specific gods grew in importance.

• The Romans believed themselves to be the be migrated descendants of Troy, whom the Greeks fought according to Greek Mythology.

• The story involves adultery with a goddess (Venus), rape by a god (Mars) and child abandonment, all later common in Roman culture.

• The main gods were

  • god Jupiter (in Greek: Zeus) chief god, god of sky, thunder

  • goddess Juno (in Greek: Hera) chief goddess, goddess of marriage, child birth

  • god Mars (in Greek: Ares) god of strength, power, military, battle

  • goddess Venus (in Greek: Aphrodite) goddess of erotic love, seduction, adultery,

prostitutes

• What might happen to a society that worships Mars and Venus?

• There will be a deification of male strength, military prowess and victory with power legitimizing itself.

• There will also be a low view of marriage and family, so sexual immorality of all kinds will be rampant. The Roman culture was like this.

• It is interesting that Mark indirectly addresses the wrong Roman concept of power (Mars) and the wrong Roman concept of love (Venus) in his gospel. Rather he demonstrates that Jesus has shown us what real power and real love looks like: self-control, service, commitment to the other’s good, suffering and self-sacrifice.

• Mark therefore dethrones Mars and Venus and enthrones Jesus as the true example of power and love.

WHAT IS MARK’S MESSAGE TO HIS READERS?

DURING PERSECUTION, WHAT QUESTIONS ARISE IN THE BELIEVERS’ HEARTS?

• Imagine you are a believer in the Roman church when Nero declares you to be the ones that started the devastating fire in Rome.

• Suddenly you find yourself an ‘enemy of the state’ and people look at you with suspicion and hatred.

• Then the arrests start. One believer after the other is arrested, sentenced for treason and executed in the most violent and gruesome ways.

• First the leaders, Peter, Paul. But then it is the normal people like you. Already your father has been burnt in the arena, your mother and sister has been taken away and you don’t know where they are, you have heard rumors that Nero is himself is raping and killing the victims.

• You are hiding in the sewage canals (catacombs) of Rome with other fugitives like you. What would be going on in your mind? What doubts and questions would plague you?

• • Who has power over my life? Is Nero more powerful than Jesus? If God is all-powerful, why doesn’t he stop this madness? If he has power, why doesn’t he do something about this?

  • How can a loving God allow this? Has he abandoned me? Forgotten me? Does he not love me?

  • Did I join a false religion, a false faith? If God doesn’t help now, who am I worshiping? Why should I die for a God who doesn’t seem to be powerful enough or loving enough to save us? Is this worth my life?

  • Basically: doubting God’s power and his love, doubting that God is God.

• Mark addresses these questions powerfully in his gospel:

HOW DOES MARK ADDRESS THESE QUESTIONS?

JESUS IS ALL POWERFUL

• Mark shows his readers pages after pages of Jesus doing hard-hitting, spectacular miracles of many kinds: he heals temporary diseases (like fever, Mk 1:29-31), he heals chronic diseases (like the dreaded leprosy, Mk 1:10-44), he heals chronic birth defects (like blindness or deafness, Mk 37:33-37), he heals deformity (Mk 3:1-6), he heals paralysis (Mk 2:1-12). This shows that Jesus has power over diseases, body and health.

• Jesus regularly casts out evil spirits, even legions of evil spirits, and totally frees people from long-term demonic oppression. He has power over the spiritual world, over the unseen, over evil.

• Jesus performs miracles showing his power over nature, like walking on water (Mk 6:45-56) and miraculously feeding thousands of people (Mk 6:30-44, Mk 8:1-10).

• Jesus is Lord over the sabbath (Mk 2:28). Jesus has the power to forgive sin (Mk 2:1-12). Jesus teaches with authority (Mk 1:21-22, Mk 1:39).

• Jesus raises the dead daughter of Jairus back to life (Mk 5:21-43) and withdraws life from a fig tree (Mk 11:14, Mk 11:20-21). He has power over life and death.

• With the story of the transfiguration Mark shows that Jesus is more than a mere human (Mk 9:2-8)

• Mark (in quite a breathless way) describes miracle after miracle to his readers, proving beyond doubt that Jesus is God and that Jesus is all-powerful.

JESUS USES HIS POWER IN LOVE TO SERVE AND SAVE

• Throughout the gospel Mark shows that Jesus indeed ‘came not be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many’ (Mk 10:45).

• Jesus is sacrificially serving, he lovingly touches people or lets himself be touched (Mk 5:25-34), even when the crowds press in on him and almost crush him (Mk 3:9-10) and when he has barely time to eat (Mk 3:20). He keeps having mercy on people, speaking to them, touching them, healing them, freeing them, comforting them, teaching them and challenging them.

• Ultimately he shows his love by going to Jerusalem, knowing what will happen there (Mk 8:12-23, 9:30-32, 10:32-34).

• He walks with eyes open, willingly, into the trap set for him, not trying to appease his opponents but speaking the truth and warning them even when they are already plotting against him (Mk 12:1-17).

• When Jesus is sure there will be no other way to bring about salvation (Mk 14:32-42) he willingly goes with the arrest (Mk 14:49) and later makes no attempt to rescue himself during the trial (Mk 15:5).

• He willingly submits to the false sentence, the flogging and the crucifixion.

LIKE JESUS, SO HIS FOLLOWERS

• Mark shows his readers that as followers of Jesus, the same things that happened to Jesus, will likely happen to them.

• Mark shows that Jesus and the persecuted Roman believers have a lot in common: both suffered under Rome, both are falsely accused under mock trials, both were ‘with the wild beasts’ (Mk 1:13), both experienced things like being misunderstood and attacked by family members, both faced betrayal by close people and had to go through certain things all alone.

• He comforts his Roman believers that it is not that God is angry with them, it is not that God abandoned them, it is not that God is punishing them, but rather that suffering is a normal part of a believers life.

• Mark tells his readers the story of how the righteous John the Baptist died in a very obscene and violent way, that is a sad but very real parallel to the Roman believers (Mk 6:14-29). This story is not given in any other gospel, showing that Mark included this especially with his readers in mind.

• Jesus says: “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and pick up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.” (Mk 8:34-35), one of the most central verses in the gospel of Mark.

Introduction to the Gospels in general

Gospels, when written, were a new thing, a literary class of its own. There are four gospels in the Bible. What are the differences? Why are there four gospels in the Bible? Do the gospels contradict each other?

Luke has pages of parables, Matthew has page of teaching, John records personal conversations, Mark has pages of miracles. It can also be surprising what a gospel does not have: Mark has nothing on Jesus birth and growing up, John doesn’t have a single parable, not even Gethsemane is mentioned.

The core reason is that the four gospels are written by four different writers intended for different audiences. Jn 21:25 says that if all written down about Jesus, all his words, his actions, his encounters, the world could not contain the books. By necessity any writer summarizing some three and a half year has to select material. In the 3 ½ years with Jesus the disciples witnessed hundreds, maybe thousands of miracles, encounters, deliverances, parables, sayings, encounters.  Jesus probably said most everything many times, in different ways, slight variations to fit the different audiences. Every gospel writer must carefully select what he will include (and discard hundreds of other things), and he does so as he sees fit for the needs of his particular audience. To not include something does not mean to deny it. To mention one way Jesus told a parable does not mean that he did not sometimes tell it differently.

Interpreting gospels has two levels

PICTURE

There is the obvious level of Jesus and his hearers, that might be his disciples, crowds, Jewish leaders or specific people. But then there is the second level we often are less aware of: There is the gospel writer, who selects events of Jesus’ life for his readers.

So with gospels we need to ask two questions about any thing Jesus might say:

1. What does this mean to Jesus’ listeners (disciples, crowds, Pharisees, …)?
2. Why does the gospel writer include exactly this in his gospel? Why is this relevant to his readers?

Repeated themes in the gospel of Mark

When reading or coloring the gospel of Mark watch out especially for the following repeated themes:

• Miracles
• Jesus’ power or authority
• Opposition, suffering, false accusations, torture
• response of people to Jesus (much emotion)
• Obedience, serving, following
• Jesus’ command to tell, to not tell
• Clues to who the audience may be (explanations to Non-Jews)

Finding the Readers of Mark’s Gospel

In summary it can be concluded from details in the Gospel that the readers are not Jewish in race, nor Jewish in culture, they don’t speak Aramaic and they are not too familiar with Jewish geography. So they must be Gentiles outside of Judea and with no knowledge of the area. Mark uses Latin to explain Greek words in the text. This speaks for an Italian audience of non Jewish origin. What is the evidence for these claims?

Mark finds it necessary to give explanations of Jewish traditions:

• Mk 2:26   the bread of presence, which it is not lawful for any but priests to eat … Jews know this
• Mk 4:31   mustard seed, smallest of all seeds
• Mk 7:1-5 for the Pharisees …
• Mk 7:11 Corban (that is, and offering to God
• Mk 12:18 Sadducees, – say there is not resurrection of the dead
• Mk 14:12 Day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb is sacrificed
• Mk 15:42 day of Preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath

Mark gives geographical explanations:

Mark gives the translation of Aramaic words:

• Mk 3:17    Boanerges, that is, sons of Thunder
• Mk 5:41    Talitha cum, which means, little girl, get up
• Mk 7:34    Ephphata, that is, be opened
• Mk 9:43 Gehenna- unquenchable fire
• Mk 10:46 Bartimaeus son of Timaeus
• Mk 14:36 Abba, Father
• Mk 15:22 Golgotha (which means the place of a skull
• Mk 15:34 Eloi, Eloi … which means, my God, my God …

Mark explains Greek expressions by Latin ones:

• Mk 12:42 two copper coins (Greek ‘lepta’), which are worth a penny (Latin ‘quadran’)
• Mk 15:16 palace (Greek), that is the praetorium (Latin)

Mark accurately uses Latin technical terms:

• Mk 5:9     Legion = Roman army
• Mk 6:27   Speculator = solider
• Mk 15:15  flagellare = flogging
• Mk 15:16 Praetorium = governor’s headquaters
• Mk 15:39 Centurion

Mark uses the Roman time reckoning (4 watches of the night), not the Jewish one (3 watches of the night):

• Mk 14:17         evening 9:30 pm / midnight 12:00 am
• Mk 14:72        cock-crow 2:30 am
• Mk 15:1, 6:48 morning, dawn 5:00 am

Use of Jewish prophecy

1. Mark uses virtually no Old Testament quotes or prophecy, mentions only little fulfillment thereof
2. All quotes he uses are taken from the Septuagint (OT in Greek for hellenistic Jews, translated in Alexandria 250 BC)

Special feature

• Mark mentions an Alexander and a Rufus by name (Mk 15:21), sons of Simon of Cyrene (also Mt 27:32, Lk 23:26).
• One Rufus is a member of the Roman church (Ro 16:13). If this is the same person, Rufus would be known in Rome, hence the mention of the role his father played.

The witness of Church Tradition:

• Various witnesses state that Mark wrote his gospel to the church in Rome.
• If the readers are Roman, in order to understand their background we need to look at the Roman empire.

Spiritual Foundation of the Roman Empire

The basic principle is that from a nations beliefs come their values, from which comes their way of thinking, from which become their behavior or actions. This is very clearly visible if we look at the basic beliefs of the Romans and their subsequent history.

• Basically it was animistic: gods of the hearth, of the door, of the sky, of the ground etc.
• When the city grows, these become gods of state (Example: god of sky Jupiter becomes god of oaths, justice)
• Romans accept the Greek pantheon and associate their gods with the Greek gods (Example: Zeus = Jupiter, Hera = Juno, Aphrodite = Venus, Ares = Mars)
• Interestingly the Roman Mythology traces the Romans’ story to Greece. This shows that the Romans feel inferior to the Greeks, spiritually and intellectually, though they are superior militarily and politically. Roman mythology is written by Virgil at the time of Emperoro Augustus, as the Greek had been written much prior by Hesiod and Homer.
• According to Roman mythology: Paris, the prince of Troy, is asked by three goddesses to decide, which one is the most beautiful, Hera (goddess of marriage), Athena (goddess of wisdom) or Venus (goddess of erotic love). He chooses Venus.
• Venus, the goddess of erotic love, seduction, adultery and prostitutes becomes the protector and helper of the Troyans. But the Greeks attack the City of Troy and defeat it.
• Another prince of Troy has an adulterous affair with Venus, resulting in a son called Aeneas. Aeneas leaves the destroyed city and eventually settles in Italy. The Romans trace their decent to Aeneas, counting themselves as divine by being offspring of Venus.
• Another story in Roman mythology: A Roman temple virgin (Vestalin) is raped, she claims by the god Mars, who is the god of physical power, war, conquest, military.
• The temple virgin finds herself pregnant with twins. She is imprisoned for no longer being a virgin. Her twins, named Romulus and Remus are exposed on the border of the river Tiber. A she wolf nurses the children and when they grow up they found the city of Rome.
• Therefore the Romans are now doubly divine, of Venus via Aeneas and of Mars.
• The city of Rome, calls itself (in Latin) ROMA (which means strength, the attribute of god Mars) and the inversion of letters yields AMOR (which means love in Latin, the attribute of goddess Venus). The two closest planets after named after these two gods. The signs of the planets still stand today for male, female.
• Mars – god of physical strength, war, military
• Venus – goddess of erotic love, seduction, adultery, prostitutes

What happens to a society that worships these?

• Venus > There will adultery, marriage will be looked down on, women will be viewed as sexual objects, there will be unstable and broken families, abandoned children … and all these are rampant in Roman culture.
• Mars > There will be an exalting of strength, justification by victory, violence, murder, torture, rape …. and again the history of the Roman Empire exemplifies this.

History of the Roman Empire

Beginnings & Expansion

• 753 BC village alliance Rome founded, it is a Latin enclave, pressured by surrounding tribe.
• > federation of villages on the hills that now make up Rome, build a stronghold together to resist the power of the outside tyrant influence. Later break through encircling ring of surrounding hill tribes.
• 510 BC Roman Republic founded, a city government, with a senate of representatives of the people. Senate (all male) then appointed officers to carry out tasks. Appointed two Consuls (equal authority), who had power over the military. A Consul’s office lasted only 1 year > a system of Checks and Balances.
• Rome grows, conquers surrounding peoples, more in search of a ‘defendable border’ than with the thought of world domination (unlike Alexander). Slowly whole of Italy is conquered. Ideal of the Pax Romana.
• In order to defend its long coastline Rome becomes a naval force on the Mediterranean. To support that they start conquering harbors on the far side of the sea, bringing them into direct conflict with the then existing sea power Carthago (today Tunisia), a Phoenician settlement. Connection of Cretans > Phoenicians > Carthagians
• 264 – 146 BC Rome fights three wars against Carthago (The Punic wars), eventually wins, becoming sovereign over Mediterranean
• 147 BC Rome fights and defeats the Greek Empire at Corinth > sovereignty over the Greek empire.

Resulting mechanisms

While all this military expansion is going on, successful though it is, several mechanisms start happening:

• growing riches > luxury > decadence
• growing number of slaves > lower Roman classes unemployed for slaves are cheaper > need to keep them busy > public games to keep them amused
• growing number of Greek slaves > used as teachers, lawyers, educators > Greek culture conquers the Roman empire > Greek becomes the official language of the empire for a time, not Latin
• In crises times (war, and this is happening more frequently as conquest goes on) > appointment of one dictator, who later had to lay down office. Power moving upward.
• Senate becomes more and more elitist, representing by the end just 10 powerful families, not whole populace
• Now starting with proconsuls, who have not only military, but also taxes under them > money & power brought together > soldiers loyal to military leaders and consuls, not senate anymore. Proconsul’s office extended to 5 y
• Rome puts every conquered deity in addition to their own into the Pantheon … worship them all, the more the better, keep them all happy > those who don’t are threatening the peace and blessing on Rome.
• Entertainment is increasingly important. Greek style: logic, knowledge, athletics, Olympic games, eloquence, beauty … Roman style: violence, bloody games. Center of the Roman cities, and especially Rome is the ‘Circus Maximus’, huge stadiums for public games and entertainments, theaters, chariot race courses …

From Republic to One-man-Empire: Julius Caesar

• 100 BC Gaius Julius Caesar born into roman upper-class family
• 80 BC … Julius at 20 y first military successes, bravery, comradery with soldiers > famous, popular
• 65 BC … becomes high priest of Roman pantheistic religion
• 61 BC … becomes Quaestor, then proconsul of Spain, a Roman Colony > military & money. Increasingly popular with military and people, increasingly feared by the senate.
• 63 BC … military leader Pompey conquers Siria and Judea and annexes it to the Roman Empire, using local kings to administrate the difficult new province > Herodians. Pompey has increasing power, but submits to senate.
• 61 BC … Julius & Crassus & Pompey build a Triumvirat, each is famous, each a military leader, each has armies, have the power to veto anything in the senate they want. Julius is made consul by the backing of the other two.
• Consul Julius bribed the senators, one by one, gives lavish gifts to vassal kings, armies if they need … Makes sure his fellow-consul is a weak figure. “Veni, Vidi, Vici”, “I came saw and conquered”.
• Made proconsul of Gaul (France) … more money, expanding military power, gives favor (citizenship) to Spain and Gaul, wins a foothold for Rome in Britain.
• Suffers everything with troops, head of attack, no privileges > soldiers loyal and in love with Julius > money & power.
• Triumvirat starts mistrusting each other. Crassus, wanting glory, wars against Parthians and is killed.
• Senate, hating Julius, give his consulship to another one, declare him out of office and enemy of the state
• 48 BC marches upon Rome with his armies, defeats the Roman Empire-armies that retreated to Greece … forces senate to elect him “elected dictator” … oppresses senate. Cicero withstands manipulation and unmasks him.
• 38 BC made “dictator for life”, 5th month is called July after Julius, peoples of the east start worshiping as a god.
• Organizes lavish ‘games’ of all kinds: gladiator contests, chariot races, athletic competitions, naval battles.
• Of him was also said: “Romans, lock your wives away!” And also: “Every wife’s husband and every husband’s wife”.
• He grew very proud is later life, no longer diplomatic, Romans honored him but he refused to even greet them or give thanks > later hated by Romans.
• Still: deified right after death because a comet appeared in the sky just then > often pictured with a star on forehead
• 44 BC Cassius and Brutus plot against Julius Ceasar (instigated by Senate), Julius dies without resistance (upon seeing Brutus, it is said)

Civil unrest and back to One-man-Empire: Gaius Octavius Augustus (27BC – 14 AD)

• 44-31 BC civil unrest and insecurity.
• Gaius Octavius, later titled ‘Augustus’, which means venerable, respectable. Great-nephew of Julius Ceasar, adopted by him as son.
• Studies in Greece, is 19 years old when Julius Caesar killed, planned to become next dictator, goes to Rome to claim his position, not welcomed by senate and Brutus etc.
• Clear thinker, good leader, diplomatic, smart, appointed good people
• 43 BC Anthony rises in power as a military leader, feared by senate > Cicero therefore accepts Octavius as senator and he is given an army against Anthony.
• 43-42 BC Power struggle between Brutus and Anthony. Octavius supports Anthony and Brutus is defeated. He flees and commits suicide. Octavius then marches on Rome and besieges it > senate terrified.
• 42 BC senate appoints another Triumvirat, making Anthony, Lapidus and Octavius consuls.
• Anthony: assigned Syria, Judea, war against Parthians, meets with vassal kings to ensure loyalty. Meets Cleopatra of Egypt as one of them … wants Hellenism-strongholds
• Lapidus: assigned Sicily, fights Pompey-son-turned-corn-pirate (Rome’s supply, a hot issue) successfully. Armies turn over to him
• Octavius is assigned a huge army, popular with the Roman people, good politician, cuts down a revolt of Anthony’s family. Suffers only two defeats ever, in Germany. Goes to Sicily where the armies defect Lapidus and switch over to Octavius, him victorious, Lapidus killed.
• Anthony marries Cleopatra of Egypt, divorces his Roman wife, disowns his children in favor of Egypt. Octavius publishes his testament > Rome outraged
• Octavius wages a sea-battle against Anthony in Greece, defeats Anthony, who commits suicide together with Cleopatra
• Octavius the last remaining consul with increasing popularity and power. He manages to keep all the “looks” of a republic with a functioning senate, but it is increasingly a one-man-empire.
• Octavius is declared “son of God”, since Julius had been declared god. Octavius becomes Pontifex Maximus, high priest of the roman religion. Becomes initiated into Eleusian mystery religion
• Octavius beautifies Rome, builds & rebuilds aquaeducts, massive sums for building a temple to Mars, Apollo, Jupiter
• 27 BC made ‘Augustus’ by the senate during his 6th to 7th consulship
• Purges senate of people who hate Julius (and his house)
• Establishes Princeps office (first citizen)
• Takes on title “prince of peace”. Made peace, excellent administrator, excellent politician, stresses family life, prosperity
• Could be cruel, killed people for minor offenses, or for imagined offenses.
• Reigned long (41 years from 27 BC to 14 AD). Jesus is born in his time, around 4 BC. Augustus orders the public counting, which forces Joseph and the pregnant Mary to move to Bethlehem.
• Long “golden reign”, … by the time he dies, the Roman republic is forgotten and a emperor-centered Empire will go into the hands of increasingly corrupt followers.

Attempted reversal unsuccessful: Tiberius Ceasar (14-37BC)

• Tiberius was the step-son of Augustus. Grew up in a broken home, kidnapped as a youngster.
• Entered the military at 16, became Tribune in Spain. Wasn’t after glory, identified with the soldiers > popularity with the army. Later conquered Illyrica for Rome > growing popularity with Roman population.
• Married Vipsania at 22. Quiet, withdrawn.
• 23 BC made Quaestor, good decisions, good lawyer > popularity as such.
• Augustus decrees that he has to divorce his wife and marry his daughter Julia, though Julia was married already and also the mother of Vipsania.
• Becomes depressed, withdrawn, yet efficient, good work
• Julia is famous for shameless behavior, Tiberius knows, Augustus doesn’t. Finally in 7 BC separation, Julia is banished.
• 13 AD Augustus makes Tiberius co-princeps, co-regent
• Tiberius wanted back the republic, hated corruption and indulgence, tried to empower the senate again but they didn’t want it. Tiberius became an excellent ruler, wise ruling established Pax Romana.
• He refused to be honored as a god, stressed his humanity.
• But he was rather stingy, yet greedy, he sometimes wouldn’t pay the soldiers salary etc. He had little humor for games > not popular with the people.
• He was also very superstitious, and cruel. He would watch tortures and killings for dinner-entertainment. Arbitrary killings for whatever reasons. Nobody was safe of arbitrary killings, even the close ones.
• He increasingly became dependent on alcohol. Also increasingly estranged from his own family, didn’t attend his mother’s funeral. He had one of his sons killed. His then gouged out the eye of his son’s wife, whom then committed suicide. He proceeded to starve her two sons to death.
• During his reign Jesus ministered, was crucified and resurrected.
• When he died in 37 BC, people were happy, running around screaming “to the Tiber with Tiberius!”

Ruining the Empire in 4 years: Gaius Caligula Ceasar (37-41 AD)

• His father was of Julius’ family, a general, so Caligula grew up in a military environment. Caligula means half-boot.
• Later adopted later by Tiberius. Elected by the Senate. Tiberius said about him: I am nursing a viper in Rome’s bosom
• Terrible ruler, squandered all the money accumulated by Augustus and Tiberius in 4 years. Lowered taxes, built theaters, held continual games, gladiatorial fights, people thrown to wild beasts etc. > popular with the people.
• Was extremely cruel, loved watching tortures and executions, during dinner. Had lions, fed by criminals. His orgies were notorious.
• He insisted being worshiped as god. Gave himself various titles, like “best and greatest of men”. Had statues of Greek god’s decapitated and his head placed instead. Built a shrine to himself as god, with priests, costliest sacrifices & victims, huge golden image.
• He had a fever, which almost killed him, revived but with apparent brain damage. Called a monster from then onward. Had his horse placed on the emperor’s throne and honored as emperor. He was extremely immoral, a sadist, incest, married and divorced constantly, confiscated people’s property, imposed 40 tax laws, tortures, murders, with or without reason … He committed every offense the Bible charges with death penalty. Sexual practices without description.
• Tried to set up his own statue in the Jerusalem temple, but died before he this would-be-final-folly.

Claudius Caesar (41-54 AD)

• Claudius was physically handicapped, his mother called him a monster. Family hated him for the shame he brought. Strong mind. > Deprived of social life > depressed, alcoholic
• Uncle of Caligula, made Emperor against his will. When Caligula died, they found him hiding behind a curtain, dragged him out and declared him Ceasar.
• People distrusted him, did not like him
• Wise ruler, just judge, good administrator, good laws, for example law to protect sick slaves. Strengthened the empire. He was not a military ruler, but paid his generals well. 46 BC Thrace annexed, Mauretania annexed, Lycia annexed > Empire expanded further.
• He tolerated all religions that adapted, persecuted the druidism of Gaul and Jewish Faith.
• 49 AD he banished all Jews from Rome over a riot at the supposed instigation of “Chrestos”. See Acts 18:2.
• In his time a famine in Judea (and Syria?) happened, see Acts 11:27-30, the famine relief.
• Claudius was personally very cruel, loved violence, loved gladiator fights, loved gambling, longed for love.
• At least 6 assassination attempts, but he escaped them all. He ate too much and drank too much > regular vomiting.
• Married and divorced two women, had a son by each. Married a third, Agrippina, who had a son named Nero already by another man > manipulated Claudius to adopt Nero. Once adopted, she killed Claudius herself and bought people to announce Nero as the new Emperor.

Nero Caesar (54-68AD)

• Put on the throne as 17 y old by his scheming mother Agrippina, who de-facto ruled.
• Seneca was his tutor, as long as Seneca lived, things remained within borders. Seneca: philosopher & paedophil.
• Nero was a people-person, wanted to be popular, seldom forgot a face, would greet people of all ranks equally, wanted to be generous, lowered taxes.
• Later Agrippina wanted to be declared Empress > strife with Nero. Nero rebels, marries a ex-slave, Agrippina jealous. Agrippina threatens to make Nero’s half-brother Britannicus emperor > Nero kills him.
• Nero and Agrippina try to kill each other, several times, knowing of each other. Nero succeeds first > Agrippina dead.
• Nero didn’t like military, had no military mind whatsoever > under-payed the soldiers > unrest
• He excelled at organizing events and games of every variety, chariot races, gladiator fights, even between men and women, though first he allowed no killings. Yet he did not like things violent / military > unpopular with the people, rather loved poetry, theater, music, singing, ballet. Thought of himself as supreme artist. Would reward artists with citizenship after performances.
• At his festivals, he would give away expensive gifts to all people, gold, special animals > park with all exotic animals.
• He would organize singing contests, but then sing so long nobody else could sing and be crowned the winner. He personally went to the Olympic games to compete in a chariot race, and was crowned winner though he fell of the chariot and didn’t finish the race. If he performed, nobody could leave the room, women gave birth during his performances, but the doors remained shut.
• Yet increasingly he gave himself to every pleasure under earth, sexual and otherwise, he would dress up as normal person and go stealing in the streets, or at night visit the pubs, kill men on the way home from pubs and put their bodies in the sewer. His orgies were beyond description. He had affairs with women and men continually. He married a young boy, dressed him us as a queen and took him everywhere he went.
• He married his first wife Octavia, later killed her to inherit her property. He married Poppaea, though she was married already. He later kicked her to death while being pregnant for complaining to him about returning late.
• He married a third wife, who was also married, being obliged to kill her husband. Another time he wanted to marry Claudius’ daughter Antonia, but she refused, so he had her executed. He massacred Roman nobility from 60-64 AD
• In summer 64 AD, Nero wanted to build new magnificent buildings in the middle of Rome (and name the city Neropolis), but lacked space to do so > senate refuses > set fire to the mid-city in 7 places at once and sang and played the fiddle while watching Rome go up in flames.
• The wind carried the fire further than ever planned > two thirds of Rome destroyed > rumors > wrath of populace
• Nero needs a scapegoat to blame the fire on: a generally unpopular small group is found: the Christians. They are unpopular because they are considered atheists (worship no idols) and therefore provoke the gods and threaten Rome’s well being … and they are cannibals (eat flesh and blood) … and they are immoral (love one another)
• 64 – 67 BC widespread persecution of the Christians, over a thousand believers die the death of a martyr, including Peter (crucified upside down) and Paul (beheaded). Executions include crucifixion, beheading, burning them as lights at garden parties (because they burned Rome), exposed to beasts in the arena, burnt at the stake, raped and killed by Nero sewn into lion skins etc.
• The persecution is so long and bloody that even the Roman history writer Tacitus says that it was clear to all Rome, that the Christians were dying not because of their guilt, but because of Nero’s blood lust. Even Rome got grossed out, and it takes a lot to do so.
• By 67/8 AD Rome is on the brink of a revolt, Nero is declared enemy of the state by the senate, generals rise against him > he is too wimpy for suicide > assisted suicide at age 32 in 68 AD.

So Mark’s first readers, the church of Rome, is experiencing an unprecedented persecution by Emperor Nero.

History of the Church in Rome

PICTURES

• 30 AD Jews from Rome hear the gospel at Pentecost (Acts 2:10)
• ? AD Church established, not known by whom. It has Jewish believers as well as Gentile believers.
• 49 AD Roman historian Suetonius records Jewish riots in Rome over a person called “Chrestos”. This most likely are Jews rioting against believers (Jewish and Gentile conflict), as elsewhere in Acts.
• Emperor Claudius (not really understanding the conflict) expels all Jews from Rome and Italy. Jews as well as Jewish believers have to leave (like Priscilla and Aquila, Acts 18:2).
• 49-54 AD What remains in Rome is an entirely Gentile church.
• 54 AD Emperor Claudius dies. Slowly Jews start moving back to Italy and Rome. The church in Rome becomes Jew and Gentile again. Tensions between the two groups appear.
• 55 AD Paul writes the “letter to the Romans”, addressing this Jew-Gentile tension. Even though Paul hasn’t been to Rome, he knows and has co-worked with many Roman believers (Rom 16). The Roman church is large and has several home churches.
• 64 AD Nero’s persecution in Rome. This time it is confessing Christians that are killed.

Who is the Author of the Gospel?

The author does not mention his name in the gospel (as is true for all four gospels). Early church witnesses give a clear, unified testimony: John Mark, Cousin of Barnabas, it the writer:

• Church historian Eusebius, quoting from a lost work (Exegesis of the Lord’s Oracles), written by Papias (bishop of Hierapolis, early 2nd century, 140 AD). Papias in turn quotes the Elder, probably John, referred to elsewhere by Papias. The information given is that Mark, Peter’s interpreter, wrote accurately what Peter preached, when he wrote his gospel. He called it Peter’s teaching on Jesus’ life rather than Jesus’ life.
• Irenaeus (Italy and France, 150-200 AD) says: only four gospels, Mark was the disciple & interpreter of Peter, Mark wrote what Peter preached
• Justin Martyr (AD 150) quotes from Mark’s gospel, calling it “the Memoirs of Peter”.
• old Latin Manuscript (160-180 AD): Mark, stump-fingered, interpreter of Peter, wrote the gospel after the death of Peter in the regions of Italy
• unknown person writing prologue on an ancient Greek gospel of Mark manuscript: Mark interpreted Peter, Mark wrote after Peter’s death from Rome to Rome
• Clement to Alexandria (210 AD) said: When Peter was preaching the gospel in Rome, many fought Mark, his intimate companion, to commit to writing all Peter said, and so he composed a gospel.
• 1 Pe 5:13 Mark is with Peter in Rome.
• Col 4:10 Mark with Paul in Rome.
• Peter’s preaching (Acts 2:14-39, 3:12-26, 4:8-12, 10:34-43) majoring on the person and power of Jesus, as does Mark
• 1 Peter majors on ‘enduring through suffering <=> true discipleship, as does Mark, who majors on cross and suffering, true discipleship, power of Jesus
• History > 64 AD Rome burns, Nero finds a sect to blame it on (‘Chrestos’ is their central figure), heavy persecution from 64 AD onwards, Nero commits suicide in  January 68 AD … probably Paul, Peter, and a thousand other believers die in the persecution. This means the need arises to maintain and write down the testimony of the dying eyewitnesses

Synoptic Question

• 90% of verses found in Mark are either also in Luke or Matthew. Why?
• One explanation if Oral tradition, which was considered higher than written, with apostles dying, and high expectancy of Jesus’ 2nd coming delaying, the need to pass on became more obvious
• Commonly it is held that Mark wrote first, then Matthew and Luke expanded on that, or that all three of them used a lost earlier source. It is argued that writers wouldn’t shorten a text, but they might at to it. But that is simply an assumption.
• It is equally possible that Mark based on Luke and Matthew (if Luke was written 58-60 AD and Matthew as early as 50 AD), cutting away much teaching and parables but adding things speaking to persecuted believers.

The Life of John Mark

• Mk 3:16     Mark is not one of the twelve
• Acts 12:12 The house of Mary, mother of John Mark, in Jerusalem is a meeting place for the church, even during a persecution, speaking of his mother’s commitment and courage.
• Col 4:10     Mark is the cousing of Barnabas, Jewish, presumably from Cyprus as well.
• Acts 12:25 Mark is taken to Antioch by Paul & Barnabas
• Acts 13:5 Mark becomes a gospel worker in Antioch
• Acts 13:13 Mark quits the team during the first missionary journey, possibly over Paul becoming the group leader
• Acts 15:36-41 Mark becomes the cause of a divisive fight between Barnabas and Paul, joins with Barnabas and returns to Cyprus
• Philemon 24 Mark is with Paul, most likely Rome
• 2 Tim 4:11 Paul writes “get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful in my ministry”
• 1 Peter 5:13 Mark present with Peter in Rome, sending greetings also. Peter calls him ‘my son’.
• Mark 14:51-52 Mark, running away naked after Jesus’ arrest. Mark lets us know this embarrassing story, confessing in fact that he, too, ran away. This also cements his authority, he is a eye witness to the death and resurrection of Christ.
• Mark writes his gospel

When was the Gospel of Mark written?

• During the Neronian persecution 64-67AD
• Peter’s death probably showed the need for written records of the teaching and preaching of an original eye witness.
• Church tradition says it was written after the ‘departure’ of Peter and Paul, therefore after 64 AD, as leaders are typically are killed first.
• In 2 Peter 1:15 Peter tries to ensure that the saints could after his departure ‘recall these things’. This could be a reference, or at least a parallel to him commissioning Nark to write his gospel.
• The cryptic reference in Mark 13:14 ‘Let the reader understand” could point that these events were currently happening or at least already clearly on the horizon, that would point to a date 66 AD onwards

Where did Mark write his gospel from?

• Church tradition says that is was written from Rome to Rome, Catacombs

Literary Category

Mark is written mostly in prose, therefore requiring literal interpretation. Only very few quotes from the Old Testament are given; where they quote poetry, requiring figurative interpretation.

Mark is a gospel, which is and own category of writing. It is arranged roughly chronologically.

Mark uses two different kinds of composition. On the one hand “principality”, meaning that one topic gets a disproportionate amount of space. Mark majors on the suffering and death of Jesus more than any other gospel, a full six chapters described Jesus’ last week.

On the other hand there is “cruciality”, meaning there is an important passage in the book, on which everything else hinges. The cruciality passage in Mark is the confession of Peter about Jesus being the Messiah, and the subsequent explanation what it means for him to be the Messiah: suffering and death in Jerusalem. This passages splits the book in two halves with quite distinctive features.

Upfront Summary of the  Gospel of Mark

• Jesus truly is the all-powerful son of God, telling the readers that they are not dying for a lie!
• Jesus is all-loving, sacrificing himself, suffering for you … he has died for you first
• Jesus in the one and only God, worthy of our obedience in life and worthy of our faithfulness till death
• True discipleship means suffering like he did … but there will be vindication & resurrection
• Mark writes to encourage, strengthen, assure, comfort the suffering Roman church that they are serving the one and only powerful, loving – and yet suffering like them – God. Mark encourages or strengthens them so they can remain faithful and confess and follow Christ even to death

Historical Background to the Jewish Hearers of Jesus

Overview of Jewish History

     Date           Event                                 Key leader                    What given

• 2000 BC    Abraham’s call                 Abraham                       call, promise, covenant
• 1850 BC    Jacob’s family to Egypt Jacob
• 1445 BC    Exodus from Egypt        Moses                             law, tabernacle, sacrifice
• 1405 BC   Conquest of Canaan       Joshua                           promised land
• 1050 BC   Monarchy                          Saul, David, Solomon   eternal, davidic kingdom
• 931 BC      Kingdom divided             Rehoboam, Jeroboam  loss of unity
• 722 BC     Israel exiled to Assyria    Assyria                            loss of rule, land
• 586 BC     Judah exiled to Babylon  Nebuchadnezzar          loss of rule, land, temple
• 539 BC     Jews return from exile     Nehemiah, Ezra            partial restoration
• 516 BC      2nd temple completed
• 350 BC     last prophet of the OT      Malachi
• 586 BC    Jerusalem & Solomon’s temple destroyed, Judah deported to Babylon for 70 captivity
• 430 BC    Malachi written
• 333 BC    Alexander of Greece defeats Medo-Persia at Issos, continues conquering till Egypt and India
• 323 BC    Alexander dies. His empire split among his 4 generals
• 322 BC    Israel falls to the Ptolemy
• 198 BC    Israel falls to the Seleucids
• 167 BC    Maccabean Revolt breaks out against Antiochus Ephiphanes IV of Seleucids
• 142 BC    Judah granted independence > Hasmonean Dynasty
• 63 BC       Pompey of Rome conquers Judah
• 37 BC       Herod the Great becomes vassal king over Judah under Rome
• 4 BC         Herod the Great dies. Judah redistributed among his sons Archelaus, Philip, Antipas

Greece and Hellenism

• Greece was a collection of city-states, often at was with each other. Philip II of Macedonia manages to unite them, disciplined them, fostered athletes
• Alexander wanted to fulfill his Father’s dream to bring Greek culture & civilization everywhere. Alexander was raised by Aristotle and was convinced of the superiority of all things Greek. Was a military genius
• 334 BC crosses over to Asia / Persia, his soldiers were fiercely loyal to him, loved him. He conquered towards the East
• Defeats Medo-Persia in 333 BC at Issos, failing to kill King Darius. Alexander turned South, conquering Syria, Tyre, Judah, Egypt, then turned North again.
• Defeats Darius decisively at 331 BC, Darius fled & killed by own people. Kept conquering Persia and the East till the Indus river, where his troops refused to go further.
• Greek language and culture focus on arts, music, poetry … spreading everywhere in Alexander’s vast empire
• Alexander supported intermarriage with conquered peoples, taught 30’000 Persians Greek. Hellenism spread and became the dominant culture for the next 1000 years, replaced around 600 AD by Muslim culture.
• Rome conquers Greece militarily in 146 BC with the fall & destruction of Corinth. Romans took a lot of Greek slaves, put them to work as educated slaves as teachers, doctors, lawyers, overseers, business conductors. Greek universities at Athens, Rhodes, Tarsus famous.
• Though Rome conquered Greece militarily, Greece conquered Rome intellectually, so much so that Rome became a Greek speaking city! Temples, gymnasiums, amphitheaters, colons, literature all spread. Greece has the better technology in war / architecture, but Rome was unsurpassed in road building.

Maccabean History

• Judah has relative religious freedom under the Ptolemies.
• 198 BC Judah falls to the Seleucids by the hand of Antiochus III.
• Antiochus Epiphanes IV (his name meaning ‘God incarnate’) was a strong Hellenist and hated Jewish religion.
• 167 BC the Jews heard that he had been killed in war with the Ptolemies and rejoiced. It was a false rumor, though, and A.E. turned in anger against Jerusalem, put up a Zeus altar in the temple, sacrificed a pig on the altar, outlawed the owning of the Torah by threat of death penalty, banned sabbath observance and circumcision, made a gymnasium outside the temple, stole temple treasury …
  This sparked a Jewish Revolt. Priest Mattatias started it, his sons, first Judas Maccabues (meaning Hammer), attacked the Romans in guerilla tactic. Though they were untrained and unequipped, they won a shocking amount of battles, pressed the Seleucids back.
• In 142 BC they were given independence and became self-governed, with no obligation to pay taxes. Jeruslame & temple were cleansed (> Hanukah festival), the priesthood reinstated.
• The priest hood now started to hold religious and political power, and became an envied position. The 1st High priest was Simon Maccabee. These ‘ Hasmoneans’ ruled with mixed success, internal conflicts, scheming, alliances.

Herodian history

• In 63 AD General Pompey, coming in as peace maker between factions in conflict, conquers Judah for Rome.
• Antipater (one of the factions), collaborates with Rome, is therefore on the victor’s side and gets rewarded with the procuratorship over Judah. He was an Edomite, and the Jews hated him. (Roman system: if peaceful then proconsul with 5y term, if unpeace then procurator / prefect / propraetor.
• 43 BC Antipater was assassinated by Jews. His son Herod the Great (named so, because of his fantastic buildings, forts, temple) became friends with Augustus, was given the kingdom (a bit parallel to David) and the title of vassal king. He was faithful to Rome, exacted high taxes (presumably for Rome and his building projects).
• In order to win the favor of the Jews and position himself in the line of Solomon he re-built and beautified the temple (total 80 years, 46 years by the time of Jesus’ death, so about 20 BC – 60 AD). He married a Jewess, also other wives.
• Built Massada as fort and palace, to fight Ptolemy (Cleopatra), an impenetrable mountain fortress. The last Zealots escaping from Jerusalem fled their and held out till 73 BC. Conquered by building up earth ramp. Jews killed themselves to escape falling into Roman hands.
• Herod the Great was fearful about keeping his power, murdered two of his own sons. Mt 2:9, 2:16-18 shows him murdering a whole generation. Three sons:
  • Herod Antipas  4 BC – 39 AD Galilee, Perea
  • Philip                  4 BC – 34 AD North of Galilee
  • Archelaus          4 BC – 6 AD Judea & Samaria they were procurators / tetrarchs under Rome
• Archelaus was hated, soon removed and replaced by a series of Roman procurators (among them: Pontius Pilate)
• Herod Agrippa I 37 – 44 AD friends with Caligula, given whole kingdom of David by Caligula, friends with Claudius, Half-Jew. faithful Jew. Had James killed to win the Jews’ favor.
• Herod Agrippa II 50-100 AD his son … daughter Drusilla, who was married to Roman Procurator Felix. Paul’s trials, sided with Rome in Jewish-Roman war

In summary

• Jews by NT times were torn between the great promised that God made concerning them and the abysmal reality of the day
• They had returned from the exile … they were again in their own land … they had gotten back a temple … they had even had their own people politically ruling them for a time … they had gotten back a priesthood …
• But it all wasn’t like what the promises sounded … Rome kept crushing them … their king was a half-breed Edomite … their priests had become power-hungry … their temple sacrificial system was corrupt … their self-appointed religious people were legalistic
• So what was the problem? What should one do? … different groups gave a different answer to these questions:

Background on different groups mentioned in the Gospels

The Pharisees

• Pharisee means “separate one”, “holy one” or “pure one”. Their origin was in the Maccabean era (167 BC ff).
• Pharisees were the largest, most respected and most influential group or movement among Jews in NT times.
• Anyone could become a pharisee. They came mostly from the normal Jewish middle class,. Yet they were socially exclusive, considering all non-Pharisees to be unclean. They despised liberal Jews, ‘sinful Jews’ and Gentiles
• They believed the entire Old Testament to be the inspired Word of God as opposed to only the Pentateuch by the Sadducees.
• They were meticulous and exact in keeping the law, and taught in the synagogues other Jews to do the same.
• Alongside the law, they developed a detailed oral law, which further explained the Mosaic Law and gave details as to what was permissible and what was not in regards to keeping the Law (for example: What constituted “work” and therefore could not be done on the Sabbath). This oral law was considered equal to the Mosaic Law and the Pharisees instructed the Jewish population to obey it to the letter.
• They stressed especially circumcision, sabbath observance and maintenance of cleanliness to ensure a separate identity and practice. They tended to be serious, superior, pressuring, self-righteous, excluding.
• They hated Gentiles, the Roman over-lordship, and all those who mixed or cooperated with them. They believed that only in keeping themselves and their people separate from Gentiles, that God would be pleased & be gracious again.
• They believed in angels, demons, the resurrection of the body, and the afterlife, all of which put them at odds with the Sadducees. Resurrection included the belief that the Jews would again rise to prominence like in David’s time, as an independent nation, victorious over their enemies, ruling over the Gentiles, owning the promised land under a “son of David” ruler.
• They were chiefly involved in the Synagogue where they instructed the Jewish people in the law. They thought the temple and the priesthood to be corrupted / defiled, not to speak of the Herodians.
• New Testament times: Nicodemus, Joseph or Arimathea, Paul … today: hassidic or orthodox Jews.

The Sadducees

• Sadducees were of priestly descent and came from the richer upper class. They also had their roots in the Maccabean time, where they came to prominence and leadership.
• They were politically and materialistically minded, had leadership and position – and advantages to lose. They were pro status quo, pro collaboration, opportunistic, open to Hellenization. They were unpopular with the general Jewish population. They were the ‘spiritual leadership’ that wasn’t considered very spiritual, creating a tension for people.
• They obeyed the law strictly and were in charge of the operation at the temple.
• They believed in the Pentateuch (first five books of the Bible) only as inspired scripture.
• They rejected the existence of angels, demons, and the doctrine of resurrection and the afterlife. They didn’t believe in a resurrected Davidic kingdom and thought those who thought so as dangerous destabilizers.
• This group’s existence ended with the 70 AD temple and Jerusalem destruction and diaspora.
  The Scribes
• Scribes were literate and in charge of copying and interpreting the Jewish Law. They acted as lawyers, provided legal services, legal advice and could be hired.
• To be a scribe was a profession, a skill, an office. Some were Pharisees and some were Sadducees.

The Zealots

• Zealots were an extreme branch of the Pharisees, a group of fanatical nationalists, extremely patriotic. They believed that only God should rule over the Jews, were declared anti-Roman and anti-collaborators.
• They believed that God would raise up again a Davidic Jewish state, free of idolatrous overlords, and guerilla warfare or violence were justified to accomplish these goals. They refused to pay taxes, sabotaged Roman rule and honored martyrdom in their desire to shake off Roman rule.
• They played a large role in the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD by angering Rome and provoking attack. When Jerusalem was under siege they treated their own people with great cruelty. Though basically religious in outlook, military and strategic concerns precede moral concerns.

The Herodians

• Herod’s family, relatives and other opportunists or proteges. They were opportunists, arranged themselves with Rome, wanted to maintain their position and were most close with the Sadducees. Their goal was to keep Jerusalem & Judea politically quiet, so Rome had no reason to step in and remove their leadership.
• The Herodians built several fortresses and beautified the temple of Zerubbabel into a large and fancy marble-gold shrine.

The Hellenists

• Hellenists were more pragmatic Jews who had adopted Greek culture and spoke the Greek language. They lived mostly outside of Jerusalem and were among the first converts when the gospel spread outside of Judea.
• They were disliked by the stricter sects within Judaism (like Pharisees, Zealots) and are mentioned in Acts 6:1.

Samaritans

• Historic background found in 2 Ki 17:24-41. Samaritans were mixed blood (Jewish & other tribes resettled by Assyria) and mixed religion (worship of idols & worship of God).
• 121 BC the Jews destroyed the Samaritans’ temple, leading to further hostility and mutual disrespect & hate. Jews avoided traveling through Samaria and rather took the Jordan route.

The Sanhedrin

• The Sanhedrin was the Jews’ governing body, a council that advised the High Priest and was lead by the High Priest.
• The Sanhedrin was allowed to pass laws and judgments, but not death sentences, for which they had to refer the cases over to the Roman judiciary. They judged religious matters.
• It was made up of 71 members, both Pharisees and Sadducees. High priest’s office was a yearly office by New Testament times.

The Essenes

• “Jewish monks”, a brotherhood that required initiation and then continual obedience. They moved away from society into wilderness settlements, being disillusioned with the corrupt temple system and priesthood. They expected a Messiah-like figure called the “Teacher of Righteousness”.
• They were similar to the Pharisees in theology. They were striving for holiness and strict keeping of the law.
• They were ascetics and forbid marriage. Possibly John the Baptist was associated with Essenes.
• They placed great importance on literature, had libraries, copies, scrolls. In 1947 AD a large ancient Essene library was discovered in caves at Qumran (an ancient Essene settlement near the Dead Sea). Many many scrolls were found dating before Jesus’ birth, including most everything that is now called ‘the Old Testament’.

The Big Picture of Mark

Questions arising in suffering

Why does God allow this?

• Is God angry? Is he punishing us? What for?
• Is God not powerful enough to stop this? If he has power, why doesn’t he do something about this?
• How can a loving God allow this? Has he abandoned me? Forgotten me? Does he not love me?
• Did I sign up with the right religion? If God doesn’t help now, who am I worshiping? Is this worth my life?
• Power <> Love <> worthiness … How long?
• Is God not powerful enough to save us? … doubting his power his power and control
• If he is powerful, does God not care enough to save us? …  Doubting his love and care

Mark addresses this

• Jesus is truly truly God, God’s son, all-powerful, over sickness, disability, demons, nature, even death (huge miracle theme)
• You are not dying for a lie, Jesus really is the Messiah, God himself
• Jesus is truly truly loving you, served people selflessly, willingly laid down his life for them, for you, took upon him immense injustice / loss of reputation / shame / torture (physically & emotionally) / died unjustly … like them (theme of service / suffering)
• Jesus really is power … he is the right kind of power, selfless, serving, self-controlled, giving power … he is what Nero should be … he is what Mars should have been … he is the true Mars
• Jesus really is love … he is the true kind of love, selfless, serving, not self-seeking, giving himself … he is the true Venus
• Mark dethrones both the major gods of the Romans, he enthrones Jesus
• Jesus is God, he is all-powerful, he is ultimate love, he suffered, and those who follow him will suffer
• Your suffering is not a mistake, a fluke, a result of an uncaring God, or a power God can’t manage (Nero)
• you suffer as he suffered, he did this, he predicted this, his apostles do this, you will do this … cost of discipleship
• your suffering is not in vain, it will produce a harvest on this earth … and you are assured eternal life, a life beyond death, a future resurrection, the dead are not dead!

Connection with composition / Structure of Mark

• Principality … all gospels spend major time on Jesus’ last week and his death and resurrection, but Mark does so more than any other gospel
• 6 of 16 chapters are spent on Jesus’ last week, 8 of 16 chapter center on suffering … major principality
• Cruciality (corom obostha / kobja) … Mark’s gospel has 2 distinct halves, with differences, hinging on the one passage in the middle … Mk 8:27-9:1
• Before: commands not to tell / major miracles … after: commands not to tell end / announcements of suffering
• The crucial passage: Mk 8:27-30 … Recognition of Jesus truly being the Messiah / the Son of God … Mk 8:31-9:1
• Following him will not mean political victory & a top-down empire, but suffering & loosing you life yet eternal hope.

Parallels of Jesus and 1st Readers in suffering

• both suffered under Rome
• both suffered under mock trials, shams of judiciary
• both suffered under systems that pride themselves in righteousness, Rome for justice, Jerusalem for godliness
• both driven into the wilderness, both with beasts
• both falsely accused, misunderstood,  maybe betrayed by family
• both face betrayal by close people
• both standing alone

The two divisions

• First division (Mrk 1-8)                          Second division (Mrk 9-16)
• Don’t tell                                                    won’t join
• Veiled messiah                                         unveiled messiah
• Service                                                       sacrifice
• Jesus all powerful                                   true power: self-control and sacrifice
• Jesus is love                                             true love: sacrifices itself for others
• Jesus is God                                             this is your God
• Jesus is God – follow him                    Jesus suffers – follow him
• Worthy of my life                                  worthy of my death

Passages unique to Mark

• Mk 4:26-29 Parable of automatic growth kingdom will grow whatever, testimony will go out
• Mk 7:31-17 Deaf and dumb man healed messianic miracle, touch / spit
• Mk 8:22-26 Bind man healed at Bethsaida, out of village miracle in two halves
• Mk 11:25-26 Forgiveness conditioned on our forgiving
• Mk 14:51-52 Young man fleeing naked Mark’s signature
• Mk 16:14-18 Great commission

Major Repeated Themes in Mark

A breathless gospel

• Time elements “immediately” 42x … “and” over 200 times
• Mark is in a hurry, gives us a breathless, overpowering, great story … not much time for teaching, not much time for parables, no time for Jesus’ birth & adolescence
• Mark hits and hits hard the major points for his persecuted audience: the power, the love, the suffering of God’s true son

Pharisees

• Conflict of outside form            versus inner reality
• Spirit and meaning of the law versus letter of the law
• Seriousness                                 versus judging
• Salvation assurance                   versus self-righteousness
• High effort                                   versus merit mentality
• Deep convictions                        versus superior, self-convinced
• Care for truth                              versus narrow theology
• Influence                                      versus dominance, fostering dependence
• God is absolute                           versus my understanding is absolute
• Pay a high price                          versus 2 class Christians theology
• Taking God serious                    versus taking myself too serious

Repeated theme “Don’t tell” or ‘the Veiled Messiah

• Mk 1:24-25     Jesus to a demon
• Mk 1:34           Jesus to demons
• Mk 1:43-44     Jesus to a leper
• Mk 3:11-12      Jesus to demons
• Mk 5:19          Jesus to demoniac: speak! (Gedarene region)
• Mk 5:43         Jesus to  Jairus
• Mk 7:24          Jesus wants nobody to know he is here
• Mk 7:36          Jesus to a deaf man
• Mk 8:26, 30   Jesus to a blind man and his disciples
• Mk 9:9            Jesus after the transfiguration to disciples
• Mk 9:30-31     Jesu wants nobody to know he is here, because teaching disciples
• Concentrated on 1st division mostly. The one exception is significant: it’s in the mostly Gentile Decapolis
• Why? … combating false Messiah hopes, buying time to really reveal himself, to teach, to disciple the disciples
• If Jesus barely can manage changing the disciples’ thinking, what of the crowd that’s more looking than listening?

Repeated Theme Service, Selflessness, Sacrifice

• Mark 10:45      follow Jesus in being a servant of all, not lord of all

Repeated Theme Persecution

• Mrk 3:13-19       twelve chosen many of them by now martyred
• Mrk 4:1-20, esp 17 sower parable some falling away because of persecution
• Mrk 4:21-25       lamp not under bushel they are being burnt as torches at Nero’s parties
• Mrk 6:14-29       John the Baptist beheaded under Roman vassal, joke of a trial, obscene story … just like Romans
• Mrk 9:49             everyone will be salted with fire
• Mrk 10:30           you will receive rewards 100x even this age – with persecutions – and eternal life in age to come
• Mrk 13:1-13, esp 9 you will be delivered up to the authorities
• Mrk 14:66-72      Peter’s denial, Jesus’ graceful warning, later re-acceptance … the Romans saw Peter accept martyrdom
• Mrk 16:6-7          Jesus, the crucified, resurrected, alive

Repeated Theme Falling away

• Mrk 4:17              parable of sower some falling away because of persecution
• Mrk 4:19              interpretation of the parable
• Mrk 8:38              those ashamed of Jesus
• Mrk 10:17-22      rich young ruler walking away
• Mrk 14:41-52      all disciples running away, Mark also
• Mrk 14:66-72      Peter’s denial

Repeated Theme Conflicts

• Mrk 2:1-12             scribes forgiving is God’s alone
• Mrk 2:16                scribes, pharisees eating with sinners
• Mrk 2:18-22          pharisees, John’s disciples fasting?
• Mrk 2:23-28          pharisees grain plucking on sabbath
• Mrk 3:4-6               pharisees healing on sabbath > conspire with Herodians
• Mrk 3:21                family wants to restrain Jesus
• Mrk 3:22               Jerusalem scribes Jesus possessed by Beelzebul
• Mrk 3:34-35          family he grants them no special access
• Mrk 5:17                Gerasenes ask him to leave
• Mrk 6:3, 6              Nazareth taking offense unbelief
• Mrk 7:5                  pharisees, scribes why not wash hands? tradition > changing word of God
• Mrk 8:11               pharisees arguing, demanding sign Jesus refuses
• Mrk 10:2               pharisees test question on divorce
• Mrk 11:15-19       money changers in temple
• Mrk 11:27-33       chief priests, scribes, elders by whose authoriy?
• Mrk 12:12             parable of wicked tenants
• Mrk 12:13-17       pharisees, Herodians taxes to emperor?
• Mrk 12:18-27       sadducees resurrection?
• Mrk 12:35             Jesus counters Psalm 110
• Mrk 12:38-40        beware of the scribes
• Mrk 14:1-2            chief priests, scribes plans to kill after festival
• Mrk 14:10-11       Judas will betray
• Mrk 14:43ff          arrest, trial, crucifixion

Repeated Theme Open doors

• Mrk 2:13-14         calling of Levi
• Mrk 9:38-41         another exorcist Jesus doesn’t tell the disciples to stop him
• Mrk 14:26-31       Peter’s denial foretold creating option to repent later

Repeated Theme Jesus’ Authority

• Mrk 1:7                John: one more powerful
• Mrk 1:22-27         teaching with authority
• Mrk 2:10              authority to forgive
• Mrk 2:28              lord over the sabbath
• Mrk 5:13              permission for legion to go into pigs
• Mrk 6:7                delegating authority to disciples
• Mrk 6:14              Herod: these powers at work in him

Repeated Theme Jesus’ Authority in the many miracles he performs

• Mrk 1:21-27        casting out evil spirit
• Mrk 1:29-31        healing fever
• Mrk 1:32-34        healing diseases, casting out evil spirits
• Mrk 1:39              Galilee: casting out demons
• Mrk 1:40-44        healing leprosy (long-term, feared disease, considered incurable)
• Mrk 2:1-12          healing the paralytic
• Mrk 3:1-6            withered hand (a deformity)
• Mrk 4:35-41       calming storm
• Mrk 5:1-20          casting out legion of evil spirits
• Mrk 5:21-23, 35-43 resurrecting Jairus’ daughter
• Mrk 5:24-34         healing woman with blood flow
• Mrk 6:30-44         feeding the 5000
• Mrk 6:45-52         walking on water
• Mrk 6:56              healing by cloak
• Mrk 7:24-30        Syro-phoenician’s daughter freed from evil spirit
• Mrk 7:33-37         healing of a deaf man
• Mrk 8:1-10           feeding the 4000
• Mrk 8:22-26         healing a blind man in 2 steps
• Mrk 9:2-9             transfiguration
• Mrk 9:9-27           casting out evil spirit that disciples couldn’t
• Mrk 10:46-52      healing of blind in Jericho
• Mrk 11:14, 20-21 cursing the fig tree > dies

Mark by the mention of many, many miracles and mentioning Jesus’ authority proves the following points:

• Jesus has authority over tradition, over law, over knowledge, over truth!
• Jesus has authority over temporary illness, chronic diseases, incurable disease, deformities and disabilities!
• Jesus has authority over evil spirits, over the entire spiritual world!
• Jesus has authority over nature, over the laws of nature, over matter, power to create out of nothing!
• Jesus has authority over life, over death, over eternity, over invisible reality!
• Jesus has authority to forgive, over access to the Father, over eternal life!

MARK – CHAPTER BY CHAPTER

Mark Chapter 1

Mrk 1:1 Evvangelion

• “good news” in Greek evvangelion, from which English evangelism / evangelical
• this word is now so “Christian” that we don’t know anymore what it meant and how shocking its use is by Mark really is
• this word was used for official announcements of the birth of a Caesar, his son’s birth etc.
• Mrk 1:1 ‘Jesus Christ, the Son of God’ … actually emperor Augustus claimed the title ‘son of god’, Nero claimed to be divine
• So Mrk 1:1 is like a trumpet blast, like a word of defiance sent, like a challenge: Good news is about Jesus, who is what the emperors falsely claim. The Lord of this world is Jesus, not any Roman emperor

Mrk 1:2-3 Old Testament quote

• Mark calls the quote as from prophet Isaiah, actually it is Mal 3:1 and Is 40:3 combined.
• Is Mark wrong here? Malachi was on the same scroll like Isaiah (Jews filled up scrolls, so nobody could add anything false, so they combined longer ones with shorter ones)
• Why quote this to a mostly Gentile Roman church?
  • to show them the century old foundations of the faith they joined.
  • to show them this God fulfills what he says, he is faithful
  • to show them true Jewish roots vs arrogant current Jewish nationalism

Mrk 1:4-8 John the Baptist

• Mrk 1:6 … camel’s hair, leather belt, locusts, wild honey, this is parallel to 2 Ki 1:1-8 > Elijah used to be arrayed like that.
• Mal 4:5-6 Malachi predicts the coming of Elijah before the Lord himself. In Mt 11:14 Jesus says that John the Baptist is Elijah
• Mark is introducing an important figure, we will see later why. For now stands out: both his caliber and his humility

Mrk 1:9-11 Baptism of Jesus

• Why baptism of Jesus? It seems Jesus is not sinful but identifies with us in our sinfulness, our need for repentance
• The baptism of Jesus provides a powerful picture of the Trinity and also a clear hint as to the divinity of Jesus
• God the Father affirming his son, then sending him for temptation … not a contradiction, also not for the Romans

Mrk 1:12-13 Temptation

• Jesus is in fellowship with God, affirmed by the Father as the beloved son, lead by the Spirit … to be tempted!!
• To the Romans readers this means: your wilderness, your temptation is not a punishment, nor a sign of God’s displeasure, like Jesus’ wasn’t
• Strong parallel, Romans tempted by Nero, Jesus tempted by Satan, … Jesus also faced wild beasts, like them

Mrk 1:14-15 John the Baptist arrested

• John is arrested … Romans, being arrested does not mean God is displeased, you sinned, or made him angry
• John is arrested, Jesus goes preaching … John has just announced the arrival of the Savior of the world, the Almighty God … and what does this powerful Lord do now that his best spokesman is in prison? … Nothing.
• Now this is hard. Lu 7:18-23 shows John doubting, for things don’t seem to add up. Why will you suffer for a God who disappoints you?
• Jesus answer is heavy: blind see, deaf hear … but the line missing is: the prisoners are freed … instead: and blessed are those who take no offense at me.
• Jesus here quotes a medley of well-known messianic Isaiah scriptures, but he leaves out the line “sets the prisoners free”, but instead says “blessed are those who take no offense at me”.
• Jesus clearly tells John both that he is the Messiah and that no, he won’t free him from prison.
• These are direct parallels to Romans

Mrk 1:16-20 Calling first disciples

• Theme of Jesus calling, recruiting and the disciples’ obedience. Repeated theme: following, obeying, believing, giving my life unconditionally
• Romans would see the apostle’ simple beginnings, knowing what they became, many now having died martyr deaths

Mrk 1:21-28 Demon deliverance in the synagogue on a Sabbath

• Jesus regularly went to the synagogue, read, taught (relatively open system) … teaching has authority, his deliverance equally … Romans being shown Jesus’ superiority over any spirit powers, speaking of God’s superiority to a animist / superstitious worldview

Mrk 1:32 after sunset many come

• The Jewish sabbath ran from 6pm to 6pm next day … people are afraid to break the law, so they carry (=work!) the sick to Jesus after sundown

Mrk 1:35-39 Jesus seeking solitude

• Jesus here is not driven by popularity and not by needs
• Jesus needing time with God, especially under pressure / in the middle of hectic ministry … he does not let business kill his time with God … don’t let charting kill your quiet time
• Jesus is not guided, not pressured, not manipulated by popularity, by the disciples, by people’s needs … Showing the Jews his fear of God rather than political manouvering
• Bangladesh: if a family member has a need that means I have to meet it. Pressure in families concerning hospitality, favors, money

Mark Chapter 2

Mrk 2:1-12 Story of the paralyzed man through the roof

• Mrk 2:1-2 … people want miracles,not teaching!
• sweet example of faith, pursuing Jesus, pressing on
• First conflict with law teachers (who are listening in on him) … logic conflict: only God can forgive sins … you can’t forgive sins. Jesus: unless I am God.
• He challenges them to recognize the God-component in the miracle, and then conlcude onwards … Jesus has power to forgive! He is God!
• To the Roman readers this means that forgiveness is the greater gift than healing … salvation is the greater gift than deliverance, which comforts them as they give their lives in the Neronian persecution
• This also shows them that Jesus is on collision course, well-knowing where it will lead, but he still does it.

Mrk 2:13-14 Calling of Levi

• Tax collectors were hated for making money of their fellow-countrymen, collaborating with Rome. Could raise arbitrary taxes > turned rich doing so. Fishermen as businessmen were heavily taxed, Peter, James, John would not like Levi
• This would show the Jews and disciples, that Jesus is not operated by political alliances / prejudice
• to the Roman readers this shows that Jesus is not a Jewish fanatic, they did not stake their lives on a bigot Jew.

Mrk 2:15-17 feasting at Levi’s > Pharisees unhappy

• This is the voice of separatism / religiosity … separation as an answer to the sin problem, Jesus doesn’t sign up with it
• Jesus unworried about reputation, influencing rather than being influenced
• to the Roman readers this shows that Jesus is not a Jewish fanatic

Mrk 2:18-22 not fasting disciples

• disciples not fasting > bridegroom, new cloth, new wineskin
• This is the voice of legalism, separatism and religiosity … if I’m doing so much selfdenial, how come you don’t?
• Jesus is attractive, refreshingly different, out of the box, not joining human narrowness

Mrk 2:23-27 plucking grain on sabbath

• Jesus’ disciples pluck grains > David eating show bread
• this shows the Pharisees, that they are more legalistic than God
  • shows the Romans that Jesus is not a Jewish fanatic, that he is different

Mark Chapter 3

Mrk 3:1-6 healing withered hand

• This is on a sabbath > Pharisees plotting
• Mrk 3:2 … already they are watching, already negative in their assessment, now looking for clear evidence
• Mrk 3:3 … Jesus on collision course … he could have easily done this miracles another day, no problem. But he won’t … won’t manouver, won’t please, doesn’t fiddle, doesn’t avoid … well knowing where this will lead
• Message to the Romans? they are also on collision course, do not try to please the system…

Mrk 3:7-12 supernatural glimpses

• The evil spirits knowing Jesus’ identity
• this would speak strongly to a idolatry or animist background like the Roman church

Mrk 3:13-19 Twelve disciples chosen

• for the Romans this is a list of Martyrs, almost:
  • Peter crucified                64 AD         Rome Nero
  • James beheaded           44/45 AD   Jerusalem Herod Agrippa Acts 12
  • Andrew crucified            65 AD          Patrae, Greece witnessed for 3 days
  • Philip crucified                52 AD          Phrygia idolaters
  • Matthew killed by sword 60 AD        Parthians
  • James stoned Jerusalem Jews
  • Simon the zealot killed    74 AD        Britain
  • Thaddeus crucified          72 AD        Persia

Mrk 3:19-30 family and scribes

• family thinks Jesus mad, scribes declare him possessed by Beelzebul, unforgiveable sin
• Mrk 3:19 family, partially lovingly but definitely not godlily
• you will find people saying things to you that are meant well or meant to encourage but are absolutely godless.
• Will you release your child to God’s will, to his highest, his call, whatever that might be? … Do not discourage your own children by false pressure … you do not know better than God. You cannot plan something better than he does.
• Jesus here is not pleasing, not heeding, not obeying his family … he obeys God more than them, yet is perfect love, also to them
• What is the family worried about? partially Jesus, but really even more so, the influence all this has on them, their reputation, what people around them are saying, …
• Quite often your decisions will have influence on your family, sometimes your family will bear part of the prize … yet in sum total a blessing will fall back on them
• Message to the Romans? they are facing difficult decisions … if I am killed, who will look after my wife, my children? how can I leave them behind helpless?
• Or for those who are from unbelieving families … their faith now jeopardizes their family members who don’t even believe … some of them would face enourmous pressure to recant for the family’s sake …
• Family is a very very high value in the Bible, but it is not the highest. God is. If you make your family your God, you will lose God and also end up destroying your family. Your parents are not God. Your husband is not God. neither is your wife. Neither is your child. If you make them your idol, you will ask of them what they can never give, you set yourself up for disappointment, dependency, deep hurt, tension, manipulation … this person is not able to be your everything. Don’t ask them to be.
• When we enthrone God as highest, then everything falls into the right place / gets the right importance in our lives … our lives order themselves like a Domino.
• The Bible affirms parental authority and obedience of (minor) children, but there are limits to parental authority and to child’s need to obey. If we teach the one, we need to teach the other.
• Mrk 3:22 Jesus’ fame reaches the religious hierarchy > experts sent to investigate / to test / to assess
• Beelzebul, “Lord of the flies’, prince of demons, a Philistinge god
• Mrk 3:29 the unpardonable sin … much scary teaching is given. But basically: if you are afraid you committed this, you haven’t! Because the fact that you are afraid means that you do careabout what God thinks.
• They have diagnosed Jesus as ‘demon possessed’, which means de facto: Holy Spirit = demon
• But the Holy Spirit is the one voice that will reveal truth, show the way, convict of sin … to reject the HS means to reject the one voice that will lead you towards truth, confession, repentance … you cut yourself off.
• You will not repent, and therefore you will not be forgiven, not because the HS is angry, but because you have cut off the channel by which he can speak / pull / save.
• Mrk 3:30 … links it back to exactly that

Mrk 3:31-35 Jesus & family

PICTURE

• They are standing outside, send somebody to call him out to them … there is arrogance here, they will not wait till he is finished, they will not sit in and listen as all others, they demand his attention, and now, whatever he might be busy with … they come to him on the power of family relationship
• How does Jesus respond to this? He does not go out, does not stop teaching … basically Jesus says to them: You do not have special access. Everybody is welcome, can come, sit, listen, talk … but not in pride, arrogance,
• claiming special favors
• Important theology: nobody has special access on no grounds whatsoever … again the ‘even ground around the cross’ … even his mother Mary needs to come to him like all the others. She has to repent and believe and follow Jesus as everybody else. And we will see that later she will do just that. Maybe this ‘rebuke’ by Jesus – though definitely unpleasant’ – accomplishes to make her think and be humbled.
• How many Romans – new believers – do you think were pressured by their families? especially now when being a Christian was such a liability

Mark Chapter 4

Mrk 4 Parables

• Mrk 4:2 Jesus teaching the crowd in parables
• Mrk 4:10 disciples & others asking about parables
• Mrk 4:11 to you given the secret of the kingdom … to those outside, everything in parables
• Mrk 4:12 quoting Is 6:9-10
• Mrk 4:13-20 explains parable of the sower
• Mrk 4:33-34 did not speak to them except in parables, but explained everything in private to disciples …
  Why them only? Why parables? doesn’t he want us to understand?
• Those who ask do get an answer, whether one of the 12 or not, all who knock to them it will be opened
• We think: the need in info, God is withholding it. That is a very shallow view of ‘learning’ or EDU in general
• We say: info. But much more important is your mind, your attitude, your engaging.
• Your must want and seek truth … if you don’t want it, even what is an answer you will not recognize as answer
• Engage thinking and raise questions … if witnessing, we too often answer questions people never asked > don’t get our answers either
• memorability, further thinking
• accommodating different learning styles
• not throwing pearls before swine
• If God didn’t want us to understand, why does he give us 1000 pages of explanation (Bible)?
• God is absolutely committed to teach us, far beyond anything we dream of, or even wish
• God is not the limiting factor, we are. The unwilling not even God himself can teach! This is because of the sovereign will he had given us. We rule our minds. If I refuse, nobody can teach me anything
• Jesus was the master educator, but for example the scribes around him, clearly educated don’t get it.

Parable of the Sower

• word on rock … dying off when persecution arises > challenge to the Romans
• recalling also ‘unless a grain falls into the earth and dies, it cannot bear fruit’ > your death will bear fruit, is not in vain

Parable of Lamp on a stand

• Romans being burnt as streetlights at Nero’s parties > they and their testimony was extremely visible, in the arena, in the capital of the empire … all Romans knew that these people were not dying for their own guilt but for Nero’s madness and bloodlust
• You are a light, your testimony goes out, you are a powerful witness to a huge population, your sacrifice is not in vain …
  Parable of automatic growth – unique to Mark
• unseen and not understood growth but steady and happening … like Christianity spread like a wirdfire in the Roman Empire, from a rejected group of an unliked minority (Jews) in the backyard of the empire
• The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church
• within around 250 years the Roman emperor and empire will become Christian
• encouraging the Romans that their faith and sacrifice is not in vain
• trusting God to bring about things greater than we ourselves
• German proverb: God’s mills mill slowly, but they mill excellently

Parable of mustard seed

• smallest seeds > big tree … every obedience is important, every martyrs contribution counts, God will make your witness fruitful, beyond what you think possible now
• Application … how can we prepare ourselves for persecution? do we need to pray persecution unto ourselves? > There are no guarantees how I would do …
• What is the preparation today for the persecution in the future? … > today’s faithfulness in every little thing will strengthen and prepare you

Mrk 4:31-35 stilling a storm

• Mrk 4:38 Jesus asleep on cushion … What does this show?
  ◦ he was exhausted
  ◦ he was truly man with physical limitations
  ◦ he was no monastic (self-torture)
  ◦ he can enjoy the comfort given can you?
  ◦ he is not driven to do all things at all time, here he leaves the boat management to the disciples
• Mrk 4:38 Do you not care that we are perishing? … hard circumstances translate into doubt about God’s goodness, for Romans and us alike.
• Mrk 4:39 stills the storm … displays supreme power over nature, behaves like a Creator outside of creation. What is the storm that you need Jesus to still?
• Mrk 4:40 disciples awed, stunned, scared … a glimpse of who Jesus is
  • assuring the Romans that Jesus truly is God, they are not believing a lie, they are not dying for a lie

Mark Chapter 5

Mrk 5:1-20 Gerasene demoniac

• Progression of miracles, now a legion of demons … imagine 2000 pigs! What a visual of the power of these demons, and even more so of Jesus
• Also: the value of the human life in God’s eyes … this is much money going down the drains. The Gerasenes also seem to think it a bit expensive. Command to teach …

Mrk 5:20-43 Woman with bloodflow, Jairus’ daughter

• Mrk 5:33 woman afraid because she touched & defiled the great Rabbi
• Jesus not only doesn’t rebuke her but warmly affirms her faith

Mark Chapter 6

Mrk 6:1-6 Nazareth unconvinced

• family of Jesus, James,Joses, Judas, Simon, Sisters … Normal children of Joseph and Mary after Jesus
• here still unbelievers, opposing Jesus, not understanding … later (after his death) become believers
• James later becomes the leaders of the Jerusalem church, the one with the camel knees (prayer), he will write the letter of James, his brother will write the letter of Jude

Mrk 6:5

• ‘could do no deed of power there, except a few healings
• What does“could not” mean? … of course he can and does, the limitation is not God’s power, the limitation is our willingness
• Romans probably had very unconvinced family members or neighbors … especially now having become an enemy of state.

Mrk 6:7-13 disciples sent out

• authority, not magical, person-bound mysticism, … clear authority, conferrable
• shake off dust from feet against them … Romans … those who do not accept your testimony will be judged

Mrk 6:14-29 John the Baptist’s death

• Powerful parallels to Romans … the person they can relate most easily to in all the gospel
  ◦ both holy, righteous, not guilty
  ◦ both imprisonmed unjustly, making a mockery of justice
  ◦ both executed by a weak, evil, corrupt, autocratice leader
  ◦ both stories are obscene, violent, bizarre
  ◦ both die for the whims of evil people
  ◦ for both Jesus just semms to stand by and do nothing

Mrk 6:30-44 Jesus has no time to eat and miracle of feeding

• Jesus not lazing about, hardworking within his calling

Mrk 6:45-56 walking on water and  healing all sick

• Jews feared the ocean (demonic, has monsters)

Mark Chapter 7

Mrk 7:1-23 Conflict with Pharisees and scribes

• They challenge Jesus … he challenges them back about Corban abolishing the law of God for the traditions of men
• Stand up for truth, whether or not it gets you into trouble > Romans
• Assuring the Gentile Roman church that Jesus was no Jewish bigot, had no prejudice, not bound by Jewish culture, the current Jews collided with Jesus, this faith – though coming from an obscure corner – is a universal faith, not a Jewish one
• Jesus addresses the evil human hearts … God will judge and hold accountable justly … > also all those torturing the Romans
• true morality will stand, it’s inward rather than outward, it is now maybe disregarded but will ultimately stand
• Mrk 7:1-2 … Context: Pharisees unhappy over disciples eating with unwashed or defiled hands
• Mrk 7:5 … Challenge to Jesus: Why do your disciples not live according to the traditions of the elders?
• Mrk 7:6-7 … Quote from Isaiah 29:13 … “This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching human precepts as doctrines’ …
• One issue: focus on outward and verbal adherence versus hearts that seek God
• Other issue: teaching human precepts as doctrines … Mrk 7:8 You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition … Mrk 7:9 … You have a fine way of rejecting the commanments of God in order to keep your tradtition
• It’s not only an issue of adding supportive laws to the law, actually the additions become more heeded, finally superceeding, even to the point of contradicting the original law. Illustration: Corban.
• Mrk 7:14 … Jesus addressing the crowd, actually calling it again
• Explanation … Mrk 7:15 “nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile … 18 to disciples who asked again: Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile, 19 since it enters, not the heart, but the stomach, and goes out into the sewer?”
• Jesus addresses the first issue (?), outward versus heart, … this is an issue of hygiene, health (enters the stomach > sewer) not one of morality (heart) … a man’s problem is not what he eats, but what he is / chooses … sin is not in the outward, but in the inward, the choice of the heart
  > what really was the law wanting? > heart
• Jesus addresses the second issue (?), God’s law versus human tradition … the additional ritual washing laws have actually nothing much to do anymore with hygiene … tradition has so added as to become cumbersome … and take away focus from the actual: it’s a simple cleanliness issue > can I ditch human traditions? > yes
• Mark pulls this to a third issue: Mrk 7:19 ‘(Thus he declared all foods clean.) … Mark states that the food laws in the Mosaic law are no longer binding (as in Acts 15 Jerusalem council decision). Mark pulls the issue of hygiene over to the issue of what to eat and not to eat. Since he is and inspired author: the issue of hygiene and the issue of what to eat are the same basic thing.
• So do I need to keep the Mosaic food ‘ hygiene law? > no
• Why then did God give food laws and hygiene laws in the first place?
• simply as practical commands in a real world … it’s an issue of hygiene, cleanliness, nutrition, not and issue of morality
• So hygiene, cleanliness, nutrition are not moral issues? > not moral in the sense that there is nothing immoral about not washing my hands as such, eating pork as such
• But then why was it ever commanded? > for practical reasons.
• But since practicality / cause and effect is not abolished with the coming of Christ, so then how can cleanliness laws be?
• It is a moral issues in the sense that I need to take good care of my body, and that I need to ensure nobody gets sick because of me … But how then can this be abolished? Is the law completely abolished?
• Answer: the law is abolished, but the principle behind the law stands.
• Landa Cope says: the law’s application is temporal, but the principle behind the law stands.
• What are principles of the law that remain? … importance to understand cause and effect, to take good care of my body, to ensure others are not sick because of me … in that sense cleanliness laws can become issues of morality
• How about all the other laws? What is the difference between something being legal and something being immoral? Examples of things being immoral but not illegal?
• Lying is immoral but not illegal, unless under oath … issue is not addressed in civil law.Stealing an apple is immoral but not illegal … only stealing above a certain amount can be prosecuted.
• Western countries: adultery is immoral but not illegal … civil law doesn’t address the issue
• To think murderous thoughts is immoral, but not illegal … because it can’t be prosecuted for lack of evidence
• Examples of things being illegal, but not immoral? proselytizing is in some countries illegal, but since God gives humans right to change / choose religion, it is not immoral.
• Good legal codes should have little of this
• Can one legislate morality? yes in the sense of protecting a person from another person’s trespassing … no in the sense that the law can only punish abuses, but can’t create the inner life …”The government can force me to love my wife, but it can forbid me to beat my wife.”

Mark 7:24 Syro-Phoenician woman with demon-possessed daughter

• Jews called Gentiles ‘sinners, dogs, pigs’ … Jesus doesn’t use the word ‘dog’ but ‘puppy’ … with a twinkle in the eye … or why would he ever go to this region?
• Jesus focuses on Jews but always welcomes Gentiles, treats them with equal respect, does not ‘stay away’
• Later in Acts 10-11, Acts 15 … Gentiles are clean and acceptable, no requirement to become Jewish first

Mrk 7:31-37 deaf / mute man

• Jesus is fulfilling Is 35:3-7 literally.
• This was considered a messianic miracle (a miracle that only the Messiah will be able to perform, a later Jewish distinction). … are people stunned
• Messianic miracles (according to Fruchtenbaum): healing a Jewish lepper, casting out demons from a mute, one born blind (sinned before!)

Mark Chapter 8

Mrk 8:1-10 Second feeding

• a doubling up, like the 2 parts of Mark, like the 2 part miracle

Mrk 8:11-21 Pharisees demand sign

• Why do they ask? if they hang around a few minutes, they’ll see one. Demanding, analytical, wanting to make Jesus prove himself according to their criteria
• Jesus could easily do it … but doesn’t …why? wouldn’t that be a witness to them?
• The unwilling / stubborn can’t see / won’t see, even if the case is clearn > Romans in a similar situation
• Warning of the Pharisees

Mrk 8:22-26 two part healing of the blind man

• funny miracle, why in two steps? couldn’t he have done it straight? Only mentioned in Mark. Right before the cruciality passage
• double feeding miracle, double healing miracle, now the principality: Mrk 8:27-30 Who do people say that I am?
• In answer the disciples say:
  • John the Baptist rise from the dead
  • Elijah Mal 4:5-6
  • One of the prophets ? Or the prophet Deut 18:15
• Jesus initiates this question / challenging the disciples to draw conclusions from evidence
• He does this in the villages of Caesarea Philippi, away from the crowds, at the periphery of Jewish settlements, it’s like ‘taking them away’ for a bit before they hit the crowds again to teach them a crucial thing: Messiah & suffering to come
• Peter: “You are the Messiah”. Jesus doesn’t claim it himself. He leads them to conclude for themselves. By implication affirms his conclusion.
• Stern warning not to tell > conclusion without process, answer without teaching around it will lead to wrong interpretation of what the conclusion “Messiah” means. Jesus slowly reveals himself, but on the way changes the Messiah concept or frees the Messiah concept of its false interpretations.

Mrk 8:27-33 Son of man must suffer > Peter’s rebuke

• After giving the disciples the breathtaking affirmation of Messiahship, he continues telling them what the Messiah will be like: suffer, die, raise again … Not military or miraculous conquest and a world kingdom inaugurated
• Peter, concerned, rebukes Jesus. Jesus in turn rebukes him: “Get behind me, Satan” … not that Peter is demon possessed, but the voice he just yielded to is Satan’s.
• ‘for you are setting you mind not on divine things, but on human things” … here Satan’s thinking and human thinking are aligned

Mrk 8:34-9:1 Pick up your cross & follow the suffering Messiah

• Cruciality passage, the hinge of Mark’s gospel, the key verse: to be the Messiah’s disciple = to suffer / the cross
• If you save your life > you will lose it … if you lose your life, you will save it
• Romans? do not try to save your life at this point! … do not doubt God’s sovereignty or Jesus’ worthiness because you are not miraculously delivered … suffering was always part of being a disciple … we follow or become like Jesus … we suffer like him.

Mark Chapter 9

Mrk 9:1-8 Transfiguration

• some will see this with own eyes. What does this mean? different options.
• Transfiguration: Moses (for the law) and Elijah (for the prophets). For one moment: curtain opened, heaven torn open > breathtaking glimpse into the unseen and eternal realm … Jesus is God! He is superior to Moses and Elijah! The dead are not dead! life after death is a reality! > comfort to the Roman readers

Mrk 9:9-13 Elijah has come

• Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first? > Mal 4:5-6
• Mrk 9:14-29 demon possessed boy
• Mrk 9:18-22 your disciples couldn’t … if you are able to do anything … distant, reserved, polite … God is the problem
• Mrk 9:23 Jesus gives the responsibility back … your unbelief is the problem
• Mrk 9:24 Father cries out “I believe, help my unbelief!”, now desperate, involved, hoping, suffering. Mark lays a prayer into the Romans mouth.
• It is a seeming paradoxical prayer, but we all understand it so well.
• Mrk 9:20-32 Repeated Theme “Announcement of suffering” or “the Messiah glorified”
• Mrk 8:31 suffer, be rejected, be killed in 3d rise again
• Mrk 8:38 Jesus coming in the glory of Father
• Mrk 9:12 rise from dead, suffer many things, treated with contempt
• Mrk 9:31 delivered to man, killed in 3d rise again
• Mrk 10:32 delivered to priests, condemned to death, handed over to Gentiles, mock spit, scourge, kill
  3d rise again
• Mrk 10:45 came to serve, give life as a ransom
• Mrk 13:26 coming in clouds and great glory
• Mrk 14:21 goes as it is written
• Mrk 14:44 betrayed into the hand of sinners
• Mrk 14:62 seated at the right hand, comes on clouds
• This is a dual future prediction: suffering and resurrection or glorification. Same to the Romans, showing the reality beyond.
• Mrk 9:30-32 discussion among them “Who is the greatest?” This is most likely a development of the Messiah revelation from Mrk 8:29-30 and the Transfiguration Mrk 9:2-8 … the disciples choosing their positions in the kingdom to come
• With all Jesus teaching and announcements of suffering he doesn’t manage to really get that into their heads
• Even far less so for all the crowd … for Jesus there is the continual danger of being forced or whipped into a political movement … Jesus carefully avoids this, withdrawing, moving, going out to smaller villages, deserted areas, trouring ‘outside areas’ …
• again: assurance Jesus is not a prejudiced Jewish revolutionary, who is happy to be anything if only it’s against Rome

Mrk 9:38 Another exorcist

• There is a wideness in God’s mercy. God is more inclusive than we think … or has hope where we don’t.
• This is also direct to the Romans readers: You will get help from unexpected places … whoever helps you is blessed
• Direct to any surrounding people or to unbelieving family who may risk their lives for the believers … whoever helps these Christians under pressure will by no means loose his reward.
• Somehow we love to exlude: ‘he is not one of us!’ …’ they are of a different denomination’ … ‘the traditional churches are dead’ … ‘catholics are no believers’
• Why do so so love to exclude? mostly to put ourselves forward, I think, a false sense of security

Mrk 9:42-48 Temptations to sin

• Mrk 9:42 if any of you put a stumbling block before any of these little ones who believe in me … it would be better to drown in the sea.
• This is a sore warning to Nero who puts Christians into unbelievable pressure: Woe to him who makes others stumble!
• Mrk 9:43-48 Jesus uses hyperboles (saying too much to make a point) to say: be ruthless in dealing with your own sin

Mark Chapter 10

Mrk 10:1-12 Teaching on divorce

• Mrk 10:4 ‘certificate of divorce’ … quoting De 24:1-4 They have made this into a license to divorce
• Mrk 10:5 ‘because of your hardness of heart’ Jesus: Moses’ damage control law (“if you throw away your wives, at least do it legally, so they can remarry!”), not the heart of God
• Mrk 10:6 ‘from the beginning it was not so’. Jesus takes them back to Ge 1-2, the heart of God, the way it was meant to be. Hardness of heart is not an excuse to go for a lower standard.

Mrk 10:13-16 Jesus blesses children

Mrk 10:17-31 Rich man & not entering heaven

• Mrk 10:20 Camel was the biggest animal on Palestinian ground
• Message to the Romans: Don’t sell your soul for riches, comforts,  status … like Nero and the corrupt Roman society around you
• Mrk 10:28-31 Peter: “We have left everything … truly I tell you, there is no own who has left house, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, fields for my sake and the gospel’s … who will not receive 100fold now in this age (full list) … and in the age to come eternal life”
• Can it be anymore direct to the Romans? … whatever you loose now in the persecution, you will regain, and eternal life on top
• Mrk 10:31 But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first … This is a sore kick at Nero … many will be last, not all, though

Mrk 10:32-34 Third announcement of suffering

Mrk 10:35-45 James & John asking for position

• The two are … disciples annoyed
• Again the lingering Messiah hope, kingdom to come, political positions, jockeying for power
• Jesus never rebukes their desire for leadership, rather he challenges them in their concept of leadership … You do not know what you are asking.
• Leadership does not mean ‘be the boss’ … but service, responsibility, suffering
• ‘are you able to drink the cup that I drink and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?”
• Both are metaphors for the same: suffering, one we know from Gethsemane, one new: immersion in suffering
• Mrk 10:39 Jesus utters a prediction: “you will drink the cup that I drink … but to grant the position is not mine to grant”
• Jesus predicts them becoming leaders, giving their lives for the truth
• Interesting detail: John actually does not die a martyr’s death … but he lives a long fruitful life, last remaining apostle … maybe sometimes a long faithful life is as hard / involves as much suffering as a martyr’s death?
• A reminder: we do not need to bring martyrdom unto ourselves

Mrk 10:46-52 Healing of the blind Bartimaeus

Mark Chapter 11

Mrk 11:1-11 Triumphal entry

• Jesus behaves like a king for the first time … kings had the right to appropriate / loan people’s possessions
• But he uses a donkey, a symbol of humility, entering on a horse would have meant him claiming kingship
• He fulfills Zech 9:9 … “Behold, your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey”
• Mrk 11:9-10 people call Jesus ‘son of David’, putting Jesus in the military-messianic prophet to claim the throne line
• Mrk 11:12-14, 20-21 Cursing the fig tree
• Mrk 11:14 fig tree symbolizes physical Israel or Judaism
• Usages of this metaphor in the Old Testament: Jer 8:13, Jer 29:17, Mic 7:1, Hosea

Mrk 11:15-21 Cleansing of the temple

• Priests’ temple market, right in the first court (court of the Gentiles), run by High Priest Kaiaphas, no other animals were accepted for sacrifice > money making venture or control

Mark Chapter 12

Repeated Theme “Conflict in the Temple”

• Mrk 11:27-33 question about authority attack doesn’t answer bc they don’t seek truth
• Mrk 12:1-12 parable of wicked tenants counter-attack killed prophets / son > cornerstone
• Mrk 12:18-17 taxes to the emperor? attack traps, caught in politics
• Mrk 12:18-27 Sadducees & Resurrection attack Resurrection is real! God of the living!
• Mrk 12:28-34 open scribe why Jesus engages in conflict
• Mrk 12:35-40 son of David? counter-attack
• Mrk 12:41-44 widows’ mite God does see! God accepts your offering

Mark Chapter 13

• Mrk 13:1-2 Jesus utters an earth-shattering prediction of the impending total destruction of Jerusalem, a thing unthinkable to the Jews

Short history of the tabernacle / temple

• 1445 BC  Israel makes tabernacle in wilderness
• 931 BC    Solomon builds the first temple
• 586 BC    First temple destroyed by Babylon
• 516 BC     Second temple built under Zerubbabel
• 20 BC      Herod starts improving the temple, whole temple hill / court was white shining marble in huge blocks (up
  to 37 x 18 x 12 feet), temple was completely covered in big heavy gold plates, shining like a star (or the
  sun) on a hill. Jn 2:20.
• 30 AD     God himself – Jesus – visits the temple & is rejected and judged by it.
• Mrk 13:1-2  Setting / lead up to the destruction prophecy
• Mrk 13:1      a disciple, a Galilee boy, impressed at Jerusalem, a bit of national pride, Herod’s temple truly was spendid, a blurted out remark, he sees no link to the conflict in the temple that just happened, he doesn’t see the spiritual center turning hostile on Jesus
• Mrk 13:2    Jesus speaks a bomb blast prophcy: complete destruction … this is unbelievable, unthinkable. Actually: to speak against the temple was considered blasphemy by the Jews (see Jesus’ trials)
• Jesus basically says: the temple is an empty shell, lost meaning, God wanted to be with you, but you reject. beutification is an eyewash
• Jesus says: the outward reality will soon adjust to the inward emptiness or reality. Discrepancy before the adjusting is misleading. False appearnces, false securities, false impressednesses. Crash ia suprise to the mislead, for those who understand, they see it coming.
• How does Jesus feel when he says this? sadness? disappointment? anger? grim rightness at the adjustment. pain at what it was meant to be? Let’s get over with?
• What is the temple in the Jewish mind? > God lives among us, we are his chosen people. They think the temple as national and spiritual identity. Temple = God’s footstool on earth. The temple will stand forever if God is God. The Jews great (false!) security in the temple (both before 1st destruction in 586 BC and now before 2nd destruction in 70 AD.
• Why would God destroy his own temple, priesthood, sacrificial system, promised land?? >  To understand this we must understand why these things were given in the first place:
  • Temple: God lives among his people > now it has become false political security, racial superiority, no spiritual repentance
  • Priesthood: representing God > now it has become not of the proper line, corrupt, opportunitst, hand in hand with the government, sacrifices have turned into business, no true fear of God
  • sacrifices: representing God’s holiness and forgivenenss > now has become corrupt business, taking advantage of own people, lucrative trade.
  • Davidic ruler: pointing to God’s eternal kingdom > now has become a hope for political deliverance by whatever means, racial superiority.
  • Promised land: was a right, rest, inheritance, identity > now has become hopes for freedom of Rome, separateness, dominance over non-Jews
• But Jesus is the fulfillment of all these things and functions:
  • Jesus is the temple, he is God with us, Immanuel, he is the Word living among us, in our very hearts
  • Jesus is the true High priest, sacrificing the once for all atoning sacrifice, interceeding, modeling life, teaching
  • Jesus is the true Sacrifice, he gives his life freely, though he has no sin, becoming sin and curse for us
  • Jesus is the true Son of David, he will always reign as promised, he will bring the eternal kingdom
  • Jesus brings the promised land, the rest promised, the salvation, the eternal home, the inheritance
• All these were pictures, symbols,  shadows, types giving hints of what was to come: Jesus
• All these pictures, symbols, shadows, types are fulfilled in Jesus
• But now what happens when Jesus (God himself) comes to his temple? > The system turns on him in hostility, the High Priests condemns him to death, the people reject him, execute him …
• Illustration: Say a marriage is arranged for me over distance, I get a picture of my husband to be, but when he comes, I don’t look up from the foto, and only talk to the foto … > completely insulting, ridiculous
• In the same way: once the real one comes, photos need to be put aside. Once Jesus comes, the pictures need to go.
• The system has become false, a parody of what it meant to show, not recognizing & hostile to God when he appears … this is why the system has to go.
• It was fulfilled, superceeded, no need any more, by now hostile, at best a distraction / eyewash … at worst hostile to the real.
• A detail: when Jesus is facing Caiaphas at his trieal, it is the current human higher priest facing the true Highpriest, accusing him, tearing his clothes (Mk 14:63) which is forbidden for the high priest (Lev 21:10, 10:6), Jesus clothes were not torn (Jn 19:24)

Mrk 13:3-4 four disciples coming to him privately asking when?

• Peter, James, John, Andrew come privately … why privately?
• This is the ever lure of end-time knowledge, fascination with secred / exclusive info, the insider group feeling
• They ask: “When will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?”
• The question is when? How do we know? … when really they should have asked why?
• We also ask the same wrong questions about end time … fascinated with date calculations, and tell tale signs

Mrk 13:5-37 Summary

Mrk 13:5-23      Jerusalem’s destruction 30-70 AD
Mrk 13:24-27    Jesus’ 2nd coming ?
Mrk 13:28-31    Jerusalem’s destruction signs 30-70 AD
Mrk 13:32-37    Jesus 2nd coming no signs ?

This is called interchange, a common writing style in the Bible

reasons why assuming this will be given / also historical information about the Fall of Jerusalem

Mrk 13:5-23 Series of commands, what I need to do     surrounding Information

• Mrk 13:5 beware! that no one leads you astray                                            Mrk 13:6 many come in my name > lead many astray
• Mrk 13:7 do not be alarmed! this must take place but not the end yet    Mrk 13:8 nation against nation, earthquake, famines … but this is but the beginning of the birthpangs
• Mrk 13:9 beware! as for yourselves > councils, synagogues, governors, kings as a testimony
  Mrk 13:10 good news proclaimed to all nations
• Mrk 13:11 Do not worry! what to say … HS will speak …                            Mrk 13:12 family betrayal … Mrk 13:13 hated by all, one who endures to the end will be saved
• Mrk 13:14 Flee! to mountains right away,  no delay, urgently
• Mrk 13:18 Pray! that is may not be in winter…19 much suffering…        Mrk 13:20 Lord cuts it short … messiah?
• Mrk 13:21 Do not believe!                                                                                 Mrk 13:22 false messiahs / prophets will perform signs
• Mrk 13:23 Be alert! I’ve told you everything
• Commands are mostly mental commands … except: flee!
• One group of commands is awareness … the other group of commands is not to worry
• What we do with end time things: we are either unaware and not worried … or aware and very worried
• God says to be aware (which is why he gives all the info) but not scared (he is in control, he foreknew this)
• No focus on eschatological schedules, but on our behavior within troubled times, our mission during these times
• Historical Backround to Mrk 13:6, 13:21-22 Zealot leaders or false Messiahs:
  • Acts 5:33-37 Gamaliel mentions Theudas & 400 men earlier and Judas the Galilean at time of census
  • Acts 8:9-24 Simon Magus worshiped in Rome during Claudius
  • Acts 21:38 some Egyptian Paul thought to be this leader of a current revolt
  • Josephus by Felix’s time worse continually, impostors deluding, daily executions of messiahs
  • history by 60s zealots taking influence, control / upset
• Mrk 13:7-8 wars & rumors of wars
  • Parthians, invading empire from East
  • Seleucia: Jewish uprising 50’000 Jews killed
  • Caearea Jewish-Syrian battle 20’000 Jews killed
  • Jewish-Syrian tensions villages, towns … armed camps > less agriculture
• Mrk 13:8 earthquakes
  • ? Crete,  Smyrna, Miletus,  Chios, Samos
  • 17 AD? Laodicea, Hierapolis, Colossae, Rome, Judea recorded by Tacitus
  • 70 AD City of Pompey destroyed by Mount Vesuvius
  • earthquakes are also a symbol / associated with God moving in human history (Ps 114:7, Is 24:19, Is 64:1, Ju 5:4, Ps 18:7, Ex 19:18 …)
• Mrk 13:8 famines … often follow earthquakes
  • 47 AD Acts 11:28 severe famine under Claudius
  • 60s AD? Rome cuts off food supply to Jerusalem
  • Josephus severe famine in besieged Jerusalem, down to cannibalism
• Mrk 13:9-10 desolating sacrilege
  • Da 11:21-39 prediction of this happening, especially Mrk 11:31
  • 168 BC Antiochus Epiphanes, believed himself a re-incarnation of Zeus, forbid circumcision, sacrifices, feasts
  • 167 BC Dec dedicated Jerusalem temple to Zeus, sacrificed a pig on the altar, forced Jews to worship statue
    of Zeus before the Holy Place, for 3 ½ years no offerings
  • 167-164 BC Maccabean Revolt slowly successful
  • 164 BC temple conquered, re-dedicated > Hanukah festival
  • 40 AD Caligula almost did it!
• Mrk 13:10 first gospel proclaimed to all nations
  • sounds more like a 2nd coming thing
  • maybe hyperbole (like Col 1:6 gospel bearing fruit in the whole world)
  • Actually by 68 AD the gospel has spread far to Armenia, India, North Africa, Britain …
• Mrk 13:14 desolating sacrilege – a shocking even in the temple
  • Let the reader understand! Mark clearly thinks this contemporary with his first readers
  • 66-67 AD Zealots break into the temple, mock the Sanhedrin, appoint a new highpriest, clown Phanni, dress him up in highpriestly robes. Josephus quotes the last Highpriest as saying he wished the Lord had taken him away beforehand so he wouldn’t have had to see what was happening…
  • Zeaolots make temple into a military fort, killing own people who are surrendering, people with blood on their hands walking straight through the Holy of holies, prostitution and storage of dead bodies in the Holy of Holies as rajjakars right in the temple, …. they desecrate the temple themselves … Christians used to meet in the temple porches regularly, would have been seriously offended at these happenings … if you see this, then flee!
  • 68 AD break in the siege > 9 June 68 AD the church in Jerusalem flees the city according to Jesus’ word
  • 68-70 AD siege closed again with no one escaping
  • 70 AD complete destruction of city & temple
• Mrk 13:13, 13:20 endure to the end > saved … if the Lord had not cut short > none be saved
  • G4982 Sozo save, deliver, protect, heal, preserve, do well, be made whole (both literal & figurative)
  • wide use, survival as much as salvation
  • in context clearly meaning temporal survival … our salvation does not depend on us ‘making it’ but on Jesus
• Mrk 13:24-27 but in those days …
  • Greek “alla” strong contrast, now about 2nd coming, no ‘you’ anymore, no ‘commands’ any more
  • cataclysmic words … sun darkened (Joel) … moon, stars falling from heaven (Is 3:10, 34:4) … quoting of Da 7:13 … Son of man coming
  • all will see (can’t be missed!) … elect gathered … they will see (not you) … no signs
• Mrk 13:28-31 Parable of the fig tree – back to the present: how do I know?
  • passover, Easter, spring … Mount of Olives has many fig trees … object lesson from where they sit
  • signs … cause and effect … be aware! understand! recognize the time!
  • Mrk 13:30 this generation will not pass away (30 AD + 40 years = 70 AD)
  • Mrk 23:28-31 Jesus telling women to weep for themselves and their children bc of what will happen
• Mrk 13:32-37 Parable of the slaves – back to the second coming: no one knows the time
  • slaves’ job what do I do in the meantime with this end time knowledge? … do your job, watch, keep awake,
    be faithful … because you don’t know when the Master will come

HISTORY OF THE FALL OF JERUSALEM   30-70 AD

30 to 66 AD Increasingly insane situation in Judea

• ever increasing ‘boiling pot’ politically, incessant string of revolutionary movements, Messiahs claiming followers, starting revolutions being put down bloodily by the Romans
• Half of the military of the entire Roman Empire was stationed in and around Judea (and Syria) > the Jews were the ‘sore spot’ of the empire, the forever ‘pain in the neck’ and threatening the Pax Romana
• The Romans hated the Jews for this. They also sent worse and worse leadership to the area. Being made proconsul of Judea was the worst form of ‘punishment transfer’ … the people in leadership hated Judea, had no integrity, were greedy, violent and condescending
• Zealots would attack Roman interests in guerilla style warfare, take out small groups of soldiers, attack things, attack supply lines, murder … that’s why the word revolutionary also means bandit, robber or murderer (like Barsabbas and the men crucified with Jesus)
• trying to destabilize the Roman hold on the country, trying to bring normal population into their sway
• Romans ruthlessly stamped out these revolutionary movements
• In the late 50s and 60s AD the Romans in the end tried and crucified something like 1-2 Messiah figures per day!!
• > insecurity, lawlessness, robbery, violence, underground groups, government crackdowns > all diminishing farming, business, trade > fearful environment where thriving economically is difficult.
• famines … earlier one in 47 AD during reign of Claudius (famine relief visit by Paul) … during the siege Rome cut off food-supplies for Jerusalem as a weapon of war
• earthquakes Tacitus records Laodicea earthquake, Pompeii earthquake prior to 70 AD

66-68 AD Jewish-Roman war (I)

• Popular revolt against Florus, refusing to submit to him till the new Proconsul comes > in the power vacuum one zealot group manages to take over Jerusalem.
  • The zealots convinced the priests to discontinue the offerings for the emperor and the empire = subtle declaration of war … by this time (or this group) are less spiritually but politically orientated (or it always turns that way).
• Nero commands to put down the revolt > beginning of the Jewish-Roman war.
• Josephus: “There were many of the Jews that deserted every day and fled away from the Zealots, although their flight was very difficult, since they had guarded every passage out of the city, and slew every one that was caught at them, as taking it for granted that they were going over to the Romans”
• Able general Vespasian started to put down the revolt, reconvers unruly Judea with his troops, bottles up all zealots in Jerusalem and starts besieging it in 68.
• Within Jerusalem zealots brake into the temple, mock the Sanhedrin, appoint a new High priest, clown Phanni, dress him up in high priestly robes. Josephus quotes the last High priest as saying he wished the Lord had taken him away beforehand so he wouldn’t have had to see what was happening…
• Zealots make temple into a military fort, killing own people who are surrendering, people with blood on their hands walking straight through the Holy of holies, prostitution and storage of dead bodies in the Holy of Holies as rajjakars right in the temple, …. they desecrate the temple themselves … if you see this, then flee! … But how, if the city is besieged?

68 AD a gap in the Jewish-Roman war

• God creates a gap … Nero, after having persecuted the Christians for 3 years, finally is overthrown by his own people, flees and commits suicide,
• > 68 AD is a year of instability, Galba, Otho, Vitellius … take power successively and are killed
• Vespasian, busy with the Jewish-Roman war, leaves few troops in Judea, but marches with the remaining troops on Rome, defeating the last of the 3 emperors and becoming emperor himself.
• So there is a gap in the war > and the believers remaining still in Jerusalem, remembering the prophecy by Jesus (Mt 25, Mark 13), flee Jerusalem.
• Historical documentation: church flees to Pella on June 9th 68
• Eusebius (4th century church historian) … “But before the war, the people of the Church of Jerusalem were bidden in an oracle given by revelation to men worthy of it to depart from the city and to dwell in a city of Perea called Pella. To it those who believed in Christ migrated from Jerusalem. Once the holy men (Christians) had completely left the Jews and all Judea, the justice of God at last overtook them, since they had committed such transgressions against Christ and his apostles. Divine justice completely blotted out that impious generation from amongh men” (Ecclesiastical History III v 3)

68-70 AD Jewish War (II)

• 68 AD Then Vespasian’s able son Titus picks up the war again, closes the siege on Jerusalem, and after this nobody gets out anymore
• The descriptions of these last 2 years are gruesome … over 1 Million Jews are crucified, put to the sword or starved to death
• There were so many crosses of the crucified ‘that there was no room to put any more” and ‘there was lack of wood’ > they crucified 2-3 on one cross
• famine became so severe that the people would eat shoes, kill each other for food, and finally resorted to cannibalism for food, even own children

70 AD Final destruction of Jerusalem and Temple

• In 70 AD the city is breached and the temple is torched and burnt to the ground. 6000 people having sought refuge in the temple died in the flames.
• Josephus Flavius: “Ceasar (Titus) gave orders that they should now demolish the entire city and temple … but for all the rest of the wall, it was so thoroughly laid even with the ground by those that dug it up to the foundation, that there was left nothing to make those that came thither believe it had ever been inhabited”
• The Romans forbid the re-settlement of Jerusalem, so it is not rebuilt and resettled for hundreds of years

Mark Chapter 14 – 15 – The Passion

• Mrk 14:3-9 Anointing in Bethany servanthood, every little service’s weight
• Mrk 14:10-31 Judas’ betrayal,  Peter’s denial announced woe to betrayer, Peter’s weakness, open door
• Mrk 14:32-42 Gethsemane acceptance of suffering
• Mrk 14:43-15:41 arrest, trial, torture, death Jesus suffered for Romans, as they now suffer
• Mrk 14:62 Jesus = son of man, he confesses freely. Do not recant to avoid being caught
• Mrk 14:55-59 ridiculous sham trial like Romans
• Mrk 14:63 High priest tearing clothes … Le 21:10, Jn 19:24 the fake Hig hpriest judges the true High priest
• Mrk 14:66-72 Peter’s denying Peter’s weakness
• Mrk 14:51-52 Mark fleeing naked Mk tells his shameful story, now runs no more
• Mrk 15:39 Roman centurion’s confession ‘a son of God’ a Roman witness who saw it all

Mark Chapter 16 – The Resurrection

• Mk 16:1-8 Shorter ending > reality of resurrection no focus onward, as Romans are dying
• Mk 16:9-20 Commissioning focus onward