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Thursday, June 3, 2021

Bible in One Year Day 154 (Mark 1-2, Psalm 11)

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Day 154: The Baptism of Jesus 


Agape Bible Study 
Mark 1 - 2 

Part I: The Prologue (Preparation for the Mystery)

Mark's Gospel begins with a Prologue in verses 1:1-13. The Prologue serves as a prelude/preparation for Jesus' public ministry. Mark does not provide a birth narrative nor does he provide Jesus' genealogy that is found in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. Mark 1:1 serves as the title for the entire book, and establishes the authority of God in the unfolding events of Mark's Gospel in the first three verses. God has determined the narrative and uses the inspired writer to record it, beginning with the statement of Jesus' true identity and the Old Testament prophecy that is fulfilled in the Advent of the Messiah. This is followed by three events that are the preparation for Jesus' teaching ministry:

  1. The appearance of St. John the Baptist in the Judean wilderness as the forerunner of the Christ according to the promise of the Old Testament prophets (1:2-8).
  2. The baptism of Jesus and the first revelation of the Most Holy Trinity (1:9-11).
  3. The temptation of Jesus, the "second Adam," by Satan (1:12-13).

St. Mark will use the Greek word euthus/eutheos ten times in the Greek text of the first chapter. It is the key word in St. Mark's Gospel and is an adverb that can be translated as "immediately, now, at once, or straightaway."

Mark 1:1-8 ~ The Coming of John the Baptist

The Gospel of St. Mark, like the Gospel of John, echoes Genesis 1:1. It is an echo of God's original creative design. The Advent of the Messiah is a new beginning of what will become a new creation event.

The Greek word euangelion is the root of the English word "evangelize" and literally means "good news."

That Jesus is the Messiah and "Son of God" is the "good news," but His mission is also to proclaim the "good news."
Question: What is the "good news" that Jesus has come to proclaim? See Mk 1:14-15 and Mt 4:17.
Answer: He has come to proclaim "good news" of the coming of the Kingdom of God.

There is no contradiction because Jesus is the Kingdom Incarnate, as He will declare to the Pharisees when they are questioning Him about the when the Kingdom of God will come. He will tell them: "The Kingdom of God is among you" (Lk 17:21).

The Greek word Christos means "anointed" and is the Greek translation of the Hebrew word for Messiah = mashiah, "anointed one." There were three holy offices where God's divinely appointed agents were ritually anointed with holy oil to service as either prophets, priests, or kings (see Ex 29:7; 1 Sam 10:1; 2 Sam 24:7; 1 Kng 19:16; Ps 2:2). Jesus has come to fulfill all three holy offices (CCC 436, 783). Mark uses "Jesus Christ" like a proper name as will St. Paul in his letters.

St. Mark also identifies Jesus as the "Son of God." The announcement that the Messiah is the "Son of God" could be understood in two different ways by Mark's audience. Jewish Christians knew that Sacred Scripture used the title for one who enjoyed a special relationship with the Almighty:

Mark announces that Jesus is both the Messiah and the Son of God, defining Jesus as the promised Davidic heir. According to the prophets, the Messiah was to come from the lineage of the great King David in fulfillment of the eternal covenant God made with David (i.e., Is 9:5-6; 11:1-5 [Jesse was David's father] Ez 34:23-24).
Question: What were the promises associated with the Davidic Covenant? See 2 Sam 7:11b-16; 23:5; 1 Kng 2:4; 11:9-20; 2 Chr 13:5 and Sir 45:25.
Answer: Every Davidic heir was to be considered a "son" of God. The covenant was unconditional and promised that David's throne was to endure forever.

The New Testament the title "Son of God" takes on a meaning not previously conveyed in the Old Testament Scriptures. Jesus is the ideal king of Israel (2 Sam 7:14; Ps 2:7; 89:26-29) of the chosen people of God (Ex 4:22; Is 63:16; Hos 11:1), and in the New Testament, the title expresses Jesus' unique relationship with God as the Father's "only begotten Son" (Jn 1:18). It won't be until 1:11 that St. Mark will reveal that Jesus is a divine Son who is fully man and fully God. It is for this reason that Jesus deserves the title "Son" of God both in His divinity as God's "only begotten Son" and in His humanity as the Davidic heir and rightful King of Israel. It is significant that St. Mark will place these two titles: Christ/Messiah and Son of God, on the lips of first a Jew and then a Gentile at two points of climax in his narrative (Peter in 8:29 and a Roman soldier in 15:39). The title "Son of God" will become increasingly important as the narrative unfolds (1:1, 11; 3:11; 5:7; 9:7; 14:61; 15:39). We know that Jesus is the Messiah who is the Son of God because Mark told us in 1:1, but he will allow the reader see how other people exposed to Jesus' ministry will make the discovery and accept Jesus as Lord or reject Jesus' messiahship as the narrative unfolds.

Malachi was the last legitimate prophet God sent to the covenant people after their return from the Babylonian Exile in the 5th century BC. He prophesied that God will send a messenger who will come to the people in the spirit of the prophet Elijah to announce the coming of the Messiah (Mal 3:1, 23-24). Isaiah was the prophet of the 8th century BC who foretold God's judgment against a sinful and rebellious people that was to result in exile. But Isaiah also prophesied an eventual restoration. In Isaiah 40:3, the prophet refers to "the way of the Lord" as the end of the Babylonian exile, the restoration of the covenant people, and the coming of the Messiah. Mark is declaring that Jesus' Gospel message was announced in the Old Testament and that all the prophecies are now fulfilled in the prophetic voice of John the Baptist and in Jesus the promised Messiah and Davidic king. It is a fulfillment statement Jesus will make to the Apostles and disciples after His Resurrection: Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them what referred to him in all the Scriptures (Lk 24:27), and He said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled" (Lk 24:44).

Mark, unlike the other Synoptic Gospels, does not leave the reader to wonder about the true identity of Jesus. He tells the reader in the first line that Jesus is both the Messiah promised by the prophets and the Son of God.

It is written in Luke's Gospel that John is six months older than Jesus (Lk 1:36), but he is actually five months older than Jesus as we count. As the ancients counted, the first month of pregnancy counted as month #1 and therefore a woman was said to be pregnant for 10 months (see Wis 7:1-2). The difference in the way of counting for the ancients (without the concept of a zero place-value) is why Scripture records that Jesus was in the tomb for three days from Friday to Sunday.



The Baptism of Christ by Andrea del Verrocchio and Leonardo da Vinci,


Mark 1:9-11 ~ The Baptism of Jesus

St. John the Baptist's mission is presented as God's prelude to the saving mission of God the Son as foretold by the prophets. St. Mark does not provide the details of Jesus' baptism that are found in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. In the Gospel of John, the event is not described at all; we only hear of it after the fact.


Jesus affirmed that baptism is necessary for salvation in His discussion with the Pharisee Nicodemus in the Gospel of John (Jn 3:1-7, also see Mt 28:19-20; Mk 16:15-16). Baptism is at the heart of Christian life, and it is the only means the Church knows of that assures entry into eternal life. However, the Church acknowledges that while God has bound salvation to the Sacrament of Baptism, He himself is not bound by His sacraments and will save whoever He desires to save. See CCC 1257(1).


Question: The Hebrew word for "spirit" is ruah; it can be translated "spirit," "wind," or "breath." What two other events in the Old Testament recall the descent of the "spirit" or "divine wind" of God hovering over water and the image of a dove flying above the water? What is the symbolic significance? See Gen 1:2 and 8:6-12.
Answer: The descent of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove over Jesus and the waters of the Jordan River recall the Spirit/divine wind of God hovering over the waters in the first Creation event, and the dove Noah released to fly over the receding waters at the end of the great Flood at the new beginning for mankind on earth. The event of Jesus' baptism is a new beginning and a new creation.

It is the intention of Mark to tell the story of how the Son pleased the Father, beginning with God the Father's announces from heaven. The opening of the gates of Heaven at Jesus' baptism that had been closed since the Fall of Adam marks the beginning of the new era (CCC 536). God resides above in the heavenly Sanctuary and human history takes place below, but now the opening up of the access to heaven promises a new intimacy with God not enjoyed by man since before the Fall of Adam. God has ripped the heavens open at Jesus' baptism, never to shut them again. Through this gracious opening in the void between Heaven and earth, God has now poured forth His Spirit onto the earthly realm of mankind (Gen 7:11; Is 24:18; 64:1; Ez 1:1; Rev 4:1; 11:19). The gift of the Spirit in the new creation promised by God through the prophet Isaiah is now fulfilled (Is 42:1-5; 11:1-3; 61:1; 63:10-14). It is as the One gifted with the Spirit (verse 10) that Jesus will provide to His faithful the baptism by the Spirit and re-birth in His sacrificial death.

The Gospel of Mark, like the other Synoptic Gospels, presents the first revelation of the Most Holy Trinity to mankind at Jesus' baptism.
Question: What is the manifestation of the Most Holy Trinity at Jesus' baptismal event?

  1. God the Holy Spirit descends from heaven.
  2. He rests upon Jesus who is God the Son.
  3. The divine voice of God the Father is heard from heaven announcing His pleasure in God the Son.


Mark 1:12-13 ~ The Temptation of Jesus

God's plan for Jesus continues to unfold:

  • The Holy Spirit drives Jesus into the desert
  • Satan tempts Jesus
  • Jesus defeats Satan's temptations
  • Angels minister to Him in the midst of wild beasts, showing Jesus' authority over heaven and earth (only in Mark's Gospel)

Question: What kind of being is Satan? See Jn 8:44; Rev 7:7-9; CCC 391-92.
Answer: Satan, also called the devil, was once an angel created by God to be good. But, when given the gift of free will, Satan chose to lead a rebellion against God. He and those angels who joined him were defeated by St. Michael the Archangel and his army of angels (Rev 12:1-9). Satan and his fallen angels were thrown out of heaven into the fiery pit known as the Hell of the damned. It was Satan, the liar and deceiver of man, who in the guise of a serpent tempted Adam and Eve into the sin of rebellion against God in the Garden of Eden.

Mark's account of the Temptation does not have as detailed an account as that which is found in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, but he provides information that is not in the other two accounts.

Part II: The Mystery of Jesus

Verses 14-15 can be seen as a summary looking back to the first words of the Gospel in verses 1-3. But Jesus' statement in verse 15 can also be seen as looking forward to Jesus' ministry or a gateway into the story that follows. These verses are also a summary introducing section 1:14-3:6 and the first of three summary statements in Part II of the Gospel of Mark (1:14-15; 3:7-12; 6:6a). It is interesting that Mark has designed each of these three summary statements to be followed by a passage relating to the disciples, followed by extended narrative of Jesus' words and deeds during His Galilean ministry, and concluding with a decision either for or against Jesus' mission. For example:

In Mark 1:14-8:30 the words and deeds of Jesus ministry will force the question concerning His true identity which was revealed to the reader in 1:1. These verses ask the question: "Who is this man" and "Is He truly the Messiah?" These questions will be answered by St. Peter in 8:29.

Mark 1:14-15 ~ The Beginning of the Galilean Ministry

John the Baptist was arrested by the tetrarch Herod Antipas. He was the son of Herod the Great and ruler of the Galilee and also Perea on the east side of the Jordan River where John was baptizing. Antipas had an affair with his niece who was also his brother's wife and Herod the Great's granddaughter. He convinced her to divorce her husband and marry him, even though such a union was forbidden by the Law of Moses. In his role as an ordained priest of the Sinai Covenant, John the Baptist condemned Herod Antipas and his wife Herodias for the sin of adultery. Herod Antipas arrested John and imprisoned him in the Herodian fortress in Perea called Macherus (Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, 18.5.2; also see Mt 4:12-17; 14:3-12).

John's arrest was the signal that John's ministry had come to an end and Jesus's ministry must begin. Jesus is now thirty years old (Lk 3:23). It is the same age that His ancestor David became King of Israel (2 Sam 5:4). The Galilee was the perfect location for Jesus' ministry. The region was a crossroads for the great Via Maris, the ancient trade route that came out of Egypt, extended along the Mediterranean coast, passed through the Galilee, and continued into Syria, Asia Minor, and Mesopotamia. Jesus didn't have to go to the various neighboring Gentile nations where Jews lived because they came to Him in the three yearly pilgrimages to the Jerusalem Temple commanded in the Law of Moses (Ex 23:14-17; Dt 16:16; 2 Chr 8:3).

Mark 1:16-20 ~ Jesus Calls His First Group of Galilean Disciples

The brothers Simon and Andrew and the sons of Zebedee were fishermen on the Sea of Galilee who owned their own boats. They were not poor but were probably well-to-do since they had hired men who worked for them, and after spending three years following Jesus, they still had a fishing business to return to (see Jn 21:3). Fishermen who owned their own boats on the Sea of Galilee were usually under contract to supply fish to the Roman government, and any fish they caught beyond their contracted amount they could sell on their own.

Mark 1:21-28 ~ Jesus Teaches in the Synagogue and Cures a Demon Possessed Man

The covenant people worshipped, prayed, and offered their sacrifices at the liturgical worship services that took place twice daily, seven days a week, at God's holy Temple in Jerusalem. But those who lived to far from Jerusalem could observe the Sabbath obligation at their local village Synagogues when they prayed as a community and studied Scripture. As a faithful member of the covenant community, Jesus observed the Sabbath obligation. In His preaching, the common people recognize the truth in His teaching. He is not like the Scribes who the people criticize for not teaching with the authority of a true understanding of Sacred Scripture.

As Jesus' ministry continues, He will begin to come to the attention of the Scribes and the Pharisees. The Scribes and Pharisees are part of the Old Covenant religious leadership. From the beginning of Jesus' ministry, these two groups challenged Jesus' teaching authority. The Scribes are usually Levites (the lesser ministers who serve the chief priests) that are trained as teachers of the Law. The Pharisees are the most powerful religious sect in first century AD Judea and are largely represented by the intellectual elite of the people. Many Scribes are Pharisees, as was St. Paul before his conversion experience (Acts 23:6; 26:5). The Pharisees were strict interpreters of the Law and considered themselves to be more righteous than ordinary covenant members who they held in contempt. They also controlled the Jewish high court, called the Sanhedrin. Jesus will severely chastise the Pharisees for their lack of charity and their hypocrisy on His last teaching day in Jerusalem prior to His Passion when He calls them a "brood of vipers" (see Mt 23:1-36). The other sects with influence in this period are the Sadducees, who are mostly represented by the chief priests, and the Essenes. The Essenes lived in various cities but also in separate communities. They were dedicated to asceticism, voluntary poverty, mysticism, and daily ritual immersion (baptisms of repentance and purification).


Mark 1:29-34 ~ Jesus Heals Simon's Mother-in-Law and other Healings

Jesus will now make Capernaum and Simon-Peter's house His headquarters. Notice that Jesus' miracles were not limited to public miracles. In this sweet little story about the healing of Simon-Peter's mother-in-law there is a message for all who profess to be Jesus' disciples.

Mark 1:35-39 ~ Jesus Preaches in the other Synagogues in the Galilee

Question: What lesson can we take from Jesus withdrawing in private to pray to the Father?
Answer: If Jesus felt it was necessary to devote time to private prayer, shouldn't we do the same?

Question: What is the purpose for which Jesus has come that He alludes to in verse 38?
Answer: He has come to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom to the children of Israel.

Mark 1:40-45 ~ The Cleansing of a Leper

Not only was a leper ritually unclean but anyone who came in contact with a leper was also considered unclean. A leper could not worship in the Temple until he or she had been healed and anyone who was in contact with a leper could not worship in the Temple until he or she had undergone ritual purification. The leper makes a bold move in coming to Jesus. He takes the risk because he has confidence that Jesus can heal him (Mk 1:40). Jesus feels compassion for the man, and He is not made "unclean" by coming into contact with the leper. Instead, the leper was "made clean" by contact with Jesus just as we are "cleansed" by contact with Jesus in the Eucharist and the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Notice that there is a sacramental quality to Jesus healing the man: He stretches out his hand (verse 41), just as God, by His outstretched hand performed mighty acts to save the Israelites in the Exodus experience and in other mighty deeds in the history of the covenant people (Ex 13:9; 14, 16; 15:6; etc., and mentioned in the prayer in Acts 4:30). This ritual sign is accompanied by His divine word: "I will do it. Be made clean." And like God's divine word in the Creation event, Jesus' word brings about what He commands (see Ps 33:9).

Chapter 2: Jesus' Fame Spreads

Chapter two marks a turning point in Jesus' ministry. Up to this point, Jesus has been traveling throughout the Galilee. He has been preaching the "good news" of the Kingdom, He has been healing people of their spiritual and physical illnesses, and He has been casting out demons according to the prophecies of the prophets (Is 25:4, 9; 35:4-6; 40:9; 42:6-7; 61:1-2). Multitudes of hopeful people have been coming to be healed and to hear Him preach. But, beginning with His healing of the paralytic at Capernaum, the religious authorities start to raise objections to Jesus as He encounters their disapproval and suspicion. Pharisees raise objections to Jesus' teachings, His actions and the actions of His disciples that are contrary to their interpretation of doctrine and ritual observances. The healing of the paralytic at Capernaum is the first in a series of five conflict stories in which Jesus' miracles and His "new teaching with authority" (Mk 1:27) is enthusiastically embraced by the crowds but also in which He faces increasing resistance from the religious leadership which will culminate in a plot to kill Him (Mk 3:6). Mark continues to express the urgency of embracing the Gospel message by using the key word that can be translated as "immediately, at once, or instantly" in 2:2, 8, and 12.

The five conflict stories:

  1. Jesus is charged with blasphemy for forgiving a man's sins (Mk 2:1-12).
  2. Jesus attends a banquet and is accused of eating with sinners (Mk 2:13-17).
  3. Jesus and His disciples are criticized for failing to fast (Mk 2:18-22).
  4. Jesus is criticized for allowing His disciples to violate the Sabbath restriction by picking grain (Mk 2:23-28).
  5. Jesus is criticized for healing on the Sabbath (Mk 3:1-6).

Mark 2:1-12 ~ Healing of a Paralytic at Capernaum and the Opposition of the Scribes

In the Church we call prayers on behalf of others "prayers of intercession." Intercessory prayer is a prayer of petition which leads us to pray as Jesus did during His earthly ministry. And He continues to be the one intercessor with the Father on behalf of all men and women, especially sinners (Rom 8:34; 1 Tim 2:5-8; 1 Jn 2:1). "He is able for all time to save those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.' The Holy Spirit himself intercedes for us ... and intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.'" (CCC 2634-36, 2647; also see Heb 7:25; Rom 8:26-27). So important is the Church's example of intercessory prayer as a community that it is part of the celebration of the Mass.


Mark 2:13-17 ~ Jesus Calls Levi to Discipleship

The publican (tax official) named Levi in this passage and in Luke 5:27-28, is called "Matthew," his Greek name, in the same encounter with Christ in Matthew 9:9. He is also called Matthew in all the lists of the twelve Apostles (Mt 10:3 where he is identified as a tax-collector and in Mk 3:18; Lk 6:15 and Acts 1:13). Just as St. Mark was known by two names, his Hebrew name and his Gentile name, St. Matthew was known by a Hebrew and a Gentile name. According to tradition, his Hebrew name "Levi" identifies him as a lesser ministry of the Levites which could mean that he was also trained as a Scribe and could have recorded Jesus' homilies and sayings in the scribal shorthand that all scribes were taught called tachygraphos.

It was common for the Romans to assign educated men to the task of collecting Roman taxes. St. Matthew, as was the duty of all tax collectors (telonai), was sitting at his customs post (telonion) as Jesus passed by. It was probably a tollbooth at which fees were collected on goods (especially barrels of salted fish) as they were transported out of the tetrarchy of the Galilee to other parts of the Roman provinces. Like the other Apostles called by Jesus to "Follow me," St. Matthew left his profession and his comfortable life to follow Jesus. In verse 13 we are told that Matthew invited his friends to a banquet in which Jesus is the guest of honor.


Mark 2:18-22 ~ Jesus is questioned about Fasting

This is the third conflict story. The discipline of fasting was one of the three basic virtues of Old Covenant piety: fasting, prayer, and almsgiving (Tob 12:8-9; Sir 3:29/30; 29:8-13). These same three acts of interior penance were also preached by Jesus as part of the New Covenant obligation of His disciples since these three virtues express conversion in relation to oneself, to God, and to others (see Mt 6:1-18, CCC 1434 and 1969). The Law of the Sinai Covenant only required fasting once a year on the Feast of Atonement (Lev 16:29). However, the Pharisees, who considered themselves as especially pious observers of the Law, fasted twice a week on Mondays and Tuesdays as a sign of their piety (Lk 18:12; also see the Didache 8.1).

The Pharisees' criticism of Jesus may have prompted the people to question Jesus on the different rules of fasting observed by His disciples as opposed to John's disciples and the Pharisees. Evidently John the Baptist's disciples fasted frequently in imitation of John's ascetic lifestyle and as a sign of repentance (Joel 2:12-13).


The bridal metaphor is used in Old Testament Scripture to express the loving covenant relationship between God and His covenant people (see Is 54:5; Ez 16:6-14; Jer 3:20; Hos 2:4-7, 20). Now Jesus uses the same imagery when He answers their question with a rhetorical question. It is a strategy He will often use to bring His listeners to a deeper understanding. He also reveals something new about His identity.

Question: Who is the "bridegroom" and who are the "wedding guests" in the short parable?
Answer: Jesus is the bridegroom and the wedding guests are those who have come to embrace His Gospel message of salvation, like those men at the banquet He attended.


Old versus New Cloth and WineskinsOld Covenant versus New Covenant
Old cloth cannot be patched with new cloth. The new cloth will no longer fit properly when the garment is washed and the new cloth shrinks.The Old Covenant was necessary for its time to cover the covenant people in righteousness, but the Gospel of Jesus Christ is a new garment that cannot become a patch for the Old Covenant.
Old wineskins have already stretched to capacity with the fermentation of the wine. If new wine is poured into old skins, the fermenting wine will expand and burst the skins and both the wineskin and the wine will be destroyed.The eternal gifts of the New Covenant cannot be contained within the limits of the Old Covenant. The eternal gifts of God's grace that fill the children of God in the New Covenant must fulfill and transform the Old Covenant.
Michal E. Hunt Copyright © 2014


Mark 2:23-28 ~ Authority over the Sabbath
Together with the sacred meeting place between man and God (the desert Tabernacle and later the Jerusalem Temple), the Sabbath obligation was one of the two signs of the Sinai Covenant. It was a covenant that was continued in sacred time in a sacred place (see the Chart on "Yahweh's Eight Covenants"). God's one holy altar of sacrifice in the desert Sanctuary and later in the Jerusalem Temple and the holy Sabbath day separated the Israelites from the pagan communities who worshipped at many shrines and did not enter into God's "rest" on a special day set aside from all the other days of the week (Ex 20:8; 31:12-17; 35:1-3). The Sabbath was meant to raise God's people above the routine of earthly human labor and to elevate them to the unique spiritual privilege of fellowship and communion with the One True God. The Sabbath (seventh day) was first declared holy on the seventh day of Creation when God "rested" from the work of creation (Gen 2:1-3), but it did not become a covenant obligation until the ratification of the Sinai Covenant (Ex 20:8-11; 31:12-17; 34:21; 35:1-3; Dt 5:12-15).

Jesus' point is that the incident with David set the precedent that when mercy is a necessity it outweighs the letter of the Law. In the second example, Jesus points out that the priests at the Temple technically violate the letter of the Law by working on the Sabbath by serving God in the Temple, but the necessity of their ministry outweighs the violation. Jesus' disciples were hungry and He allowed them to pick grain and eat on the Sabbath so that they might continue their ministry in serving God by proclaiming the coming of the Kingdom. Jesus is not abrogating the Sabbath laws of the covenant; rather He is asserting the authority that belongs to God in the interpretation of the Sabbath laws since He is the author of the Sabbath, another reference to His divinity.


Jesus is also saying that His mission is the fulfillment of the Old Covenant Sabbath. What this means will be revealed in the fifth and final conflict story in chapter 3.

In chapters 1 and 2 we can see that interest in Jesus and belief that He is the Messiah is rapidly growing as the mystery of the Kingdom begins to unfold. We also see opposition to Jesus by the scribes and Pharisees.
Question: What are the four criticisms the scribes and Pharisees raise against Jesus and His disciples in chapter 2? See Mk 2:7, 16, 18 and 24.
Answer:

  1. He claims the authority to forgive sins which is blasphemy.
  2. He associates with sinners.
  3. He fails to fast nor does He encourage His disciples to fast.
  4. He fails to observe the Sabbath "rest."

In Mark's narrative, we discover how the Jews and others will come to slowly discover the mystery of Jesus' true identity. But, as you have seen, St. Mark makes Jesus' identity clear to the reader from the very beginning, and he reveals that everything that will happen in the unfolding events in the life and death and resurrection of God the Son are determined by God's divine will (Mark 1:11).

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A Daily Defense

 

DAY 154 “The Sun Will Be Darkened”

CHALLENGE:“In his discourse about the destruction of the temple, Jesus said, ‘The sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken’ (Mark 13:24–25). Those things never happened, so Jesus prophesied falsely.”

DEFENSE: The imagery Jesus used does not imply the end of the world.

Some understand the imagery as familiar phenomena: a solar eclipse (sun darkening), a lunar eclipse (moon not giving light), a meteor shower (stars falling). If Jesus merely meant these would occur before the temple’s destruction in A.D. 70, he was not predicting that the world would end.

However, there is another understanding. The prophets often used “cosmic cataclysm” language to announce God’s judgment on a people (see, e.g., Isa. 13:10; 24:18–23; 34:4; Ezek. 32:7; Amos 8:9; Joel 2:10, 31; Hag. 2:22).

Thus Isaiah 13 contains an oracle against Babylon that says, “The stars of the heavens and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be dark at its rising and the moon will not shed its light” (v. 10), and God “will make the heavens tremble, and the earth will be shaken out of its place” (v. 13). The oracle also makes clear how the judgment on the Babylonians will be accomplished: “I am stirring up the Medes against them” (v. 17). 

This conflict and others the prophets predicted using similar language were long over by Jesus’ day, and none involved a literal cosmic cataclysm. Thus the language was seen for what it was: a poetic expression of what the experience of living through judgment would be like. For those experiencing it, it would be as if the sun and moon darkened and the stars fell from the sky.

Further, some saw the celestial bodies as symbols of the rulers of the people, who would quake and lose their positions in the turmoil. It is no surprise to find Jesus using the same language describing the coming judgment on Jerusalem at the hands of the Romans. 


Jimmy Akin, A Daily Defense: 365 Days (Plus One) to Becoming a Better Apologist

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