Bible in One Year Day 156 (Mark 5-6, Psalm 21)

  You may subscribe yourself at the Ascension site here and receive notifications in your email, or just follow along on my blog.  Bible in One Year Readings Index 

Day 156 Jesus Casts out Demons 

Agape Bible Study 
Mark 5 - 6 

Chapter 5: Jesus Demonstrate His Power over Demons,
and He Raises the Dead

Mark 5:1-10 ~ The Healing of the Gerasene Demoniac

This is Jesus' first journey into Gentile territory. The episode takes place on the east side of the Sea of Galilee (Mk 5:20). It was a Gentile region but there were Jews living there, and Jesus has come to share His message of the Kingdom with the "lost sheep" of Israel on the east side of the Galilee in the Greek culture Gentile territory of the Decapolis (means "ten cities" in Greek), a federation of independent cities. Jesus encounters a man possessed by demons who is living among the unclean tombs of the dead (Num 19:11, 14, 16; Ez 39:11-15). The confrontation with the man possessed by a demon is similar to Jesus' first miracle to the Jews in Mark 1:21-27. Once again the demons recognize Jesus' true identity, but He immediately subdues them and claims victory over Satan's influence. This story may also be a fulfillment of the prophecy in Isaiah 65:1-5.

Mark's description of the demon possessed man's condition is a picture of despair and shows how demonic influence distorts and destroys the image of God in human beings. The Greek verb for "bound" in verse 4 (deo) is the same verb used in the parable of the "strong man" in Mark 3:27. The healing of the demon possessed man is a demonstration of what Jesus said He would do in defeating the "strong man" in Mark 3:23-27.

The Latin word is legio. A Roman legion numbered 6 thousand soldiers (Fitzmtyer, The Gospel According to Luke, page 738). The demon pleads with Jesus to let him stay in the territory, suggesting that perhaps demons are territorial or are able to exert more power over humans in some regions (see Mt 12:4-45; Tob 8:3). Since this is a Gentile region in which pagan gods are worshipped, the demon may be comfortable there and may be in hopes of finding another suitably susceptible human host.

Mark 5:11-20 ~ Jesus Sends the Demons into a Herd of Swine

Jesus has come to the Gentile region of the Decapolis to carry His Gospel of salvation to the Jews living there. Jesus' mission is in only going to the "lost sheep" of the house of Israel in fulfillment of the prophecies of the prophets (see Ez 34:11-16, 23; Mt 15:24; Lk 10:6). It will be the mission of the redeemed holy remnant of the new Israel of the Church of Jesus Christ to carry the Gospel message to the Gentile world (Mt 28:19-20). Only the Gospel of Mark numbers the swine at 2 thousand (Mk 5:13). The demons take possession of the swine, but they are unable to control them and the swine run down to the sea and drown themselves.

Mark 5:21-24 ~ The Petition of Jairus

According to Matthew's Gospel, after the healing on the opposite shore of the Galilee, Jesus crossed the lake and "came into his own town" (Mt 9:1), presumably to Capernaum, the headquarters of His ministry in the Galilee. An official of the local Synagogue has faith that Jesus can heal his daughter. He is a very important man in the community but notice how reverently he approaches Jesus in verses 22-23.

Mark 5:25-34 ~ The Healing of Woman with the Hemorrhage

While Jesus was on his way to the home of Jairus, a woman with a bleeding condition touched Him in hopes of being healed.
Question: For how many years had the woman suffered from uncontrolled bleeding?
Answer: For 12 years.

When she grasped Jesus' cloak in her desperation to receive a healing, He immediately felt the power go out of Him. When He discovered who had touched Him, Jesus praised her faith, telling her "Daughter, your faith has saved you; go in peace." The question might be asked, if Jesus is God, why didn't He know who touched Him? Of course He knew, but He asked the question knowing the answer in the same way God asked "Where are you?" when He confronted Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden (Gen 3:9) when God had demanded to know where Adam and Eve were in their relationship with Him, inviting them to come forward and confess their sins. In this case, Jesus was asking the woman to confess her faith, her healing and her gratitude so He can grant her His peace and forgiveness. In addition, her public confession of healing will be an effective witness to others and bringing them to repentance and conversion.

Raising of Jairus' Daughter by Paolo Veronese

Mark 5:35-43 ~ The Healing of Jairus' Daughter

Question: When someone from Jairus' house arrived to tell him his daughter had died. What did Jesus tell him and what words are repeated from what He told the woman?
Answer: He told both the woman and the father to have faith.

Question: Even though they have been told that the child is dead, what Old Testament miracles might have encouraged Jairus to have faith that Jesus could raise his daughter from the dead? See 1 Kng 17:17-24 and 2 Kng 4:18-37.
Answer: The prophets Elijah and Elisha raised children from the dead.

Question: When Jesus arrived at Jairus' house, He only allowed Peter, James and John Zebedee and the child's parents to come into the child's room. Counting the child, how many people were in the room?
Answer: There were 7.

7 is one of the "prefect" numbers and in Scripture, symbolizing perfection and fulfillment, especially spiritual perfection. This is the first time Peter, James and John have been singled out to accompany Jesus. They will also accompany Him when He ascends the Mt. of Transfiguration (Mk 9:2) and when He prays in the Garden of Gethsemane before His arrest (Mk 14:33).

Question: Why does Jesus insist that the child is not dead? What will her "sleep" and her rising from the dead prefigure? See 1 Cor 15:51-56; 1 Thes 4:14-18.
Answer: His statement is a message of hope for the family. When Jesus raises the child from death to life, her miracle prefigures His own Resurrection and the "sleep" of the faithful as they await the final bodily resurrection to come at the end of the age.

Question: How old was Jairus' daughter?
Answer: She was 12 years old.

Just as Jesus had attended to the practical by clothing the demonic man, He instructs the child's parents to given her something to eat. He also tells them not to share the true nature of the miracle. He tells them this because opposition to Him is continuing to grow and His mission to Israel is not yet completed; He needs more time before the climax of His mission.

Chapter 6

Mark 6:1-6 ~ Jesus is Rejected by His Neighbors at Nazareth

Jesus came to His hometown of Nazareth and attended the Sabbath day (Saturday) service in the local Synagogue. Nazareth is the Greek rendering of the Hebrew Nasret which may be derived from the Hebrew word "consecrate" (nazir) or "branch" (netzer/nezer). Nazareth is located on the south western side of the Sea of Galilee about 15 miles from the tip of the southern shore. Nazareth is not mentioned in the Old Testament but an inscription naming Nazareth has been found at Caesarea that dates to the 1^st century AD. The town of Nazareth was considered to be insignificant in Jesus' day (Jn 1:45-46).

As a Jew who was obedient to the commands of the Sinai Covenant, it was Jesus' custom to keep the Sabbath obligation by coming to the Synagogue (Ex 20:8-11; 31:12-17; 34:21; 35:1-3; Dt 6:12-15; Lk 4:16). 

It is interesting that they call Jesus the "son of Mary" instead of the "son of Joseph." It is customary to name a man or woman through their father and not their mother. That they mention Mary may be because Joseph has been dead for a long time, or they know the story that Joseph was not Jesus' biological father. Jesus' kinsmen are also named in Matthew 13:55 (James, Joseph (Joses is the shortened form), Simon, and Judas (Jude in the shortened form). As mentioned previously, these "brothers" and "sisters" are kinsmen/kinswomen who could have been the children of Joseph by a previous marriage, cousins, or even uncles/aunts. See the documents " Did Jesus have Brothers and Sisters?" and the Four Marian Dogmas.

The statement in verse 5 highlights the necessity of faith for God's work in our lives and is why Jesus warns people to "have faith" before He heals (i.e., Mk 5:36).

Mark 6:6b-13 ~ The First Mission of the Twelve Apostles

This is the first time the Apostles are sent out with His authority.
Question: What are they allowed to carry with them? What were they commanded not to take?
Answer: They were allowed to take three items:

1. A walking stick
2. Sandals
3. Anointing oil.

They were forbidden to take food, a sack, money, or a change of clothes.

Question: Why does Jesus send them out by twos?
Answer: Two is the smallest number of a community of believers. They are not alone but have each other to pray together, to support each other, and to discern together how to deal with problems.

Mark 6:14-16 ~ Herod Antipas' Opinion on Jesus

Herod Antipas was a client ruler of the Romans who was the tetrarch of the Galilee in the north and Perea in the south on the east side of the Jordan River. He was the son of Herod the Great and a Samaritan woman named Malthace. His wife was his niece, a granddaughter of Herod the Great and the Jewish princess Mariamne, and the divorced wife of his brother. St. John the Baptist condemned them as adulterers (lev 18:16) and, as a result of his wife's enmity toward St. John, Herod reluctantly executed him. In the opinion of most of the people of the Galilee, Jesus was a prophet, but Herod, whose conscience plagued him concerning St. John's death, was fearful that Jesus was St. John who had been resurrected to accuse him. In Mark 1:14, St. Mark has already hinted that John's ministry is in a way a precursor of Jesus' ministry and now, in a mysterious way, John's death foreshadows Jesus' death.

Mark 6:17-29 ~ The Death of John the Baptist

Question: What similarities can you seen between John's martyrdom and Jesus' death? Compare Mk 6:17-29 with Mk 15:1-15, 42-46.

Answer:

1. Both deaths were brought about by rulers who were reluctant to order the execution.
2. Both Herod and Pilate acknowledged the holiness of the lives of the men they unjustly condemned to death.
3. The persons who orchestrated the deaths of both John and Jesus (Herodias and the Jewish leaders) did so out of malice because both men confronted them with hard truths.
4. Herod's banquet that led to John's death was a banquet of death whereas Jesus' banquet with Levi/Matthew and his friends and Jesus' other banquets are foreshadows of the banquet of life.
5. No one involved in John's death protests the execution of an innocent man and therefore all are complicit in his death. In the same way, all associated with Jesus' death, in fact all humanity, is complicit in the death of the sinless Jesus Christ.
6. John the Baptist's disciples took his body and gave him a proper burial, and Jesus disciples will also claim His body and provide a proper burial.

Mark 6:30-33 ~ The Return of the Twelve

St. Mark now returns to the story of the Apostles and their return from their mission. Notice how Mark has "sandwiched; the story of the Apostles being sent out to proclaim repentance in preparation for the coming of the promised Kingdom of God between the story of John the Baptist's death and the corrupt kingdom of Herod Antipas. Perhaps it is Mark's intention to show the contrast between the injustice of the false kingdoms of corrupt earthly rulers and the divine justice that will be offered in the true Davidic Kingdom of the righteous Messiah that is the Kingdom of God.

Mark is the only Gospel writer who consistently mentions the personal sacrifice Jesus and the disciples experience during Jesus' ministry. 

Mark 6:34-44 ~ The First Feeding Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes

The key word in this section of Mark's Gospel is the word "bread," artos in the Greek, which is translated as "bread," "loaves," or "meal" in the English translation. This key word appears 17 times between the events in Mark 6:34 to 8:26 (see Mk 6:36, 37, 38, 41 twice, 52; 7:2, 5, 27; 8:4, 5, 6, 14 twice, 16, 17, and 19). The use of this word is not a coincidence. St. Mark has carefully chosen to use this word repeatedly in this section to demonstrate the unveiling of the mystery of Jesus centering on the theme of "bread." It is a revelation that will reach its climax at the Last Supper.

There is a repeated pattern of events in this section of the narrative. Jesus will miraculously feed a multitude twice with a few loaves of bread and fish. Each time the miracle is followed by a crossing of the Sea of Galilee, a conflict with the religious leaders, a confession of faith, and a healing (in the last part the healing and confession are reversed). In both parts of the continuing bread narrative, Jesus heals a deaf man and a blind man, symbolizing the warning He gave when He quoted from Isaiah 6:9-10 (Mk 4:12) as He continues to spiritually open the deaf ears and the blind eyes of His disciples and others so they will one day be able to understand the mystery of the Kingdom He has come to proclaim.

• Part I:
• 1A. Feeding of the five thousand (Mk 6:34-44)
• 1B. Crossing the Sea of Galilee toward Bethsaida (Mk 6:45-52)
• 1C. Conflict with Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem (Mk 7:1-23)
• 1D. Profession of faith of a Gentile woman (Mk 7:24-30)
• 1E. Healing of a deaf man (Mk 7:31-37)
• Part II:
• 2A. Feeding of the four thousand (Mk 8:1-10)
• 2B. Crossing of the Sea of Galilee toward Dalmanutha (Mk 8:10)
• 2C. Conflict with the Pharisees (Mk 8:11-13)
• 2E. Healing of the blind man (Mk 8:22-26)
• 2D. Peter's confession of faith (Mk 8:27-30)

Peter's confession of faith in the last segment of the second part of the bread narrative is another turning point and introduces Part III of Mark's Gospel "The Mystery Begins to be Revealed."

Question: What will Jesus' two feeding miracles in 6:34-44 and 8:1-10 recall to the people from the works of God's mercy and the works of the prophets in the Old Testament? See Ex 16:4-5, 31, 35-36; 1 Kng 17:2-16; 2 Kng 4:1-7, 42-44.
Answer: This miracle feeding recalls:

1. The manna in the desert during the Exodus out of Egypt and the 40 years in the wilderness.
2. The feeding miracle of the prophet Elijah in the multiplication of the oil and meal for the widow of Zarephath
3. The feeding miracle of the prophet Elisha in the increase of the pot of oil and the feeding of 100 men with twenty loaves of barley.

41 Then, taking the five loaves [artos] and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing, broke the loaves [artos], and gave them to his disciples to set before the people; he also divided the two fish among them all.
Taking on the role of the father/host of the meal, Jesus observes the Jewish ritual of praying before meals. St. Mark's sequence of words describes the characteristic action and words at ordinary Jewish meals and indicates that Jesus faithfully followed Jewish customs. The object of the blessing is not the loaves and fish but the Lord God since prayers before meals began with the blessing of the name of God. A typical Jewish prayer before a meal is: "Praise unto thee, O Lord our God, King of the world;" and what followed depended on the category of food or feast day involved. In the case of bread, the blessing was invoked on God: "who makes bread to come forth from the earth" (Jewish Book of Why, vol. II, page 227, 230-31). What is different is that Jesus does not bow His head but instead He raises His eyes to Heaven. This is, however, not an ordinary meal, and we should notice that Jesus' prayer not only gives the customary praise and thanksgiving to God but in raising His head He invokes a reliance upon God the Father for the extraordinary power necessary for Jesus to meet the people's need.

Question: What is the order of His actions after taking the bread?

1. He said the prayer of blessing over the bread
2. He broke the bread
3. He gave the food to His disciples to distribute to the people

This is the same order in which the priest, in Persona Christi (acting in the Person of Christ), repeats the Eucharistic words of Jesus from the Last Supper and then disburses the "bread" to the disciples (Ministers of the Eucharist) who disburse the "bread" to the crowd (congregation of the faithful). The difference is that it was only bread and fish that was given to the crowd in this miracle feeding, but in our miracle feeding of the Eucharist, what was once bread and once wine has become the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus (Mt 26:26-28; Mk 14:22-24; Lk 22:19-20; 1 Cor 11:23-26). However, this feeding of the crowd is not a Eucharistic meal. The differences are that in John 6:9 we are told that the bread is made from barley flour while the bread of the Last Supper was unleavened wheat bread (a stipulation for the sacred meal of the Passover on the first night of the Feast of Unleavened Bread; see Ex 12:8, 15) that became Jesus' Body, and at the Last Supper they drank red wine that became Jesus' precious Blood. No fish was consumed. This miracle feeding foreshadowed the Last Supper but it was not the same; it was not a Eucharistic meal of Jesus' Body and Blood. The Eucharist can only be consumed by those who are in a state of grace (free of sin) and who believe in the Body and Blood of Christ in the sacred meal (1 Cor 11:27-29).

Question: How many people were fed?
Answer: Many people over 5 thousand because women and children were not counted.

The leftover bread signifies the abundance of the grace of God in a miracle that is only a foreshadowing of an even greater granting of divine grace that is to come.
Question: How many baskets were left over and what is the significance of this number in the Old Testament and in the New?
Answer: There were twelve baskets of food left over. Twelve is the symbolic number of the tribes of Israel and the twelve men who were the physical fathers of the covenant people. Jesus is gathering the twelve tribes of Israel into His New Covenant Church and His Twelve Apostles will become the spiritual fathers of the new, restored Israel. The twelve baskets are also one basket for each of the Twelve Apostles, Jesus' ministers who, in the New Covenant sacred meal, will continue to distribute the "bread" to the faithful.

Question: Did the people realize they had taken part in a miracle? See Jn 6:14-15.
Answer: St. John's Gospel records that they absolutely understood that a miracle had taken place.

St. John records: When the people saw the sign he had done, they said, "This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world." Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain alone (Jn 6:14-15; "the prophet" refers to the prophecy of Dt 18:18-20). It was the next day, the Sabbath day at Capernaum, when the crowd found Him and asked for another miracle, imploring Jesus to rain bread down from heaven like the manna of Moses. It was then that Jesus promised them an even greater miracle, declaring "I AM the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world" (Jn 6:51).

Mark 6:45-52 ~ The Second Nature Miracle: Jesus Walks on the Water

Jesus left the disciples to go up a mountain to have private prayer time. Mark associates Jesus with a mountain five times in his Gospel (Mk 3:13; 4:46 ; 9:2, 9 and 11:23); revelations of God and works of God are associated with mountains in Scripture. Mark does not include that Peter walked on the water toward Jesus until his fear caused him to sink into the water only to be rescued by Jesus (Mt 14:22-23; Jn 6:16-21). Since Mark is recording Peter's story, it may be that Peter, in his humility, did not want the story of Jesus controlling the natural order to be diverted to a story about him.

It was about the fourth watch of the night that Jesus was walking on the water. In the first century AD the Jews kept the four Roman night watches. The fourth watch was from 3 AM to dawn or 6 AM (the hours were seasonal hours: 12 daylight hours and 12 night time hours divided into four watches).

Question: How does Jesus identify Himself and why is His wording significant? See Ex 3:14.
Answer: Jesus used the Divine Name that God revealed to Moses at the encounter of the burning bush. This claim to His divinity is corroborated as Jesus does what only God can do: He walks upon the water.

Jesus walks upon the water to reveal His divinity and the mystery of His sinless nature. It is because He is entirely free from the burden of sin that He can walk across the sea without sinking.

They were completely astounded. 52 They had not understood the incident of the loaves [artos]. On the contrary, their hearts were hardened.
The Apostles had only come so far in understanding Jesus' true identity. They could acknowledge that He was a prophet and perhaps even the Davidic Messiah, but they had not yet been able to accept His divine nature. The can accept that the miracle of the loaves was like the miracles of Elijah and Elisha, but not that it was like the manna sent from God. It was a leap of faith they were not ready to take.

Do you find that sometimes your heart is "hardened" like the Pharaoh of the Exodus or like the children of Israel when they continually rebelled against God and His fdivine plan for them? Sometimes we do not understand the ways of God, especially when we think we have the better plan. But it is then that our faith is being tested like Peter when he walked on the water to Jesus but then began to sink into the waves. Instead of struggling to swim back to the boat, Peter cried out for Jesus to save him and he was saved! When we submit to God by trusting in Him to guide us and protect us, our faith is strengthened and we become part of His divine plan not only for us but for others who are encouraged by the example of our trust and faith in the Divine. And like Peter, He will raise us up out of disaster to bring us to His embrace.

Mark 6:53-56 ~ The Healings at Gennesaret
Gennesaret was a village on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee, south west of Capernaum. The people continue to respond positively to Jesus and come to Him for healing. Their faith in Him to heal them is so strong that they believe is the simply touch the tassel on His cloak that they will be healed.

Question: What is the significance of the tassel on Jesus' cloak? What two purposes did the tasseled cloak serve? See Num 15:38-40 and Dt 22:12.
Answer: God told Moses to instruct the men of Israel to wear tassels on their outer garments as a visible reminder to keep God's commandments. It was to be also to be a visible reminder of the sacred character of the covenant community that separated them from the Gentile nations.

The modern day prayer shawls fulfill this requirement but the tassels are usually white because the secret of the blue dye was lost for many centuries. It has been rediscovered, but many rabbis insist on the white tassels because the blue dye can no longer be made within the ritual purity of the holy Temple that no longer exists.

A Daily Defense

 

DAY 156 Mustard Seeds

CHALLENGE: “Scripture is inaccurate when it says the mustard seed is the smallest seed. It is larger than a poppy seed, for example. Also, it does not grow into a tree.”

DEFENSE: This objection presses the text beyond its intended limits.

Jesus tells this parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches” (Matt. 13:31–32; cf. Mark 4:30–32, Luke 13:18–19).

The cultivated mustard plant of this parable (brassica nigra, or black mustard) is native to the Middle East. Though there are plants with smaller seeds, it is disputed whether first-century Jews cultivated any. “No one yet has proved that ancient Palestinians planted anything that bore a smaller seed than that of the black mustard, and that was the framework within which Jesus was speaking” (Gleason Archer, New International Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties, 329).

If Jesus was speaking of plants commonly cultivated at the time—if that was his universe of discourse—he was not referring to other plants. However, if his universe of discourse was broader, it would be natural to understand him as using hyperbole. In ancient literature, the mustard seed was proverbial for its smallness (cf. Mishnah Tohorot 8:8H, Niddah 5:2D), and Jesus would have been drawing on this mode of speech without implying there was literally nothing smaller.

Regarding the size to which the mustard plant grows, the parable notes it is a “shrub” (Greek, lachanōn, “herb, vegetable, garden plant”), and thus not literally at tree. It does, however, grow to a prodigious size. The Encyclopedia of Life notes that, “The black mustard plant grows up to 2 m (a little over 6 ft), with many branches” (s.v. Brassica nigra; online at eol.org).

Fundamentally, Jesus is not making a point about botany. He is using the growth of mustard as an analogy of how the kingdom of God will grow from his small band of followers to a world wide communion. To try to get precise, literal statements about botany from the parable presses the text beyond its intended limits.

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