Chapter 13 in Mark’s story of Jesus can feel like something of an interruption. We noticed earlier that it stands apart from much of Mark’s writing with its strong apocalyptic imagery and symbolism and its sudden concern with the end of the world and Christ’s return. Very likely Mark...

On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see whether perhaps he would find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. He said to it, “May no one ever eat...

And he said to them, “Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see that the kingdom of God has come with power.” Chapters and verses, it’s sometimes helpful to remember, were not part of Mark’s original design. So if this verse, 9:1, seems...

He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take 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...

On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. A great gale arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being...

When he was alone, those who were around him along with the twelve asked him about the parables. And he said to them, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside, everything comes in parables; in order that ‘they may indeed look, but not perceive,
and...

Jesus departed with his disciples to the lake, and a great multitude from Galilee followed him; hearing all that he was doing, they came to him in great numbers from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, beyond the Jordan, and the region around Tyre and Sidon. He told his disciples to have a boat ready...

The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I don’t know if he knew it or not, but Mark was actually inventing a whole new literary category with this opening sentence. Actually, it’s not even a sentence – no verb – but more of a phrase, almost a title. But with it...

The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. We noticed earlier that the closing scene of Mark’s Gospel brings us back to the beginning: the young man in white instructs the women to tell the disciples that he is going ahead of them to Galilee, just as he told them....

So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. So let’s assume this is really where Mark wanted to end his account. The obvious question is why? Well, consider: the failure of these women is nothing...

So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. We mentioned yesterday how unsatisfying Mark’s ending is. After all, the women at the tomb received a) a clear “good news signal” and b) were given...