Hello, welcome to the podcast, Bible Wisdom Today. My name is Stan Watkins.

The Bible has always been an important foundation for my personal faith, leading me to complete a Bible degree and enter Christian ministry, ultimately going with my wife and family to Europe for 6 years. There I served in the areas of Bible teaching and music. Since returning to the states, I have supported my local church as I have had opportunity, but now I would like a more regular outlet for teaching God’s word.

Understanding the Bible is not simply a matter of belief that it is God’s word. The Bible was written long ago, in a foreign language, within an alien culture, using unfamiliar literary styles. Today’s Bible student must overcome each of these obstacles. This podcast is for those willing to do the hard work to discover God's wisdom for life today.

In our last episode we came to the climax of Jesus’ life story that we had long anticipated, as Jesus gave his life for our salvation. He endured scourging, mocking, crucifixion and abandonment because of his steadfast devotion to the purpose of God. Both Jesus and his divine father committed to make a way for us to have a relationship with God. Today, we come to our final episode in the gospel of Mark, “Jesus’ empty tomb.” First we will study Mark’s account of Jesus’ resurrection, then we will examine an important textual question at the end of Mark’s narrative. I also will offer some personal reflections as we end our study in this earliest gospel.

Devotion at the tomb (15:40-16:8)

As we open our Bibles, today, we find ourselves at the end of Mark’s gospel and his final literary sandwich. We have encountered this form of writing throughout our study, where Mark interposes a second story into the middle of another story, to drive home the point by offering a counterbalancing perspective. 

Let’s begin reading with chapter 15, verse 40.

Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joseph, and Salome. In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there.
 Mark 15:40-41

Mark introduces us, here, to “some women.” They were now the only faithful followers of Jesus after his chosen disciples fled. They were faithful, yet fearful. They watched Jesus’ crucifixion from a distance. As followers of this convict, they could not dare to get too close. Jesus commended watchfulness in his sermon on the Mount of Olives, but this watching is not that purposeful gaze. In all other places in Mark, this kind of watching is always detached observation. 

First, we meet Mary Magdalene. She was from Magdala on the northwest side of the lake of Galilee. Luke tells us that Jesus had driven seven demons out of her. She was likely the leader of the women disciples.

Second, we see Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joseph. The mother of Jesus is described similarly in Mark 6:3, but this Mary is probably the mother of James, the son of Alphaeus, called here “James the younger” to distinguish him from James the brother of John. Also among the group was Salome, generally identified as the wife of Zebedee and the mother of the brothers James and John. These and other women had followed Jesus from Galilee and cared for his needs. The imperfect verb tense shows that they were always present and always serving Jesus. These unchosen disciples remained to the bitter end, even if they did watch from a distance.

Let’s read now the central section of our sandwich narrative, beginning in verse 42.

It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached, Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph saw where he was laid.
 Mark 15:42-47

Here we move from the private devotion of the women to the public boldness of Joseph.

Jesus died around 3:00 in the afternoon and had to be buried by sunset, so his followers felt great urgency to attend to Jesus’ body before the Sabbath began. Roman custom was to allow crucified criminals to hang on their cross until they decayed as further warning to others, but the body might be given to relatives or friends if requested. Jews, on the other hand, considered burial a godly ritual, which must be completed before sundown. In a brief three hours they had to get Pilate’s permission, buy linen for a burial shroud and spices, take down the body, and anoint and bury it.

We now meet a man named Joseph who undertook this task. He was a prominent member of the council, the Sanhedrin council who had condemned Jesus. He was honorable and powerful. His reputation as a council member allowed him to get an audience with Pilate. The Sanhedrin’s decision to condemn Jesus had been unanimous, so Joseph apparently was not at that earlier meeting. Luke says specifically that he had not consented to their action. 

Joseph was from the town of Arimathea, apparently a variant of Ramah, 20 miles northwest of Jerusalem. Mark describes him as “waiting for the kingdom of God,” but Matthew and John both describe him explicitly as a covert disciple. It took courage to request the body of someone executed as an enemy of the state. It also would get him into trouble with his fellow council members, but Joseph went boldly to Pilate. This member of the antagonistic Sanhedrin now became an open protagonist for Jesus.

Pilate was surprised to hear that Jesus was already dead. Crucified men often died slowly, even over two days, so Jesus quick death was extraordinary. He surrendered his life at the time he chose. Roman law demanded that the victim be truly dead, so Pilate waited for confirmation from the centurion before releasing the body. His official testimony of Jesus’ death and Joseph’s burial of the body assured Mark’s readers that Jesus was really dead. Some skeptics try to suggest that Jesus merely fainted on the cross and then revived in the cool tomb, but during their centuries in power, the Romans crucified hundreds of thousands of people, and they made sure that every single one was dead.

It was highly unusual to release the body of someone condemned for high treason, especially to a non-relative, but Pilate made an exception in this case. Apparently, he did not consider Jesus to be an ordinary criminal. The body was hastily wrapped in linen and placed in a tomb. Matthew adds that the tomb was Joseph’s own tomb. Tombs were cut out of rock or natural caves which were enlarged. The Jewish Mishnah specifies a burial vault 6 x 9 feet, with shelf-like niches. Nearly a thousand such tombs have been discovered around Jerusalem[1]. After the flesh decomposed, bones would be removed and placed in a box beneath the niches so the shelf could be reused. Burial caves were sealed by rolling a large disk-shaped stone over the opening, sealing in ritual impurities and keeping animals and grave robbers out. It would take several men to roll such a stone.

The first step of preparing the body was ritual washing, then they wrapped it in a lengthy linen cloth with spices and perfumes. Finally, a face cloth was wrapped around the head. Because of the late hour, Joseph postponed the anointing with spices until after the Sabbath. While Joseph completed his devotion to Jesus, two of the women who had watched at the cross also watched where he was laid. Mark names these women three times, since they were official witnesses of Jesus death, burial, and what came after.

We will continue reading at chapter 16, verse 1.

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?” 
 But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.
 “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’” 
 Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.
 Mark 16:1-8

Mark names the women for the third time because they were verified witnesses. Jesus was really dead, and he was really raised to life. The presence of the women in the story makes the resurrection of Jesus even more reliable. In the first century, the testimony of women was discounted. If the early church were just making up a story, they would not have relied on women as witnesses.

These women bought spices after sundown on Saturday, in preparation for anointing the body the following morning. This anointing was not to prevent the body from decay, which was the custom in Egypt, but to perfume the decaying corpse as an act of devotion. 

Mark specifies that Sunday was the day of resurrection. The women left their lodgings after sunrise, which means they could see where they were going. They did not go to the wrong tomb, as some may claim. The rising sun also alludes to the dawn of a new age. 

As they walked along, they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away.” Since all the disciples were hiding, the women were left to chance to find some workers nearby who might help them roll the stone. In their grief and haste, they had forgotten to bring anyone else along. Their problem was solved, however, in a way they could never have imagined. When they arrived, the entrance to the tomb was already open. Mark does not say how the stone was removed but the passive expression “had been rolled away” points to God, who has been sovereign all along throughout Jesus’ suffering.

Immediately after going inside, they would have come into an entry room, with a low, rectangular opening in the back going into the burial chamber. Sitting on the right side they saw a young man dressed in a white robe. This description, along with the women’s fearful reaction, indicates that he was an angel.  t means that they were filled with fear and wonder, astonishment and distress. The same word is used in the description of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, when he was “deeply distressed.” The women would not have reacted this way to a purely human encounter.

With compassion, the angel addressed their fear, “Don’t be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified.” The term “Nazarene” emphasizes his humble origins and prepares for the coming reference to the region of Galilee. The women were well-meaning, devout, but badly mistaken. They were looking for a corpse, but the crucified one was now the risen one.

“He has risen!” the angel corrects the women. More correctly that might be translated “He was raised,” again using the divine passive form. Jesus did not rise on his own; He was resurrected by God.

“See the place where they laid him,” continued the one in white. The women had seen Jesus laid to rest. The stone was moved, not to let Jesus out, but to let the women in to see his empty resting place. This did not prove that Jesus was resurrected. Their senses only told them that his body was no longer there. They needed the message of the angel to explain what they saw.

The angel continued, “Go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee.’” The angel commissions them to be the first ambassadors of the resurrection. He singles out Peter for special mention because of Peter’s confident boasting and repeated denials. Jesus’ first act of ministry had been calling four fishermen to join a new community with himself; the first act of the resurrected Jesus was reconvening that same community. If the resurrected Jesus included a traitor like Peter, then Mark’s first readers could be assured that he also welcomed members of their oppressed community who may have failed. In the same way, we too can be sure that he has grace for us when we miss the mark.

Jesus earlier ministry in Galilee had been quite successful. In fact, Jesus’ opposition only came from outside his home area. It is not surprising then that the angel promises that Jesus would meet his disciples in Galilee. This is where Jesus called his disciples, appointed them and sent them on mission. Now it will be the place where they will be reinstated and recommissioned for wider mission beyond the Jewish community. This was not the first time Jesus had announced that he would meet them in Galilee. Just before his arrest in Gethsemane, Jesus foretold,

“You will all fall away…
 But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”
 Mark 14:27-28

And now, we are told, “the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid” (16:8). Fear in the presence of a divine manifestation, like the angel, makes perfect sense. In fact, that is the repeated reaction throughout scripture, whenever human limitation meets God’s supernatural nature. This is not just fear, however, but holy awe. Mark says that they said nothing to anyone, but this does not mean that they never said anything forever. After all, we have heard their story. Rather, they said nothing to anyone while they were on their way to tell Peter and the disciples as they had been commanded. They were obedient to their commission.

This final paragraph brings Mark to a close. We see the devotion of Joseph of Arimathea, who bravely went to Pilate to request the body of Jesus, and we see the devotion of the women who came to the tomb to honor Jesus but left with the incredible news of his resurrection. This message provides the foundation of the church’s mission and the basis for our individual faith.

The ending of Mark

Perhaps you say, “Wait! In my Bible there are 12 more verses. Aren’t you going to talk about them?” Yes, I will, but this brings us to a controversy in Biblical studies. How does the book of Mark actually end?

In the New International Version, which is the version I generally read, there is this note between verses 8 and 9, “The earliest manuscripts and some other ancient witnesses do not have verses 9-20.” Nearly all modern translations will include a similar note, either within the text or in a footnote. Why would our Bible translators need to include such a note?

Most Bible scholars agree that what we see in our Bibles as verses 9-20 was not part of Mark’s original gospel. I will call this the longer ending of Mark. They base this conclusion on manuscript evidence and literary criticism.

In terms of manuscript evidence, the Greek text of the New Testament is based on more than 5000 manuscripts dating from AD 135-1200. In general, they show remarkable agreement, except for the ending of Mark. This is the most difficult textual problem in the New Testament, which is why we need to spend time to discuss it. The two oldest manuscripts of the Bible do not contain the longer ending. Those two manuscripts are called codex Vaticanus, which is maintained in the Vatican library, and codex Sinaiticus, which for years was maintained at St. Catherines Monastery at the base of Mount Sinai. Several other early versions and translations omit the longer ending as well. Two of the early church fathers, Clement of Alexandria and Origen of Alexandria, both in the late 100s or early 200s A.D. show no awareness of the longer ending. Two other church leaders, Eusebius, the earliest church historian around AD 300 and Jerome, an early theologian and Bible translator around AD 400, are aware of the longer ending but say that it was absent from most of the Greek copies of Mark known to them. Those early manuscripts which do include it often indicate through scribal notes or markings that it is not a reliable part of the original text. Even though most ancient manuscripts do include the longer ending, that does not make up for this strong textual evidence against it in the earliest documents. In other words, we place more weight on the earlier texts than later copies.

In addition to the manuscript evidence against the originality of the longer ending, we can add the arguments of literary criticism. First, the connection between verse 8 and verse 9 is disjointed. Let me read those two verses aloud.

Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid. When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons.
 Mark 16:8-9

In verse 8, the women run frightened from the tomb. In verse 9, Jesus has already appeared to Mary Magdalene, and furthermore she is introduced like a new person in the story, even though she has just been named three times. 

Additionally, the literary style of verses 9-20 is quite different from the rest of Mark. Mark prefers to call Jesus by his simple name, Jesus, in the rest of his gospel, but in the longer ending, in verses 19-20, he is referred to as “Lord Jesus” or simply “Lord.” This sort of reverential naming probably came from later Christian worship tradition. Also, the longer ending has a definite emphasis on signs and wonders, which is a stark contrast with Mark’s insistence that seeking signs shows a lack of faith.

This evidence leads the vast majority of Biblical scholars to consider the longer ending an addition to the gospel of Mark. Although it is not original, it is still very old. The earliest reference to it is from about AD 145, less than 100 years after the probable date of Mark’s writing somewhere between AD 65 and 70. We should read this longer ending to understand the perspective of the early church, but not as an inspired portion of Mark’s gospel. Since the longer ending includes references to all the other gospels as well as Acts, Colossians, 1 Timothy, Hebrews and James, the church must have begun collecting these writings by this time. Perhaps a comparison to the other gospels led the church to conclude that Mark was deficient, since it did not include a resurrection appearance like all the others. In response, the church added this summary of resurrection appearances with the chief theme of calling disciples from unbelief.

Let’s read this longer ending together and I will make brief comments. In verses 9-11 we have a resurrection appearance to Mary Magdalene.

When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. She went and told those who had been with him and who were mourning and weeping. When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it.
 Mark 16:9-11

Mary Magdalene is found among the first witnesses of the resurrection in all four gospels. The reference to her exorcism of seven demons comes from Luke 8, her report to the disciples from John 20, and the report of the disciples’ disbelief from Luke 24. Notice that the disciples’ grief did not lead them to faith.

The next two verses tell of Jesus appearance to two travelers.

Afterward Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them while they were walking in the country. These returned and reported it to the rest; but they did not believe them either.
 Mark 16:12-13

This story is recalled in a fuller version in Luke 24. The summary here says that Jesus appeared “in a different form” to these two men, explaining why Jesus was not recognized in Luke’s story. In this way, the longer ending of Mark becomes the earliest New Testament commentary we have. 

The disciples were not inclined to believe the men either. The longer ending gives three testimonies to the disbelieving disciples in order of increasing authority, one woman, two men, then finally the resurrected Jesus himself. Reading from verse 14:

Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen. 
 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”
 Mark 16:14-18

Jesus appearance to the Eleven as they were eating recalls similar stories in Luke 24 and John 20. Jesus commission to “Go into all the world” sounds much like his instruction at the end of Matthew 28. The idea that the disciples should preach the gospel to all creation is a frequent theme in Paul’s epistles. In Colossians 1:23 Paul says that the gospel “has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven.” In other words, the good news of Jesus is not only for Jews but for all people. Jesus’ message here is in line with the early church preaching that faith and baptism are linked in the process of salvation. The message of Jesus also has eternal consequences in separating the saved and the condemned. In a similar vein, the gospel of John says in chapter 3 verse 17, “God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

As mentioned before, the longer ending places a strong emphasis on powerful signs that will accompany the gospel. All but one of the phenomena mentioned here are reported in the book of Acts and some are also discussed in the New Testament letters. There is no mention of drinking deadly poison in the New Testament, but the early church historian, Eusebius, tells a story about Justus Barsabas, who is mentioned in Acts 1:23. He reportedly drank poison without harm. Handling deadly snakes is recorded in Acts 28, concerning Paul, who found refuge from his wrecked ship on the island of Malta. A deadly viper was driven out of a burning pile of brush and fastened itself on Paul’s hand, but he suffered no effect.

The longer ending concludes with a summary of Jesus ascension into heaven.

After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God. Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.
 Mark 16:19-20

The description of the ascension combines Luke’s report at the end of his gospel and the beginning of his book of Acts with the description of “sitting at God’s right hand” from Psalm 110:1. The account of the disciples going out and preaching everywhere summarizes the book of Acts and the proper place of signs as confirmation is also described in Hebrews 2. Confirmation through signs was certainly true in the first century and is still true in many places today. In the modern West, however, such phenomena are often skeptically viewed as superstitions.

Even though the longer ending of Mark is useful as a summary of Jesus resurrection appearances and a synopsis of the beliefs of the early church, only a tiny minority of Bible scholars believe that it is actually Mark’s original ending. Many Christians around the world are likely unaware of this issue and simply read it as if it were part of Mark’s text because it is printed in their Bibles. I want you to be equipped to consider this question with understanding.

In addition to those few who hold that the longer ending is the original ending of Mark, there are two other views. The first view is that Mark always intended his gospel to end at chapter 16 verse 8. When we discussed Mark’s last paragraph earlier, I showed that that ending would be a reasonable ending. Even though there is no resurrection appearance of Christ there is a resurrection announcement, and that is sufficient. Some suggest that Mark intentionally ended his gospel in an open-ended fashion so that each reader could supply their own faith response. “How should I personally respond to the evidence of Jesus resurrection?” This might fit with our modern sensibilities, but it does not fit in well with ancient literature. It was customary in ancient literature to resolve all conflicts, not leave them hanging.

Another view of the ending of Mark is that he did not intend to end his gospel at 16:8. Either he left it unfinished or the original ending was lost. This is the view that I would prefer to hold, but I want to state right up front that there is no hard evidence for this viewpoint.

Several reasons have been suggested as to why it is unlikely that Mark intended 16:8 to be the end of his gospel. First, verse 8 seems to break off in mid-sentence, ending with a conjunction, in Greek. While this sometimes occurs in Greek sentences, there are only three books in all Greek literature that end in this way[2]. If we translated it into English retaining this awkwardness, it might be something like this: “They said nothing to anyone. They were afraid because…”

A second reason why it is unlikely that Mark intended to end his gospel with verse 8 is that he has led us to expect a resurrection appearance, specifically a resurrection appearance in Galilee. In 16:7, the angel told the women, “’He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’” Earlier, Jesus had told his disciples, “You will all fall away, …but after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee” (Mark 14:27-28). Would Mark really have previewed a resurrection appearance of Jesus without planning to include it? 

A third reason is that ending the gospel with the fear of the women would not have inspired hope for Mark’s original Roman readers, oppressed by Roman persecution.  Could a Gospel that began with a bold announcement of Jesus as the son of God in the first sentence really end on a note of fear and panic?

These are strong reasons to suspect that Mark did not intend to end his gospel with 16:8, but we cannot base a conclusive theory on what is lacking. It is easy to imagine ways Mark might have left his gospel unfinished. Perhaps he planned to write a second volume, as Luke did with the book of Acts but never got around to it. Perhaps Mark died or was martyred before he could complete his writing. 

But if Mark had actually written his intended ending, how could it have been lost? If Mark was written as a codex, an ancient hand-crafted book, then the last page could easily get lost through wear and tear. Anyone who has accidentally torn off the last page of a paperback book can understand how this could happen. Ancient writers began to embrace the codex as a cheaper, easier technology than the older scroll format beginning in the first century AD, and Christians were particularly early adopters. Mark was written during this transition period from scroll to codex. If he had written on a scroll, on the other hand, it is less likely that the ending could have torn off, since the ending was usually rolled to the middle and attached to a rod for turning.

One intriguing suggestion is that we might plausibly reconstruct the original ending of Mark from text at the end of Matthew. Most modern scholars believe that Matthew used Mark as one of his source texts. His description of the empty tomb matches Mark’s almost word for word through Mark 16:8. Matthew’s story goes on, however, and this also could be based on Mark as his source text. 

In Mark, the authority of Jesus is one of his signature motifs, and Matthew has included them all. Matthew’s final reference to Jesus’ authority in the last few verses of his gospel may also have been gleaned from Mark’s original ending. Let me read that ending from Matthew,

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
 Matthew 28:18-20

The longer ending of Mark also includes a version of Jesus’ great commission similar to Matthew’s story. Did the early church have a shared memory of Mark’s original lost ending when they wrote the longer ending for it? These last words in Matthew refer to the end of the age. That would fit very well in Mark, if that had been his original ending. Mark begins his gospel with “The beginning of the good news about Jesus.” Given Mark’s skill as an author, which we have observed throughout our study, and his preference for symmetrical structures, which we have seen in his many “sandwich” narratives, it is easy to imagine that he might very well start his gospel with “the beginning” and conclude with “the end.” This is only a strong suggestion, not proof, but this possibility thrills and excites me!

Personal reflections

We have been on a long journey together through this exciting, trendsetting first gospel. I have taught this book before, but I learned new things this time through. That is the way it is when you study the Bible. Because it is God’s word it continues to be a living word to you. God desperately wants you to know him and he knows that you cannot understand everything he wants to teach you in one lesson. Every time you return to a section you have studied before you see it differently, because God has more that he wants to teach you.

One of the aspects of Mark’s gospel that impressed me this time was Mark’s skill as an author. I had seen this before, but studying how best to communicate it brought it home even more. One example of his skill is his frequent use of narrative sandwiches throughout the book. This is an unmistakable element of his personal writing style and as you continue to read through the book you begin to expect them without someone pointing them out. 

These sandwiches are just one example of Mark’s penchant for balanced elements. The entire gospel is crafted as a journey from Galilee to Jerusalem. In the beginning Galilee section, he breaks into the narrative about halfway through with an extended period of teaching in parables. In the ending Jerusalem section, Mark again breaks into the narrative to relate Jesus’ teaching about the end of the age. Mark also uses important declarations to mark out his outline. At the beginning of the Galilee section Jesus announces, “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!” (1:14). At the beginning of the middle section narrating the journey from Galilee to Jerusalem, Peter declares regarding Jesus, “You are the Messiah” (8:29). Finally, at the end of Mark’s Jerusalem section, the centurion at the foot of the cross proclaims, “Surely this man was the Son of God!” (15:39).

Mark develops various themes as motifs throughout his writing, one of which is the identity of Jesus. He begins by announcing that Jesus is the Son of God, and a voice from heaven reinforces that truth at Jesus’ baptism. Throughout the Galilee section Mark emphasizes the authority of Jesus, which demonstrates who he is as God’s son. In the final Jerusalem section, Mark focuses on the suffering of Jesus, which so surprised Jesus’ followers, but was a secret aspect of God’s purpose for Jesus. It was only after seeing Jesus’ work of salvation that his followers truly understood his divine identity.

In addition to the identity of Jesus, another important theme in Mark is the meaning of discipleship. Repeatedly we see the disciples’ misunderstanding, failure, abandonment and betrayal. In the face of this, Jesus challenges them over and over to deeper commitment. “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” (8:34). “Anyone who wants to be first must be the very last, and the servant of all” (9:35). In contrast to the disciple’s repeated failure, blind Bartimaeus receives his sight and immediately follows Jesus along the road toward his death. By using these repeated motifs, Mark allows us to think our way through the gospel and construct a focused, vivid picture of the Son of God.

Closing Comments

In this episode we observed the devotion of Jesus followers at the tomb. The crucifixion of Jesus jolted Joseph of Arimathea into bold action to give Jesus’ body a proper burial. 

The women who watched his crucifixion also planned to honor his earthly body but instead became the unexpected first heralds of his resurrection. We also spent time discussing the questions surrounding the ending of the gospel of Mark. However Mark originally planned to end his gospel, Mark makes Jesus’ resurrection clear. As the angel announced, “He is risen! …See the place where they laid him.”

If you have found this podcast helpful, I would appreciate your help in expanding its reach. One of the best ways to assist is by recommending it to your friends. The easiest way to do this is to go to the podcast website, biblewisdomtoday.com, copy that link and then share it with your friend, along with your comment. Your personal recommendation is powerful. I look forward to spending time again with you, soon, along with your friends. Thank you for your help in growing this Bible Wisdom Today family.

[1] Edwards, J. R. (2002). The Gospel According to Mark (Pillar New Testament Commentary). Eerdmans.

[2] Edwards