Gospel of Mark with explanation. Large Christian library. Key passages in the Holy Gospel of Mark

The Holy Gospel of Mark was written in Rome ten years after the Ascension of Christ. This Mark was a student and follower of Petrov, whom Peter even calls his son, of course, spiritual. He was also called John; was a nephew of Barnabas; accompanied the Apostle Paul. But for the most part he was with Peter, with whom he was also in Rome. Therefore the faithful at Rome asked him not only to preach to them without Scripture, but also to set down for them the works and life of Christ in Scripture; He barely agreed to this, however, he wrote. Meanwhile, it was revealed to Peter by God; that Mark wrote the Gospel. Peter testified that it was true. Then he sent Mark as a bishop to Egypt, where with his preaching he founded a church in Alexandria and enlightened everyone living in the midday country.
The distinctive features of this Gospel are clarity and the absence of anything difficult to understand. Moreover, the real evangelist is almost similar to Matthew, except that it is shorter, and Matthew is more extensive, and that Matthew at the beginning mentions the Nativity of the Lord in the flesh, and Mark began with the prophet John. Hence, some, not without reason, see the following sign in the evangelists: God, sitting on the cherubim, whom Scripture depicts as four-faced (Ezek. 1:6), taught us a fourfold Gospel, animated by one spirit. So, each of the cherubim has one face that is called like a lion, another like a man, a third like an eagle, and a fourth like a calf; so it is in the matter of evangelical preaching. The Gospel of John has the face of a lion, for the lion is the image of royal power; so John began with royal and sovereign dignity, with the Divinity of the Word, saying: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God.” The Gospel of Matthew has a human face because it begins with the carnal birth and incarnation of the Word. The Gospel of Mark is compared to an eagle because it begins with a prophecy about John, and the gift of prophetic grace, as the gift of acute vision and insight into the distant future, can be likened to an eagle, which is said to be gifted with the keenest vision, so that it alone Of all the animals, without closing his eyes, he looks at the sun. The Gospel of Luke is like a calf because it begins with the priestly ministry of Zechariah, who offered incense for the sins of the people; then they also sacrificed the calf.
So, Mark begins the Gospel with a prophecy and a prophetic life. Listen to what he says!

The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as it is written in the prophets: Behold, I send My angel before Thy face, who will prepare Thy way before Thee. The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight.
The evangelist presents John, the last of the prophets, as the beginning of the Gospel of the Son of God, because the end of the Old Testament is the beginning of the New Testament. As for the testimony of the Forerunner, it is taken from two prophets - from Malachi: “Behold, I am sending My angel, and he will prepare the way before Me” (3:1) and from Isaiah: “The voice of one crying in the wilderness” (40:3) And so on. These are the words of God the Father to the Son. He calls the Forerunner an Angel for his angelic and almost ethereal life and for the announcement and indication of the coming Christ. John prepared the way of the Lord, preparing the souls of the Jews through baptism to accept Christ: “before Your face” means Your Angel is close to You. This signifies the closeness of the Forerunner to Christ, since even before kings, primarily related persons are honored. “The voice of one crying in the wilderness,” that is, in the Jordanian desert, and even more so in the Jewish synagogue, which was empty in relation to good. Path means New Testament, "paths" - Old, as repeatedly violated by the Jews. They had to prepare for the path, that is, for the New Testament, and correct the paths of the Old, for although they had accepted them in ancient times, they later turned away from their paths and got lost.
John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And the whole country of Judea and the people of Jerusalem came out to him, and they were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.
John's baptism did not have remission of sins, but introduced only repentance for people. But how does Mark say here: “for the forgiveness of sins”? To this we answer that John preached a baptism of repentance. What was the point of this sermon? To the remission of sins, that is, to the baptism of Christ, which already included the remission of sins. When we say, for example, that such and such came before the king, commanding that food be prepared for the king, we mean that those who fulfill this command are favored by the king. So it is here. The Forerunner preached the baptism of repentance so that people, having repented and accepted Christ, would receive remission of sins.
John wore clothes made of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist, and ate locusts and wild honey.
We already talked about this in the Gospel of Matthew; now we will only say about what is omitted there, namely: that John’s clothing was a sign of mourning, and the prophet showed in this way that the repentant should cry, since sackcloth usually serves as a sign of crying; the leather belt meant the deadness of the Jewish people. And that these clothes meant crying, the Lord himself speaks about this: “We sang sad songs to you (Slavic “lamentation”), and you did not cry,” calling here the life of the Forerunner weeping, because he further says: “John came without eating, neither drinks; and they say, “He has a devil” (Matthew 11:17-18). Likewise, the food of John, pointing here, of course, to abstinence, was at the same time an image of the spiritual food of the Jews of that time, who did not eat clean birds of the air, that is, did not think about anything lofty, but fed only on the word exalted and aimed at grief, but again falling to the ground . For locusts (“locusts”) are an insect that jumps up and then falls to the ground again. In the same way, the people ate honey produced by bees, that is, prophets; but it remained with him without care and was not increased by deepening and correct understanding, although the Jews thought that they understood and comprehended the Scripture. They had the Scriptures, like some honey, but they did not labor at them and did not study them.
And he preached, saying: He who is mightier than I is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down to untie; I baptized you with water, and He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.
“I,” he says, “are not worthy to be even His lowest servant, who would untie the belt, that is, the knot on the strap of his boots. They understand, however, this: everyone who came and was baptized by John was released through repentance from the bonds of their sins when they believed in Christ. Thus, John loosed the belts and bonds of sin in everyone, but in Jesus he could not loose such a belt, because this belt, that is, sin, was not found with Him.
And it came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And when he came out of the water, John immediately saw the heavens opening and the Spirit like a dove descending on Him. And a voice came from heaven: You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
Jesus does not come to baptism for the remission of sins, for He did not create sin, nor to receive the Holy Spirit, for how could John’s baptism bestow the Spirit when it did not cleanse sins, as I said? But He did not go to be baptized for repentance, since He was greater than the Baptist himself (Matthew 11:11). So, why does it come? No doubt, so that John would announce Him to the people. Since many flocked there, He deigned to come in order to be testified before many who He is, and at the same time in order to fulfill “all righteousness,” that is, all the commandments of the Law. Since obedience to the baptizing prophet, as sent from God, was also a commandment , then Christ fulfills this commandment as well. The Spirit descends not because Christ has a need for this (for in essence He abides in Him), but so that you know that the Holy Spirit also descends on you at baptism. When the Holy Spirit descends, it is immediately spoken and testimony. Since the Father spoke from above: “You are My Son,” so that those who heard would not think that He was speaking about John, the Spirit descended on Jesus, showing that this was said about Him. And the heavens were opened so that we might know that they are also revealed to us when we are baptized.
Immediately after this, the Spirit leads Him into the wilderness. And He was there in the wilderness for forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the beasts; and Angels served Him.
Teaching us not to lose heart when, after baptism, we fall into temptation, the Lord goes up into the mountain to face temptation, or, better yet, does not go away, but is led away by the Holy Spirit, showing through the fact that we ourselves should not fall into temptation, but accept them when they come. befall us. And he goes up the mountain so that, due to the desolation of the place, the devil will have boldness and can approach Him; for he usually attacks when he sees that we are alone. The place of temptation was so wild that there were many animals there. The angels began to serve Him after He defeated the tempter. All this is stated in more detail in the Gospel of Matthew.
After John was betrayed, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and saying that the time is fulfilled and the Kingdom of God is at hand: repent and believe in the Gospel.
Having heard that John had been handed over to prison, Jesus retired to Galilee, in order to show us that we should not fall into temptation ourselves, but avoid them, and when we fall, endure. Christ preaches, apparently, the same thing as John, something like: “repent” and “the Kingdom of God is at hand.” But in fact, it is not the same thing: John says “repent” in order to turn away from sins, and Christ says “repent” in order to lag behind the letter of the Law, which is why he added: “believe in the Gospel,” for he whoever wants to believe according to the Gospel has already abolished the Law. The Lord says that “the time is fulfilled” for the Law. Hitherto, he says, the Law was in action, but from now on the Kingdom of God comes, life according to the Gospel. This life is rightly presented as the “Kingdom” of Heaven, for when you see that someone who lives according to the Gospel behaves almost as if incorporeal, how can you not say that he already has the Kingdom of Heaven (where there is no food or drink), although it seems to still exist? far.
As he passed near the Sea of ​​Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting nets into the sea, for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men. And they immediately left their nets and followed Him. And having gone a little way from there, He saw James Zebedee and John his brother also in a boat mending nets; and immediately called them. And they, leaving their father Zebedee in the boat with the workers, followed Him.
Peter and Andrew were at first disciples of the Forerunner, and when they saw Jesus testified by John, they joined Him. Then, when John was betrayed, they went back to their previous occupation with sorrow. So, Christ now calls them a second time, for the real calling is already the second. Notice that they were nourished by their righteous works, and not by their unrighteous activities. Such people were worth being the first disciples of Christ. Immediately leaving what was in their hands, they followed Him; for one must not delay, but must follow immediately. After these he catches James and John. And these, although they themselves were poor, nevertheless supported their elderly father. But they left their father not because leaving parents is a good deed, but because he wanted to prevent them from following the Lord. So you, when your parents hinder you, leave them and follow the Good. Apparently, Zebedee did not believe, but the mother of these apostles believed and, when Zebedee died, she also followed the Lord. Take this into account, too, that action is called first, and then contemplation, for Peter is the image of action, because he was of a fiery character and always warned others about what is characteristic of action; John, on the contrary, represents contemplation in himself, for he was a theologian par excellence.
And they come to Capernaum; and soon on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught. And they marveled at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
Where did you come to Capernaum from? From Nazareth, and on the Sabbath day. When they usually gathered to read the law, then Christ came to teach. For the Law also commanded to celebrate the Sabbath, so that people would read, gathering together for this purpose. The Lord taught accusatoryly, and not flatteringly, like the Pharisees: he urged them to do good, and threatened those who disobeyed with torment.
In their synagogue there was a man possessed by an unclean spirit, and he cried out: leave him alone! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? You have come to destroy us! I know You, who You are, the Holy One of God. But Jesus rebuked him, saying: Be silent and come out of him. Then the unclean spirit, shaking him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him. And everyone was horrified, so they asked each other: what is this? What is this new teaching that He commands even the unclean spirits with authority, and they obey Him? And soon rumors about Him spread throughout the entire region in Galilee.
Evil spirits are called “unclean” because they love all kinds of unclean things. The demon considers leaving a person to be “destruction” for himself. Evil demons generally blame themselves for suffering when they are not allowed to do evil to people. Moreover, being carnal and accustomed to enjoying substances, they seem to suffer great hunger when they do not live in bodies. That is why the Lord says that the demonic race is driven out by fasting. The unclean one did not say to Christ: You are holy, since many of the prophets were holy, but he said “Holy One,” that is, the Only One, Holy in His essence. But Christ forces him to remain silent, so that we know that demons must stop their mouths, even if they speak the truth. The demon rushes and violently shakes the one possessed by it, so that eyewitnesses, seeing the calamity the person is being delivered from, will believe for the sake of the miracle.
Soon leaving the synagogue, they came to the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John. Simonov's mother-in-law was in a fever; and immediately they tell Him about her. Approaching, He lifted her up, taking her hand; and the fever immediately left her, and she began to serve them.
By Saturday evening, as usual, the Lord went to the disciples’ house to eat. Meanwhile, the one who was supposed to serve in this regard was overcome with fever. But the Lord heals her, and she begins to serve them. These words make it clear that you, when God heals you from an illness, must use your health to serve the saints and to please God. Being possessed is a kind of fever, and a person is angry and out of anger becomes bold with his hands. But if the word holds his hand and meekly stretches it out, then the one previously burned with anger begins to serve the word. For the angry one, when the word restrains his hand, rebels, and thus anger serves the word.
When evening came, when the sun set, they brought to Him all the sick and demon-possessed. And the whole city gathered at the door. And He healed many who were suffering from various diseases; He cast out many demons, and did not allow the demons to say that they knew that He was the Christ.
It is not without reason that it was added: “when the sun set.” Since they thought that it was impermissible to heal on the Sabbath, they waited until sunset and then began to bring the sick for healing. “He healed many,” it is said instead of “all,” because all make up a multitude; or: he did not heal everyone because some turned out to be unbelievers, who were not healed for their unbelief, but he healed “many” of those brought, that is, those who had faith. He did not allow demons to speak in order, as I said, to teach us not to believe them, even if they spoke the truth. Otherwise, if they find someone who completely trusts them, then what the damned ones won’t do, mixing lies with the truth! So Paul forbade the inquisitive spirit to say: “These people are servants of the Most High God”; The Holy Man did not want to hear feedback and testimony from unclean lips.
And in the morning, getting up very early, he went out and retired to a deserted place, and there he prayed. Simon and those who were with him followed Him and, having found Him, they said to Him: everyone is looking for You. He says to them: let us go to the neighboring villages and cities so that I can preach there too, for this is why I came. And He preached in their synagogues throughout Galilee and cast out demons.
After healing the sick, the Lord goes to a secluded place, teaching us not to do anything for show, but if we do any good, we should hasten to hide it. And He also prays in order to show us that whatever good we do must be attributed to God and said to Him: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is coming down from above, from the Father of lights” (James 1:17). Christ Himself did not even need to pray. Further, when the people sought and greatly desired Him, He does not give itself to Him, although it accepts it with favor, but also goes to others in need of healing and instruction. For the work of teaching should not be limited to one place, but the rays of the word must be scattered everywhere. But look how He combines action with teaching: He preaches, and then casts out demons. So teach and do things together, so that your word is not in vain. Otherwise, if Christ had not shown miracles at the same time, then His word would not have been believed.
A leper comes to Him and, begging Him and falling on his knees before Him, says to Him: if you want, you can cleanse me. Jesus, having compassion on him, stretched out his hand, touched him and said to him: I want you to be clean. After this word, the leprosy immediately left him, and he became clean.
The leper was prudent and believed; therefore he did not say: if you ask God; but believing in Him as God, he said: “if you want.” Christ touches him as a sign that nothing is unclean. The law forbade touching a leper as unclean; but the Savior, wanting to show that there is nothing unclean by nature, that the requirements of the Law should be abolished and that they have power only over people, touches the leper - while Elisha was so afraid of the Law that he did not even want to see Naaman, the leper who asked healing.
And, looking at him sternly, he immediately sent him away and said to him: See that you don’t say anything to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them. And he, going out, began to proclaim and tell about what had happened, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside, in deserted places. And they came to Him from everywhere.
And from this we also learn not to show off ourselves when we show kindness to someone, for Jesus Himself commands the one who has purified himself not to talk about Him. Although He knew that he would not listen and would divulge it, however, as I said, teaching us not to love vanity, he orders us not to tell anyone. But on the other hand, anyone who has benefited should be grateful and grateful, even if his benefactor does not need it. So the leper divulges the good deed he has received, despite the fact that the Lord did not tell him to. Christ sends him to the priest, because according to the command of the Law, a leper could only enter the city by a priestly announcement about his cleansing from leprosy, otherwise he had to be expelled from the city. At the same time, the Lord commands him to bring a gift, as those who were purified as usual brought: this is evidence that He is not an opponent of the Law, on the contrary, He values ​​it so much that He commands to fulfill what is commanded in the Law.

A few days later He came again to Capernaum; and it was heard that He was in the house. Many immediately gathered, so that there was no longer room at the door; and He spoke the word to them. And they came to him with the paralytic, who was carried by four; and not being able to approach Him due to the crowds, they opened the roof of the house where He was, and, having dug through it, lowered the bed on which the paralytic lay. Jesus, seeing their faith, says to the paralytic: child! your sins are forgiven you.
After the Lord’s ascension to Capernaum, many, hearing that He was in the house, gathered in the hope of convenient access to Him. Moreover, the faith of the men who brought the paralytic was so great that they broke through the roof of the house and lowered him. Therefore, the Lord gives him healing, seeing the faith of those who brought it or the faith of the paralytic himself. For he himself would not have allowed himself to be taken if he had not believed that he would be healed. However, the Lord often healed for the sake of faith one offerer, although the offerer was not a believer, and, on the contrary, often healed for the sake of the faith of the offerer, although those offering did not believe. First of all, He forgives the sins of the sick person, and then heals the illness because the most difficult illnesses mostly arise from sins, just as in the Gospel of John the Lord causes the illness of one paralytic from sins. This paralytic mentioned in John is not the same as the one mentioned now; on the contrary, they are two different people. For the one mentioned in John did not have a helping person, but the one who is present has four; the first was at the sheep's font, and this one was in the house; that one is in Jerusalem, and this one is in Capernaum. You can find other differences between them. But it must be said that the one mentioned in Matthew (chapter 9) and here in Mark are one and the same.
Some of the scribes sat there and thought in their hearts: Why does He blaspheme so much? who can forgive sins except God alone? Jesus, immediately knowing in His spirit that they were thinking this way in themselves, said to them, “Why are you thinking this way in your hearts?” What's easier? Should I say to the paralytic: your sins are forgiven? go say: get up, take your bed and walk? But so that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins, he says to the paralytic: I say to you, get up, take up your bed and go to your house. He immediately got up and, taking the bed, went out in front of everyone, so that everyone was amazed and glorified God, saying: we have never seen anything like this.
The Pharisees accused the Lord of blasphemy for forgiving sins, since this belongs to God alone. But the Lord gave them another sign of His Divinity - knowledge of their hearts: because God alone knows everyone’s heart, just as the prophet says: “You alone know the heart of all” (2 Chron. 6:30; 3 Kings 8:39). Meanwhile, the Pharisees, although it was revealed by the Lord what was in their hearts, remain insensitive, and they do not yield to the one who knows their hearts so that He can heal their sins. Then the Lord, through healing the body, confirms that He also healed the soul, that is, through the obvious, He confirms the hidden and through the easiest, the most difficult, although it seemed otherwise to them. For the Pharisees considered healing the body, as a visible action, to be the most difficult, and healing the soul, as an invisible action, the easiest, and they reasoned as if like this: here is a deceiver who rejects the healing of the body, as an obvious matter, and heals the invisible soul, saying: " your sins are forgiven." If He really could heal, He would probably heal the body and not resort to the invisible. Therefore, the Savior, showing them that He can do both, says: what is easier to heal, the soul or the body? Without a doubt, the body; but it seems to you the opposite. So, I will heal the body, which is really easy, but only seems difficult to you, and thereby I will assure you of the healing of the soul, which is really difficult, and seems easy only because it is invisible and undeniable. Then he says to the paralytic: “Get up, take up your bed,” in order to further assure the reality of the miracle, that it was not dreamy, and at the same time show that He not only healed the sick man, but also gave him strength. This is what the Lord does with spiritual infirmities: he not only frees us from sins, but also gives us strength to fulfill the commandments. So, I, the paralytic, can be healed. For even now there is Christ in Capernaum, in the house of consolation, that is, in the Church, which is the house of the Comforter. I am relaxed because the powers of my soul are inactive and motionless for good; but when the four evangelists take me and bring me to the Lord, then I will hear His word: “child!” For I become the son of God through fulfilling the commandments, and my sins will be forgiven. But how will they bring me to Jesus? - Having broken the blood. What about shelter? The mind is the top of our being. On this roof there is a lot of earth and tiles, that is, earthly affairs; but when all this is thrown off, when the power of the mind is broken and freed from heaviness, when I then go down, that is, I humble myself (I should not ascend as a result of the relief of my mind, but after relief I am obliged to descend, that is, humble myself), then I will be healed and take my bed, that is, the body, exciting it to fulfill the commandments. For one must not only rise from sin and recognize one’s sin, but also take a bed, that is, a body, to do good. Then we can achieve contemplation, so that all our thoughts will say: “We have never seen anything like this,” that is, we have never had such understanding as we do now, having been healed from relaxation. He who is cleansed of sins truly sees.
And Jesus went out again to the sea; and all the people went to Him, and He taught them. As He passed, He saw Levi Alpheus sitting at the toll collection, and said to him: Follow Me. And he got up and followed Him. And as Jesus reclined in his house, his disciples and many publicans and sinners reclined with him; for there were many of them, and they followed Him. The scribes and the Pharisee, seeing that He was eating with publicans and sinners, said to His disciples: How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners? Hearing this, Jesus said to them: It is not those who are healthy who need a doctor, but those who are sick; I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
After performing a miracle over the leper, the Lord went to the sea, probably seeking solitude, but the people again flocked to Him. Know that the more you avoid fame, it will chase you; and if you chase after her, she will run away from you. The Lord had just retired to the sea when the people again ran after Him. However, He left from here too, and caught Matthew on the way. Now called Levi in ​​Mark is Matthew, since he had two names. Therefore, Luke and Mark, hiding his real name, call him Levi. But he himself is not ashamed; on the contrary, he openly speaks about himself: Jesus saw Matthew the publican (Matthew 9:9). So we will not be ashamed to reveal our sins. Levi sat at the collection of duties, doing, according to his duties, either collecting taxes from someone, or drawing up a report, or whatever else tax collectors usually did in their places of work. But now he turned out to be so zealous for Christ that, leaving everything, he followed Him and in great joy called many to dinner. And the Pharisees begin to blame the Lord, presenting themselves, of course, as pure people. But the Lord said to this: “I came to call not the righteous,” that is, you who justify yourself (he speaks in the form of mockery of them), “but sinners,” to call, however, not so that they remain sinners, but “ to repentance,” that is, so that they would turn. “To repentance,” he said, “so that you do not think that, calling sinners, He does not correct them at all.”
The disciples of John and the Pharisees fasted. They come to Him and say: Why do the disciples of John and the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast? And Jesus said to them, “Can the sons of the bridal chamber fast while the bridegroom is with them?” As long as the bridegroom is with them, they cannot fast, but the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.
John's disciples, as still imperfect, adhered to Jewish customs. Therefore, some of those who came to Christ presented them as an example and blamed Him for the fact that His disciples did not fast equally with those. And He said to them: Now I, the Bridegroom, am with them, and therefore they should rejoice and not fast; but when I am taken from this life, then, being exposed to adversity, they will both fast and mourn. He calls Himself the “Bridegroom” not only because He betrothed virgin souls to Himself, but also because the time of His first coming is a time of no crying and grief for those who believe in Him, and no hard times, but comforting us with baptism without the works of the law. Indeed, what kind of work is it to be baptized? And yet in this easy task we find salvation. “The sons of the bridal chamber” are the apostles, because they were considered worthy of the joy of the Lord and became partakers of all heavenly blessings and consolation. You can also understand that every person, when he commits virtue, is “the son of the bridal chamber,” and as long as he has the Bridegroom-Christ with him, he does not fast, that is, he does not perform works of repentance; for why should one repent who does not fall? When the Bridegroom-Christ is taken away from him, when, that is, he falls into sin, then he begins to fast and repent in order to heal sin.
No one puts patches of unbleached fabric on old clothes: otherwise the newly sewn garment will be torn away from the old one, and the hole will be even worse. No one puts new wine into old wineskins: otherwise the new wine will burst the skins, and the wine will flow out, and the skins will be lost; but new wine must be put into new wineskins.
Just as an “unbleached”, that is, a new patch, due to its hardness, will only tear apart old clothing if it is sewn to it, and just as new wine, due to its strength, will burst old wineskins, so My disciples are not yet strong, and therefore, if we burden them, Through this we will harm them, since, due to the weakness of their minds, they are still like old clothes. So, one should not impose the heavy commandment of fasting on them. Or you can understand this way: Christ’s disciples, being already new people, cannot serve the old customs and laws.
And it happened on the Sabbath that He passed through the sown fields, and His disciples began to pluck the ears of corn along the way. And the Pharisees said to Him: Look, what are they doing on the Sabbath that ought not to be done? He said to them: Have you never read what David did when he had need and was hungry, he and those who were with him? how did he enter the house of God in the presence of Abiathar the high priest and eat the showbread, which no one was to eat except the priests, and gave it to those with him? And he said to them, The Sabbath is for man, and not man for the Sabbath: therefore the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.
The Lord's disciples pluck ears of corn, as if they were accustomed to live outside the law. When the Pharisees began to be indignant at this, Christ stopped their mouths, pointing to David, who out of necessity broke the law under the bishop Abiathar. Fleeing from Saul, the prophet David came to this bishop and deceived him, saying that he was sent by the king out of dire military necessity. Here he ate the showbread and took back the sword of Goliath, which he had once dedicated to God. There were twelve loaves of bread; They reclined at the table every day, six on the right side and six on the left side of the table. Some ask: why did the evangelist call the bishop Abiathar here, while the book of Kings calls him Ahimelech (1 Sam. 21)? We can say to this that the bishop had two names: Ahimelech and Abiathar. It can be explained differently, namely: the book of Kings speaks about the then priest Ahimelech, and the evangelist about Abiathar, the then bishop, and therefore their testimonies do not contradict one another. The priest at that time was Ahimelech, and Abiathar was then the bishop. In the highest sense, understand it this way: Christ’s disciples go on Saturday, that is, in peace of mind (Saturday means peace); therefore, when they have gained freedom from passions and from the attacks of demons, then they complete the journey, that is, they become guides to virtue for others, plucking and uprooting all earthly and low dreamy growths. For whoever does not first free himself from passions and adjust himself to a quiet way of life cannot guide others and be a leader for their good.

And he came again to the synagogue; there was a man who had a withered hand. And they watched Him to see if He would heal Him on the Sabbath, in order to accuse Him. He said to the man who had a withered hand: stand in the middle. And he says to them: Should one do good on the Sabbath, or should one do evil? save your soul or destroy it? But they were silent. And looking at them with anger, grieving over the hardness of their hearts, he said to the man: Stretch out your hand. He stretched out, and his hand became as healthy as the other.
On the occasion of the accusation by the Jews of the disciples for plucking ears of corn on the Sabbath, the Lord, with the example of David, had already stopped the mouths of the accusers, and in order to bring them to their senses even more, He works miracles, through this He expresses the following: this is how innocent my disciples are of sin: I myself do this miracle on the Sabbath day. If performing miracles is a sin, then in general doing what is necessary on the Sabbath is a sin; but to perform a miracle to save a person is the work of God, therefore, the one who does something not evil on the Sabbath does not violate the law. Therefore, the Lord asks the Jews: “Should we do good on the Sabbath?”, denouncing them for preventing Him from doing good. In a figurative sense, the right hand of anyone who does not do the works of the right hand is dry. To such a person Christ says: “stand,” that is, stay away from sin, “stand in the middle,” that is, in the middle of the virtues, since every virtue is the middle, not inclined either to deficiency or to excess. So, when he stands in this middle, then his hand will become healthy again. Notice the word “became”; There was a time when we had healthy hands, or active forces, when, that is, a crime had not yet been committed: and since our hand stretched out to the forbidden fruit, it became dry in relation to doing good. But it will return to its previous healthy state when we stand among the virtues.
The Pharisees, having gone out, immediately made a conference with the Herodians against Him, how to destroy Him. But Jesus and His disciples withdrew to the sea, and a multitude of people followed Him from Galilee, Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and beyond the Jordan. And those who dwelt in the region of Tire and Sidon, when they heard what he did, came to him in great multitudes. And He told His disciples to have a boat ready for Him because of the crowd, so that He would not be crowded. For He healed many, so that those who had wounds rushed to Him to touch Him. And the unclean spirits, when they saw Him, fell before Him and shouted: You are the Son of God. But He strictly forbade them so that they would not make Him known.
Who were the Herodians? - either Herod’s warriors, or some new sect that recognized Herod as Christ for the reason that under him the succession of the Jewish kings ended. The prophecy of Jacob determined that when the princes become poor from Judah, then Christ will come (Gen. 49). So, since in the time of Herod no one was a prince of the Jews, but Herod, a foreigner, ruled (he was an Edomite), some took him for Christ and formed a sect. It was these people who wanted to kill the Lord. But He leaves because the time of suffering has not yet come. He leaves the ungrateful in order to benefit more people. Many indeed followed Him, and He healed them; even the Tyrians and Sidonians benefited, despite the fact that there were foreigners. Meanwhile, His fellow tribesmen persecuted Him. So there is no benefit in kinship if there is no good behavior! So strangers came to Christ from afar, and the Jews persecuted Him who came to them. See how Christ is alien to the love of glory; so that the people do not surround Him, He requires a boat in order to be at a distance from the people. - The evangelist calls illnesses “sores,” for illnesses really contribute a lot to our admonition, so God punishes us with these ulcers, like a father of children. In a figurative sense, pay attention to the fact that the Herodians want to kill Jesus, these carnal and rude people (Herod means leather). On the contrary, those who came out of their homes and from their fatherland, that is, from a carnal way of life, will follow Him; why their wounds will be healed, that is, sins that hurt the conscience, and unclean spirits will be cast out. Finally, understand that Jesus orders His disciples to bring a boat so that the people do not embarrass Him. Jesus is the word in us, commanding that our boat, that is, our body, be ready for Him, and not be left to the storm of everyday affairs, so that these crowds of worries about business do not disturb the Christ who lives in us.
Then he ascended the mountain and called to Him whom He Himself wanted; and came to Him. And he appointed twelve of them to be with Him and to send them to preach, and so that they would have the power to heal diseases and cast out demons; appointed Simon, calling his name Peter, James Zebedee and John, brother of James, calling them the names Boanerges, that is, “sons of thunder” Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James Alphaeus Thaddeus, Simon the Canaanite and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed His.
He goes up the mountain to pray. Since before this he performed miracles, after performing miracles he prays, of course, as a lesson to us, so that we thank God as soon as we do something good, and attribute it to the power of God. Or since the Lord intended to ordain the apostles, on this occasion he ascends the mountain to pray for our instruction that we, when we intend to ordain someone, must first pray that one worthy of it will be revealed to us and that we will not become participants “in the sins of others.” (1 Tim. 5:22). And that he chooses Judas to be an apostle, then from here we must understand that God does not turn away a person who has to do evil because of his future evil deed, but that for his real virtue he is honored, even if he subsequently becomes a bad person. The Evangelist lists the names of the apostles in relation to the false apostles, so that the true apostles may be known. He calls the sons of Zebedee the sons of thunder, as especially great preachers and theologians.
They come to the house; and again the people gathered, so that it was impossible for them to eat bread. And when His neighbors heard, they went to take Him, for they said that He had lost His temper. And the scribes who came from Jerusalem said that He had Beelzebub in Him and that He cast out demons by the power of the prince of demons.
“And having heard,” he says, “His neighbors,” perhaps people from the same city with Him, or even brothers, came out to take Him; for they said that He lost His temper, that is, that He had a demon. Since they heard that He cast out demons and healed diseases, out of envy they thought that He had a demon and “lost his temper,” which is why they wanted to take Him to bind him as if he were demoniac. This is what His neighbors thought and wanted to do with Him. Likewise, the Jerusalem scribes said that He had a demon in Him. Since they could not reject the miracles that happened before them, they blaspheme them in another way, deriving them from demons.
And calling them, he spoke to them in parables: How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand; and if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand; and if Satan has rebelled against himself and been divided, he cannot stand, but his end has come. No one entering the house of a strong man can plunder his belongings unless he first binds the strong man, and then he will plunder his house.
Refutes the hated Jews with undeniable examples. “How is it possible,” he says, “to cast out demons, when even in ordinary houses we see that while those living in them are peaceful, the houses stand well, and as soon as division occurs in them, they fall? How is it possible, he says, for someone to steal the dishes of a strong man if he does not tie him up first? These words mean the following: “the strong one” is the devil; His “things” are people who serve as his container. Thus, if someone does not first bind and overthrow the devil, then how can he plunder his vessels, that is, those who are possessed? Therefore, if I plunder his vessels, that is, I free people from demonic violence, then, consequently, I have previously bound and cast down the demons, and I find myself their enemy. So, how do you say that I have Beelzebub in Me, that is, that I cast out demons, being their friend and magician?
Truly I say to you, all sins and blasphemies will be forgiven to the sons of men, no matter what they blaspheme; but whoever blasphemes the Holy Spirit will never have forgiveness, but he is subject to eternal condemnation. He said this because they said: There is an unclean spirit in Him.
What the Lord says here means the following: people who sin in everything else can still apologize in some way and receive forgiveness, through God’s condescension to human weakness. For example, those who called the Lord a food drinker and a wine drinker, a friend of publicans and sinners, will receive forgiveness for this. But when they see that He works undoubted miracles, and yet they blaspheme the Holy Spirit, that is, the working of miracles that come from the Holy Spirit, then how will they receive forgiveness if they do not repent? When they were tempted by the flesh of Christ, in this case, even if they did not repent, they will be forgiven, like people who were tempted; and when they saw Him doing the works of God and still blasphemed, how will they be forgiven if they remain unrepentant?
And His Mother and His brothers came and, standing outside the house, sent to Him to call Him. The people were sitting around Him. And they said to Him: Behold, Your mother and Your brothers and Your sisters are outside the house asking You. And he answered them: Who are My mother and My brothers? And looking around at those sitting around Him, He said: Behold My mother and My brothers; for whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.
The Lord's brothers, out of envy, came to take Him as one who was frantic and possessed by a demon. And the Mother, probably inspired by a sense of honor, came to distract Him from the teaching, thus showing the people that She freely disposes of the One Whom they marvel at and can distract Him from the teaching. But the Lord answers: It will be of no benefit to My Mother to be My Mother if she does not combine all the virtues. In the same way, kinship will be useless for My brothers. Because those are the only true relatives of Christ who do the will of God. So, saying this, He does not renounce the Mother, but shows that She will be worthy of honor not only for birth, but also for any other good deed: if she did not have this, then others would anticipate the honor of kinship.

And again he began to teach by the sea; and a great crowd gathered to Him, so that He entered into a boat and sat on the sea, and all the people were on the land by the sea. And he taught them a lot in parables.
Although, it seemed, he had sent His Mother away, however, he again obeys Her, for for Her sake he goes out to the sea. He sits in a boat so that, having everyone before his eyes, he can speak in the hearing of everyone and have no one behind Him.
And in His teaching He said to them: listen: behold, a sower has gone out to sow; and while he was sowing, it happened that some things fell along the road, and birds flew in and devoured them. Some fell on a rocky place where there was little earth, and soon sprang up, because the earth was shallow; when the sun rose, it withered and, as if it had no root, withered away. Some fell among thorns, and the thorns grew, and choked the seed, and it did not bear fruit. And some fell on good soil and produced fruit, which sprang up and grew, and brought forth some thirty, some sixty, and some a hundred. And he said to them: He who has ears to hear, let him hear! When he was left without people, those around Him, along with the twelve, asked Him about the parable. And he said to them: It has been given to you to know the secrets of the Kingdom of God, but to those outside everything happens in parables, so that they look with their own eyes and do not see; they hear with their own ears and do not understand; let them not turn, and their sins be forgiven.
The first parable is about a seed, in order to make listeners more attentive. Since He intends to say that the seed is the word and that, having fallen among those who are not attentive, it disappears, He speaks about this first of all, so that the listeners would try to be attentive and different from the earth that destroys the seed. But who is the Sower? Christ Himself, Who, out of love for mankind and condescension, inseparably came from the bosom of the Father, came not to burn the cursed earth and evil hearts, not to cut out thorns, but to sow seed. What seed? Isn't it Moses'? Is this not the seed of the prophets? No, His own, that is, to preach His Gospel. He sowed; but one of the seeds fell on the soul, like a road trampled by many, and the birds of the air, that is, the demons who control the air, devoured this seed. Such people include people-pleasers; they are like a road trampled by many. He who does everything only to please one or the other is trampled upon by many. But notice that the Lord did not say that the seed was thrown along the way, but that it fell along the way, because the Sower throws the seed on the ground as if it were good, and she herself, having turned out to be bad, destroys the seed, that is, the word. However, some well accepted what fell along the way in the sense that it fell on the wrong heart. For the Way is Christ, and those who are on the way are unbelievers, who are outside the way, that is, Christ. Another seed fell on the stony soul, I mean those who easily accept the word, but then reject it. They are stony, as if they were somewhat like a stone, that is, Christ, because they accepted the word; but as they accept the word for a while and then reject it, then through this they lose their likeness. Another seed fell on a soul that cares about many things, for “thorns” are the cares of life. But the fourth seed fell on good soil. So look how rare is good and how few are saved! Only a quarter of the seed survived! To the disciples who asked Him in private, He said: “It has been given to you to know mysteries.” But is it really true that by distribution and purpose this is given to some by nature, and not to others? It can not be; But to those it was given, as to those who seek: “Seek,” it is said, “and it will be given to you,” and God left others in blindness, so that the knowledge of what is due would not serve to further condemn them when they do not fulfill this obligation. However, do you want to know that God has given it to everyone to see what is due? Listen! “They look with their own eyes” - this is from God; “and they do not see” - this is from their malice; for God created them to see, that is, to understand what is good, but they do not see, closing their eyes voluntarily, so as not to turn and correct themselves, as if envying their own salvation and correction. You can understand it this way: for the rest I speak in parables, “so that they look with their own eyes and do not see; with their ears they hear and do not understand,” so that at least for this reason they would turn and correct themselves.
And he says to them: Do you not understand this parable? How can you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word. Those sown by the way signify those in whom the word is sown, but to whom, when they hear, Satan immediately comes and snatches away the word sown in their hearts. In like manner, those sown on rocky ground signify those who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy, but have no root in themselves and are fickle; then, when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, they are immediately offended. Those sown among thorns mean those who hear the word, but in whom the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of wealth and other desires, entering into them, choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. And what was sown on good soil means those who hear the word and receive it; and they bear fruit, one thirtyfold, another sixtyfold, and another a hundredfold.
Here are three categories of people in whom the word disappears: some are inattentive, these are indicated by the word “on the road”; others are cowardly, these are meant by the word “on a rocky place”: others are voluptuous, signified by the word “in thorns.” There are three categories of those who accepted and preserved the seed: some bear fruit of a hundred - these are people of perfect and high life; others - at sixty, these are average; others - thirty, which, although not much, still bring according to their strength. Thus, some are virgins and hermits, others live together in community, others in peace and in marriage. But the Lord accepts all of them as bearing fruit. And thanks be to His love for mankind!
And he said to them: Is a candle brought for this purpose, to put it under a bushel or under a bed? Is it not for putting it on a candlestick? There is nothing secret that would not become obvious; and there is nothing hidden that would not come out. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!
Here the Lord teaches the apostles to be bright in life and behavior. Just as a lamp is supplied to shine, so your life, he says, will be visible to everyone, and everyone will look at it. Therefore, try to lead a good life; for you are not placed in a corner, but serve as a lamp, and the lamp is not hidden under the bed, but is placed in plain sight, on a candlestick. And each of us is a lamp that should be placed on a candlestick, that is, at the height of life according to God, so that it can shine on others, and not under the cover of gluttony and worry about food and not under the bed of inaction. For no one who is busy caring for food and devoted to laziness can be a lamp shining with his life for everyone. “And there is nothing hidden that would not come out.” Whatever anyone does in secret: good or evil, everything will be revealed here, and especially in the next century. What was more hidden than God? However, He also appeared in the flesh.
And he said to them; Take note of what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you, and more will be added to you who hear. For whoever has, to him will be given, and whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.
The Lord encourages the disciples to stay awake. Notice,” he says, “that you are listening; do not omit anything I have said. “With the measure you use, it will be measured back to you,” that is, to the extent you are careful, to the extent you will benefit. To the listener who is always attentive and, moreover, to the highest degree, God will give a great reward, and to the slow person the profit of the reward will be commensurate. Whoever has zeal and zeal will be given a reward, and whoever does not have zeal and zeal will have what he thinks he has taken away. For because of laziness, that small spark that he previously had is extinguished in him, just as it is kindled through zeal.
And he said: The Kingdom of God is like if a man casts seed into the ground, and sleeps and rises night and day; and how the seed sprouts and grows, he does not know, for the earth itself produces first greenery, then an ear, then a full grain in the ear. When the fruit is ripe, he immediately sends in the sickle, because the harvest has come.
By the Kingdom of God we mean God's care for us. “Man” is God Himself, who became man for our sake. He cast “seed into the ground,” that is, the gospel sermon. Having abandoned him, He “sleeps,” that is, ascended to heaven; however, He “rises night and day.” For although God, apparently, sleeps, that is, long-suffering, He rises: He rises at night, when through temptation He awakens us to the knowledge of Him; rises during the day when it fills our lives with joys and consolations. The seed grows as if without His knowledge, because we are free, and it depends on our will whether this seed grows or not. We do not bear fruit unwillingly, but voluntarily, that is, we bear fruit from ourselves. At first, when we are babies, not yet reaching the age of Christ, we grow “greens”, show the firstfruits of good; then - “ear”, when we are already able to resist temptations, for the ear is already tied at the knees, stands straight and has already achieved greater development; then the “full grain” is formed in the ear - this is when someone bears the fruit of perfection. When the “harvest” comes, then the “sickle” gathers the fruit. This “sickle” is the Word of God, and the “harvest” is the time of death.
And he said: What shall we compare the Kingdom of God to? or by what parable shall we depict it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown in the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; and when it is sown, it sprouts and becomes larger than all the grains, and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can take refuge under its shadow. And he preached the word to them in many parables, as far as they could hear. He did not speak to them without a parable, but explained everything to his disciples in private.
The word of faith is not enough: because you just have to believe in Christ, and you will be saved. You see that this word is as small as a mustard seed. But the preaching of the word, sown on the earth, expanded and grew, so that the birds of the air rest on it, that is, all people with lofty and heavenly minds and knowledge. Indeed, how many wise men calmed down at this sermon, abandoning Hellenic wisdom! Thus the sermon became greater than anything else and sent forth great branches. For the apostles dispersed like branches: one to Rome, another to India, a third to Achaia, and the rest to other countries of the earth. The Lord speaks to the people in many parables, offering parables according to the condition of the listeners. Since the people were simple and uneducated, he therefore reminds them of mustard seeds, grass and seeds, in order to teach them something useful with familiar and ordinary objects, or to force them to come up and ask, and understand something incomprehensible from the question. Thus, He explained everything to the disciples in private, since they directly approached Him and asked questions. He explained everything only about what they asked and what they didn’t know, and not everything in general, even if it was clear. For when they understood what they were asking about, then other things became clear to them, and thus everything was resolved for them.
In the evening of that day he told them: let's cross to the other side. And they sent the people away, and took Him with them, just as He was in the boat; There were other boats with Him. And a great storm arose; the waves beat on the boat, so that it was already filling with water. And He slept at the stern at the head. They wake him up and say to him: Teacher! Do You really not need that we perish? And, getting up, He rebuked the wind and said to the sea: be silent, stop. And the wind died down, and there was great silence. And he said to them: Why are you so fearful? How do you have no faith? And they were afraid with great fear and said among themselves: Who is this, that both the wind and the sea obey Him?
Matthew narrated this differently than Mark: what he said in more detail, this one shortened, and vice versa, what the first stated briefly, the latter spoke about in more detail. The Lord takes only his disciples with Him, leaving them to be spectators of the future miracle. But so that they do not become proud of the fact that he sent others away, but took them, and together, in order to teach them to endure danger, allows them to be in danger from the storm. And He sleeps for this purpose, so that the miracle would seem all the more important to them after they were frightened. Otherwise, if the storm had happened while Christ was awake, they would not have been afraid or would not have turned to Him with a request for salvation. And so He allows them to be in fear of danger, so that they come to the consciousness of His power. Since they only saw the good deeds of Christ on others, but themselves did not experience anything similar, there was a danger that they would become careless; That's why the Lord allows the storm to happen. He sleeps at the stern of the ship (it was, of course, wooden). Having awakened, Christ first forbids the wind, since it causes sea disturbances, and then tames the sea. He also denounces the disciples for not having faith. For if they had faith, they would believe that even He who sleeps can keep them unharmed. The disciples said to each other: “Who is this,” because they still had a vague concept of Him. Since Christ tamed the sea with one command, and not with a rod, like Moses, not with a prayer appeal, like Elisha Jordan, not with an ark, like Joshua, then for this reason He seemed to them higher than man; and by sleeping, He appeared to them again as a man.

And they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes. And when He came out of the boat, He was immediately met by a man who had come out of the tombs and was possessed by an unclean spirit. He had a home in the tombs, and no one could even bind him with chains, because he was bound with fetters and chains many times, but he broke the chains and broke the fetters. , and no one was able to tame him; always, night and day, in the mountains and coffins, he screamed and beat against the stones.
In the lists of more serviceable ones it reads: “to the country of Gergesin”. Matthew says that there were two demoniacs, but Mark and Luke talk about one. These latter chose the fiercest of them and tell about him. The demoniac goes and confesses Christ as the Son of God. Since those on the ship were perplexed about who He was, then the most reliable testimony about Him will follow from the enemies, I mean the demons. The demoniac lived in coffins, because the demon wanted to instill through this the false idea that the souls of the dead become demons, which should not be believed.
Seeing Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him, and, crying out with a loud voice, said: What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I conjure You by God, do not torment me! For Jesus said to him, “Come out, O unclean spirit, from this man.” And he asked him: what is your name? And he answered and said, My name is Legion, for we are many. And they asked Him a lot so that He would not send them out of that country.
Demons consider leaving a person to be torture, which is why they said: “do not torture,” that is, do not drive us out of our dwelling, that is, from a person. On the other hand, they thought that the Lord would no longer tolerate them for their excessive insolence, but would immediately give them over to torture, which is why they prayed not to torture them. The Lord asks the demoniac not in order to know Himself, but so that others may know about the many demons that have taken possession of him. Since one man stood before his eyes, Christ shows how many enemies this pitiful man fought.
There was a large herd of pigs grazing there near the mountain. And all the demons asked Him, saying: Send us among the swine, that we may enter into them. Jesus immediately allowed them. And the unclean spirits came out and entered into the swine; and the herd rushed down the steep slope into the sea, and there were about two thousand of them; and drowned in the sea. Those who were herding the pigs ran and told the story in the city and villages.
The demons prayed to the Lord not to send them out of the country, but to let them into the herd of pigs. He agrees to this. Since our life is a battle, the Lord did not want to remove demons from it, so that by their struggle with us they would make us more skillful. He allows them to enter the pigs, so that we know that just as they did not spare the pigs, they would not have spared that man if the power of God had not preserved him. For the demons, being hostile to us, would immediately destroy us if God had not protected us. So, know that demons have no power even over pigs, much less over people, unless God allows it. But know also that people who live like pigs and wallow in the mire of sensual pleasures are possessed by demons who cast them down from the rapids of destruction into the sea of ​​this life, and they drown.
And the residents came out to see what had happened. They come to Jesus and see that the demoniac, in whom the legion was, is sitting and clothed, and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who saw it told them about how this happened to the possessed man, and about the pigs. And they began to ask Him to depart from their borders. And when He entered the boat, the demoniac asked Him to be with Him. But Jesus did not allow him, but said: go home to your people and tell them what the Lord has done to you and how he has had mercy on you. And he went and began to preach in the Decapolis what Jesus had done to him; and everyone marveled.
The inhabitants of that city, amazed by the miracle, came out to Jesus, but when they heard about the details, they were even more frightened. That is why they asked Jesus to leave their borders. They were afraid that they would not suffer anything more. Having lost the pigs and regretting this loss, they also refuse the presence of the Lord. On the contrary, the demoniac asked Him for permission to be with Him, because he feared that the demons, having found him alone, would not enter into him again. But the Lord sends him home, showing that His power and providence will protect him even in his absence. Sends it along and so that it will benefit others who see it. That's why he started preaching, and everyone was surprised. But look how the Savior is a stranger to exaltation! He did not say, “Tell me,” what I have done to you, but, “What the Lord has done to you.” So you, when you do something good, attribute what you did not to yourself, but to God.
When Jesus again crossed in the boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered to Him. He was by the sea. And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue, named Jairus, comes, and, seeing Him, falls at His feet and earnestly asks Him, saying: My daughter is about to die; come and lay your hands on her so that she may get well and live. Jesus went with him. Many people followed Him and pressed Him. One woman, who suffered from hemorrhage for twelve years, suffered much from many doctors, exhausted all that she had, and received no benefit, but came into an even worse state - having heard about Jesus, she came up behind the crowd and touched His garment. , for she said: if I touch His clothes, I will get well. And immediately her source of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her illness.
After the miracle over the possessed man, the Lord performs another miracle - he resurrects the daughter of the leader of the synagogue. For the Jews, eyewitnesses of the event, the evangelist also says the name of the leader of the synagogue. He was a half-believer: by falling at the feet of Christ, he turns out to be a believer, but by asking Him to go, he shows faith that is not what it should be; he should have said, “just say the word.” Meanwhile, on the path of the Lord, the bleeding wife is also healed. This woman had great faith, because she hoped to be healed from one garment of the Lord; That's why she received healing. In a figurative sense, understand this about human nature. It was bleeding because it produced sin, which is the murder of the soul and which sheds the blood of our souls. Our nature could not receive healing from many doctors, that is, neither from the sages of this age, nor even from the Law and the Prophets. But she was healed as soon as she touched the clothes of Christ, that is, His flesh. For whoever believes that Christ became incarnate is the one who touches His garment.
At the same time, Jesus, feeling within Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned among the people and said: Who touched My garment? The disciples said to Him: You see that the people are crowding You, and you say: Who touched Me? But He looked around to see the one who did it. The woman, in fear and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came up, fell before Him and told Him the whole truth. He said to her: daughter! your faith has saved you; Go in peace and be well from your illness.
The power does not come out of Christ in such a way that it changes place; on the contrary, it is communicated to others, and at the same time remains in Christ without diminishing, just as the lessons of teaching remain with the students and are taught to the students. But look how the people oppressed Him on all sides, and yet not one touched Him; on the contrary, the wife, who did not embarrass Him, touched Him. From here we learn the secret that among the people occupied with many everyday worries, none touches Christ: they only oppress Him; on the contrary, whoever does not oppress Jesus and does not burden his mind with vain worries touches Him. But why does the Lord reveal his wife? Firstly, in order to glorify the wife’s faith, secondly, in order to arouse faith in the leader of the synagogue that his daughter will also be saved, and at the same time in order to free the wife who was afraid from strong fear, as if she had stolen the healing. So the evangelist says: “I approached in fear and trembling.” Therefore, the Lord did not say: I saved you, but: “Your faith has saved you; go in peace,” that is, in peace. The meaning of these words is this: be calm, you who have hitherto been in sorrow and turmoil.
While He was still saying this, they came from the ruler of the synagogue and said: Your daughter is dead; Why else are you bothering the Teacher? But Jesus, having heard these words, immediately said to the leader of the synagogue: Do not be afraid, only believe. And He did not allow anyone to follow Him except Peter, James, and John the brother of James. He comes to the house of the leader of the synagogue and sees confusion and people crying and crying out loudly. And entering, he said to them: Why are you embarrassed and crying? the girl is not dead, but is sleeping. And they laughed at Him. But He, having sent everyone out, takes with Him the father and mother of the girl and those who were with Him and enters where the girl lay. And, taking the girl by the hand, he says to her: “talifa kumi,” which means: girl, I tell you, stand up. And the girl immediately stood up and began to walk, for she was about twelve years old. Those who saw it were in great amazement. And He strictly ordered them that no one should know about this, and told them to give her something to eat.
The people of the leader of the synagogue revered Christ as one of the ordinary teachers, which is why they asked to come and pray for the girl, and finally, when she died, they thought that He was no longer needed after her death. But the Lord encourages the father and says: “Only believe.” Meanwhile, he does not allow anyone to follow Him, except for the three disciples, because the humble Jesus does not want to do anything for show. At His words: “The girl is not dead, but sleeps,” they laugh; this was allowed so that later they would not have an excuse to say that she had fainted, and that it would not be surprising if He resurrected her; on the contrary, so that they would convict themselves by their own testimony of His resurrection of the truly deceased, when they even laughed at His words that she was not dead, but asleep. The Lord takes her hand to give her strength; and orders that she be given food in order to confirm the resurrection as a real and not an imaginary event.

He left from there and came to His fatherland; His disciples followed Him. When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue; and many who heard said in amazement: Where did He get this from? What kind of wisdom was given to Him, and how are such miracles performed by His hands? Isn't He the carpenter, the son of Marin, the brother of James, Josiah, Judah and Simon? Are not His sisters here, between us? And they were offended because of Him.
The Lord comes to the Fatherland not because he did not know that he would be ignored, but so that later they could not say: if He had come, we would have believed. He comes along to expose the envious nature of his compatriots; for while they should have admired the Lord, who so adorned their fatherland with teachings and miracles, they instead humiliated the Lord for His poor origin. That's what evil is envy! She always tries to darken what is good and does not allow those who are envious to see it. So now many, out of ill-intention and extreme ignobility, dishonor some because of their humble origins, although they are worthy of all honor.
Jesus said to them; There is no prophet without honor, except in his own country and among his relatives and in his own house. And he could not perform any miracle there, only laying his hands on a few sick people and healing them. And he marveled at their unbelief.
The Lord says in general about all the prophets that they do not enjoy honor in their fatherland, among relatives and households. Do they have famous relatives? In this case, these relatives envy them and therefore dishonor them. Will they be of poor origin? - they are again dishonored for their poor origins. The Lord could not work miracles there, not because he was powerless, but because they were unbelievers. While sparing them, He does not perform miracles, so as not to serve to further condemn them as unbelievers and at the sight of miracles. On the other hand, miracles require, firstly, the power of the performer, and secondly, the faith of those who receive the miracle. Since the second (of these conditions), that is, the faith of those who needed healing, was lacking here, it was not appropriate for Jesus to perform miracles. So we must understand that the evangelist’s expression “and could not” was used instead of “did not dare.”
Then he walked around the surrounding villages and taught. And having called twelve, he began to send them out two by two, and gave them power over unclean spirits. And he commanded them not to take anything on the road except one staff: no bag, no bread, no copper in their belts, but to put on simple shoes and not wear two clothes. And he said to them: If you enter a house anywhere, stay in it until you leave that place. And if anyone will not receive you and will not listen to you, then when you leave there, shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them. Truly I say to you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that city.
The Lord taught not only in cities, but also in villages, so that we would know that we should neither neglect small towns nor constantly visit large cities, but that we should sow the word in small towns as well. Further, not only did He Himself teach, but He also sent His disciples, two at a time, so that they would be bolder. Otherwise, if He had sent them one at a time, then one would not have been able to act so boldly, and if He had sent more than two at a time, then the number of apostles would not have been enough for all the villages. So, he sends two at a time: “Two are better than one,” says Ecclesiastes (4:9). He commands them not to take anything - neither scrip, nor belt money, nor bread, in order to teach them non-covetousness and so that others, looking at them, will be touched when they teach non-covetousness by the fact that they themselves have nothing. In fact, who will not be moved and not moved towards non-covetousness, seeing that the apostle does not take either the bag or the bread, which is most needed for us? He orders them to stay in the same house, so that they will not be thought to change places for the sake of gluttony, wandering from one to another. Those who would not accept them, they had, according to the Lord, to shake off the dust from their feet as a sign that they had made a long journey for their sake and, however, without benefit for them, or as a sign that they were worth nothing. They took even the dust from them, which, on the contrary, they shook it off too, so that it would turn into a testimony to them, that is, an accusation. “Truly I say to you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment” than for those who do not receive you. For the Sodomites, having been punished here, will be punished more easily there; Moreover, the apostles were not sent to them. On the contrary, those who did not accept the apostles will endure the most severe torments of those.
They went and preached repentance; They cast out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.
The fact that the apostles anointed with oil is said by Mark alone and also by James, the brother of God, in his Council Epistle: “If any of you is sick, let him call the elders of the Church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil” (James 5, 14). Oil is also useful against diseases, it is used for illumination, is used in a joyful state of mind and signifies the mercy of God and the grace of the Spirit, by which we get rid of diseases and from which we receive light, joy, and spiritual joy.
King Herod, having heard about Jesus (for His name had become known), said: It is John the Baptist who has risen from the dead, and therefore miracles are done by him. Others said: this is Elijah, and others said: this is a prophet, or like one of the prophets. When Herod heard it, he said, “This is John, whom I beheaded; he rose from the dead.
This Herod was the son of Herod, who beat up the infants. As a tetrarch, Mark calls him king, using this name not in the strict sense. Hearing about the miracles of the Lord and realizing that he had killed righteous John for no reason, Herod began to think that he had risen from the dead and after his resurrection received the power to work miracles. Before, John had not performed a single sign, but after the resurrection, Herod thought so, he received the power to perform signs. But others said about Christ that this was Elijah, because He denounced many, for example, when he said: “Oh, unfaithful generation!” But Herod was afraid. This man was so pitiful that he was afraid of the dead!
For this Herod sent and took John and put him in prison for Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, because he had married her. For John said to Herod: You must not have your brother’s wife. Herodias, angry at him, wanted to kill him; but she couldn't. For Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and took care of him; I did a lot by obeying him, and listened to him with pleasure.
Mark takes this opportunity to place here an introductory discourse on the death of the Baptist. Some say that Herod took Herodias while Philip was still alive and for this he was rebuked as a wicked man who married the wife of his living brother. On the contrary, others claim that Philip had already died, but left behind a daughter. And when Philip had a daughter left, Herod should not have married his brother’s wife even after his brother’s death; for the Law commanded a brother to take his brother’s wife in the event that the latter died childless. But in the present case the daughter remained; therefore, Herod's marriage was lawless. Look how strong the passion of carnal love is! Here Herod, who had so much respect and fear for John, neglected this just to satisfy his passion.
An opportune day came when Herod, on the occasion of his birthday, was holding a feast for his nobles, the captains of thousands and the elders of Galilee, - the daughter of Herodias came in, danced and pleased Herod and those who were reclining with him; the king said to the girl: ask me what you want, and I will give it to you; and he swore to her: whatever you ask of me, I will give it to you, even up to half of my kingdom. She went out and asked her mother: what to ask? She answered: the heads of John the Baptist. And she immediately went with haste to the king and asked, saying: I want you to give me now the head of John the Baptist on a platter. The king was saddened, but for the sake of the oath and those reclining with him, he did not want to refuse her. And immediately, sending a squire, the king ordered his head to be brought. He went and cut off his head in prison, and brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the maiden, and the maiden gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard it, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.
The feast goes on merrily: Satan dances in the maiden, and an oath is made, lawless and godless, and most of all insane. “So that you give it to me,” says the evil wife, now, now. The reckless and lustful Herod was afraid to break his oath and therefore kills the righteous man, whereas in this case he should have changed his oath and not committed such a terrible crime (it is not good to fulfill an oath everywhere). A squire was a military man who was appointed by society to execute and kill criminals. You can understand the place in question in a figurative, spiritual sense. Thus, Herod represents the grossly carnal people of the Jews: he took a wife - a false and absurd glory, whose daughter is still dancing and in motion among the Jews - this is their deceiving knowledge of the Scriptures. They think that they know the Scriptures, when in fact they do not, for they beheaded John, that is, the prophetic word, because they did not accept the Head of the prophecy, meaning Christ. Therefore, if they have a prophetic word, then they have it without a Head, that is, without Christ.
And the Apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him everything, both what they had done and what they had taught. He said to them: go alone to a deserted place and rest a little, for there were many coming and going, so that they had no time to eat. And they went to a deserted place in a boat alone. The people saw them depart, and many recognized them; and they fled there on foot from all the cities, and warned them, and gathered to Him.
After their preaching, the apostles gather to Jesus. This should be a lesson for us that we, having been chosen for any ministry, should not leave obedience to the one who chose us and exalt ourselves before him, but should recognize him as the head, turn to him and report to him about everything that we have done and what was taught (must not only be taught, but also done). Christ gives His disciples rest; This is a lesson for the primates, so that they know how to give rest to those who labor in word and teaching, and not always keep them in tension and labor. Further, the Lord, not loving glory, retires into an empty place. However, even here he did not hide from those who were looking for Him. On the contrary, the people watched so carefully, lest the Lord hide from them, that they preceded, that is, got ahead of, the apostles themselves and went to the place where Jesus intended to rest. So you should anticipate Jesus: do not wait for Him to call you, but it is better to hurry forward yourself to warn Him.
Jesus went out and saw a multitude of people and had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and began to teach them a lot. And as a lot of time had passed, His disciples, approaching Him, said: This place is deserted, and there is already a lot of time - let them go so that they can go to the surrounding villages and villages and buy themselves bread, for they have nothing to eat. He answered them; you give them something to eat. And they said to Him: Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat? But He asked them: How many loaves do you have? go and have a look. When they found out, they said: five loaves and two fish. Then he ordered them to seat everyone in sections on the green grass. And they sat down in rows, hundreds and fifty.
The Pharisees, being ravenous wolves, did not save the people, but ate them. Therefore, the people, having passed them, gather to Christ, the true Shepherd. And Christ gives him food, first more useful and valuable - in words, and then bodily. But look at the students, how philanthropic they are! Feeling sorry for the people, they come to Christ and begin to beg Him for them. The Lord, tempting them and testing whether they recognized His power, that He can feed the people, says: “Give them something to eat.” To this, the disciples, in the form of a reproach, present to Him, on the one hand, the greatness of their poverty, on the other, the large number of people, as if He does not know this. In this difficulty they say: “Should we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?” Finally, the Lord makes everyone lie down on the grass in separate rows. That is, as if at different tables.
He took the five loaves and two fish, looking up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to distribute to them; and he divided the two fish among everyone. And they all ate and were filled. And they collected twelve full baskets of pieces of bread and the remains of fish. There were about five thousand men who ate the loaves.
The Lord looks at heaven, firstly, in order to teach us to ask for food from God, and not from the devil, as people do who live on unrighteous profits, and secondly, in order to show the people that Christ is not an enemy of God , on the contrary, He Himself calls on God. He gives the loaves to the disciples so that they will not forget about the miracle after they have received the loaves with their own hands. And twelve boxes of surplus remain for the same purpose, so that each of the apostles, carrying a box on his shoulders, would always keep the miracle in his memory. And the fact that not only to feed such a multitude of people, but also to leave surpluses, is a sign of the abundant power in Christ. Although Moses gave manna, it was only for everyone’s needs, for in what was left over, worms infested. And Elijah, impregnating a famous wife, delivered exactly as much as was enough for food. On the contrary, Jesus as Master produces what appears to be an excess. This is a historical meaning. In a figurative sense, the five loaves mean the books of Moses, of which there are five: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The two fish represent the words of the fishermen - Apostle and Gospel. These are what feed our five senses, signified by five thousand people. However, we cannot eat everything, but much will remain in excess, which the apostles alone can bear. Thus, we, who are still servile to the five senses, cannot bear the most difficult aspects of understanding the Law and the Gospel, but only the apostles can.
And immediately He compelled His disciples to get into the boat and go forward to the other side to Bethsaida, while He sent the people away. And, having dismissed them, he went up the mountain to pray. In the evening the boat was in the middle of the sea, and He was alone on earth. And I saw them in distress on the voyage, because the wind was against them; About the fourth watch of the night he approached them, walking on the sea, and wanted to pass them. When they saw Him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out. For everyone saw Him and were afraid. And immediately he spoke to them and said to them, “Be of good cheer; It's me, don't be afraid. And he entered the boat with them, and the wind ceased. And they were extremely amazed and amazed, for they did not understand the miracle of the loaves, because their hearts were hardened.
"Forced the disciples." The disciples separated from Him only out of compulsion, but on their own they did not want to part, partly out of their love for Him, partly out of bewilderment about how He could come to them without a boat. And He, having dismissed the people, goes up (to the mountain) to pray alone, since prayer requires solitude and an imperturbable state. The Lord allows the disciples to be overwhelmed at sea so that they learn patience. For the same reason, He does not immediately appear to them, but allows them to be in danger from the storm for the whole night, in order to accustom them to be patient and wait for deliverance not at the very beginning of danger. But notice another circumstance, that is, that before ending the danger, He plunges them into even greater fear; for when they saw Him, they cried out in fear, thinking that it was a ghost. Then the Lord immediately encourages them with His voice, saying: “Do not be afraid”; then, entering the boat, he gives them complete peace of mind, because the wind suddenly stopped. Walking on the sea is a great miracle and is characteristic of the one true God; and the fact that there was confusion between the disciples and a contrary wind makes the miracle even more exalted. As for the apostles, they, not having known (Christ) from the miracle of the loaves, knew Him from the real miracle on the sea. Therefore, one can think that Christ allowed them to be in danger so that they, having not known Him from the miracle of the loaves, would now know from the miracle over the sea and benefit from it.
And having crossed over, they arrived in the land of Gennesaret and landed on the shore. When they got out of the boat, immediately the inhabitants, recognizing Him, ran around the entire surrounding area and began to bring the sick on their beds to where He was heard to be. And wherever He came, whether to villages, cities, or villages, they laid the sick on open places and they asked Him to touch at least the hem of His garment; and those who touched Him were healed.
The Lord arrived in this place, it seems, after a considerable time (absence); That’s why the evangelist says: “When they recognized Him, they began to bring the sick.” They had not yet invited Him into their homes, but they themselves brought the sick, begging them to touch at least the hem of His garment. For the miracle of the bleeding wife came to the attention of everyone and created even greater faith in them.

Mark begins his narrative not at such an early time as Matthew and Luke, not with the birth of our Savior, but with John's baptism, and quickly moves on to the public ministry of Christ. Accordingly, this chapter describes:

I. The ministry of John the Baptist, represented by the prophecy concerning him (v. 1-3), and his life, v. 4-8.

II. The baptism of Christ and the testimony of Him from heaven, v. 9-11.

III. Temptation of Christ, v. 12, 13.

IV. His sermon, v. 14, 15, 21, 22, 38, 39.

V. His calling of disciples, v. 16-20.

VI. His prayer, v. 35.

VII. His performance of miracles.

2. Healing of Peter's mother-in-law, who was sick with a fever, v. 29-31.

3. Healing of all who came to Him, v. 32.34.

4. Cleansing of the leper, v. 40-45.

Verses 1-8. We can notice here,

I. That the New Testament is a Divine covenant, to which we remain faithful more than any human one, and a new covenant that we prefer to all the old. This is the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, v. 1.

1. The New Testament is the Gospel, God's Word, faithful and true; see Rev. 19:9; 21:5; 22:6. This is a good word, worthy of everyone’s acceptance; it brings us good news.

2. This is the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the anointed Savior, the promised and expected Messiah. The previous Gospel began with the genealogy of Jesus Christ, which was only an introduction to it, but this one goes straight to the point - the exposition of the Gospel of Christ. It is called by His name, not only because He is the Author of it and it comes from Him, but also because He is the Subject of the Gospel and the whole of it is dedicated to the testimony of Him.

3. This Jesus is the Son of God. The Gospel of Mark is built upon this truth as a foundation, and is written for the purpose of revealing it; for if Jesus is not the Son of God, then our faith is vain.

II. That the New Testament refers to the Old and is consistent with it. The gospel of Jesus Christ began, and also continued (as we shall see later) exactly as it was written by the prophets (v. 2), for it says nothing except what the prophets and Moses said would happen, Acts 26:22. This was the most suitable and powerful argument to convince the Jews, who believed that the Old Testament prophets were sent from God, and were to testify to this by accepting the fulfillment of their prophecies in due time. But this is also important for all of us, for the confirmation of our faith in the writings of both the Old and New Testaments, for the exact correspondence between them shows that they both have the same Divine source.

Here are quotations from two prophecies - the prophecy of Isaiah, the oldest of the prophets, and the prophecy of Malachi, the latest of them (they are separated by about three hundred years);

both of them spoke of John's ministry as the beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

1. Malachi, in whose person we bid farewell to the Old Testament, said very clearly (Malachi 3:1) about John the Baptist that he should introduce the New Testament. Behold, I send My angel before Thy face, v. 2. Christ himself referred to this prophecy and applied it to John (Matt. 11:10) as the messenger of God sent to prepare the way for Christ.

2. Isaiah, the most evangelical of all the prophets, begins the gospel part of his prophecy by pointing to the beginning of the Gospel of Christ (Isa. 40:3): The voice of one crying in the wilderness, v. 3. Matthew also referred to this prophecy, referring it to John, Matthew 3:3. Comparing them with each other, we can see that:

(1.) Christ walks among us (in his gospel), bearing the treasure of grace and the scepter of power.

(2.) The corruption of the world was such that something had to be done in it to make room for Christ, to remove that which was not only an obstacle but also a resistance to His progress.

(3) In sending His Son into the world, God showed care, real care, which He also shows when He sends Him into our hearts - care to prepare His way before Him. For the purposes of His grace cannot fail; not everyone can expect consolation from this grace, but only one who is prepared for these consolations, through conviction of sin and humiliation, and is disposed to accept them.

(4) When crooked paths are made straight (errors in judgment and crooked paths of affection are corrected), then the way is opened for the consolations of Christ.

(5) The way of Christ, as well as of those who follow Him, is prepared in the wilderness (for such is this world), like the way that Israel went to Canaan.

(6) The messengers of reproof and intimidation who go to prepare the way for Christ are God's messengers, God sends and recognizes them as His own, and therefore they should be accepted as such.

(7) Those sent to prepare the way of the Lord in such a vast and dark wilderness as this world is, must cry aloud, not holding back, but lifting up their voice like a trumpet.

III. Which was the beginning of the New Testament. The gospel began with John the Baptist, for before John the law and the prophets were the only divine revelation, and from his time the gospel of the kingdom of God began, Luke 16:16. Peter begins with John's baptism, Acts 1:22. The Gospel began not with the birth of Christ, for He grew in wisdom and age for a certain time, and not with His entry into public ministry, but six months before that, when John began to preach the same teaching that Christ subsequently preached. His baptism was the dawn of the gospel day, for:

1. In the manner of John's life there was the beginning of the spirit of the Gospel, for it was a life of great self-denial, mortification of the flesh, holy contempt of the world and inconformity with it, which may truly be called the beginning of the Gospel of Christ in every soul, v. 6. John wore clothes made of camel's hair, and not soft clothes, was girded not with gold, but with a leather belt, neglected delicacies and delicacies, his food was locusts and wild honey.

Notice, the more we limit our body and the higher we rise above the world, the better prepared we will be to receive Jesus Christ.

2. The preaching and baptism of John marked the beginning of the teachings and rituals of the Gospel, and were their beginnings.

(1.) He preached forgiveness of sins, which is the great privilege of the gospel; showed people their need for forgiveness of sins, without which they would perish, and pointed out the possibility of obtaining it.

(2) He preached the repentance necessary to receive the forgiveness of sins, told people about the need to renew their hearts and correct their lives, that they must forsake their sins and turn to God - only on these conditions will their sins be forgiven. The apostles were commissioned to preach repentance to all nations for the forgiveness of sins, Luke 24:47.

(3.) He preached Christ and directed his hearers to expect that He would soon appear and do great things. Preaching about Christ is the pure Gospel, and it was about Him that John the Baptist preached, v. 7, 8. Like a true gospel minister, he preached:

About the great superiority to which Christ was moving, which was so high, so great that John, although he was the greatest of those born of women, considered himself not worthy to serve Him even in the smallest way - bending down to untie the thong of His shoes. Thus he diligently honors Christ and compels others to do the same.

About the great power with which Christ was invested. He follows me, in time, but He is stronger than me, stronger than the most powerful on earth, for He is able to baptize with the Holy Spirit, He can give the Spirit of God and through Him control human spirits.

Of the great promise that Christ makes in His Gospel to those who repent and receive the remission of sins: they will be baptized with the Holy Spirit, cleansed by His grace and strengthened by His consolation. And finally, all those who accepted his teaching and submitted to his institution, he baptized with water according to the Jewish custom used in the reception of proselytes, as a sign of their purification of themselves through repentance and correction (the required duties) and God's purification of them through forgiveness and sanctification (promised). blessings). Subsequently, baptism was to become one of the commandments of the Gospel, and the baptism of John was an introduction to it.

3. The success of John's preaching and his acquisition of disciples through baptism laid the foundation for the Evangelical Church. He baptized in the desert, without going into the cities, but the whole country of Judea and the people of Jerusalem, city and village residents, whole families came out to him, and everyone was baptized by him. They entered the number of his disciples, submitting to his discipline and, as a sign of this, confessing their sins; He, accepting them as disciples, baptized them as a sign of this. Here was the foundation of the Gospel Church - from the womb before the morning, your birth was like dew, Psalm 119:3. Many of them in the future became followers of Christ and preachers of His Gospel, so that this mustard seed became a tree.

Verses 9-13. Here before us short review Christ's baptism and His temptation, described in more detail in Matt. 3 and 4.

I. His baptism, which was the first appearance to his people after for long years unknown life in Nazareth. Oh, how many hidden virtues are there, either lost in this world in the dust of contempt and not being recognized, or wrapped in a veil of humility and not wanting to be recognized! But sooner or later everything will be revealed, just as Christ was revealed.

1. See how humbly He honored God by coming to be baptized by John. Thus it was fitting for Him to fulfill all righteousness. Thus He took upon Himself the likeness of sinful flesh: although He was perfectly pure and blameless, yet He washed Himself as if He had been defiled, stealing from us He consecrated Himself, that we also might be sanctified and baptized with Him, John 17:19.

2. See with what honor God acknowledged Him when He submitted to the baptism of John. Those who were baptized with the baptism of John are said to have given glory to God, Luke 7:29,30.

(1) He saw the heavens opening. Thus He was recognized as the Lord who had come from heaven, and received a glimpse of the glory and joy that was set before Him and reserved for Him as the reward of His service. Matthew says that the heavens were opened to Him. Mark says that He saw them open. For many the heavens open to receive them, but they do not see it. Christ not only clearly foresaw His sufferings, but also His coming glory.

(2) He saw the Spirit like a dove descending on Him.

Notice, when we sense the Spirit coming and working on us, then we can see heaven open to us. God's good work in us is the surest evidence of His favor toward us and His preparations for us. Justin Martyr says that when Christ was baptized, a fire kindled in the Jordan, and, according to ancient tradition, a great light shone around that place; for the Spirit brings both light and heat.

That He did not become less loved by Him because He found Himself in such a humiliated position. “Though He be so humbled, and bereft of all glory, yet He is My beloved Son.”

That He is loved by Him much more because He dedicated Himself to such glorious and merciful service. God is pleased with Him as a Mediator between Himself and man in all controversial issues; He is so satisfied with Him that He also takes pleasure in us.

II. His temptation. The good Spirit that came upon Him led Him into the wilderness, v. 12. Paul mentions that immediately after his calling he did not go to Jerusalem, but went to Arabia (Gal. 1:17), and gives this as proof that his teaching was of God, and not of man. Solitude from the world is an opportunity for freer conversation with God, and therefore it should be chosen for a time even by those who are called to the greatest works. Narrating about Christ's stay in the desert, Mark notes that He was there with the beasts. It was the manifestation of the Father’s care for Him in the fact that He was protected from being torn to pieces by wild beasts, which gave Him confidence that the Father would support Him even in hunger. Special patronage is the key to timely support. This was also a hint to Him of the inhumanity of the people of that generation among whom He was to live - they were no better than wild animals in the desert, even much worse. In a desert:

1. Evil spirits were concerned about Him. He was tempted by Satan, tempted not by any internal influences (the prince of this world has nothing in Christ to lay hold of), but by external deception. Solitude often gives the tempter an advantage, so two are better than one. Christ was tempted, not only to show us that there is no sin in temptation, but also to show us where to go for help when we are tempted - to the One who, having been tempted, endured so that he can have compassion on us when we are tempted.

2. Good spirits cared for Him: Angels served Him, that is, provided Him with what He needed, and served Him respectfully. Note. The ministry of good angels is very comforting to us when we are subjected to the evil machinations of evil angels. But it is much more important to have the Spirit (of God) indwelling in our hearts; Those who have Him are born of God, so that the evil one does not touch them, much less can he gain victory over them.

Verses 14-22. Contains here:

I. A General Survey of Christ's Preaching in Galilee. John gives an overview of the sermons He had previously preached in Judea, John. 2 and 3. Other evangelists omit them, since they tell mainly about events that took place in Galilee, because they were least known about them in Jerusalem.

Please note:

1. When Jesus began to preach in Galilee - after John was betrayed. When John completed his testimony, Jesus began His. Those who silence Christ's servants will not silence Christ's gospel; if some are removed, others will rise up, perhaps stronger than those, to continue the same work.

2. What He preached - the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. Christ came to establish the Kingdom of God among people so that they would submit to him and could find salvation in him. He established it through the preaching of His gospel and the manifestations of power that accompanied it.

Please note:

(1.) The great truths which Christ preached. The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand. This is a reference to the Old Testament promises about the Kingdom of the Messiah and the time of its coming. The people were not versed enough in prophecy and did not observe enough of the signs of the times to understand them themselves. Therefore, Christ calls their attention to the fact that “the predestined time is already at hand, the glorious revelations of Divine light, life and love are being realized, and an economy much more spiritual and divine than the previous one is beginning.”

Note. God keeps the time: when the time is fulfilled, the Kingdom of God is at hand, for the vision refers to a certain time, which will be exactly observed, although it will slow down in our time.

(2.) The great duties which follow. Christ gave the km to understand the times, so that they would know what Israel should do. They foolishly expected that the Messiah would appear in the power and glory of this world, not only to free the Jewish nation from the Roman yoke, but also to establish it over all their neighbors, therefore they thought that with the approach of the Kingdom of God they needed to prepare for war, for victory, success and rise in the world. But Christ tells them that, in view of the approach of the Kingdom, they must repent and believe in the Gospel. They violated the moral law and could not be saved by the covenant of innocence, for both Jews and Greeks were all under sin. Therefore they must avail themselves of the covenant of grace and submit to the law of atonement, which is repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. They have failed to take advantage of the prescribed preventive measures and must therefore now resort to the prescribed restorative means. In repentance, we must mourn and forsake our sins and accept forgiveness by faith. By repentance we must give glory to our Creator, Whom we have grieved, and by faith, glory to our Redeemer, Who came to save us from our sins. Both must be done in parallel: we must not think that reforming our lives will save us without trusting in the righteousness and grace of Christ, or that trusting in Christ will save us without correcting our hearts and lives. Christ united them together, and no one will think of separating them. They mutually help and assist each other. Repentance quickens faith, and faith makes repentance evangelical, the sincerity of both being demonstrated by diligent, conscientious obedience to all God's commandments. This is how the preaching of the Gospel began, and this is how it continues to this day, for even now the same call sounds: repent, and believe, and live a life of repentance and a life of faith.

II. The appearance of Christ as a teacher is followed by His calling of disciples, v. 16-20.

Please note:

1. Christ will always have followers. If He establishes a school, then He has disciples, if He hoists His banner, then soldiers flock to Him, if He preaches, listeners gather around Him. He took an effective course to ensure this, for whatever the Father had given Him would surely come to Him.

2. The instruments chosen by Christ for the foundation of His Kingdom were the weak and foolish of the world, called not from the great Sanhedrin or the school of rabbis, but taken from among the sailors, near the sea - so that it would be clear that the superiority of strength comes entirely from God, but completely not from them.

3. Although Christ does not need the help of people, yet He is pleased to use it in establishing His Kingdom, in order to deal with us in the way that is familiar to us, without causing fear, and that in His Kingdom the leaders and rulers should be from among themselves, Jer. 30: 21.

4. Christ gives honor to those who, although they are insignificant in the world, are diligent in their work and love one another. These were the ones He called. He found them to be earning money, and jointly at that. It is good and pleasant when hard work is combined with unity. The Lord Jesus blesses such people, commanding them: follow Me.

5. The job of ministers is to catch people and win them for Christ. Men in their natural state are lost, endlessly wandering in the vast ocean of this world, and carried away by its currents; they are useless. Like leviathan in the waters, they play in them and often devour one another, like the fish of the sea. While preaching the Gospel, the ministers cast a net into the sea, Matthew 13:47. Some are caught and pulled ashore, but many more do not end up in the net. Fishermen use great effort and expose themselves to the greatest dangers. Ministers do the same; they need wisdom. But even if the net does not bring a catch, no matter how many times they throw it, they must still continue their work.

6. Those whom Christ calls must leave everything and follow Him, and He by His grace disposes their hearts to this. This does not mean that we should immediately withdraw from the world, but that we should be indifferent to it and abandon everything inconsistent with our duties towards Christ, everything that cannot be observed without harm to our souls. Mark notes of James and John that they left not only their father (as written in Matthew), but also hired servants, whom they probably loved as their brothers, since they were their co-workers and pleasant companions. We must leave not only relatives, but also friends and old acquaintances for the sake of Christ. Perhaps this is a hint of their concern for their father: they did not leave him without help, but left him with the workers. According to Grotius, this is mentioned as proof that their trade was profitable for them if it was worth having workers to help in it, and that they, although their hands were sorely lacking, nevertheless abandoned their trade.

III. Here is given detailed review His sermons in Capernaum, one of the cities of Galilee; for although John the Baptist chose the desert as the place of his preaching and did well and did good, it does not follow from this that Christ should have done the same. The inclinations and abilities of ministers may vary greatly, and yet they may be in the course of their duty and be useful.

Please note:

1. When Christ came to Capernaum, He immediately set to work, taking the first opportunity to preach the Gospel. He who realizes how great the task lies ahead of him and how short the time allotted for it will not waste time.

2. Christ kept the Sabbath day reverently. Although He did not bind Himself to the traditions of the elders in all the subtleties of the Sabbath rest, nevertheless (which was much better) He devoted Himself to the Sabbath affairs, for which the Sabbath rest was established, and abounded in these matters.

3. Saturdays, if we have the opportunity, should be kept holy in the assemblies of believers. It is a holy day and should be honored by a holy congregation; such was the good old custom, Acts 13:27; 15:21. On Saturday, then odfflaaiv - on Saturdays, that is, on every Saturday, whenever Saturday came, He entered the synagogue.

4. In the assemblies of believers on the Sabbath days, the Gospel should be preached and all who are willing to study the truth that is in Jesus should be instructed.

5. Christ was a peerless preacher: He preached not like the scribes, who interpreted the law of Moses, memorizing it by heart, like a schoolboy answering a lesson, but did not know it (even Paul, being a Pharisee, was ignorant of the law), and he did not influence them actions; their word did not come from the heart and therefore was not with authority. But Christ taught them as having authority, as knowing the thoughts of God and authorized to proclaim them.

6. There are many amazing things in the teachings of Christ; the more we listen to him, the more reasons we find to admire him.

Verses 23-28. As soon as Christ began to preach, He began to perform miracles to confirm His teaching; they were intended to reveal the purpose of His teaching: to defeat Satan and heal sick souls.

In these verses we have:

I. Christ casting out a demon from a man possessed by him in the Capernaum synagogue. This incident was not recorded in Matthew, but is found later in Luke 4:33. In their synagogue there was a man possessed by an unclean spirit, iv nveJuaTi yokavartsh - in an unclean spirit, for the unclean spirit possessed the man and disposed of him as a captive, according to his will. It is also said that the whole world lies iv tsh novspu - in evil (English in the evil one - Translator's note). And some thought that it was more correct to say body in the soul than soul in the body, because the body is governed by the soul. He was in an unclean spirit, as they say about a person who is in a fever or in delirium, completely overcome by them.

Notice that the devil is here called an unclean spirit because he has lost all the purity of his nature, because he acts against the Holy Spirit of God and defiles the spirit of people with his suggestions. This man was in the synagogue, where he came, as some think, not to receive instruction or healing, but to oppose Christ, resist Him and prevent the people from believing in Him. Here we see:

1. The rage with which the unclean spirit met Christ: finding himself in the presence of Christ, he cried out as if in agony, fearing to be driven out. This is how demons believe and tremble, being horrified before Christ, but having neither hope in Him nor reverence for Him. As is clear from his words (v. 24), he did not intend to give up or agree with Christ (so far was he from uniting or union with Him), but spoke as knowing his fatal end.

(1) He calls Him Jesus of Nazareth. As far as is known, he was the first to call Him so, and did so with the intention of instilling in people a low opinion of Him (since nothing good was expected from Nazareth) and prejudice against Him as a deceiver (because everyone knew that the Messiah must be from Bethlehem ).

(2.) And at the same time there comes from him the confession that Jesus is the Holy One of God, as from the maidservant possessed with the spirit of divination the testimony that the apostles were the servants of the Most High God, Acts 16:16,17. Those who only have the concept of Christ, that He is the Holy One of God, but do not believe in Him and do not love Him, are not far from this demon.

(3) In essence, he admitted that Christ was too strong an adversary for him and he could not resist His power: “Leave what You have to do with us, for if You take hold of us, we are lost, You can destroy us.” The misfortune of these evil spirits is that they persist in their rebellion, although they know about their disastrous end.

(4) He wanted nothing to do with Jesus Christ, for he had no hope of being saved by Him and was afraid of being destroyed by Him. What do you care about us? If You leave us, then we will leave You alone. This is the language spoken by those who turn to the Almighty: Depart from us. Being an unclean spirit, he hated and feared Christ, because he knew that He was Holy, for the carnal mind is enmity against God, especially against His holiness.

2. The victory won by Jesus Christ over the unclean spirit. This is why the Son of God appeared, to destroy the works of the devil, and here He proves it. Neither the flattery of the devil nor his threats will stop him in this war. In vain Satan begged and begged: Leave us. His power must be broken and the unfortunate man must be delivered. That's why:

(1) Jesus commands. As He taught, so He healed—with authority. Jesus rebuked him, subdued him, and frightened him into silence. Shut up, f1IshvPt1 - put on a muzzle. Christ has a muzzle for the unclean spirit when it wags its tail and when it barks; Christ abhors such confessions as the unclean spirit made about Him; He is very far from accepting them. Some recognize Christ as the Holy One of God in order to continue their evil, harmful plans under the pretext of this religion; but the confession of such is doubly disgusting for the Lord Jesus, since, hiding behind the name of Christ, they seek freedom to sin, and therefore will be put to shame and brought into silence. But that was not all: he had to not only remain silent, but also leave the man; this was what he feared - being removed from further sabotage activities.

(2.) But the unclean spirit yielded, because he had no remedy against the power of Christ (v. 26): he shook him, throwing him into violent convulsions, so that one would have thought he would tear him in pieces. When he failed to pity Christ, he was filled with rage at Him and attacked the unfortunate man. So when Christ, by His grace, frees the unfortunate victims from the hands of Satan, this does not happen without painful shaking and confusion of the soul, for this evil enemy will harass those whom he cannot destroy. He cried out in a loud voice in order to frighten those present and appear terrible, so that they would think of him that although he was defeated, he was defeated only this time and hoped to resume the fight again and restore his position.

II. The impression this miracle made on the minds of the people, v. 27, 28.

1. It surprised those who saw it. And everyone was horrified. That the man was possessed was quite obvious, beyond any doubt, as this was evidenced by his shaking and the loud voice with which the spirit cried out. And it was also obvious that the spirit had been driven out of him by the power of Christ. This amazed them and forced them to reason and turn to each other with questions: “What is this new teaching? It must certainly be from God if it is confirmed in this way. He who is able to command even unclean spirits, so that they cannot resist, but are forced to obey Him, certainly has the power to command us too.” Jewish exorcists claimed to cast out evil spirits with spells and spells, but this was completely different: He commanded them with authority. Of course, it is in our interests to have as our friend the One who has power over the spirits of hell.

2. It raised His reputation in the eyes of all who heard of it. And soon rumors about Him spread throughout the entire region in Galilee, which occupied a third of the land of Canaan. This story was on everyone's lips, and people wrote about it to their friends all over the country, accompanying the message with a remark made on the subject: What is this new doctrine? And therefore everyone came to the conclusion that He was a Teacher who came from God, and as such shone brighter than if he had appeared in all the splendor and power of an external character, as the Jews expected the appearance of the Messiah. Thus, now that His forerunner John was imprisoned, He was preparing the way for Himself; and the rumor about this miracle spread further, despite all the efforts of the Pharisees, who were jealous of His glory and made every effort to eclipse it, because their blasphemous statements that He cast out demons by the power of the prince of demons had no success.

Verses 29-39. These verses contain:

I. Detailed description one of the miracles performed by Christ in healing Peter’s mother-in-law, who was in a fever. We met this episode earlier, in Matthew.

1. Having accomplished something that made Him famous throughout the whole region, Christ did not rest on it, like some who have reached the zenith of glory and imagine that they can now rest on their laurels. No, He continued to do good because that, and not His own glory, was His goal. Moreover, those who are surrounded by honor should be active and diligent in order to maintain it.

2. Coming out of the synagogue, where He taught and healed with Divine authority, Christ nevertheless preserved friendly relations with the poor fishermen who accompanied Him, and did not consider this humiliating for Himself. May we also have the same disposition, the same humble nature that He had.

3. He entered Peter's house, probably by invitation. He did not refuse to accept the hospitality that the poor fisherman could offer Him. The apostles gave up everything for the sake of Christ, so that what they owned would not hinder them from serving Him, nay, so that it could be used for Him.

4. He healed his mother-in-law, who was sick. Wherever Christ comes, He comes to do good, and you can be sure that He will reward your welcome generously.

Notice how complete the healing was: when the fever left her, there was no weakness left, which is usual in such cases, but the same hand that healed the woman strengthened her, so that she could serve them. Healing is performed in order to make us able to work and so that we can serve Christ and our neighbors for His sake.

II. A general overview of the numerous healings performed by Him: healed diseases and cast out demons. This happened on Saturday evening, when the sun was setting, or had already set. Probably many did not dare to bring the sick to Him before the end of the Sabbath, but their weakness in this matter was not a prejudice that prevented them from turning to Christ. Although He proved that it is lawful to heal on the Sabbath, if someone stumbles on this, then they can come at another time.

Please note:

1. How many patients there were. The whole city gathered at the door, like beggars asking for alms. Such a crowd around Him was caused by that one healing in the synagogue. Those who succeed in knowing Christ should inspire us to seek Him. The Sun of Truth rises and healing is in His rays; All nations will be gathered to Him.

Notice that Christ was followed by crowds both to the synagogue and to the private home. Wherever He is, let His servants, His patients, be there. And on Saturday evening, when the service is already over, we must continue our service to Jesus Christ; He healed as Paul preached, both publicly and from house to house.

2. How powerful the Doctor was. He healed all those brought to Him, even though there were so many of them. Moreover, He did not heal from just one ailment, but healed many who suffered from various diseases, for His word was laufariakou - a remedy for any pain. That particular miracle which He performed in the synagogue was repeated in the evening in the house, for He cast out many devils and did not suffer them to say that they knew that He was the Christ; He will no longer allow any of them to say, as one said (v. 24): I know You who You are.

III. His retreat for private, secret prayer, v. 35. He prayed, prayed in private, to leave us an example of secret prayer. Although they prayed to Him as God, He Himself prayed as a Man. Although He glorified God and did good in His public ministry, He nevertheless found time to be alone with His Father. Thus it was fitting for Him to fulfill all righteousness. Note:

1. The time when Christ prayed.

(1) It was early in the morning, the day after the Sabbath. When the Sabbath day is over, passed, we should not think that we can interrupt our prayers until the next Sabbath. Although we do not go to the synagogue, we must go to the throne of grace every day throughout the week, and especially on the morning after the Sabbath, in order to preserve the good impressions of this day. This morning was the morning of the first day of the week, which He subsequently sanctified and made memorable, also rising early in the morning, although in a different sense.

(2) It was early, very early. While others slept in their beds, He prayed like a true son of David, seeking God early, directing His prayers in the morning, nay, rising at midnight to give thanks. They say that morning is a friend to the muses, Aurora Musis aica. Moreover, this can be said about grace. When our spirits are especially cheerful and lively, we should set aside time for the exercise of prayer. To Him, Who is the First and Best, the first and the best should be given.

2. The place where He prayed. He retired to a deserted place, either outside the city or to some remote garden or building. Christ was in no danger of being distracted or tempted by vanity, and yet He retired into solitude, giving us an example of the fulfillment of His own principle: When you pray, come into your closet. Secret prayer must be done in secret. Those who are busy with social work, and the kindest work at that, should be alone with God from time to time; must retire to a secluded place in order to talk there and have fellowship with Him.

IV. His return to social work. The disciples, who thought they had risen early, found that the Master had risen before them, and finding out in what direction He had gone, they followed Him into a desert place, where they found Him praying, v. 36, 37. They told Him how people needed Him, what a great multitude of sick people were waiting for Him: Everyone is looking for You. They were proud that their Master had become so popular and wanted Him to appear in society, especially here because it was their hometown. We also tend to be partial to places that are familiar and interesting to us. “No,” said Christ, “Capernaum should not enjoy a monopoly on the preaching and miracles of the Messiah. Let us go to neighboring villages and cities so that I can preach there and work miracles there, for I did not come to be constantly in one place, but to go everywhere doing good.” Even the villagers in Israel will sing praises to the Lord.

Observe, Christ always had the purpose for which He came in view, and pressed steadily towards it; neither the importunity nor the persuasion of His friends could distract Him from it, for (v. 39) He preached in their synagogues throughout all Galilee, and cast out demons for the glorification and confirmation of His doctrine. Note. Christ's teaching is destruction for Satan.

Verses 40-45. Here is the account of Christ's cleansing of the leper, which we have already read, Matthew 8:2-4. It teaches us the following:

1. How to turn to Christ - as the leper did:

(1) With deep humility; he came up pleading with Him and falling on his knees before Him (v. 40), either paying divine honors to Him as God, or rather paying homage to Him as a great Prophet. This teaches us that those who wish to receive grace and mercy from Christ should attribute honor and glory to Him and approach Him with humility and reverence.

(2) With firm faith in His power: You can cleanse me. Although outwardly Christ looked like an ordinary man, the leper was confident in His power. This shows his belief that He was sent by God. He believed this not only in general: You can do all things (as in John 11:22), but also in relation to himself: You can cleanse me. We must bring our faith in the power of Christ into practical application in our personal lives: You can do this for me.

(3) With submission to the will of Christ: Lord, if you want... He did not express doubts about Christ’s willingness to help the suffering in general, but, bringing to Him his personal need, he showed the modesty befitting a poor petitioner.

2. What to expect from Christ - let it be done to us according to our faith. The leper's appeal was not expressed in the form of prayer, and yet Christ answered it as a petition. Note. A heartfelt confession of faith in Christ and an expression of submission to Him are the most powerful petitions; they most quickly receive the mercies asked of Christ.

(1.) Christ had mercy on him. So it is written here in Mark to show that the power of Christ was actuated by His pity for unfortunate souls, the desire to bring them relief; that He draws the grounds for His favor towards us in Himself, there is nothing in us that could cause it, our misfortunes make us objects of His mercy. And whatever He does for us, He does with all possible tenderness.

(2) He put out his hand and touched him. He exerted His power and directed it towards this man. In healing souls Christ touches them, 1 Samuel 10:26. When the queen touched a disease, she said: I touch, and God heals. But Christ touches and heals.

(3) He said: I want, cleanse yourself. The power of Christ was manifested in and by the word, and this showed the way in which Christ worked spiritual healings: He sent His word, and healed, Ps. 116:20; John 15:3; 17:17. The poor leper added if to Christ's desire: If you want... But this doubt was soon eliminated: I want. Christ is most willing to favor those who most willingly submit themselves to His will. The leper was confident in the power of Christ: You can cleanse me, and Christ wants to show how His power is brought into action by the faith of His people, so He speaks the word as one who has authority: Cleanse yourself. This word was accompanied by power, and healing took place instantly. The leprosy immediately left him, and not even a trace of it remained, v. 42.

3. What to do after we have received mercy from Christ - along with His mercies, accept His commands. When Christ healed the leper, He looked at him sternly (in the English Bible version of 1611, which the author uses, it says: he strictly forbade him. - Translator's note.). A meaningful word is used here - ipiodvog - prohibition with threats. I am inclined to believe that this does not refer to a command to hide what had happened to him (v. 44), for this is said separately, but that it was a warning similar to that which Christ gave to the paralytic whom He healed, John 5: 14: Sin no more, lest anything worse befall you, for leprosy was commonly punished against special sinners, such as Miriam, Gehazi, and Uzziah. Having healed the leper, Christ warned him and threatened him with a fatal outcome if he returned to sin again. He also commanded him:

(1) Show yourself to the priest, so that the priest, having given his conclusion about leprosy, thereby testifies of Christ that He is the Messiah, Matthew 11:5.

(2) Until he does this, don’t say anything to anyone. This showed the humility of Christ and His self-denial, He did not seek His own glory, He did not lift up His voice, Isaiah 42:2. This is an example for us not to seek our own glory, Prov. 25:27. He could not announce his cleansing openly, as this would cause an increase in the crowd of people following Christ, which, in His opinion, was already too large. This does not mean that He did not want to do good to everyone, no matter how many of them came, but that He wanted to do it with as little noise as possible, without arousing the reproaches of the authorities, without disturbing public order, and without giving rise to suspicions of boasting or covetousness. public approval. What can be said about the fact that the leper began to proclaim and talk about what happened, I don’t know; keep silent about virtues and good deeds good people more becoming to themselves than to their friends; and we are not always bound by the humble commands of humble men. The leper should have fulfilled the command, but his disclosure of the fact of healing undoubtedly had good intentions and did not entail any other bad consequences, except for increasing the number of those who followed Christ, so that He could no longer openly enter the city; not because of persecution (there was no such danger yet), but because the crowd was large and the streets of the city could not accommodate it, so He was forced to go to desert places, to the mountain (Map 3:13), to the sea , Map 4:1. This shows how expedient it was for us that Christ left and sent the Comforter, since while He was in the body, He could only be in one place at a time; those who came to Him from everywhere could not come close to Him. But by His Spirit He can be with His children wherever they are and come to them in any place.

Chapter 2 →

note. Verse numbers are links leading to a section with comparisons of translations, parallel links, texts with Strong's numbers. Try it, you might be pleasantly surprised.

The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, As it is written in the prophets: “Behold, I am sending My angel before You, who will prepare Your way before You.” “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.” John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

Mark begins his story about Jesus very far away - not from the birth of Jesus, not even from John the Baptist in the desert. He begins the story with the visions of the ancient prophets, in other words, he begins with deep antiquity, with the plans of God.

The Stoics also believed in God's ordained plan. “Everything divine,” said Marcus Aurelius, “is permeated by providence. Everything comes from heaven." We can learn something from this too.

1) They say that youth “looks far ahead,” and God’s plans also go far ahead. God designs His plans and carries them out. History is not a random kaleidoscope of unrelated events, but an evolving process where God already sees the final goal at the very beginning.

2) We are inside this developing process and therefore can help or hinder it. In a sense, it is a great honor to help in a great cause, but it is also a great privilege to see the end goal. Life would change a lot if we, instead of pining for some distant and real, unattainable goal, did everything , everything in our power to bring this goal closer.

In my youth, because I didn't sing myself,

I didn't even try to write songs

I didn't plant young trees along the roads,

Because I knew they grow very slowly.

But now, wise over the years

I know that a noble, holy cause -

Plant a tree that others will water

Or put together a song for someone else to sing.

A goal will never be achieved if no one works to achieve it.

Mark's quotation from the prophets is significant. “I send My angel before You, who will prepare Your way before You.” This is a quote from Small 3, 1. In the book of the prophet Malachi this is a threat. In Malachi's time, the priests performed their duties poorly: they sacrificed handicapped animals and worthless second-rates, and looked upon temple service as a boring chore. The Messenger of God had to cleanse the worship in the temple before the Anointed of God came to earth. Thus, the coming of Christ was the purification of life. And the world needed such cleansing. Seneca called Rome “the cesspool of all vices.” Juvenal spoke of Rome as “a dirty drainpipe into which flows the disgusting refuse of all Syrian and Achaian vices.” Where Christianity comes, it brings with it purification.

This can be shown with facts. Bruce Barton tells how he had to write a series of articles about evangelist Billy Sunday during his first major journalism assignment. Three cities were selected. “I talked to merchants,” writes Bruce Barton, “and they told me that during and after the meetings people would come up and pay bills so old that they had long since been written off.” Then Bruce Barton visited the chairman of the city's chamber of commerce, which Billy Sunday had visited three years earlier. “I don’t belong to any church,” said the chairman of the chamber of commerce, “and I never went to church, but I’ll tell you what. If it were now proposed to invite Billy Sunday to this city, and if I knew in advance about his activities what I know now, and if the church could not get the money necessary for this, I would get this money in half a day from people who generally they don't go to church. Billy Sunday took eleven thousand dollars from here, but the circus comes here and takes away the same amount in one day and leaves nothing. He left behind a different moral atmosphere.” Bruce Barton intended to expose, but he had to pay tribute to the cleansing power of the Christian gospel in his articles.

When Billy Graham preached in Shreveport, Louisiana, liquor sales dropped forty percent and Bible sales increased three hundred percent. One of the results achieved during his preaching in Seattle was formulated very simply: “Several divorce proceedings" In Greensboro, North Carolina, they stated the following result: “It had an impact on the entire social structure cities".

One of the great examples of the effectiveness of Christianity is the incident of the mutiny on the Bounty ship. The rebels were landed on Pitcairn Island. There were nine of them, and the aborigines lived on the island - six men, ten women and a fifteen-year-old girl. After one of the rebels succeeded in making raw alcohol, tragedy befell them - all of the rebels died except one, Alexander Smith. Smith came across the Bible by chance, read it and decided to create a society with the island's natives based directly on biblical teaching. An American warship approaching the island twenty years later discovered a Christian community on the island in the full sense of the word. There was no prison on the island because there was no crime there; there was no hospital because there were no sick people; there was no madhouse because there were no madmen; There were also no illiterate people there, and nowhere in the world was a person’s life and property as safe as there. Christianity purified society.

Where Christ is allowed to come, the anti-putrefaction of the Christian faith cleanses society of moral poison and makes it pure.

John the Baptist came preaching baptism of repentance. The Jews were familiar with ritual ablutions. They are described in detail in A lion. 11-15. “The Jew,” said Tertullian, “is washed every day, because he is defiled every day.” Symbolic washing and cleansing formed an integral part of Jewish ritual. A pagan was considered unclean because he never kept a single rule of the Jewish law. Therefore, when the pagan became proselyte, that is, to convert to the Jewish religion, he had to undergo three rituals. First, be exposed circumcision for this was the distinctive mark of the chosen people; secondly, it had to be brought for him victim, for it was believed that he needed to be cleansed and only blood could cleanse sin; and thirdly, he had to undergo a ritual baptism, which symbolized his cleansing from all filth past life. It is quite natural, therefore, that baptism was not simply a sprinkling of water, but an immersion of the whole body in water.

Baptism was known to the Jews, but the amazing thing about the baptism of John the Baptist was that John, being a Jew, invited the Jews to undergo a rite that, it would seem, only pagans should undergo. John the Baptist made a grand discovery: being a Jew by birth does not mean being a member of God's chosen people; a Jew may find himself in exactly the same position as a pagan; God does not need a Jewish way of life, but a purified life. Baptism has always been associated with confession. Every time a person turns to God, he must confess his faith to three different individuals.

1) A person must confess to yourself. Such is human nature that we close our eyes to what we do not want to see, and above all, to our sins. Someone told about one man's first step towards grace. Looking at his face in the mirror one morning while shaving, he suddenly said: “You dirty little rat!” And from that day he began to become a different person. Leaving his home, the prodigal son, of course, believed that he had a wonderful and enterprising character. But before he took the first step on the way back, he had to take a good look at himself and say: “I will get up, go to my father and say to him: “Father! I am no longer worthy to be called your son." (Onion. 15, 18.19).

The hardest thing in the world is to face yourself; and take the first step towards repentance and right relationship with God means to admit your sin yourself.

2) A person must confess to those whom he has harmed. It is not enough to tell God that we repent if we do not admit our guilt to those whom we have offended and upset. Before the heavenly barriers can be removed, the human barriers must be removed. One day, a parishioner came to the priest of one community of the East African Church and confessed that she had quarreled with her husband, also a member of this community. “There was no need to immediately come and confess to this quarrel; it was necessary to make peace first and already Then come and confess to her,” the priest answered her. Very often it even happens that it is easier to confess to God than to people. But whoever does not humiliate himself cannot be forgiven.3) A person must confess God. The end of pride is the beginning of forgiveness. Only when a person says, “I have sinned,” can God say, “I forgive.” Forgiveness is received not by the one who wants to speak with God on equal terms, but by the one who kneels in timid repentance and says, overcoming his shame: “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.”

Brand 1.5-8 Tsar's Messenger

And all the country of Judea and the people of Jerusalem came out to him; and they were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.

John wore clothes made of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist, and ate locusts and wild honey.

And he preached, saying: He who is mightier than I is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down to untie;

I baptized you with water, and He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.

It is clear that the preaching of John the Baptist had a great impact on the Jews, because they came in droves to hear him and be baptized by him. Why did John have such an impact on his people?

1) This was a man who lived as he spoke. Not only his words, but his whole life was a protest. This protest against his contemporary way of life is expressed in three points.

a) He did not live like others - he lived in the desert. Between the center of Judea and the Dead Sea lies one of the most terrible deserts in the world. It was a limestone desert; twisted and crumpled, flickering in the haze of heat; the hot rocks hummed underfoot, as if there was a huge red-hot furnace underneath them. This desert extends to Dead Sea and then descends in terrible sheer ledges to the sea. In the Old Testament it is sometimes called Yeshimmon, What means devastation. John was not a city dweller. He was a man accustomed to the desert, to its loneliness and desolation. He was the man who had the opportunity to hear the voice of God.

b) He did not dress like others - he wore special clothes made of camel hair and a leather belt. Elijah wore the same clothes (4 Tsar. 1.8) - [in English translated, the verse reads like this: “(The man) wears a hair shirt and a leather belt around his loins” - approx. translator]. When looking at John, people should not have thought about the fashionable, eloquent orators of their time, but remembered the prophets of the distant past, who lived very simply and avoided the soft and pampering luxury that kills the soul.

c) He did not eat like others - he ate locusts and wild honey. Interestingly, both words can be interpreted in two ways: locusts can be insects (locusts) that the law allowed to eat (A lion. 11, 22.23), but it could also be a variety of beans or nuts that the poorest ate. Honey - this can be honey that wild bees collect, but it can also be some kind of sweet tree resin, tree sap, which was obtained from the bark of some trees. It doesn’t matter what these words mean, but John ate very simply.

Such was John the Baptist, and people listened to the words of such a man. Someone said of Carlyle that he preached the Gospel of Silence in twenty volumes. Many people proclaim what they deny with their lives; those with decent bank accounts preach that there is no need to accumulate earthly treasures. Others, living in luxurious houses, preach the bliss of poverty. But John preached with his life the same thing as in words, and therefore people listened to him2. His preaching was also effective because he told people what they knew in the depths of their hearts and what they expected in their souls.

a) The Jews had a saying: if Israel will strictly observe the law of God even for one day, the Kingdom of God will come. By calling people to repentance, John the Baptist was simply leading them to a conclusion that they should have made long ago, what they were thinking about in the depths of their souls. Plato once said that education is not about telling people new things, it is about removing from their memory what they already know. The most powerful effect on a person is such a message and a sermon that is addressed to his consciousness; and such a sermon becomes irresistible if it is delivered by a person who has the moral right to do so.

b) The people of Israel knew well that for three hundred years the voice of prophecy had been silent. The Jews were waiting for the true word of God and they heard it in the preaching of John the Baptist. There is a sense of specialist in every profession. The famous violinist says that as soon as Toscanini approached the conductor's stand, the orchestra felt the conductor's authority pouring out on it. We ourselves immediately recognize a truly experienced doctor. We immediately sense a speaker who knows his subject well. John came from God and those who heard him immediately understood this.

3. John’s preaching was also effective because he himself was extremely modest and humble. He judged himself that he was unworthy even to be a slave, unworthy to untie the sandal strap of the Messiah. Sandals were ordinary leather soles, secured to the foot with ribbons passing between the toes. The roads at that time were not covered with asphalt and in dry weather they were heaps of dust, and in rainy weather they were rivers of mud. Taking off sandals was the job of a slave. John demanded nothing for himself, but everything for Christ, whose coming he proclaimed. His selflessness, his humble submission, his complete self-abasement, his complete absorption in preaching made people listen to him.

4) His sermons and his message were also effective because he pointed to Something and Someone that was higher than him. He told people that he was baptizing them with water, but that the One who would baptize them with the Holy Spirit would come, and water could only cleanse a person’s body, and the Holy Spirit could cleanse his life, himself and his heart. Dr. G. J. Jeffrey gives a very interesting example. When you want to call someone through a switchboard, the operator will often tell you: “Just a minute, I’ll try to connect you,” and having connected, she disappears completely and leaves you to talk directly to the person you need. John the Baptist does not seek to become the center of attention - he seeks to connect people with the One who is higher and stronger than him, and people listened to him because he pointed not to himself, but to the One who was needed by everyone.

Brand 1.9-11 Decision day

And it came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.

And when he came out of the water, John immediately saw the Heavens opening and the Spirit like a dove descending on Him.

And a voice came from heaven: You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

Every thinking person has problems with the story of Jesus' baptism. John's baptism was a baptism of repentance, intended for those who repented of their sins and wished to express their determination to put an end to them. What did this baptism have to do with Jesus? Wasn't He sinless and wasn't such a baptism unnecessary and inappropriate for Him? For Jesus this baptism had the following four meanings:

1. It was a moment decision making. He spent thirty years in Nazareth, faithfully performing his daily work and his duty to home and family. He must have long ago realized that the time for His performance had come: He was probably just waiting for some sign. The appearance of John the Baptist was this sign. Now, He saw, the moment had come when He must set out to fulfill the task entrusted to Him.

There come times in every person's life when a decision needs to be made and when a decision is accepted or rejected. To make a decision means to succeed; to refuse to make a decision or to evade it means to fail. As Lowell put it: “There comes a time for every person and nation when a decision must be made and a side must be chosen.

“In the struggle between truth and lies, choose the side of good or the side of evil.

This is a great choice; God’s new Messiah, offers everyone blossoming or withering, And the choice is made once and for all between darkness and light.”

There comes a time in every person's life when a decision needs to be made. Shakespeare saw it this way:

“There is a tide in a person’s life, and if you walk on big water, you will find good luck. You will miss it, and your entire life’s journey will be spent in shoals and in adversity.”

A life without a decision is wasted and futile, unsatisfied and often tragic life. John Oxenham saw her like this:

“Paths and roads are open to every person; A high soul chooses a high path, And a low soul gropes for a low one, And in the middle, on the foggy plains, The rest are carried hither and thither.”

Life adrift cannot be happy. When John appeared, Jesus knew that the moment had come and He had to make a decision. Nazareth was a peaceful village and home was dear to him, but He answered the call and the call of God.

2. By baptism, Jesus expressed His unity with the people. He really didn't need to repent of his sins; but there was a movement towards God among the people and He felt the need to take part in this movement. A person who has peace, comfort and wealth can identify with a movement that aims to bring benefits to the oppressed, the poor, the homeless, the overworked and the underpaid. A person shows a truly great sense of solidarity when he participates in some movement not for his own sake or his personal interests, but for the sake of the interests of other people. In John Bunyan's allegory, the Christian, on his journey with the Interpreter, arrived at a heavily guarded Palace; to enter it required entering into battle. At the door of the Palace sat a man with an inkwell made of a horn, writing down the names of everyone who dared to attack. Everyone began to move back and then the Christian saw how “some brave man approached the recorder and said: “Write down my name, sir.” When great things are done, the Christian should come and say, “Please write down my name,” for that is what Jesus did when He came to be baptized.

3. This was for Him a moment of confirmation in the chosen decision. No one leaves his home with a calm heart to go on an unknown journey. A person must be absolutely sure that he is doing the right thing. Jesus had already decided what He would do next, and now He was waiting for God's seal of approval. During the time of Jesus, the Jews spoke of the so-called Bat Kol, What means daughter of the voice. They believed that there were several heavens, on the top of which God sat in an inaccessible light. In rare moments, the heavens open and God speaks, but in their opinion, God was so far away that people only hear a distant echo of His voice. The voice of God came to Jesus directly, directly. From Mark's account it is clear that this was a personal experience of Jesus, not in any way intended for the crowd. No, the voice did not say: “This is my beloved Son,” as Matthew says (Mat. 3:17), the voice said, “You are my beloved Son,” speaking directly to Jesus. In the act of receiving baptism, Jesus submitted His decision to God's consideration, and this decision was clearly approved.

4. Baptism was a moment of conviction of power for Jesus. At this time the Holy Spirit descended on Him. Here we are dealing with certain symbolism. The Holy Spirit descended as a dove can descend. This is not a random comparison. The dove is a symbol kindness. Both Matthew and Luke tell us about the nature of John's preaching (Mat. 3, 7-12; Onion 3, 7-13). John's mission was the mission of the ax to the root of the trees; a mission of terrible selection, all-consuming fire. He proclaimed condemnation and destruction, not good news. The appearance of the Holy Spirit, compared to a dove, immediately creates a feeling of kindness and gentleness. He will win, but it will be a victory of love.

Brand 1.12.13 Test time

Immediately after this, the Spirit leads Him into the wilderness.

And He was there in the wilderness for forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the beasts; and Angels served Him.

As soon as the glorious hour of baptism had passed, the struggle with temptation began. Here one moment appears very clearly to us and we cannot pass by. After all, it was the Holy Spirit who led Jesus into the desert to be tested. The same Spirit that descended on Him at the time of baptism now led (drove) him to the test.

It is impossible to avoid temptations in our lives. But one thing is absolutely clear - temptations are not sent to us in order to lead us to a fall; they are sent to us to strengthen our nerves, our minds, our hearts and our souls. They should not destroy us, but benefit us. They should be tests from which we should emerge even better warriors and athletes of God. Let's say that this young man is a good football player; he performs well in the second lineup and shows good potential; What will the team leader do then? Without a doubt, he will not send him to the third team, where this young man could play with coolness and not even break a sweat; and he will send him to play in the first team, where the young man will undergo a completely new test for him and will have the opportunity to prove himself. So are temptations - they should give us the opportunity to test our maturity and strengthen us for the fight.

Phrase forty days does not need to be taken literally. The Jews usually used this phrase to express the meaning quite a lot of time. For example, it is said that Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights (Ex. 24, 18); Elijah walked for forty days and forty nights, strengthened by the food given to him by the Angel (3 Tsar. 19, 8). As we speak ten days or so so the Jews used the expression forty days not literally, but in a sense for quite a long time.

Tempted Jesus Satan. In Hebrew Satan means enemy, rival. Satan acted as an accuser of people before God. This word is used in the same meaning in Job. 2, 2 and Zech. 3, 2. Satan had to make accusations against people. Satan had another title: devil; the word comes from Greek Diabolos, which literally means in Greek slanderer. It is still a small step from one who diligently seeks out everything that can be said against a person to one who deliberately and maliciously slander a person before God. This is his greatest, most malicious enemy; and man's greatest enemy.

In other words, in this world there is God and His enemy, enemy of God. It was almost inevitable that Satan would come to be looked upon primarily as enemy of God. This is the meaning of this name now, this is who he has always been for people; Satan is the essence of everything that is directed against God. If we turn to the New Testament, we will see that exactly Satan or devil is behind all human illness and suffering (Onion. 13, 16); Satan entered Judas, seduced him (Onion. 22, 3); we must fight the devil (1 Pet. 5, 8; Jacob 4, 7); Through the acts of Christ the power of Satan was broken (Onion. 10, 1-19). Satan is a force that opposes God.

This is the whole point of the story of temptation. Jesus had to decide how He would carry out the task assigned to Him. He understood the enormity of the task before Him, but He also realized that He had been given enormous power. God told Him: “Bring My love to people, love them to death, conquer them with this indestructible love, even if You have to die on the cross.” Satan suggested to Jesus: “Use Your power to harm people; destroy Your enemies; conquer the world by force, might and blood.” God told Jesus: “Establish the kingdom of love.” Satan suggested: “Establish a dictatorship of force.” And on that day Jesus had to choose between the way of God and the way of God's enemy.

Mark finishes his short story about temptation with two bright strokes.

1. And (He) was with the beasts. The desert was inhabited by a leopard, a bear, a wild boar and a jackal. Researchers often believe that this bright touch somewhat complements the overall gloomy picture. But perhaps this is not the case at all. Perhaps this stroke suggests that the animals were friends of Jesus. In the dreams of the Jews about the golden age that was to come after the coming of the Messiah, there was also a dream that the enmity between man and beast would end. “And at that time I will make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field and with the birds of the air and with the creatures that creep on the earth.” (OS. 2, 18). “Then the wolf will live with the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the kid... And the baby will play over the asp’s hole, and the child will stretch out his hand into the snake’s nest. They will not do evil or harm in all My holy mountain." (Isa. 11, 6-9). Perhaps here we see the first foretaste of the charm of the peaceful coexistence of man and beast. Perhaps here we have a picture of how animals recognized their Friend and their King before people did.

2. Angels served Him. In moments of testing, a person always receives divine support. When Elisha and his servant were surrounded by enemies in Dophaim and it seemed they had no way out, Elisha opened the eyes of the young servant, and he saw around horses and chariots of fire that belonged to God (4 Tsar. 6, 17). Jesus was not left alone in His battle—and we are not alone either.

Brand 1.14.15 good news

After John was betrayed, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God.

And saying that the time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent and believe in the Gospel.

In that summary The gospel of Jesus contains three great words that are central to Christianity.

Gospel (good news). Jesus came primarily to bring good news to people. If we trace the word in the New Testament evangelion, good news, gospel, we can understand something from its content.

a) This is the gospel truth (Gal. 2, 5; Col. 15). Before Jesus came, people could only grope for God. “Oh, that I knew where to find Him!” - Job cried (Job. 23, 3). Marcus Aurelius says that the soul can see only dimly, and for “see” he uses the Greek word meaning to see things through water. With the coming of Christ, people can clearly see what God is like: there is no longer any need to guess and search in the dark.

b) This is the gospel hope (Col. 1:23). Pessimistic sentiments dominated in the ancient world. Seneca spoke of “our helplessness in the most necessary things.” People have been defeated in the struggle for virtue. The coming of Jesus brought hope to despairing hearts.

c) This is the gospel peace (Eph. 6, 15). A person carries a punishment within himself - a split personality. In man, the beast and the angel are strangely mixed and combined. They say that they once asked the lonely wandering pessimistic philosopher Schopenhauer the following question: “Who are you?” To this he replied: “I wish you would tell me that.” And Robert Bern said about himself: “My life reminds me of a destroyed temple. What strength, what proportions in some parts! What endless gaps, what heaps of ruins in others!” All of a person’s misfortunes stem from the fact that he simultaneously strives for sin and virtue. The coming of Jesus unites this divided personality into one. A person gains the same victory over his opposing “I” that Jesus Christ won.

d) This is the gospel promises (Eph. 3, 6). It is fair to say that people have always looked to God for threats rather than promises. All non-Christian religions know a God who demands and asks; only Christianity has told people about a God who is ready to give more than we ask.

e) This is the gospel immortality (2 Tim. 1, 10). For the pagans, life was the road to death, man was essentially a dying man, and Jesus came to bring us the good news that we are on the road to life, not to death.

f) This is the gospel salvation (Eph. 1, 13). This salvation is not simply something negative; it includes the positive. It does not simply provide release from punishment and deliverance from past sin; it makes it possible to live victoriously and overcome sin. Jesus brought truly good news to the people.

2. Confess. Repentance is not as simple a thing as it sometimes seems. Greek word metanoia literally means change your way of thinking. A person tends to confuse two things - regret about the consequences perfect sin and regret for sin. Many express extreme regret because of the mass of troubles that their sin has brought upon them. But if they were confident that they could avoid these consequences, they would do it again. They do not hate sin, but its consequences. True repentance means that a person not only regrets the consequences of the sin he committed on himself and others, but also hates the sin itself. Once upon a time, the wise Montaigne wrote in his biography: “Children should be taught to hate vice because of its essence, so that they not only avoid committing it, but also hate it with all their hearts; so that the mere thought of him could cause them disgust, no matter in what form he appears.” Repentance means that a person who is in love with his sin begins to hate it for its absolute sinfulness.

3. And finally believe.“Believe,” says Jesus, “the good news.” Believing the good news simply means taking Jesus at his word, believing that God is exactly as He told us He is; to believe that God loves the world so much that he will make any sacrifice to bring us back to Himself; this means believing that everything that sounds not entirely plausible in our opinion is the truth.

Brand 1.16-20 Jesus chooses His friends

As he passed near the Sea of ​​Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting nets into the sea, for they were fishermen.

And Jesus said to them, Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.

And they immediately left their nets and followed Him.

And having gone on from there a little, He saw James Zebedee and John his brother also in a boat mending nets.

And he immediately called them. And they, leaving their father Zebedee in the boat with the workers, followed Him.

Once Jesus made His decision and determined His course of action, He began to recruit people to carry it out. A leader must always start somewhere. He gathers around himself a group of like-minded people to whom he could ease his heart and in whose hearts he could write down his program. And Mark shows us Christ literally laying the foundation of His Kingdom and calling His first followers to Himself. There were many fishermen in Galilee. The great Jewish historian Josephus, who was at one time governor of Galilee, says that at that time three hundred and fifty fishing boats sailed in the waters of the lake. Ordinary people in Palestine rarely ate meat, perhaps no more than once a week. Fish was their main food (Onion. 11, 11; Mat. 7, 10; Mar. 6, 30-44; Onion. 24, 42). Usually the fish was salted because there were no means of transporting fresh fish. Fresh fish was one of the main delicacies in such big cities, like Rome. The very name of the cities located on the shores of Lake Gennesaret shows the important place fishing occupied there. Bethsaida Means fishermen's house; Tarichea(in the Russian Bible - Magdala) - place of salted fish, and it was there that the fish were stored for export to Jerusalem and even to Rome. Salting fish and the trade in salted fish occupied an important place in Galilee.

Fishermen used two types of nets, and they are mentioned or implied in the Gospels. One type was called Saguenay, a kind of trawl that was lowered from the stern of the boat and which was so balanced that it stood straight in the water. The ship moved forward and pulled the net by its four ends and pulled them together, making the net like a large bag, which, moving in the water, captured the fish. Another type of network, used by Simon Peter and Andrew, was called an amphibiousron; it was much smaller, shaped like an umbrella, and was thrown into the water by hand, like a net.

It is only natural that the people Jesus chose to be His followers would be of great interest for study.

1. It should be noted who they were. These were ordinary people. They did not go to schools or universities, they did not come from priests or aristocrats; they were neither learned nor rich. These were fishermen, in other words, they were ordinary people. No one ever had more faith in ordinary people than Jesus. George Bernard Shaw once said: “I have no feelings for the working class except one: to abolish them and replace them with reasonable people.” In the novel The Patrician by John Galsworthy, one of the characters, Miltown, says: “Mob! What disgust I feel for her! I hate her voice, and one look at her face - it’s so ugly, so insignificant!” One day, in irritation, Carlisle declared that there were twenty-seven million people in England - and most of them were fools! Jesus didn't think so. Abraham Lincoln said: "God must love ordinary people - He made so many of them." Jesus seemed to be saying: “Give me twelve ordinary people, and with them, if they are devoted to Me, I will change the world.” A person should think more about what Jesus can make of him than about what he is.

2. It should be noted what they were doing the moment Jesus called them. They did the usual work: fishing and repairing nets. “I am not a prophet,” said Amos, “nor the son of a prophet; I was a shepherd and collected sycamore trees. But the Lord took me from the sheep and the Lord said to me: “Go, prophesy to my people Israel.” (Am. 7, 14.15). The call of God can come to a person not only when he is in the house of God or in solitude, but also directly in the course of everyday work. As the Scottish engineer McAndrew expressed it in Kipling:

“From the connecting flange to the guide spindle, Everywhere I see Your hand, O God! Predestination is in the work of Your connecting rod!”

A person living in a world in which God is everywhere cannot help but encounter Him.

3. It should be noted as Jesus called them. Jesus' call was: "Follow Me!" This does not mean that He saw them for the first time that day. They undoubtedly stood in the crowd and listened to Him; they remained standing and speaking when the crowd had long since dispersed; they felt the charm of His presence and the attractive power of His eyes. Jesus did not say to them, “I have a theological system that I would like you to study; - or, - I have some theories and I would like you to think about them; - or, - I have an ethical system and I would like to discuss it with you. He said to them: “Follow Me!” It all began with the personal impression He made on them; it all started with a heart-stopping feeling that breeds unwavering loyalty. This, however, does not mean at all that there are no people who reach Christianity intellectually, but for most of us, following Christ is the same as falling in love. They say “that we admire people for their intelligence, we love them madly.” Everything happens this way because everything turned out this way, and we are what we are. “And when I am lifted up from the earth,” Jesus said, “I will draw everyone to me.” (John. 12, 32). In the vast majority of cases, a person follows Christ not because of what Jesus said, but because of who Jesus is.

4. And finally, it should be noted that what Jesus offered them. He offered them a task. He called them not to rest, but to service. Someone said that it is important for every person to have “a business in which he can invest his life.” And so Jesus called His people not to comfortable rest and not to lethargic idleness: He called them to a task in which they were to spend their whole lives and in which they were to burn, and in the end die for His sake and for the sake of their fellows . He has called them to a task that they can achieve only by giving themselves entirely to Him and to their fellow men.

Mark 1,21.22 Jesus begins his journey

And they come to Capernaum; and soon on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught.

And they marveled at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

Mark's narrative unfolds in a logical and natural sequence. In the appearance of John the Baptist, Jesus saw God's call to action. He was baptized, received the seal of God's approval, and was endued with power from God to carry out the task assigned to Him. He was tempted by the devil and chose His method and His way. He chose His people to have a small circle of kindred souls and to write His teachings into their hearts. And now He had to purposefully begin His campaign. A man who had a message from God would quite naturally go with him to the church where God's people gather. And that's exactly what Jesus did. He began his ministry in the synagogue.

There are certain differences between the synagogue and the church as we know it today.

a) The synagogue served mainly learning goals. Worship in the synagogue consisted of only three parts: prayer, reading the word of God and explaining what was read. There was no music, no singing, no sacrifices. You could say: place worship services And sacrifices was temple; the synagogue was the place teachings And instructions. The synagogue had a very great influence on the life of the Jews, because there was only one temple, and the law said that wherever at least ten Jews lived, there should be a synagogue. A person who wanted to preach a new doctrine, quite naturally, had to preach it in the synagogue.

b) The synagogue provided an opportunity to bring such teaching to people. There were certain employees in the synagogue. Firstly, the head - head of the synagogue. He was responsible for managing the affairs of the synagogue and conducting services. There were people collecting and distributing donations. Every day donations of money and food were collected from those who could afford it. Then it was distributed among the poor: the poorest were given food for fourteen meals a week. There was a so-called hazzan, a person named in the Bible priest, responsible for the storage and distribution of sacred scrolls with Scripture, for the cleanliness of the synagogue, for ensuring that the silver trumpets were blown in a timely manner, announcing to people the onset of the Sabbath, for the initial education of the children of the community. But the synagogue did not have a permanent priest or teacher. When people gathered for services in the synagogue, the leader of the synagogue could call anyone knowledgeable in the Scriptures to read the text from the Bible and comment on it. There was nothing like a professional priest in the synagogue at all. This is why Jesus was able to begin His ministry in the synagogues. Opposition to Him has not yet acquired a hostile character. He was known to everyone as a man who had something to say to people; and that is why the synagogue of each community presented Him with a pulpit from which He could instruct and address the people. But when Jesus taught in the synagogue, the method and spirit of His teaching was perceived as a new revelation. He did not teach as the scribes, the experts in the law, taught. Who are these scribes? The most sacred thing in the world for the Jews was Torah, law. The essence of the law was the Ten Commandments, but the law meant the first five books of the Old Testament, the Pentateuch, as they are called. In the minds of the Jews, these five books were absolutely divine in nature. The Jews believed that these five books were given to Moses by God Himself. The law was absolutely sacred and absolutely binding. The Jews said: “He who declares that Torah not from God, there is no place in the world to come.” “Whoever claims that Moses wrote even one verse himself, according to his own understanding, rejects and despises the word of God.” If Torah really so sacred, then two things follow from this. Firstly, it must be the highest standard faith and life; and, secondly, it must contain everything that is necessary to regulate and direct life. And in this case, the Torah, firstly, needs to be carefully and thoroughly studied; and secondly, in tore sets forth the great comprehensive principles of life, and if it sets forth norms and guidelines for all life, it is necessary to identify and make accessible to everyone everything that is contained in it implicitly - implied, although not directly formulated. The great general laws must become norms and rules, the Jews argued. And so, in order to carry out this study and draw all the necessary conclusions and conclusions, a whole class of scientists arose. They were scribes, experts in the law. The greatest of them bore the title rabbi The scribes were assigned the following three tasks.

1. The scribes had to derive from the great moral principles set forth in the Torah, norms and rules for every possible case in life. It is quite obvious that such a task could never be completed: new and new life situations arose all the time. The Jewish religion began with the establishment of great moral laws, and ended infinite number norms and rules. It began as a religion and ended as a system of legality.

2. The scribes were to transmit and teach this law and the rules derived from it to others. These rules and regulations derived and derived from law were never written down; they are known as Oral law. Although it was never written down, it was considered even more binding than written law. From generation to generation it was taught from memory and learned by heart. A good student should have a memory like “a well lined with lime so that not a drop should be wasted.”

3. Scribes had to make decisions and judgments on specific cases; and, quite naturally, almost every specific case required the creation of a new law.

Well, in what ways did the teaching of Jesus differ significantly from the teaching of the scribes? He taught based on his personal son and power. Not a single scribe has ever made a decision based on his own opinion. They always started like this: “There is a theory that...” and then cited all the authoritative sources. When making any statement, they always supported it with quotes from one, another, third famous lawyer of the past. And finally they made their judgment. How different Jesus was from them! When He spoke, He spoke as if He needed no authority other than Himself. He spoke completely independently. He did not cite any authoritative sources and did not quote scribes. The tone of power and authority in His voice impressed every person.

Brand 1.23-28 Victory over the forces of evil

In their synagogue there was a man possessed by an unclean spirit, and he cried out:

Leave what have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? You have come to destroy us! I know You, who You are, the Holy One of God.

But Jesus rebuked him, saying: Be silent and come out of him. Then the unclean spirit shook him and cried out with a loud voice, and came out of him.

And everyone was horrified, so they asked each other: what is this? What is this new teaching that He commands even the unclean spirits with authority, and they obey Him?

And soon rumors about Him spread throughout the entire region in Galilee.

The words of Jesus stunned the people in the synagogue, and His actions and deeds struck them like thunder. There was a man in the synagogue possessed by an unclean spirit who was causing chaos, and Jesus healed him.

Throughout the Gospels we meet people possessed by an unclean spirit and in the power of demons or devils. What is behind this? The Jews and, of course, the entire ancient world firmly believed in demons and demons. As Harnack put it: “The whole world and surrounding atmosphere were full of demons; they dominated not only in idolatry, but in all forms and stages of life. They sat on thrones, they swarmed around cradles. The earth was literally hell." Dr. A. Randle Short gives a fact that shows how much the ancient world believed in demons. In many ancient cemeteries, skulls were found with traces of trepanation, in other words, a hole was drilled in them. In one cemetery, out of one hundred and twenty skulls, six turned out to have traces of trepanation. Considering that there were few surgical instruments, it is clear that this was a complex operation. In addition, the condition of the skull bones shows that the operations were carried out while the person was alive. The size of the hole indicates that it was too small to be of any physical or surgical significance; It is also known that the bone disc removed during the operation was worn around the neck as an amulet. This operation was performed in order to give the demon the opportunity to leave the human body. If the surgeons of that time agreed to perform such operations, and people were ready to undergo such operations, then the belief in demonic possession must have been very strong.

Common name for demons mazzikin Means one who causes harm. Thus, demons are evil beings who sought to harm people. A person who believed that he was possessed by a demon or demon was “aware of his own existence and at the same time the existence of another being motivating and directing him from within.” Having met Jesus, those possessed by demons often cried out: they knew that Jesus was the Messiah, that the reign of the Messiah would be the end of all demons and demons. At that time, there were many demon exorcists who claimed to be able to cast out demons. This belief was so strong and real that around 340 there was even a special Order of spirit exorcists in the Christian church. But the difference between Jesus and various demon exorcists was that ordinary Jewish and pagan demon exorcists used complex magical spells and rituals, but Jesus cast out demons from people with one clear, simple and powerful word. No one had ever seen anything like this before. The power and authority were not in a charm, not in a formula, not in a spell, not in a complex ritual; the power and authority were in Jesus himself and this amazed people.

What can we say about this? Paul Tournier writes in the book “Cases from the Practice of a Physician”: “Without a doubt, many doctors in the fight against disease feel, as I do, that they are confronted not by something passive, but by an intelligent and inventive enemy.” Dr. Randle Short came to the empirical conclusion that "earthly events, essentially moral catastrophes, wars and evil deeds, physical catastrophes and diseases, may represent part of a great battle waged among themselves by forces of the kind we see in book of Job: devilish malice on the one hand and divine restraint on the other.” This problem cannot be solved simply and unambiguously.

Brand 1.29-31 Miracle of dating

Soon leaving the synagogue, they came to the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John.

Simonov's mother-in-law was in a fever; they immediately tell Him about her.

He came up and lifted her up, taking her by the hand: and the fever immediately left her, and she began to serve them.

Everything Jesus said and did in the synagogue was extremely remarkable. When the synagogue service ended, Jesus went with his friends to the house of Simon Peter. According to Jewish custom, the main Sabbath meal was served immediately after the service in the synagogue, at six o'clock, that is, at 12 noon (the Jewish day began at 6 o'clock in the morning and the hours were counted from this Moment). Jesus may well have exercised his right to rest after an exciting and tiring event during the service in the synagogue; but His strength and authority were again challenged, and He again began to expend His strength and time for the sake of others. This miracle tells us something about three people.

1. We learn something about Jesus. He did not need an audience in which He could demonstrate His authority and power; He was as willing to heal people in the small circle of his home as he was among a large crowd in the synagogue. He never refused to help people; He put the needs of other people above his own need to rest. But above all, we see here, as we already saw in the synagogue episode, the uniqueness of Jesus' healing methods. During the time of Jesus there were many demon exorcists, but they needed complex magical spells, charms and formulas, and even magical devices. In the synagogue, Jesus spoke only one powerful sentence and healing came. And here again the same thing. Simon Peter's mother-in-law “lay in a fever,” as the Talmud says. Fever was, and still is, a widespread disease in that part of Galilee. The Talmud even gives a method for treating it. An iron knife was tied with a braid of hair to a thorn bush. Over the next few days the Scriptures were repeated. First day Ref. 3, 2.3, in the second - Ref. 3, 4 and finally Ref. 3.5. After this, a certain magical formula was pronounced and it was believed that the healing had been accomplished. Jesus completely ignored this set of popular magical accessories. With one gesture and a word filled with unique power and strength, He healed the woman. The Greek word used in the previous passage is exusia, translated as power; and the word exusia the Greeks defined it as unique power combined with unique strength; and this is what Jesus possessed and what he applied in the house of Simon Peter. Paul Tournier writes in his book: “My patients often say to me: “I admire the patience with which you listen to everything I tell you.” But it’s not only patience, it’s also interest.” Jesus did not see the miracle He performed as a means to enhance His prestige. Helping people - He did not see this as tedious and unpleasant work; He helped unconsciously because he felt a special interest in everyone who needed His help.

2. From the episode we learn something about students. They had only recently become acquainted with Him, but they had already begun to turn to Jesus with all their problems. Simon's mother-in-law was sick, the whole house was in disorder, and for the disciples there was nothing more natural than to tell Jesus about this. Paul Tournier talks about how he made the greatest discovery of his life. He often visited a Christian priest who would never let him go without first praying with him. Paul Tournier was struck by the extreme simplicity of the elder’s prayers. They seemed to be a continuation of the intimate conversation he was constantly having with Jesus. “When I returned home,” continues Paul Tournier, “I talked about this with my wife and together we asked God to give us the same close friendship with Jesus that the old priest had. And from then on Jesus became the center of my affection and my constant companion. He is happy with what I do (cf. Eccl. 9:7) and it worries Him. He is a friend with whom I can discuss everything that happens in my life. He shares with me my joy and my pain, my hopes and my fears. He is also present when the patient speaks to me from the depths of his heart, listening to him with me and better than I can do it. And when the patient leaves, I can talk to him about it.” This is the whole point Christian life. As the hymn says, “Take it to God in prayer.” Already so early, His disciples learned what turned into their life habit - to turn to Jesus with all their problems and ask Him for help.3. The episode tells us something about mother-in-law of Simon Peter. As soon as she recovered, she immediately began to take care of the needs of others. She used her recovery for new ministry. One great Scottish family had a motto: Saved to Serve. Jesus helps us so we can help others.

Brand 1.32-34 First crowds

When evening came, when the sun set, they brought to Him all the sick and demon-possessed.

And the whole city gathered at the door.

And He healed many who were suffering from various diseases; cast out many demons and did not allow the demons to say that they know that He is the Christ.

What Jesus did in Capernaum could not be hidden. The appearance of such a great new strength and the authorities could not be kept secret. And therefore, by evening, Simon Peter’s house found itself surrounded on all sides by crowds of people seeking the touch of Jesus. People waited until the evening because the law prohibited carrying any cargo around the city on Saturday (cf. Jer. 17, 24). In those days, of course, there were no watches - neither pocket, nor hand, nor table. Saturday lasted from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.; According to the law, it was considered that the Sabbath was over and the day had passed if three stars appeared in the sky. And so the people of Capernaum waited until the sun went down and the stars flashed in the sky, and they came bringing their sick to Jesus, and He healed them.

We have already seen Jesus heal people three times. First He healed in the synagogue, then He healed the sick woman in the house of his friends, and now He heals on the street. Jesus understood everyone's request. It was said about Dr. Johnson that if anyone was in trouble, he could be confident in his friendship and support. And wherever problems arose, Jesus was ready to use His power and authority. He did not approach selectively, either to a person or to a place; He clearly understood the universal nature of the demands of people in need.

People flocked to Jesus in droves because They recognized Him a person capable of accomplishing great things. Many could speak, explain, lecture and preach; and He alone not only spoke, but also did. Someone said that if a person can make a better mousetrap than another, people will make a path to his house, even if he lives in the thicket of the forest. People need a person who can get things done. Jesus could and can do great things today.

But this is where the tragedy begins. Crowds came, but they came because they needed something from Jesus. They did not come because they had seen a new vision; ultimately they only wanted to use Him to their advantage. This is what almost everyone wants from God and His Son. For every prayer that goes up to God in times of prosperity, there are a thousand prayers in times of distress. Many people who have never prayed when the sun was shining begin to pray when the cold wind blows.

Someone has said that people look upon religion "as an ambulance service, not as the front line of life's fire." People remember religion only in times of crisis. They begin to remember God only when they find themselves in a difficult situation, or when life knocks them out. Everyone should turn to Jesus because He is the only one who can give us what we need to live, but if such a turn and the gifts received do not evoke in us a response of love and gratitude, then something is tragically wrong with us. We should not look at God only as a useful support in difficult days, He must be loved and remembered every day of our lives.

Brand 1.35-39 An hour of peace and a call to action

And in the morning, getting up very early, he went out and retired to a deserted place, and there he prayed.

Simon and those with him followed him;

And having found Him, they say to Him: everyone is looking for You.

He says to them: let us go to the neighboring villages and cities so that I can preach there too, for this is why I came. And he preached in their synagogues throughout Galilee and cast out demons.

Already reading the record of what happened in Capernaum, we see that Jesus had no time left for solitude. But He knew well that he could not live without communication with God; that if He would continue to give to others, He must receive Himself; that if He intends to devote Himself to the service of others, He must from time to time seek spiritual support Himself. He knew that he could not live without prayer. In a small book called An Exercise in Prayer, Dr. A. D. Belden gives the following definition: “Prayer is the cry of the soul to God.” He who does not pray is guilty of incredible recklessness, refusing “the opportunity to associate God with his abilities.” “In prayer we enable the absolute mind of God to nourish our spiritual powers.” Jesus knew this; He also knew that if He wanted to meet people, He must first meet God. If Jesus needed prayer, how much more do we need it?!

But He was also found where He was praying. Jesus could not close the door on them. The writer Rose Macaulay once said that she needed only one thing in life - her own room. And this is exactly what Jesus never had. One prominent physician said that the task of medicine is “sometimes to cure, often to bring relief, and always to console.” And this responsibility always lay with Jesus. Someone said that a doctor should “help people live and die,” but people live and die all the time. It is already in human nature to try to build fences and walls in order to find peace and free time for ourselves; Jesus never did this. No matter how well He was aware of His weariness and exhaustion, He was even more aware of the urgency of human need. And so, when the disciples came for Him, He rose from his knees to accept the burden of the task entrusted to Him. We will never accomplish our tasks through prayers; they can only strengthen us to do our work.

Jesus went on the road to preach in the synagogues of Galilee. The Gospel of Mark devotes one verse to this missionary journey, but it must have taken many weeks and even months. He walked and preached and healed. Jesus never separated the following things and actions.

1. He never shared word and deed. He never believed that a job was done once it was formulated. He never believed that His task was only to call people to God and to virtue. The formulated task, call and exhortation were always translated into action. Fosdick talks somewhere about a student who bought the best books, textbooks and equipment, a special work chair with a book stand to make it more convenient to study, and then sat in this chair and fell asleep. A person who talks a lot but does nothing about it is very similar to such a student.

2. He never shared soul and body. There were also movements in Christianity for which it was as if the body did not exist at all. But man is soul and body. And the task of Christianity is to correct the whole person, and not just one part of him. It is a holy truth that a man can starve, live in a hut, live in poverty and suffer in torment, and yet be happy in God; but this does not mean that you need to leave it in the same state. Christian missionaries take more than just the Bible with them to backward countries; they bring with them education and medicine, schools and hospitals. It is completely wrong to talk about social evangelism as if it were some special, some optional, or even some separate part of the Christian gospel. The Christian gospel is one, and it preaches and works for the good of the human body as much as for the good of the soul.

3. Jesus never divided earthly and heavenly. There are people who are so concerned about heavenly things that they completely forget about earthly things and become impractical dreamers. But there are also those who care so much about earthly things that they forget about heavenly things and consider only material values ​​as good. Jesus dreamed of a time when the will of God would be carried out on earth just as it is carried out in heaven. (Mat. 6:10), when earthly and heavenly things will be one.

Brand 1.40-45 Cleansing the Leper

A leper comes to Him and, begging Him and falling on his knees before Him, says to Him: if you want, you can cleanse me.

Jesus, having compassion on him, stretched out his hand, touched him and said to him: I want you to be clean.

After this word, the leprosy immediately left him, and he became clean.

And looking at him sternly, he immediately sent him away

And he said to him: see that you don’t say anything to anyone; But go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.

And he went out and began to proclaim and tell about what had happened, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside, in deserted places. And they came to Him from everywhere.

There is no disease in the New Testament that evokes more horror and compassion than leprosy. Sending His twelve disciples, Jesus commanded them to heal the sick and cleanse the lepers (Mat. 10, 8). The fate of the leper was truly difficult. E. W. H. Masterman writes in his article on leprosy in the Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels, from which we have taken much of the information given here: “No disease reduces a human being for so many years to such a terrible wreck.” Let's look at the facts first. There are three types of leprosy.

1. Black or tuberculous leprosy, beginning with strange lethargy and pain in the joints. Then symmetrical colored spots of irregular shape appear on the body, especially on the back. Lumps form on them, at first pink, which then turn brown; the skin thickens. The number of these tubercles especially increases in the folds of the cheeks, nose, lips, and forehead. A person’s face changes so much that he loses his human appearance and becomes, as the ancients put it, like a lion or a satyr. These tubercles increase in size, ulcers appear on them and disgusting-smelling pus is released; the eyebrows fall out, the eyes become wide open, the voice becomes rough, and the breathing becomes hoarse due to ulcers on the vocal cords. Ulcers also form on the arms and legs, and the patient gradually turns into a continuous growing ulcer. On average, the disease lasts nine years and ends with mental impairment, coma and finally death; the patient inspires extreme disgust towards people and himself.

2. Anesthetic leprosy in the initial stage is the same as black leprosy, but the central nervous system is also affected. The affected area loses all sensitivity, and the patient may not even notice this, even until it burns and feels pain. As the disease progresses, stage 1 lesions cause irregular colored spots and blisters. The muscles disappear, the tendons contract so much that the hands turn into bird legs, and the nails also become deformed. After this, chronic ulcers form on the hands, then the patient loses fingers and toes and, ultimately, the entire hand and foot. This form of the disease lasts from twenty to thirty years. It's a kind of terribly slow death of the body.

3. The third type of leprosy is the most typical of all - a combination of signs of black and anesthetic. No doubt there were many lepers in Palestine at the time of Jesus. From the descriptions in Lev. 13 it is quite clear that in the New Testament era the term leprosy also covered other skin diseases. Apparently it also covered psoriasis, in which the body is covered with a white rash, which can lead to the phrase "leper, white as snow" when described. Apparently, this term also covered “ringworm,” which is still widespread in the East. In the book Leviticus Jewish word used iaraat, translated as leprosy. And in A lion. 13:47 talks about the plague of leprosy (iyaraat), on clothes, and in A lion. 14:33 talks about leprosy Iaraat on houses. Such stains on clothing may be mold; leprosy on houses can be something like dry rot on wood or destructive lichen on stones. Jewish word yaraat, leprosy, apparently associated in Jewish thinking with any creeping skin disease. It is quite natural that in such an embryonic state of medicine, when diagnosing, they did not distinguish between various skin diseases and included both incurable and severe ones, as well as not very dangerous and even relatively harmless ones under one general name.

Each such skin disease made the patient incurable; he was expelled from human society; he had to live alone outside the camp or settlement; walking in torn clothes, with his head uncovered and with his face covered to the upper lip; while walking, he had to warn others about his dangerous presence by shouting: “unclean! unclean! We see the same picture in the Middle Ages, when the law of Moses was also in effect. A priest in an epitrachelion and with a crucifix in his hands led the leper into the church and read the funeral service over him. The leper was considered dead even though he was still alive. He should have worn black dress so that everyone could identify him and live in the house of lepers. He could not come to church services, but during the service he could look into the leper's "peephole" cut into the wall; the leper had to endure not only physical pain caused by illness, but also mental anguish caused by exclusion from human society and complete isolation. If a leper were ever cured—which was very rare—he would have to undergo the rehabilitation procedure described in Lev. 14. The priest first examined the sick person, then took cedar wood, scarlet thread, fine linen and two birds (one of which he sacrificed over running water), and dipped all this, as well as the living bird, in the blood of the sacrificed bird. After this, the live bird was released into the wild. The person had to wash himself, wash his clothes, and shave. Seven days later the priest examined him again. He had to shave his head and eyebrows. They offered certain sacrifices—two rams and one one-year-old sheep without blemish, three-tenths of an ephah of wheat flour mixed with oil, and one log of oil. For the poor, the size of the sacrifice was reduced. With his hand dipped in the blood of the sacrificial animal, the priest touched the lobe of the right ear of the patient being cleansed, his thumb right hand and the big toe of the right foot, and then just one more time with a hand dipped in oil. After this, a final examination was made, and if the person turned out to be clean, he was released with a certificate that he was clean. Here is one of the most expressive portraits of Christ.

1. He did not drive away the person who broke the law. The leper had no right to address or speak to Him at all, but Jesus responded to the man’s desperate cry with understanding and compassion.

2. Jesus reached out and touched him. He touched an unclean person. But for Jesus he was not unclean, for Him it was an ordinary human soul in desperate need.

3. Having cleansed and healed the man, Jesus sent him out to perform the usual ritual rite. Jesus fulfilled human law and the demands of human justice. He did not recklessly ignore accepted norms, but when necessary, he obeyed them.

In this we see a combination of empathy, power and wisdom.

. The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God,

. as it is written in the prophets: Behold, I send My angel before Thy face, who will prepare Thy way before Thee.

. The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight.

The evangelist presents John, the last of the prophets, as the beginning of the Gospel of the Son of God, because the end of the Old Testament is the beginning of the New Testament. As for the testimony about the Forerunner, it is taken from two prophets - from Malachi: “Behold, I am sending My angel, and he will prepare the way before Me.”() and from Isaiah: "Voice in the wilderness"() And so on. These are the words of God the Father to the Son. He calls the Forerunner an Angel for his angelic and almost ethereal life and for the announcement and indication of the coming Christ. John prepared the way of the Lord, preparing the souls of the Jews through baptism to accept Christ: "before Your face"- it means Your Angel is close to You. This signifies the closeness of the Forerunner to Christ, since even before kings, primarily related persons are honored.

"Voice in the wilderness", that is, in the Jordanian desert, and even more in the Jewish synagogue, which was empty in relation to good. “Way” means “paths” - Old, as repeatedly broken by the Jews. They had to prepare for the path, that is, for the New Testament, and correct the paths of the Old, for although they had accepted them in ancient times, they later turned away from their paths and got lost.

. John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

. And the whole country of Judea and the people of Jerusalem came out to him, and they were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.

John's baptism did not have remission of sins, but introduced only repentance for people. But how does Mark say here: "for the forgiveness of sins"? To this we answer that John preached a baptism of repentance. What was the point of this sermon? To the remission of sins, that is, to the baptism of Christ, which already included the remission of sins. When we say, for example, that such and such came before the king, commanding that food be prepared for the king, we mean that those who fulfill this command are favored by the king. So it is here. The Forerunner preached the baptism of repentance so that people, having repented and accepted Christ, would receive remission of sins.

. John wore clothes made of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist, and ate locusts and wild honey.

We already talked about this in the Gospel of Matthew; now we will only say about what is omitted there, namely: that John’s clothing was a sign of mourning, and the prophet showed in this way that the repentant should cry, since sackcloth usually serves as a sign of crying; the leather belt meant the deadness of the Jewish people. And that these clothes meant crying, the Lord himself says about this: "We sang sad songs to you(Slavic “plakahom”), and you did not cry,” calling here the life of the Forerunner weeping, because he further says: “John came, neither eating nor drinking; and they say: he has a demon"(). Likewise, the food of John, pointing here, of course, to abstinence, was at the same time an image of the spiritual food of the Jews of that time, who did not eat clean birds of the air, that is, did not think about anything lofty, but fed only on the word exalted and aimed at grief, but again falling to the ground . For locusts (“locusts”) are an insect that jumps up and then falls to the ground again. In the same way, the people ate honey produced by bees, that is, prophets; but it remained with him without care and was not increased by deepening and correct understanding, although the Jews thought that they understood and comprehended the Scripture. They had the Scriptures, like some honey, but they did not labor at them and did not study them.

. And he preached, saying: He who is mightier than I is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down to untie;

. I baptized you with water, and He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.

“I,” he says, “are not worthy to be even His lowest servant, who would untie the belt, that is, the knot on the strap of his boots. They understand, however, this: everyone who came and was baptized by John was released through repentance from the bonds of their sins when they believed in Christ. Thus, John loosed the belts and bonds of sin in everyone, but in Jesus he could not loose such a belt, because this belt, that is, sin, was not found with Him.

. And it came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.

. And when he came out of the water, John immediately saw the heavens opening and the Spirit like a dove descending on Him.

. And a voice came from heaven: You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

Jesus does not come to baptism for the remission of sins, for He did not create sin, nor to receive the Holy Spirit, for how could John’s baptism bestow the Spirit when it did not cleanse sins, as I said? But He does not go to be baptized for repentance, since He was "greater than the Baptist himself"(). So, what does it come for? No doubt, so that John would announce Him to the people. Since many flocked there, He deigned to come in order to be testified before many who He is, and at the same time in order to fulfill “all righteousness,” that is, all the commandments of the Law. Since obedience to the baptizing prophet, as sent from God, was also a commandment, then Christ fulfills this commandment. The Spirit descends not because Christ has a need for it (for in essence He abides in Him), but so that you know that the Holy Spirit also descends on you at baptism. When the Holy Spirit descended, the testimony was immediately spoken. Since the Father spoke from above: “You are My Son,” so that those who heard would not think that He was speaking about John, the Spirit descended on Jesus, showing that this was said about Him. The heavens are opened so that we know that they are also opened to us when we are baptized.

. Immediately after this, the Spirit leads Him into the wilderness.

. And He was there in the wilderness for forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the beasts; and Angels served Him.

Teaching us not to lose heart when, after baptism, we fall into temptation, the Lord goes up into the mountain to face temptation, or, better yet, does not go away, but is led away by the Holy Spirit, showing through the fact that we ourselves should not fall into temptation, but accept them when they come. befall us. And he goes up the mountain so that, due to the desolation of the place, the devil will have boldness and can approach Him; for he usually attacks when he sees that we are alone. The place of temptation was so wild that there were many animals there. The angels began to serve Him after He defeated the tempter. All this is stated in more detail in the Gospel of Matthew.

. After John was betrayed, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God.

. and saying that the time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent and believe in the Gospel.

Having heard that John had been handed over to prison, Jesus retired to Galilee in order to show us that we ourselves should not fall into temptations, but avoid them, and when we fall, endure them. Christ preaches, apparently, the same thing as John, something like: “repent” and “the Kingdom of God is at hand.” But in fact, it is not the same thing: John says “repent” in order to turn away from sins, and Christ says “repent” in order to lag behind the letter of the Law, which is why he added: “believe in the Gospel,” for he whoever wants to believe according to the Gospel has already abolished the Law. The Lord says that “the time is fulfilled” for the Law. Hitherto, he says, the Law was in effect, but from now on the Kingdom of God comes, life according to the Gospel. This life is rightly presented as the “Kingdom” of Heaven, for when you see that someone who lives according to the Gospel behaves almost as if incorporeal, how can you not say that he already has the Kingdom of Heaven (where there is no food or drink), although it seems to still exist? far.

. As he passed near the Sea of ​​Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting nets into the sea, for they were fishermen.

. And Jesus said to them, Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.

. And they immediately left their nets and followed Him.

. And having gone a little way from there, He saw James Zebedee and John his brother also in a boat mending nets;

. and immediately called them. And they, leaving their father Zebedee in the boat with the workers, followed Him.

Peter and Andrew were at first disciples of the Forerunner, and when they saw Jesus testified by John, they joined Him. Then, when John was betrayed, they went back to their previous occupation with sorrow. So, Christ now calls them a second time, for the real calling is already the second. Notice that they were nourished by their righteous works, and not by their unrighteous activities. Such people were worth being the first disciples of Christ. Immediately leaving what was in their hands, they followed Him; for one must not delay, but must follow immediately. After these he catches James and John. And these, although they themselves were poor, nevertheless supported their elderly father. But they left their father not because leaving parents is a good deed, but because he wanted to prevent them from following the Lord. So you, when your parents hinder you, leave them and follow the Good. Apparently, Zebedee did not believe, but the mother of these apostles believed and, when Zebedee died, she also followed the Lord. Take this into account, too, that action is called first, and then contemplation, for Peter is the image of action, because he was of a fiery character and always warned others about what is characteristic of action; John, on the contrary, represents contemplation in himself, for he was a theologian par excellence.

. And they come to Capernaum; and soon on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught.

. And they marveled at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

Where did you come to Capernaum from? From Nazareth, and on the Sabbath day. When they usually gathered to read the law, then Christ came to teach. For the Law also commanded to celebrate the Sabbath, so that people would read, gathering together for this purpose. The Lord taught accusatoryly, and not flatteringly, like the Pharisees: he urged them to do good, and threatened those who disobeyed with torment.

. There was a man in their synagogue obsessed unclean spirit, and cried out:

. leave it! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? You have come to destroy us! I know You, who You are, the Holy One of God.

. But Jesus rebuked him, saying: Be silent and come out of him.

. Then the unclean spirit, shaking him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him.

. And everyone was horrified, so they asked each other: what is this? What is this new teaching that He commands even the unclean spirits with authority, and they obey Him?

. And soon rumors about Him spread throughout the entire region in Galilee.

Evil spirits are called “unclean” because they love all kinds of unclean things. The demon considers leaving a person to be “destruction” for himself. Evil demons generally blame themselves for suffering when they are not allowed to do evil to people. Moreover, being carnal and accustomed to enjoying substances, they seem to suffer great hunger when they do not live in bodies. That is why the Lord says that the demonic race is driven out by fasting. The unclean one did not say to Christ: You are holy, since many of the prophets were holy, but he said “Holy One,” that is, the Only One, Holy in His essence. But Christ forces him to remain silent, so that we know that demons must stop their mouths, even if they speak the truth. The demon rushes and violently shakes the one possessed by it, so that eyewitnesses, seeing the calamity the person is being delivered from, will believe for the sake of the miracle.

. Soon leaving the synagogue, they came to the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John.

. Simonov's mother-in-law was in a fever; and immediately they tell Him about her.

. Approaching, He lifted her up, taking her hand; and the fever immediately left her, and she began to serve them.

By Saturday evening, as usual, the Lord went to the disciples’ house to eat. Meanwhile, the one who was supposed to serve in this regard was overcome with fever. But the Lord heals her, and she begins to serve them. These words make it clear that you, when someone heals you from an illness, must use your health to serve the saints and to please God. Being possessed is a kind of fever, and a person is angry and out of anger becomes bold with his hands. But if the word holds his hand and meekly stretches it out, then the one previously burned with anger begins to serve the word. For the angry one, when the word restrains his hand, rebels, and thus anger serves the word.

. When evening came, when the sun set, they brought to Him all the sick and demon-possessed.

. And the whole city gathered at the door.

. And He healed many who were suffering from various diseases; He cast out many demons, and did not allow the demons to say that they knew that He was the Christ.

Not without reason added: "when the sun went down". Since they thought that it was impermissible to heal on the Sabbath, they waited until sunset and then began to bring the sick for healing. “He healed many,” it is said instead of “all,” because all make up a multitude; or: he did not heal everyone because some turned out to be unbelievers, who were not healed for their unbelief, but he healed “many” of those brought, that is, those who had faith. He did not allow demons to speak in order, as I said, to teach us not to believe them, even if they spoke the truth. Otherwise, if they find someone who completely trusts them, then what the damned ones won’t do, mixing lies with the truth! So Paul forbade the inquisitive spirit to say: “These people are servants of the Most High God”; The Holy Man did not want to hear feedback and testimony from unclean lips. . He says to them: let us go to the neighboring villages and cities so that I can preach there too, for this is why I came.

. And He preached in their synagogues throughout Galilee and cast out demons.

After healing the sick, the Lord goes to a secluded place, teaching us not to do anything for show, but if we do any good, we should hasten to hide it. And He also prays in order to show us that whatever good we do should be attributed to God and said to Him: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights.”(). Christ Himself did not even need to pray. Further, when the people sought and greatly desired Him, He does not give itself to Him, although it accepts it with favor, but also goes to others in need of healing and instruction. For the work of teaching should not be limited to one place, but the rays of the word must be scattered everywhere. But look how He combines action with teaching: He preaches, and then casts out demons. So teach and do things together, so that your word is not in vain. Otherwise, if Christ had not shown miracles at the same time, then His word would not have been believed.

. A leper comes to Him and, begging Him and falling on his knees before Him, says to Him: if you want, you can cleanse me.

. Jesus, having compassion on him, stretched out his hand, touched him and said to him: I want you to be clean.

. After this word, the leprosy immediately left him, and he became clean.

The leper was prudent and believed; therefore he did not say: if you ask God; but believing in Him as God, he said: “if you want.” Christ touches him as a sign that nothing is unclean. The law forbade touching a leper as unclean; but the Savior, wanting to show that there is nothing unclean by nature, that the requirements of the Law should be abolished and that they have power only over people, touches the leper - while Elisha was so afraid of the Law that he did not even want to see Naaman, the leper and the one who asked healing.

. And, looking at him sternly, he immediately sent him away

. and he said to him, See that you do not say anything to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.

. And he came out and began to proclaim and tell about what had happened, so Jesus He could no longer clearly enter the city, but was outside, in deserted places. And they came to Him from everywhere.

And from this we also learn not to show off ourselves when we show kindness to someone, for Jesus Himself commands the one who has purified himself not to talk about Him. Although He knew that he would not listen and would divulge it, however, as I said, teaching us not to love vanity, he orders us not to tell anyone. But on the other hand, anyone who has benefited should be grateful and grateful, even if his benefactor does not need it. So the leper divulges the good deed he has received, despite the fact that the Lord did not tell him to. Christ sends him to the priest, because according to the command of the Law, a leper could only enter the city by a priestly announcement about his cleansing from leprosy, otherwise he had to be expelled from the city. At the same time, the Lord commands him to bring a gift, as those who were purified as usual brought: this is evidence that He is not an opponent of the Law, on the contrary, He values ​​it so much that He commands to fulfill what is commanded in the Law.

I. Title (1:1)

Mar. 1:1. The first verse (which does not contain a single verb) contains the title of the book and reveals its theme. The word Gospel (euangeliou - "good news") in this case does not refer to the book of Mark, known as the "Gospel of Mark", but to the good message about Jesus Christ.

Those who were familiar with the Old Testament knew how high the meaning of the word “gospel” and the words derived from it were filled in it (Isa. 40:9; 41:27; 52:7; 61:1-3). In its usual meaning, the word “news” (or “news”) implies that something important has happened. But Mark resorts to this word at a time when it has already become a kind of Christian term denoting the preaching of Jesus Christ. “Good news” or “gospel” (Greek word) is the announcement of God's power at work in Jesus Christ for the salvation of all who believe (Rom. 1:16). This term plays an important role in Mark's theological narrative (Mark 1:14-15; 8:35; 10:29; 13:9-10; 14:9).

For Mark, the beginning of the Gospel was the historical facts of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. Later, the apostles proclaimed the Good News, starting where Mark left off (for example, Acts 2:36).

So, “The Gospel of Jesus Christ” means: The good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. “Jesus” is His proper name, given to Him by God (Matt. 1:21; Luke 1:31; 2:21); it is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew "Yoshua", meaning "Jehovah is our salvation."

The word "Christ" is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew title "Mashiach" ("Messiah" or "Anointed One"). The Jews used it in relation to the Liberator whom they expected; in their minds, it was God's Messenger (Mediator) who would come to fulfill the Old Testament prophecies (for example, Gen. 49:10; Ps. 2:109; Isa. 9:1-7; 11:1-9; Zech. 9 :9-10). Jesus appeared to be the Messiah for whom they were waiting.

Although from the beginning of the Christian era the title “Christ” became, as it were, part of the proper name of Jesus, Mark uses it precisely in the sense of a title full of power (Mark 8:29; 12:35; 14:61; 15:32). Another title of Jesus, “Son of God,” indicates His very special relationship with God. He is a Man (Jesus) and God's "special Mediator" (Messiah), fully possessing the same Divine nature as the Father. As the Son of God, He is obedient to God the Father (Heb. 5:8).

II. Introduction: Preparing for Jesus' Ministry to Men (1:2-13)

In a short introduction, Mark dwells on three “preparatory” events that had great importance for a correct perception of the entire life-ministry of Jesus. These are: the ministry of John the Baptist (verses 2-8), the baptism of Jesus (verses 9-11), and the temptation of Jesus (verses 12-13). The decisive role is played in the introduction by two words repeated several times in it - “desert” (eremos; verses 3-4,12-13) and “Spirit” (verse 8, 10,12).

A. The Forerunner of Christ - John the Baptist (1:2-8) (Matt. 3:1-12; Luke 3:1-20; John 1:19-37)

1. FULFILLMENT IN JOHN THE BAPTIST OF THE OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECY (1:2-3)

Mar. 1:2-3. Mark begins his narrative within the context of the Old Testament. And this is the only place where he refers to the Old Testament, except for quotations from it given by Jesus Christ.

Verse 2 is a "confusion" of what is said in Ex. 23:20 and Malachi (3:1). And in 1:3 the prophet Isaiah is quoted (40:3). Moreover, Mark proceeds from the traditional understanding of the mentioned Old Testament verses and therefore does not explain them. But he clearly emphasizes the word “way” (hodos, literally “road”), which is key to Mark’s exposition of the essence of Christian discipleship (Mark 8:27; 9:33; 10:17,32,52; 12 :14).

Mark prefaces the “mixed” citation in verses 2-3 with the words: As it is written in the prophets... This kind of “mixed” or “united” reference by topic is generally characteristic of New Testament authors. In this case, the “unifying theme” is the “desert,” which played a special role in Israeli history. Since Mark begins his narrative with the ministry of John the Baptist in the wilderness, the decisive words in his quotation are the words of the prophet Isaiah about the voice of one crying in the wilderness...

Guided by the Holy Spirit, Mark interprets the Old Testament texts in a “messianic way,” consciously changing the phrase “the way before Me” (Mal. 3:1) to Your way and “the paths of our God” (Is. 40:3) to His paths. Thus, he refers to I as God, who sends His Angel (John) before the face of Jesus (“before Your face”), the Angel who will prepare the way of Jesus (“Your way”). John was the “voice” calling on Israel to prepare the way for the Lord, that is, Jesus, and to make the paths straight for Him (Jesus). The meaning of these metaphors is revealed in the words about John's ministry (1:4-5).

2. JOHN AS PROPHET (1:4-5)

Mar. 1:4. In fulfillment of the above prophecies, John appeared on the historical stage - as the last of the Old Testament prophets (compare Luke 7:24-28; 16:16), and this marked a turning point in God's attitude towards the human race. John baptized in the desert (literally, an uninhabited area parched by the sun)…preaching a baptism of repentance. The word "preaching" (Greek word "kerisson") could be rendered - in light of the prediction in Mar. 1:2-3 - as “proclaiming, being a messenger, a messenger.”

On the one hand, John's baptism was not something fundamentally new, since the Jews demanded that pagans converting to Judaism perform a similar ritual - self-immersion in water. What was new, however, was that John offered to be “baptized” not to the pagans, but to God’s chosen people, i.e., the Jews, and at the same time demanded repentance from them - in the face of the Messiah coming after him (Matt. 3:2).

This baptism is described as being associated with repentance or expressing repentance for the forgiveness of sins. This very word - “repentance” (“metanoia”) is found in the Gospel of Mark only here. And it implies a “180-degree turn” - a change in the way of thinking, and, accordingly, behavior (Matt. 3:8; 1 Thess. 1:9).

“Forgiveness” (aphesin) here literally means “the removal or destruction of the barrier (or “debt”) of guilt.” It is implied - by God's mercy, for it is by it - on the basis of the sacrificial death of Christ (Matthew 26:28) - that “sins” are canceled (like a debt). Forgiveness was not a consequence of the ritual of baptism, but was a visible evidence that the person being baptized had repented, and as a result, God, in His mercy, forgave him of his sins (Luke 3:3).

Mar. 1:5. By resorting to hyperbole (compare also verses 32-33, 37), Mark sought to show how great was the influence of John on the Jews in general and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem in particular. People came from all directions and were baptized by him... in the Jordan River (compare verse 9), confessing their sins. The imperfect form of the Greek verbs in this verse emphasizes that the human flow was continuous, that people walked and walked to listen to John's preaching and be baptized by him.

The verb "to baptize" here (baptiso - an intensifying form of bapto - "to dip") literally means "to lower, immerse in water." To be baptized by John in the Jordan River meant for a Jew to “turn to God.” He thus became part of the repentant people, ready to meet the Messiah.

The act of baptism itself included an open, public confession of sins. The verb “to confess” (exomologoumenoi - literally “to agree, acknowledge, confess” - Acts 19:18; Phil. 2:11) is a strong sounding word. Those who confessed publicly acknowledged the justice of God's condemnation of their sins (here hamartias - literally "missing the mark", meaning (their) failure to meet God's standards). Every Jew familiar with the history of his people knew that Israel did not fulfill the requirements of the Heavenly Father. The willingness to be baptized by John “in the wilderness” corresponded to his recognition of his disobedience to God and the expression of his desire to turn to Him.

3. JOHN'S LIFESTYLE WAS THE LIFESTYLE OF A PROPHET (1:6)

Mar. 1:6. The clothes and food of John the Baptist identified him as a “man of the desert,” and they also testified to him as a prophet of God (compare Zech. 13:4). In his appearance, John resembled the prophet Elijah (2 Kings 1:8), who was identified by the prophet Malachi (Malachi 4:5) with God's Angel or messenger (Malachi 3:1); quoted above (Mark 1:2; compare Mark 9:13; Luke 1:17).

Those who lived in the desert regions of Palestine often ate locusts (locusts) and wild honey. In Lev. 11:32 Locusts are counted among "clean" food.

4. SERMON OF JOHN - SERMON OF THE PROPHET (1:7-8)

Mar. 1:7. Literally the first words of this verse are: “And he proclaimed as a herald, saying” (compare verse 4). Mark reduces John's sermon to its main idea in order to emphasize it: the announcement that someone much greater is following him, who will baptize the people with the Holy Spirit (verse 8). The words come after me (meaning “after (in time) me”) The strongest of me, like an echo, reflect what was said in Mal. 3:1 and 4:5, however, who exactly is the “Mightiest One” who “comes after him” was hidden even from John until the moment of Jesus’ baptism from him (compare John 1:29-34). Mark undoubtedly avoided the word “Messiah” - for the reason that this concept was inextricably linked with its incorrect interpretation among the people. Next, in verse 8, Mark explains why the One coming after John is “mightier than he.”

John points to the greatness of the Coming One and shows his own humility (compare John 3:27-30), saying that he is not worthy to stoop down (these words are recorded only by Mark) to untie the strap of His sandals. But even a slave who was in the service of a Jew was not required to do this for his master!

Mar. 1:8. In this verse, I is contrasted with He. John performed an act of an external nature - baptism with water, and the One who followed him would pour out the life-giving Spirit on them.

The Greek word is baptiso. if it is related in meaning to the word "water", it usually means immersion in water, and only (verses 9-10). But when combined with the words Holy Spirit, it means entering the sphere where the life-giving power of the Spirit operates.

I baptized you with water... probably indicates that John was speaking to people who had already received baptism from him. His baptism "in water" was preparatory in nature. But those who were baptized by John thereby promised to receive the One who “followed him,” and to whom it was given to baptize them with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5; 11:15-16). The outpouring of the Holy Spirit was an expected activity of the coming Messiah (Isa. 44:3; Ezek. 36:26-27; Joel 2:28-29).

B. The Baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist (1:9-11) (Matt. 3:13-17; Luke 3:21-22)

1. JESUS' BAPTISM IN JORDAN (1:9)

Mar. 1:9. Mark quite unexpectedly introduces the One who follows John as Jesus. Unlike the others who went to the Baptist, who were from “Judea and Jerusalem,” it is said about Jesus that He came from Nazareth of Galilee. Nazareth was a little-known town, never mentioned in any Old Testament, neither in the Talmud nor in the historical narratives of Josephus, a famous Jewish historian who lived in the first century AD. Galilee was one of the three provinces into which Palestine was then divided (Judea, Samaria and Galilee), and occupied an area of ​​approximately 100 by 45 kilometers; it formed the most populated northeastern part of Palestine.

Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan (compare verse 5). The Greek prepositions (eis, into, verse 9, and ek, out, verse 10) indicate baptism by immersion. In all likelihood, Jesus was baptized near Jericho. He was then about 30 years old (Luke 3:23).

Unlike all others, Jesus did not confess sins (compare Mark 1:5) because there was no sin in Him (John 8:45-46; 2 Cor. 5:21; Heb. 4:15; 1 -John 3:5). Mark does not explain why Jesus was baptized by John, but three reasons can be suggested: 1) It was an act of obedience, indicating that Jesus fully shared God's plan and agreed with the role that John had to play in carrying it out. baptism (Matt. 3:15). 2) This was for Him an act of identifying Himself with the people of Israel, to which He considered Himself by His earthly origin and whose unenviable position in the eyes of God was also ready to share. 3) This was for Jesus an act of consecration of Himself to the messianic ministry, a sign of official acceptance of it, entry into it.

2. GOD'S VOICE FROM HEAVEN (1:10-11)

Mar. 1:10. Here Mark used the Greek adverb eutis (“immediately”) for the first of 42 times in his Gospel. He uses it in different meanings - both in the sense of the “immediacy” of this or that action, and in the sense of the logical sequence of actions (for example, 1:21, where the same adverb is translated as “soon”).

During the baptism of Jesus, three events occurred that did not accompany the baptism of others. First, John saw the heavens opening. The strong-sounding words “opening the heavens” are a metaphor reflecting God’s intervention in human affairs - with the goal of saving His people (Is. 64: 1-5, where there is a similar image). Secondly, John saw the Spirit like a dove descending on Him, that is, in the form of a dove, in a form accessible to human vision (compare Luke 3:22).

The image of a dove appears to symbolize the creative activity of the Spirit (Gen. 1:2). In Old Testament times, the Spirit came upon some people to infuse them with strength for service (for example, Exodus 31:3; Judges 3:10; 11:29; 1 Sam. 19:20,23). The coming of the Holy Spirit upon Jesus gave Him power for His messianic ministry (Acts 10:38) and for the baptism of others with the Holy Spirit, as John foretold (Mark 1:8).

Mar. 1:11. Third: And a voice came from heaven (compare 9:7). The words of the Heavenly Father, in which He expressed unconditional approval of Jesus and His mission, are echoed in three verses of the Old Testament - Gen. 22:2; Ps. 2:7; Is. 42:1.

The first statement - You are My Son - affirms the special relationship of Jesus with His Heavenly Father. The majestic meaning of these words is explained in Ps. 2:7, where God refers to His Son as the anointed King. From the moment of His baptism in the Jordan, Jesus officially takes on the role of God's Anointed (2 Samuel 7:12-16; Ps. 89:27; Heb. 1:5).

The word Beloved (ho agapetos) in relation to the Son can be understood in the sense of the Old Testament "only" or "only begotten" Son (compare Gen. 22:2,12,16; Jer. 6:26; Am. 8:10; Zech. 12:10), i.e., as an equivalent to the Greek word “monogenos” (sole, unique - John 1:14,18; Heb. 11:17).

The phrase in which My favor sounds “out of time” and indicates that the Father always favors the Son. This favor of God had no beginning and will have no end. This idea is also heard in Isa. 42:1, where God addresses His chosen “Young One” (in English translation - “Servant”), on whom He is ready to pour out His Spirit. With Isa. 42:1 begins the first of four prophecies about the true Servant-Messiah, who is contrasted in them with the disobedient “servant people”, i.e. Israel (Is. 42:1-9; 49:1-7; 50:4-9 ; 52:13 - 53:12).

A true Servant (or Slave) must suffer a lot to fulfill the will of God. He is to die as a “propitiation victim” (Is. 53:10), becoming the sacrificial Lamb (Is. 53:7-8; John 1:29-30). This is the role of the suffering Servant that Jesus began to fulfill from the moment of His baptism. And it is this aspect of His messianic ministry that Mark emphasizes (8:31; 9:30-31; 10:32-34,45; 15:33-39).

The ritual of baptism itself had no effect on the Divine status of Jesus. He did not become the Son of God at the moment of baptism, nor did He become the Son of God at the moment of His transfiguration before the eyes of the disciples (9:7). Rather, the baptism indicated the far-reaching significance of Jesus answering His messianic calling both as the suffering Servant of God and as the Messiah, the Son of David. He became the Messiah, being the Son of God, with whom is always the favor of the Father and the power of the Holy Spirit (and not vice versa). All three Persons of the Divine are “included” in the phenomenon of His messiahship.

C. Temptation of Jesus by Satan (1:12-13) (Matt. 4:1-11; Luke 4:1-13)

Mar. 1:12. Immediately after his baptism, the Spirit leads Jesus into the desert. A more accurate translation: not “leads,” but “drives,” for here the Greek verb zkballo is used, which Mark uses elsewhere when speaking of casting out demons (verses 34,39; 3:15,22-23; 6:13 ; 7:26; 9:18,28,38). Used in this case, this word indicates Mark's penchant for "strong expressions" (compare with Matt. 4:1 and Luke 4:1, where the other two evangelists resort to a different Greek word, rendered in Russian as "raised" and "behaved"). The idea here, however, is that in His influence on Jesus the Spirit had recourse to a strong moral impulse - so that Jesus would go towards temptation and evil, and not try to evade them.

A desert (compare Mark 1:4) is a waterless, uninhabited area; according to the traditional ideas of the ancient Jews, the “desert” was inhabited by evil spirits and all evil spirits (Matt. 12:43; Luke 8:29; 9:24). Tradition says that the temptation of Christ took place northwest of the Dead Sea, near Jericho and slightly west of it.

Mar. 1:13. And He was there in the desert for forty days... If we look for a parallel to these “forty days” in the Old Testament, then, perhaps, the closest one will be the story of David’s victory over Goliath, who kept the Israelites in fear for 40 days (1 Sam. 17:16 ).

Jesus was... there... tempted by Satan. “Tempted” - from the Greek word “peiraso”, which means “to put to the test”, “to test” - in order to find out what the “tested” is. This word can be used both in a positive sense (1 Cor. 10:13; Heb. 11:17, where it is translated as “to tempt”), and in a negative sense, when Satan or his demons “tempt” with sinful temptations. But in this case both meanings are implied.

Jesus was tested by God (“The Spirit leads Him into the wilderness”) in order to show His suitability for the messianic task entrusted to Him. But at the same time, Satan was also active, trying to distract Jesus from fulfilling the mission God had appointed Him (compare Matt. 4:11; Luke 4:1-13). Jesus' sinlessness did not mean that He could not be tempted; could, and this showed that He was indeed a man (compare Rom. 8:3; Heb. 2:18).

The tempter was Satan himself, the enemy of the human race and the adversary of God. Mark does not resort here to the term “devil” (“slanderer”), which we find in Matthew and Luke (Matthew 4:1 and Luke 4:2).

Satan and the evil forces subordinate to him, constantly opposing God and the implementation of His purposes, especially actively opposed the mission of Christ. As you know, Satan always tries to turn people away from God, and then, when they fall, he accuses them before God and strives in every possible way to destroy them. Before going out to fight the spirits of evil, Jesus gave battle to their “prince.” He came to earth precisely in order to, through His ministry, defeat him and free the people enslaved by him (Heb. 2:14; John 3:8). The Son of God defeated Satan in the wilderness, and the demons recognized that He was truly from God, His Son (Mark 1:24; 3:11; 5:7).

Only Mark mentions animals. According to the Old Testament concept, the “desert” was therefore deserted, dull and dangerous, serving as a haven for terrible voracious animals (Isa. 13:20-22; 34:8-15; Ps. 21:12-22; 90:11-13), that God cursed her. It is hostile to man in nature, and the “beasts” living in it testify that Satan rules over this place.

The image of the Angels who served Jesus contrasts with the image of the “beasts.” The angels were Jesus’ helpers during His trial; in particular, they strengthened His confidence that God would not abandon Him. Mark does not mention that Jesus fasted (compare Matt. 4:2; Luke 4:2), perhaps because His very sojourn in the wilderness implied this. In general, the scene of temptation is conveyed briefly by Mark (unlike Matthew and Luke).

He says nothing about what exactly the “temptation” was, nor that it ended in the victory of Jesus over Satan, who tried in various cunning ways to lure Him away from fulfilling the waves of God (Mark 8:11,32-33 ; 10:2; 12:15). Jesus entered into direct confrontation with Satan and the hellish forces led by him because, having been baptized, he officially took upon himself the fulfillment of the mission entrusted to him by God.

The Gospel of Mark is precisely the story of the struggle of Jesus with Satan, which reached its culmination on the Cross of Calvary. From the very beginning, Jesus showed that He was stronger than Satan. And the fact that He later cast out demons from those possessed became possible precisely because of the victory He won over Satan at the beginning of His earthly ministry (3:22-30).

III. The beginning of Jesus' ministry in Galilee (1:14 - 3:6)

The first main section of the Gospel of Mark includes: a summary of Jesus' preaching (1:14-15); His calling of the first disciples (1:16-20; 2:14); a description (as part of Jesus' ministry) of his casting out demons and healing the sick in and around Capernaum (1:21-45); finally, a description of a number of clashes between the Savior and the religious leaders of the Jews (2:1 - 3:5). The section ends with the message that the Pharisees and Herodians conspired among themselves to kill Jesus (3:6). Throughout this section, Jesus demonstrates His supreme authority over all things, both in His words and in His deeds.

A. Jesus' sermon - brief, introductory, summary (1:14-15) (Matt. 4:12-17; Luke 4:14-21)

Jesus began His ministry in Galilee (1:9) after John the Baptist was imprisoned by Herod Antipas for the reason mentioned in Mark. 6:17-18. Before coming to Galilee, Jesus served in Judea for about a year (John 1:19 - 4:45), but Mark does not mention this. This indicates that Mark did not set out to write the life of Christ in chronological order.

Mar. 1:14. The word betrayed, with which Mark reports the imprisonment of John the Baptist, both in Greek and in Russian texts, has a common root with “betrayed” (compare 3:19, which speaks of the betrayal of Jesus Himself by Judas; from this we can conclude that Mark seemed to draw a parallel between the fate of John and Jesus (compare 1:4 and 14a).

The passive voice in which the word “betrayed” appears perhaps emphasizes the fulfillment of God’s will in John’s “tradition” (note the “consonant” passages regarding Jesus Himself in 9:31 and 14:18). So, the time had come for Jesus to begin his ministry in Galilee (compare interpretation on 9:11-13): Jesus came to Galilee preaching (compare 1:14) the gospel (compare verse 1) of the kingdom of God.

Mar. 1:15. His preaching boiled down to two statements and two commands. The first statement - time has been fulfilled - expressed the idea that the time appointed by God to prepare for the coming of the Messiah and wait for Him (the Old Testament era) was completed - in full accordance with God's plan (Gal. 4:4; Heb. 1:2; 9:6- 15).

The second statement - the kingdom of God is at hand - defines the essence of Jesus' gospel. The word "Kingdom" (basileia) is used here in the sense of "reign" or "royal rule." This concept includes the supreme power of the ruler, His very activity of governance, as well as the scope of His rule and the benefits arising from the above. Thus, the “Kingdom of God” is the concept of a dynamic (and not static, frozen) state, which is determined by all the activities of God as the Supreme Ruler governing His creation.

This concept was well known to Christ’s contemporaries on the basis of Old Testament prophecies (2 Samuel 7:8-17; Isa. 11:1-9; 24:23; Jer. 23:4-6; Mic. 4:6-7; Zechariah 9:9-10; 14:9); they lived in anticipation of the future messianic (Davidian) kingdom on earth (Matt. 20:21; Mark 10:37; 11:10; 12:35-37; 15:43; Luke 1:31-33; 2:25 ,38; Acts 1:6). Therefore, Jesus did not have to make any effort to arouse their interest in His message.

The Kingdom of God that He spoke about, His listeners were ready to identify with the messianic kingdom they had been waiting for so long, predicted in the Old Testament. So, the time to make a decision has come; for Jesus expected from His hearers a corresponding response to His two demands: Repent and believe the Gospel.

Repentance and faith were bound by Him into one whole (they did not break up into two successive actions). To "repent" (compare Mark 1:4) meant to turn or turn away from the present object of their faith and hope (which, in particular, is one's own human self). “Believe” here implies complete surrender of oneself to the object of true, not erroneous faith.

That is, to believe the Gospel means to believe in Jesus Christ as the Messiah, the Son of God. (So ​​the “content” of the Good News is Himself - verse 1.) Only in this way can one enter the Kingdom of God (compare 10:15) or receive it (as a gift).

As a nation, Israel officially rejected these demands (3:6; 12:1-2; 14:1-2,64-65; 15:31-32). Meanwhile, Jesus taught that His earthly kingdom (the kingdom of David) would not come immediately or “at once” (Luke 19:11). But this will not happen before God realizes His current goal - the salvation of Jews and Gentiles through the creation of His Church (Rom. 16:25-27; Eph. 3:2-12). And then Jesus Christ will return to earth to establish His Kingdom on it (Matt. 25:31,34; Acts 15:14-18; Rev. 19:15; 20:4-6). Then Israel will be “restored” and “redeemed” (Rom. 11:25-29), and then they will find joy in the fulfilled promises of the Kingdom.

B. Jesus Calls Four Fishermen to His Ministry (1:16-20) (Matt. 4:18-22; Luke 5:1-11)

Immediately after setting out the essence of Jesus’ sermon, Mark writes about His calling four fishermen to serve—“two pairs” of siblings. He seems to emphasize by this (and clearly shows) that to repent and believe in the Gospel (Mark 1:15) means to immediately and decisively break with the past way of life and follow Jesus, follow His call. Jesus began his ministry in Galilee with the aforementioned call of the four. This will be followed by His choosing and blessing the rest of the Twelve to work (3:13-19; 6:7-13,30).

Mar. 1:16. The Sea of ​​Galilee is a warm lake approximately 12 km wide and about 20 km long, located approximately 200 meters below sea level; Fishing was the main occupation of those who lived along its banks. This lake was, as it were, the “geographical center” of the Galilean ministry of Jesus Christ. Passing near the Sea of ​​Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting nets into the sea, for they were fishermen by profession, Mark emphasizes.

Mar. 1:17-18. The words follow me meant: follow me as my disciples. In those days it was customary for those who wished to study to “find” rabbis for themselves; They waited until the disciples came to them. In contrast, Jesus took the initiative by calling His followers. “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men,” He promised. Jesus “caught” them for His Kingdom and will now prepare them (the corresponding Greek phrase has just such a semantic connotation) so that they, in turn, will go out to “catch” other human souls.

The image of “catching,” like fishing, is probably inspired here by the profession of the four disciples, but it should be noted that it also occurs frequently in the Old Testament (Jer. 16:16; Ezek. 29:4-5; Am. 4:2; Hab. 1:14-17). True, the prophets resorted to this metaphor when speaking about God's coming judgment, but Jesus used it in the “opposite” sense - meaning liberation from this judgment. In light of the coming righteous reign of God (1:15), Jesus called four fishermen to the work of “catching” people from the “sea of ​​sin” (“sea” is a characteristic image of sin and death in the Old Testament; for example, Is. 57: 20-21).

And... immediately Simon and Andrew, leaving their networks (their former work, calling), followed Him. In the Gospels "to follow (akolouteo) for" when the subject ( actor) is this or that person, means his entry onto the path of discipleship. Subsequent events showed (verses 29-30) that entering this path did not mean that the disciples abandoned their loved ones and left their homes; for them, it meant unconditional loyalty to Jesus (10:28).

Mar. 1:19-20. About this time, Jesus saw James Zebedee and John his brother (compare 10:35), also in a boat mending their nets before their next night's fishing. They were Simon's companions (Luke 5:10). And immediately Jesus called them to follow Him. They immediately parted with what determined their former way of life (the boat and fishing nets), and with what constituted its value (their father Zebedee... with the workers), and followed Him.

Mark does not mention the previous contacts of these fishermen with Jesus, but from the Gospel of John (John 1:35-42) we learn that Andrew and Simon had already previously recognized Him as the Messiah of Israel.

After some time has passed. Jesus gathered all the Twelve around Him and began their discipleship (Mark 3:14-19).

Mark sets out the “historical part” of Jesus (the beginning of his ministry) briefly (1:14-20), placing the main emphasis on the authority Jesus enjoyed among people and on the obedience of His followers to Him. The theme of discipleship dominates the Gospel of Mark. The very fact of “calling” the disciples by Himself, in all likelihood, prompted Mark’s readers to ask two questions: “Who is this Caller?” and “What did it mean in practice to follow Him?” The evangelist answers both potential questions. Mark apparently assumed certain similarities between the twelve disciples (commentary on 3:13 and 13:37) and his readers, believing that whatever the latter learned about the former would be of great benefit to them in the light of their own discipleship.

V. Jesus' Authority over Demonic Powers and Diseases (1:21-45)

The authoritative tone of Jesus (verse 22) and the special significance of His words (verses 38-39), which the four fishermen first learned from their experience, were later found to be justified in the amazing actions of Jesus. Verses 21-34 describe one apparently typical Sabbath day for the Lord in Capernaum: on that day He demonstrated His power over demons (verses 21-28), healed Peter’s mother-in-law (verses 29-31), and after sunset - many others (verses 32-34).

Then verses 35-39 briefly tell us that in the morning... very early He prayed, and in a few words how He began to preach in Galilee. One of the remarkable events during His preaching journey was His healing of a leper (verses 40-45). Jesus spoke and did “as one having authority,” and this caused amazement, but at the same time it gave rise to many disputes and disagreements (2:1 - 3:5).

I. HEALING ONE POSSESSED BY AN UNCLEAN SPIRIT (1:21-28) (Luke 4:31-37)

Mar. 1:21-22. The four disciples went with Jesus to Capernaum, located nearby on the northwestern shore of the Sea of ​​Galilee. This was the city where they lived, and it became the center of Jesus' "Galilean ministry" (Luke 4:16-31). When the Sabbath arrived, Jesus came to the synagogue for the usual service that day. There He began to teach, no doubt at the suggestion of the ruler of the synagogue (compare Acts 13:13-16). Mark often mentions what Jesus taught (2:13; 4:1-2; 6:2,6,34; 8:31; 10:1; 11:17; 12:35; 14:49), but He devotes a little space to what He taught.

Jesus' listeners marveled (ekseplesonto - literally "were amazed"; the same word is found in 6:2; 7:37; 10:26; 11:18) both at His manner of teaching and at the content of His words. He taught as having authority from God, and therefore forced people to think about what they heard. And this was sharply different from how the scribes taught; they were taught the law in all its written nuances and the oral interpretation of what was written down, but they invariably kept within the framework of “tradition”, and their interpretation essentially amounted to references to what was said before them.

Mar. 1:23-24. The very presence of Jesus in the synagogue and the authoritative tone of His teachings provoked a violent reaction from a man present who was possessed by an unclean spirit. It was the “unclean spirit” or “demon” who cried out through his mouth: What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? These words convey a Hebrew idiomatic expression meaning the incompatibility of opposing forces (compare 5:7; Joshua 22:24; Judges 11:12; 2 Sam. 16:10; 19:22).

You have come to destroy us... “Destroy” is used not in the sense of “destroy”, but in the sense of “deprive us of strength.” The pronoun “us” sounded twice in verse 24 emphasizes that the demon was well aware of what it was like - the presence of Jesus for all evil forces; He represented the most terrible threat to them and their activities. Unlike most people, the demon did not doubt the true nature of Jesus: You, Holy One of God! - he exclaims (compare 3:11; 5:7), i.e. He whose source of power is the Holy Spirit. In other words, it was clear to the demon where this authority in Jesus came from.

Mar. 1:25-26. With a few simple words (without resorting to spells), Jesus rebuked (compare 4:39) the evil spirit and commanded it to leave the person possessed by it. Obeying the authority of Christ, the demon, shaking the unfortunate man with a cry (compare 9:26), came out of him.

Jesus rejected the evil spirit's attempt to "protect" himself and his "tribe" (1:24) - after all, His task was to engage in battle with Satan and his forces and defeat them. His demonstrated power over unclean spirits demonstrated that the power of God was at work through Jesus (verse 15). This first case of man's liberation from the evil spirit that tormented him marked the beginning of Jesus' constant confrontation with demons, about which Mark writes especially a lot.

Mar. 1:27-28. The people who witnessed what happened were horrified (here meaning “they were shocked” - compare 10:24,32). Their exclamations What is this? - related both to the nature of His teachings and to the fact that, before their eyes, He cast out a demon from a possessed person - through just one command to him. They could not help but see that the unusual power for them, sounded in His qualitatively new, different teaching, extended to the demonic forces forced to obey Him (compare 4:41). And soon (literally, “immediately”), writes Mark, rumors about Him spread throughout the entire region in Galilee.

2. HEALING OF SIMON'S MOTHER-IN-LAW (1:29-31) (MAT. 8:14-15; LUK. 4:38-39)

Mar. 1:29-31. Having soon left the synagogue (at the end of the Sabbath service), Jesus and His disciples came to the house of Simon (Peter) and Andrew. This house became Jesus' permanent home during His ministry in Capernaum (2:1; 3:20; 9:33; 10:10). Simonov's mother-in-law was in a fever; and immediately they tell Him about her. Moved by compassion, He approached her and this time, without saying a word, He simply lifted her up, taking her hand. And the fever immediately left her, obviously, and the weakness that accompanies high fever, for, getting up, the woman began to serve them.

3. HEALING OF MANY PEOPLE AFTER THE SUN SET (1:32-34) (MAT. 8:16-17; LUK. 4:40-41)

Mar. 1:32-34. This brief description vividly testifies to the excitement created in Capernaum by the miracles performed by Christ on the Sabbath day. Clarification of the circumstances of time - when evening came, when the sun set... - is not accidental here; this emphasizes that the inhabitants of Capernaum waited for the end of the Sabbath (at sunset), and only after that they began to bring their sick relatives to Jesus - so as not to violate the law (Ex. 20:10) or rabbinic regulations that prohibited carrying any load on the Sabbath (Mark 3:1-5).

The whole city gathered at the door (of Simon's house) - a hyperbole (compare 1:5) expressing the concept of multitude; people brought all the sick and demon-possessed to Him. Again, moved by compassion, Jesus healed many (the Greek text here uses a Hebrew idiom meaning "as many as were offered" - compare with verse 32; 10:45) who suffered from various diseases. He also cast out (compare Mark 1:39) many demons, but, as before (verses 23-26), He did not allow the demons to speak about who He was, and by silencing them He revealed their powerlessness before Him.

The miracles that accompanied Christ's preaching activity naturally contributed to the growth of His popularity. But He did them not to “impress” people, but to convince them of the truth of His teaching (verse 15).

4. JESUS ​​REMOVES TO PRAYER AND THEN GOES OUT TO PREACH IN GALILEE (1:35-39) (Luke 4:42-44)

Mar. 1:35. Despite the extreme tension of the past Sabbath day (verses 21-34), Jesus got up very early (in the original - “before dawn”, apparently around 4 o’clock in the morning), went out and retired to a deserted place (compare verse 4) and prayed there. (In the same deserted place He resisted temptation and defeated Satan - verses 12-13.)

Mark singles out from many others three prayers of Jesus in three special situations; each was performed by Him alone and under the cover of night: the first - at the beginning of the service (verse 35), the second - in the middle of it (6:46) and the third - at the end of the service (14:32-42). In all three cases, He seemed to have the opportunity to take an easier path to achieve His messianic goal. But every time He drew strength from prayer in order to follow the path that the Father showed Him.

Mar. 1:36-37. Meanwhile, crowds of people returned early to Simon's house, hoping to see Jesus, but He was not there. Simon and those who were with him followed Him (in the Greek text there is an expression that is not found anywhere else in the New Testament - “they followed His path”). Their exclamation - everyone is looking for You, apparently, concealed some annoyance: it seemed to the disciples that Jesus here in Capernaum was missing a great opportunity to “make capital” of universal reverence and veneration.

Mar. 1:38-39. From Jesus' response it followed that the disciples still did not understand either Himself or the nature of His mission. His goal was to go everywhere, in particular to the nearby villages and cities of Galilee, and preach there too - not only in Capernaum. For this is why I came,” He explains. To preach the gospel (verse 14) and invite people to repent and believe in it (verse 15). But the inhabitants of Capernaum saw in Him only a miracle worker and it was in this capacity that they looked for Him, and therefore He left them to preach in other places.

Verse 39 briefly describes His walk throughout Galilee (compare verse 28), which probably lasted several weeks (Matt. 4:23-25). His main business was to preach in the local synagogues, and the fact that He cast out demons was an impressive confirmation of the truth of the message with which He came.

5. THE CLEANSING OF THE LEPER (1:40-45) (MAT. 8:1-4; LUK. 5:12-16)

Mar. 1:40. During the days of Jesus' stay in Galilee, a leper comes to Him (this in itself was great courage on his part). (In those days, the concept of “leprosy” included a whole range of skin diseases - from ringworm to real leprosy (caused by the so-called Hanson bacillus), which entails physical decay and progressive disfigurement of the patient’s body.) The person who turned to Christ languished a miserable existence due not only to his physical suffering, but also to ritual impurity (Lev. 13-14), the consequence of which was his expulsion from society. It is not without reason that leprosy, associated with all types of suffering - physical, mental and social, serves as a prototype of sin in the Bible.

The rabbis considered leprosy to be an incurable disease. The Old Testament describes only two cases of cleansing from it by God Himself (Numbers 12:10-15; 2 Kings 5:1-14). Nevertheless, this leper was convinced that Jesus could cleanse him. If you want, it sounds like “if it be Your will.” If you want, you can cleanse me. He fell on his knees before Him, begging for cleansing.

Mar. 1:41-42. Jesus, having mercy (splanchnisteis - literally “imbued with deep compassion”) over him... touched the untouchable and healed him, hopelessly ill. This very touch showed that Jesus did not consider Himself bound by the rabbinic regulations regarding ritual impurity. This symbolic touch of Him led to the healing of the leper (compare 7:33; 8:22), and His words filled with imperious power: I want, be cleansed. The healing occurred immediately (immediately), in front of everyone around, and was complete.

Mar. 1:43-44. After the healing, Jesus immediately sent him away, strictly warning him not to tell anyone anything. Most likely, this warning was “temporary” in nature and was supposed to remain in force until the priest declared the former leper clean. However, Jesus often demanded silence from people in other cases - so that the rumor about Him as a miraculous Healer would spread less (1:25,34; 3:12; 5:43; 7:36; 9:9). The question arises: why?

Some theologians believe that Mark and other evangelists “inserted” these commands of Jesus on their own, resorting to them as a kind of literary device - to explain why the Jews did not recognize Christ as their Messiah during His earthly ministry. This understanding was called the “messianic secret” - after all, according to it, Jesus Himself wanted to keep His Messiahship a secret.

Another point of view seems more convincing, according to which Jesus wanted to avoid any misunderstandings, which, in turn, could lead to premature and/or based on an erroneous understanding of His popularity (interpretation on 11:28). He did not want to “declare” Himself until He had fully clarified in the eyes of the people the nature of His missionary service (commentary on 8:30; 9:9). He thus wanted to gradually remove the “veil” from His personality - until the moment when he would openly speak about Himself (14:62 and compare with 12:12).

Further. Jesus told the former leper to show himself to the priest, who alone had the right to declare him ritually clean, and to offer the sacrifice established by Moses (Lev. 14:2-31). This requirement is “deciphered”: as evidence to them. This phrase can be understood both in a positive sense (as “convincing” evidence) and in a negative sense (as evidence for condemning them), and it can apply both to the people in general and to the priests in particular.

In this context, as in two other cases (Mark 6:11; 13:9), it is preferable to understand negative sense. We are most likely talking about the priesthood, about evidence against it. The point is that Christ's cleansing of the leper and the way it happened served as an undeniable messianic "sign" (compare Matt. 11:5; Luke 7:22) - a sign that God had begun to act in a new way. And if the priests acknowledged the fact of purification, but rejected the Purifier, then their unbelief would become evidence against them.

Mar. 1:45. Instead of obeying Jesus and remaining silent, the man who was healed of leprosy by Him began to proclaim and tell about what had happened, and the news about it began to spread far and wide. (Mark does not say anything about whether the healed man visited the priest.) As a result, Jesus had to stop preaching in the Galilean synagogues (verse 39). He could no longer openly enter the city, since He was immediately besieged by crowds of people who expected the manifestation of worldly mercies from Him. Even when He was... in desert places (that is, in remote and uninhabited places - compare verse 35), people came to Him from everywhere.

The healing accomplished by Christ was beyond the purview of the Mosaic Law and the rabbinical decrees. Although the law provided for the performance of the appropriate ritual in the event of the already accomplished cleansing of the leper, it was powerless to give him relief from the disease, as well as internal spiritual renewal.

D. Jesus' disagreements with the religious leaders in Galilee (2:1 - 3:5)

Mark gives five different episodes in this section because they are "combined" common theme- Jesus' disagreements with the religious leaders in Galilee. The evangelist does not adhere to chronological order here. We find a similar “unification” of the five disputes in the Jerusalem Temple in Mark 11:27 - 12:37.

Here the conflict arose over the question of whether Jesus had authority over sin and the law. The first incident is preceded by a brief "introduction" (2:1-2). Mark is characterized by this brief “statement” of the activities of Jesus, after which a statement of events follows - in accordance with the purpose set by the evangelist (1:14-15,39; 2:1-2,13; 3:7-12,23; 4 :1,33-34; 8:21-26,31:9:31-, 10:1; 12:1).