Chapter One

1–8. Writing the book. John the Baptist. – 9–11. The baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ. – 12–13. The temptation of Jesus Christ. – 14–15. Jesus Christ’s coming forward as a Preacher. – 16–20. The calling of the first four disciples. – 21–28. Christ in the synagogue of Capernaum. The healing of the demoniac. – 29–31. The healing of Simon Peter’s mother-in-law. – 32–34. Miracles in the late evening. – 35–38. Christ at prayer early in the morning and the coming of the disciples to Him. – 39. Christ’s activity throughout Galilee. – 40–45. The healing of the leper.

Mark 1:1. The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, According to the Russian translation, the first verse stands in direct connection with the following three verses, and the thought of all the first four verses, according to the generally accepted interpretation (see “Expository Gospel” of Bishop Michael), is as follows: “the beginning of the Gospel of Christ about the coming of the blessed Kingdom of the Messiah was the appearance of John the Baptist, who preached a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” However, one cannot agree with such an understanding of the first verse. If we consider the sentence of the first verse as a subject, and the continuation of the fourth verse as a predicate (the second and third verses will in this case be an inserted sentence), then we get an overly extended period. Meanwhile, the evangelist Mark everywhere in the Gospel expresses his thoughts in concise sentences. Then, if the evangelist wanted to particularly emphasize to his readers that the appearance of John the Baptist was the beginning of the Gospel, then it would be expected that he would precisely note what was the continuation of this beginning. However, we do not find such a precise designation further on. In light of what has been said, it is better to accept as more natural such an understanding of the first verse which sees in it the inscription of the book. “The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God” (Jesus Christ – genitive case), that is, the good news, as it was proclaimed by Jesus Christ, the Son of God, in the form or manner in which it was offered to Christians standing on the initial stage of Christian enlightenment, who had only just entered the Church of Christ (for more details on this, see “The purpose of writing the Gospel according to Mark” “Jesus Christ” (see Matt 1:1). “Son of God.” If the evangelist Matthew, writing his Gospel for Christians from among the Jews, had to show them that Christ descends from the patriarchs of the Jewish people – David and Abraham (Matt 1:1), then the evangelist Mark, as one writing his Gospel for Christians from among the pagans, had no need for such an indication. He directly calls Christ the Son of God – of course, in an exclusive sense, as the Only-begotten from the Father (see Matt 16:16). But if the Gospel which Mark henceforth offers to his readers comes from the Son of God, then it, as he would say, should have an unquestionable authority for all. 3

Mark 1:2. as it is written in the Prophets: “Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who shall prepare Your way before You. Mark 1:3. “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight. Mark 1:4. John appeared in the wilderness, baptizing and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. These three verses form one period. “In accordance with (the conjunction “as” in the best Greek manuscripts corresponds to the particle καθώς, and not ὡς, as in our Textus Receptus) the predictions of the prophets Malachi (Mal 3:1) and Isaiah (Isa 40:3), who predicted the coming of the Forerunner of the Messiah, who would prepare the Jewish people for the acceptance of the Messiah, John appeared in the wilderness, baptizing and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” Thus, the appearance of John was not something completely unexpected – it had been predicted long ago. The prophecy of Malachi about John the Forerunner (see comments on the book of the prophet Malachi) the evangelist cites before the prophecy of Isaiah, the more ancient prophet, of course, because the first prophecy speaks with greater certainty about the coming of the Forerunner – Messiah than the second does. It is remarkable that the prophecy of Malachi the evangelist Mark cites not from the original and not from the translation of the Seventy, which in this case quite accurately repeats the thought and expression of the original, but follows in this respect the evangelist Matthew. Instead of the expression of the original text “before My face,” the evangelist Matthew, and after him Mark, reads: “before Your face.” Consequently, according to the translation of both evangelists, God in Malachi addresses Himself to the Messiah Himself with the prediction of the sending before His coming of a special Angel or messenger – the Forerunner. In the prophet, however, Jehovah’s address is to the Jewish people. The prophecy of Isaiah about the voice crying in the wilderness (see comments to Isa 40:3) is cited here as elucidating the prophecy of Malachi cited above and at the same time as the primary source of the first prophecy. The messenger of Jehovah, of whom Malachi spoke, is precisely the one of whom the prophet Isaiah long before predicted – such is the meaning of the citation of Isaiah’s prophecy. From this also anyone can see that the evangelist identifies Jehovah, Who in the Old Testament through the prophets foretold His coming, with the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. The passage from Isaiah the evangelist Mark cites from the text of the translation of the Seventy (cf. Matt 3:3). “In the wilderness” (Mark 1:4). The evangelist Mark does not specify which wilderness he means (Matthew directly calls it the Judean: Matt 3:1). This can be explained by the fact that Mark as a resident of Jerusalem considered it unnecessary to give a more exact specification of what he means by “wilderness”: the residents of Jerusalem were accustomed to understanding by “wilderness” precisely the Judean wilderness, that is, the land between the mountains of Judea and the Jordan, to the northwest of the Dead Sea (cf. Judg 1:16; Ps 62:1). “Proclaiming.” The preaching of John the evangelist Mark transmits in his own words, while Matthew brings John himself speaking (cf. Matt 3:1-2). “A baptism of repentance” (see Matt 3:11). “For the forgiveness of sins.” The forgiveness of sins was a necessary condition for humanity to be able to enter into the new life which was opening with the coming of the Promised Messiah among the Israeli people. But in any case, this forgiveness appeared to be something future, something that was yet to come. And indeed, the sins of humanity could be considered forgiven only when a fully satisfactory sacrifice would be offered to the justice of God. But such a sacrifice had not yet been offered at that time. 5

Mark 1:5. And there went out to him all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem, and were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. The evangelist Mark here repeats what was said in the Gospel of Matthew (Matt 3:5-6). Only he first mentions the “Judean country,” and then the “people of Jerusalem.” Perhaps this reflects Mark’s intention – he who wrote his Gospel for Christians from among the pagans, who could not sympathize with the city in which Christ was put to death – to place Jerusalem not on such a prominent place as the one Matthew, who wrote his Gospel for Christians from among the Jews, places it (Prof. Bogoslavskii “The Public Service of the Lord Jesus Christ,” Issue 1, p. 36).

Mark 1:6. Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist, and ate locusts and wild honey. Regarding John’s clothing, the evangelist Mark speaks in agreement with Matthew (Matt 3:4), but describes this clothing only after mentioning the crowds of people who came to John to be baptized. Was not Mark himself among those who made the journey to the wilderness to John? At least, it is hardly possible to suppose that he, being a young man and certainly interested in religious questions, could calmly sit at home in Jerusalem at the time when nearby, in the Judean wilderness, John was performing an action of great importance – baptism.

Mark 1:7. And he proclaimed, “After me comes He Who is mightier than I, the lace of Whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and loose; Mark 1:8. I baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. Now the evangelist more precisely and fully reports the content of the Baptist’s preaching. This is a preaching about the Messiah (see Matt 3:11). John considers himself unworthy of the Messiah even to do a servant’s task: to bend down and loosen the strap of His shoes. Here the evangelist Mark is closer to Luke (Luke 3:16) than to Matthew.

Mark 1:9. And in those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. (Cf. Matt 3:13). The evangelist Mark precisely indicates that Christ came from Nazareth (about Nazareth see comments to Matt 2:23).

Mark 1:10. And immediately, coming up out of the water, John saw the heavens opening and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him. See Matt 3:16.

Mark 1:11. And a voice came out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. See Matt 3:17. In the evangelist Mark, as in Luke, the voice of God is addressed directly to Christ, while in Matthew it is to a third person, probably to the Forerunner. 6

Mark 1:12. Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. (Cf. Matt 4:1). The evangelist Mark says that the Holy Spirit with force draws (ἐκβάλλει) Christ into the wilderness. Christ feels as though an irresistible impulse to go into the wilderness and there to enter into battle with Satan.

Mark 1:13. And He was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan; and He was with the wild beasts; and the angels served Him. The evangelist Mark briefly relates the account of Christ’s temptations by the devil, obviously having before him the detailed exposition of the history of temptation in the evangelist Matthew (Matt 4:2-10). But he adds that Christ was in the wilderness “with the wild beasts.” By this the evangelist wants to say that Christ through His victory over Satan restored those relationships of the subjection of beasts to man in which all animals found themselves in relation to the still sinless Adam. The wilderness, thus, was transformed by Christ into paradise (cf. Job 5:23; Isa 11:6 and following). “And angels...” (see Matt 4:11).

Mark 1:14. After John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the Gospel of God’s kingdom Mark 1:15. and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the gospel. The evangelist Mark, like Matthew (Matt 4:12), omits the history of the activity of the Lord Jesus Christ in Judea and upon His arrival in Galilee, which is described in detail by John the Theologian (John 1:29-4:54) and which covers a period of at least about a year and a half. The imprisonment of the Baptist, according to the evangelist Mark, prompted Christ to come forward for His open activity in Galilee. “Of God’s kingdom.” The evangelist Mark uses this expression around 14 times. He takes it, of course, in the same sense in which Matthew mostly uses the expression “the kingdom of heaven.” But the evangelist Mark, as one writing his Gospel for Christians from among the pagans, found it better to use the direct, strict, and exact designation of the kingdom which Christ came to establish, than, like the evangelist Matthew, writing for Christians from among the Jews, already familiar with theological terminology, to use the expression metaphorically, descriptively – the kingdom of heaven – an expression still needing explanation for itself. For an explanation of the term “kingdom of God” itself, see comments to Matt 6:33; cf. Matt 3:2. “The time is fulfilled” – more precisely: the appointed period or term has come to an end, that is, the period appointed by God for the preparation of humanity to receive the Savior (ὁ καιρός, and not χρόνος). The present time, which the listeners of Christ are still experiencing, is the time of transition to a new order of life – to the kingdom of God. “And believe in the gospel.” In the Greek text here stands ἐν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ – “in the gospel.” This expression is unusual in the New Testament – the verb πιστεύειν everywhere uses the preposition of the accusative case. Therefore, it is better with some ancient manuscripts (for example, with Origen) to read the expression τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ without any preposition and to translate “believe the gospel,” that is, God, Who speaks to people in the Gospel. Further see comments to Matt 4:12.

Mark 1:16. And as He walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, Simon’s brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Mark 1:17. And Jesus said to them, “Come after Me, and I will make you fishers of men. Mark 1:18. And immediately they left their nets and followed Him. Mark 1:19. And going on a little further, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who were also in a boat, mending their nets; Mark 1:20. And He called them, and immediately they left their father Zebedee in the boat with his hired servants and followed Him. See comments to Matt 4:18-22 regarding the calling of the first 4 disciples. The evangelist Mark mentions the servants that were with Zebedee (verse 20); Matthew does not speak of these servants. This calling, of course, was not the first. As is evident from the Gospel of John, those four disciples mentioned here were called to follow Christ already long before – after Christ’s baptism on the Jordan (John 1:35 and following).

Mark 1:21. And they came into Capernaum; and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught. The contents of Mark 1:21-28 are not found in the evangelist Matthew, but are found in Luke (Luke 4:31-37). “They came” – of course, the Lord with His four disciples. “Into Capernaum” (see Matt 4:13). “On the Sabbath.” In the Greek text the plural is used here (τοῖς σάββασιν), but it is used by the evangelist Mark in the sense of the singular (cf. Mark 2:23). “Into the synagogue” (see Matt 4:23). “Taught.” The content of Christ’s teaching here was probably the same as indicated above, in verse 15.

Mark 1:22. And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as having authority, and not as the scribes. Mark 1:23. Now there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out, “And they marveled” (see Matt 7:28-29). “One with an unclean spirit” – the same as a demoniac (see Matt 4:24).

Mark 1:24. “Ha! What have You to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are – the Holy One of God. “Ha!” – in Greek ἔα. This is rather an exclamation, equal to our “ah” (cf. Ezek 30:2). “What have You to do with us” (see Matt 8:29). “Of Nazareth.” The demon calls Christ by this name, probably intending to arouse mistrust in Him among the listeners because He is from the despised city of Nazareth (cf. John 1:46). “The Holy One of God.” In the Old Testament, the high priest Aaron (Ps 105:16) and the prophet Elisha (2 Sam 6:9) are called by this name. But here, evidently, this expression is taken in an exclusive, exceptional sense, as designating the divine origin and divine nature of the Messiah (cf. Matt 8:29: “Son of God”).

Mark 1:25. And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him! The Lord does not wish to hear the confession of His Messianic dignity from the mouth of a demoniac: later it could be said that only the insane recognized Christ. 8 Along with the command to “be silent,” the Lord commands the evil spirit to “come out” of the demoniac. By this the Lord shows that He has indeed conquered Satan.

Mark 1:26. And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him. Mark 1:27. And all were amazed so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching – with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him. Mark 1:28. And the report of Him went out immediately into all the surrounding country of Galilee. The words of the eyewitnesses of the incident, according to the better reading (Volenberg), should be rendered thus: “What is this? A new teaching – with authority! He commands the unclean spirits, and they obey Him.” (In the Russian translation “commanding” of unclean spirits is placed in dependence on “teaching” of Christ, and such an explanation has no support.) The Jews, thus, were puzzled, on the one hand, about the character of the new teaching which Christ was offering them, and on the other hand, about the fact of the expulsion of the demon, since Christ accomplished this deed without any preparations, whereas Jewish exorcists accomplished the expulsion of demons through various rather lengthy incantations and manipulations. “And the report of Him went out immediately into all the surrounding country of Galilee.” More precisely: “into the countries surrounding Galilee,” that is, not only in Syria, but also in Perea, Samaria, and Phoenicia. The basis for this “report” was not only the miracle of healing the demoniac, but the entire activity of Jesus Christ in general (see verses 14–15).

Mark 1:29. And at once He left the synagogue and went into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Mark 1:30. And Simon’s mother-in-law lay in a fever; and immediately they told Him about her. Mark 1:31. And He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up; and immediately the fever left her, and she served them. On the healing of Simon’s mother-in-law see Matt 8:14-15.

Mark 1:32. And when the sun had set, they brought to Him all who were sick and those who were demon-possessed. Mark 1:33. And the whole city was gathered together at the door. Mark 1:34. And He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew Him to be Christ. Of all the sick brought to Him, the Lord healed “many,” evidently those who were before Him or who deserved healing (see Matt 8:16). Mark the evangelist adds to the words of Matthew that the Lord did not permit the demons to speak because they knew Him. It seems better to understand this as indicating that the Lord generally did not allow demons to speak. We find a hint of this in the very word used here for “speak” (λαλεῖν, not λέγειν). The Lord did not permit the demons to speak because they knew Him, who He was, and such an acknowledgment of His dignity from the lips of the demon-possessed Christ did not wish to allow for the reasons mentioned above (verse 24). The healings were accomplished, as Mark precisely notes, in the evening of the Sabbath, when the sun was already setting. Only now did the Sabbath rest end and it was possible to carry out the transport of the sick, which was not permitted on the Sabbath.

Mark 1:35. And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, He went out and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed. Very early in the morning, almost at night (ἔννυχον λίαν; the Russian translation renders it inaccurately – “very early”), the Lord went out from Simon’s house, where He had found shelter, and withdrew to a lonely place for prayer. On the prayer of Jesus Christ see the commentaries to Matt 14:23. Spurgeon said on this occasion in one of his sermons: “Christ prays. Does He find rest in this after the hard day’s work? Is He preparing for the labors of the next day? Both. This early morning spent in prayer explains His strength, which He displayed in the evening... And now, when the day’s work is done and the wonderful evening has passed, for Him it is not yet all over – He still has the work of His life before Him, and therefore He must pray... The worker again approaches the source of strength, so that, going out to the struggle that lies before Him, he might again gird his loins with this strength...” (“Christ at Prayer”).

Mark 1:36. And Simon and those who were with Him went after Him, Mark 1:37. and having found Him, they said to Him: Everyone is looking for You. Mark 1:38. And He said to them: Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, for therefore came I forth. Simon with three disciples did not find Jesus in the room appointed to Him in the morning and rushed (κατεδίωξαν) to seek Him. Having found Christ, they told Him that everyone, the whole city, was already seeking Him, evidently to hear His preaching and receive from Him healing for their sick. But the Lord did not want to return to Capernaum. He calls the disciples to neighboring towns (so it is better to translate the word κωμοπόλεις here, which in the Russian translation for some reason is divided into two words “villages” and “cities”), that is, to small cities which resemble simple villages in their structure (this expression does not appear elsewhere in the New Testament or even in the Seventy’s translation). The Lord wants to preach there too, because precisely for this He came, or more accurately, “went forth” (ἐξελήλυθα). The latter expression undoubtedly indicates that Christ was sent into the world by His Father (cf. Luke 4:43). According to ancient church interpretations, Christ here points to the truth of His Divine dignity and to the voluntariness of His self-emptying (see Volenberg, p. 689).

Mark 1:39. And He preached in their synagogues throughout all Galilee and cast out demons. So Christ did not return to Capernaum, but preached the Gospel in the synagogues of other places and cast out demons. In this, He was apparently accompanied by the four disciples mentioned above. The evangelist Mark mentions the casting out of demons without reporting healings of other sick, evidently because this work seemed to him the most difficult, for here he had to engage in direct struggle with the spirits of wickedness, whereas in healing ordinary sick people the Lord struck at Satan not directly, but only as the one responsible for original sin, which brought all illnesses upon mankind.

Mark 1:40. A leper came to Him, begging Him and kneeling before Him, saying to Him: If You will, You can make me clean. Mark 1:41. And Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand, touched him, and said to him: I will; be clean. Mark 1:42. And as soon as He had spoken, the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed. Mark 1:43. And He, strictly charging him, sent him away at once, Mark 1:44. and said to him: See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a testimony to them. Mark 1:45. But he went out and began to proclaim it freely and to spread the word, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a city, but was out in desolate places; and they came to Him from every quarter. On the healing of the leper see Matt 8:1-4. However, here the evangelist Mark makes certain additions. Thus, he reports that, having healed the leper, the Lord was angry with him (ἐμβριμησάμενος; the Russian translation renders it inaccurately – “looking at him sternly”) and cast him out (ἐξέβαλεν; the Russian translation – “sent him away”). Christ’s anger is explained by the fact that the leper, by approaching Christ, who was surrounded by people, violated the law of Moses, which forbade lepers to enter into the “camp” of Israel (Lev 13:46). Then the evangelist Mark adds that the healed man did not observe Christ’s prohibition and everywhere spread the news of the miracle that had befallen him, as a result of which an extraordinarily large crowd of people began to follow Christ, who wanted from Him not the teaching about the Kingdom of God, but only miracles, who expected that Christ would declare Himself to be the Messiah whom the Jews then awaited. Even in desolate places, Mark remarks, Christ found no rest, and whole crowds of people came to Him there. The expression “having gone out” in verse 45, used of the leper, may indicate that after his healing he went to his house, where he had not been permitted to go before, and, having spent some time there, went to tell of the miracle that had befallen him. * * * Notes In some ancient codices (for example, the Sinaitic) and in some of the holy fathers and church writers, the words “Son of God” are not read. But most codices—the Vatican, the Parisian, and the Syrian and Latin translations—do have this addition. Instead of the expression “among the prophets,” many ancient codices read: “among Isaiah the prophet.” But there are also ancient codices, including the Alexandrian (5th century), which have the reading we use. It should be noted that when reading “among Isaiah the prophet” a great difficulty arises: how to explain the fact that the evangelist afterward directly quotes not the prophecy of Isaiah, but of Malachi. Blessed Theophylact said: “The forerunner preached a baptism of repentance so that people, having repented and accepted Christ, would receive the remission of sins.” It is clear that this church interpreter also refers “forgiveness of sins” to the time when Christ will already be “accepted” with full faith as the Redeemer. G.A. Kholmovskii (“Christian Reading,” 1910, Jan., pp. 39–41) proposes such a translation of God the Father’s address to the Son: “You are my beloved Son; through you I have revealed My goodness.” Indeed, it is better to see in these words not an indication of the Father’s favor concentrated in His Only-Begotten Son, but an indication of the Father’s favor that was revealed in the Son (or through the Son) toward people. This is supported both by the meaning of the aorist εύδόκησα (a one-time act denoting the sending of the Son of God to earth for the redemption of people) and by the fact that the verb εύδόκησα is actually already superfluous after the expression “You are my beloved Son,” if again this verb refers to the person of Christ, and not to mankind. This word does not occur in this place of the Gospel. – Ed. “The testimony of the demon was altogether unsuitable and improper – it represented a terrible dissonance with the testimony of the Baptist and the voice from heaven that proclaimed Christ.... It would have given the Pharisees some ground to accuse Christ of using the power of the prince of demons (Edersheim. “The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah,” vol. 1, p. 610). Other interpreters see here only a hint of the desire to preach, which He had when “going forth” from Capernaum (see Lagrange, 1911).