Mark 16
Mark 16 - Versions | ||
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Mark 16 | |
RELATED TOPICS |
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SERMONS, ESSAYS AND OPINIONS |
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CONTENTS |
Verses
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Commentary
Mark 16 is the final chapter of the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament. It recounts some of the events surrounding the resurrection of Jesus, starting with the discovery of Jesus' empty tomb by Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome. Here they find a man dressed in white who announces Jesus' resurrection. In the disputed longer ending section Mary Magdalene sees the resurrected Jesus then tells other followers of Jesus about this, but they do not believe her. Jesus then appears to the Eleven (twelve Apostles minus one), gives them instructions, and then is taken up into heaven.
There is much debate about the ending of Mark, and some textual problems - there are nine different endings (or combinations of endings) known - but most of the debate focuses around the so-called 'longer' ending (16:9-20). There is evidence that these verses are not part of the original document, but rather an ancient "completion" of it. According to Daniel J. Harrington they are probably a second century compilation of resurrection stories mostly found in Luke 24 and some from John 20. John J. Kilgallen however believes that they were more likely composed in the first century.
The empty tomb
Mark says the Sabbath is now over and Mary Magdalene, another Mary and Salome, mentioned in Mark 15:40, come to annoint Jesus' body, which Luke 24: agrees with. John 20:1 and Matthew 28:1 simply say Mary went to the tomb.
They wonder how they will remove the stone over the tomb. They then find the stone already gone and go into the tomb. This shows that, according to Mark, they did not expect to find a resurrected but dead Jesus. They find a "young" man dressed in a white robe who tells them:
- "Don't be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.' " (Mark 16:6 - Mark 16:7)
According to Matthew 28:5 this "man" was an angel. According Luke there were two men. John says there were two angels, but that Mary saw them after finding the empty tomb and showing it to the other disciples. She comes back to the tomb, talks to the angels, and then Jesus appears to her.
Mark uses the word neaniskos for young, a word he used to describe the man who fled at Jesus' arrest in Mark 14:51-52. Jesus had predicted his resurrection and returning to Galilee during the Last Supper in Mark 14:28. Mark uses the passive verb form egerthe - apparently 'he was raised' indicating a raising by God.
The women who were afraid, then flee and keep quiet about what they saw. Fear is a common human reaction to the divine presence in the Bible. This is where the undisputed part of the book ends. Jesus is thus announced to have been resurrected from the dead and to have gone into Galilee. It is probable that Mark's intended readers already knew the traditions of Jesus' appearances and Mark leaves the story here to highlight the resurrection and leave anticipation of the parousia. Some have argued that this announcement of the resurrection and Jesus going to Galilee is the parousia, but Raymond E. Brown argues that a parousia confined only to Galilee is improbable. No description of the resurrected Jesus has been given perhaps because Mark did not want to try to describe the nature of the divine resurrected Jesus. Brown argues this ending is consistent with Mark's theology, where even miracles, such as the resurrection, do not produce the proper understanding or faith among Jesus' followers.
Jesus' appearances and his ascension into heaven
The chapter then describes Jesus appearing to Mary Magdalene, who is now described as someone whom Jesus healed from possession by seven demons. She tells the other disciples what she saw but no one believes her. Jesus' appearances to Mary are also found in Matthew 28:9-10, Luke 24:10-11, and John 20:14-18.
Then, somewhere else, he appears "in a different form" to two unnamed disciples. They too are disbelieved when they tell of what they saw. Jesus appearing to two disciples is also in Luke 24:13-35.
Jesus then appears at dinner to all the remaining eleven Apostles. He then rebukes them for not believing the earlier reports of his resurrection and then gives them instructions to go and preach his message and heal others - the Great Commission. Those who believe will be "saved".
Jesus says that signs will accompany those who believe, including speaking in new languages. These tongues could be the languages of the various Christian communities. It could also be glossolalia. They will also be able to handle snakes (see also Acts 28:3-6), be immune from poison, and will be able to heal the sick. Those who do not believe will be condemned. By stating this and showing the examples of unjustified unbelief, this could be trying to convince the reader to rely on what the disciples preached about Jesus.
Jesus is then taken up into Heaven, where Mark claims he sits at the right hand of God. The right hand is seen as the position of power. Jesus quoted Psalm 110:1 in Mark 11 about the second Lord sitting at the right hand of God. His Eleven then went out and preached "everywhere" and several signs and help from God accompanied their preaching. His ascension is also in Luke 24:50-51 and Acts 1:9-11. Where these things happened is not stated.
The longer ending
Almost all contemporary New Testament textual critics have concluded that Mark's gospel originally ended at chapter 16 verse 8. There are various theories as to why the earlier versions of the gospel end at Mark 16:8.
Most believe that the author of Mark intentionally ended the gospel at Mark 16:8, and someone else at an early date completed the gospel.
A few suggest that the original ending of Mark was lost, and somebody else at a very early date completed the gospel. C. H. Turner has suggested that the original version of the gospel may have been a codex and the last pages may have been lost. However it seems unlikely that Christian use of the codex form streched as far back as the proposed date for the writing of Mark, though there is evidence for its adoption in the second century.
A few suggest that more than one edition of Mark's Gospel was made, so some Christian communities would have possessed the longer ending edition, and others would have possessed the edition that stoped at 16:8.
Some suggest that the original ending was inconvenient to the church, and it was replaced.
Theological implications
Few doctrines of the mainline Christian denominations stand or fall on the support of the longer ending of Mark. The longer ending does identify Mary Magdalene as the woman out of whom Jesus had exorcised seven demons (but so does Luke 8:2).
Mark 16:16 is sometimes cited as evidence for the requirement of baptism for salvation.
Mark 16:17 is specifically cited as Biblical support for some Pentecostal denominations' teachings concerning exorcism and spiritual warfare, and also in support of speaking in tongues. The practice of snake handling and of drinking strychnine and other poisons, found in a few offshoots of Pentecostalism, find their Biblical support in Mark 16:18. These churches typically justify these practices as "confirming the word with signs following" (KJV), which references Mark 16:20. Other denominations believe that these texts indicate the power of the Holy Spirit given to the apostles, but do not believe that they are recommendations for worship.
The longer ending was declared canonical scripture by the Council of Trent. No Roman Catholic however is required to believe that Mark wrote this ending.
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