Scripture Study
The Twenty- First Sunday after Pentecost
OCTOBER 25, 2009
SCRIPTURE: Mark 10:46-52
Jesus and his disciples came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" Jesus stood still and said, "Call him here." And they called the blind man, saying to him, "Take heart; get up, he is calling you." So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. Then Jesus said to him, "What do you want me to do for you?" The blind man said to him, "My teacher, let me see again." Jesus said to him, "Go; your faith has made you well." Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way.
EXEGESIS:
CHAPTERS 8-11: THE CONTEXT
In these chapters, we have two stories of the healing of blind men (8:22-26 and 10:46-52). Between these two stories, Jesus travels with the disciples toward Jerusalem. On the way, he tells the disciples three times of his coming death (8:31-33; 9:30-32; 10:32-34), but they respond to each of these predictions inappropriately, showing that they are blind to the future that Jesus is seeking to reveal to them.
Mark uses these two stories of blind men to bracket a series of stories about disciples who are spiritually blind. Furthermore, he singles out Jesus' inner circle –– Peter, James, and John –– for special attention. They were privileged to be with Jesus at the Transfiguration (9:2-8), but seem to be blind to the truths that Jesus is trying to show them.
The story of Bartimaeus is the last healing miracle of this Gospel and ends chapter 10. Chapter 11 introduces Jesus' Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem (11:1) which, of course, is the prelude to his crucifixion.
VERSE 46: A BLIND BEGGAR SITTING BY THE ROADSIDE
46They came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus (Aramaic: bar means son of) son of Timaeus (Greek: ho huios timaiou, the son of Timaeus), a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside (Greek: ten hodon –– the road, the way).
"They came to Jericho" (v. 46). Fifteen mountainous miles downhill from Jerusalem, Jericho is one of the world's oldest continuously occupied cities.
"As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho" (v. 46). The streets would be filled with pilgrims coming from everywhere and heading for the Holy City. Jesus' reputation precedes him, and people hope to catch a glimpse of the man whom some think to be the Messiah. Perhaps they will witness a miracle –– or receive a blessing –– or hear a word of wisdom –– or even see sparks fly between Jesus and his enemies. It promises to be a grand parade.
Jericho is the home of many priests and Levites who serve at the temple in Jerusalem. Some are surely in this crowd, perhaps fearful of the impact that this young prophet might have on their lives –– lives deeply rooted in tradition. Jesus' apparent disdain for tradition must make them uneasy. Some surely stand on the sidelines trying to screw up courage to challenge Jesus as he walks by.
"Bartimaeus son of Timaeus" (v. 46). Bar means son of in Aramaic, a language similar to Hebrew and the common language of Palestinian Jews in Jesus' day. Mark gives the Aramaic name and translates into Greek for Gentile readers. Timao (Greek) means to honor, so Bartimaeus can mean son of honor. "Mark sets in stark contrast the meaning of the name and the occupation of the man. A son of honor is begging beside the road! This man, living daily with the shame of his condition, bestows on Jesus titles of honor. Before the narrative is over, we see Bartimaeus, his honor now fully restored, joining Jesus on the way to dishonor and shame" (Geddert, 253).
Mark does not usually name beneficiaries of miracles –– he names only Jairus and Bartimaeus in this Gospel. It could be that Bartimaeus is active in the church and is known to Mark's readers.
"Blind beggar" (v. 46). Most blind men would be beggars, and begging is regarded charitably. "Bartimaeus is the very image of one without anything to offer, anything to claim" (Craddock, 452).
"was sitting by the roadside" (v. 46). The roadside is a place for marginal people. Usually rather quiet alongside the road, on this day it would be noisy with pilgrims headed for Jerusalem. Imagine Bartimaeus' difficulty understanding what is happening in the confusion of the noisy crowd. Not only is he blind, but also seems not to have friends to help him.
VERSES 47-48: "SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME"
47When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth (Greek: ho Nazarenos –– the Nazarene), he began to shout out and say, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" 48Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"
"Jesus of Nazareth" (ho Nazarenos) (v. 47a) –– literally "Jesus the Nazarene" –– not Iesous apo Nazaret (Jesus of Nazareth) as in 1:9. "A similar expression is used of Samson in Judg 16:17…, who is called naziraios theou, God's powerfully anointed one. Mark's use of the term 'Nazarene' in the healing stories of 1:24 and 10:47 may also carry connotations of Jesus' powerful anointing by God" (Edwards, 329).
"Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" (v. 47b). Mark includes no genealogy, so he may intend this title, "Son of David," to establish Jesus' Davidic descent –– his royal blood. In Matthew, the angel appears to Joseph, addressing him, "Joseph, son of David" (Matthew 1:20), presumably for this same purpose. Mark could also intend "Son of David" as a messianic title. Later, Jesus will quote scripture to show himself to be, not only David's son, but also David's Lord (12:35-37).
Matthew, who wrote his Gospel for Jewish readers, uses the title "Son of David" eleven times. Mark and Luke, who wrote their Gospels for Gentile readers, use the title only once and twice respectively. Jesus' Davidic descent obviously means more to Jewish readers than to Gentiles readers.
Until now, Jesus has tried to keep talk of his messiahship at a minimum –– scholars talk of the "messianic secret." But Jesus does not rebuke Bartimaeus for calling him, "Son of David," a title that can be understood messianically. The reason is quite simple. Before now, his time had not come, but now it has. He is ready to enter Jerusalem –– ready to confront the religious establishment –– ready to die.
It is significant that Bartimaeus focuses on Jesus instead of begging. In that culture, people believe that they earn merit by helping beggars, and pilgrims on the way to the Holy City could be expected to be especially generous. Beggars would depend on special days such as this for much of their income –– rather like merchants today who depend on Christmas.
We could not fault Bartimaeus if he were content with his circumstances. He punches no clock and answers to no man. His life as a beggar, while less than ideal, is familiar and comfortable. However, Bartimaeus' shout shows that he has heard of Jesus, has been listening for him, and is determined to get his attention. He wants the help that he believes Jesus to be able to offer.
"Many sternly ordered him to be quiet." (v. 48a). The crowd is trying to enjoy the parade. Bartimaeus disturbs their fun, so they order him to be quiet –– but Bartimaeus will not be stilled. Never has he had such hope! If Jesus disappears around the bend, he will never have such hope again. For Bartimaeus, this is literally the chance of a lifetime. He continues to shout –– to plead for mercy.
but he cried out even more loudly, 'Son of David, have mercy on me!" (v. 48b). Bartimaeus will not be quiet just to please this crowd. His future –– his life –– is at stake.
VERSES 49-50: JESUS SAID, "CALL HIM HERE"
49Jesus stood still and said, "Call him here." And they called the blind man, saying to him, "Take heart; get up, he is calling you." 50So throwing off (Greek: apobalon –– casting aside –– abandoning) his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus.
"Jesus stood still" (v. 50a). Amidst the noise of the crowd, Jesus hears the cry of this beggar, and stops in his tracks. Jesus' ears are attuned to hear the marginal person: The woman with a hemorrhage (5:25-34) –– the Gerasene demoniac (5:1-20) –– the sick in Gennesaret (6:53-56) –– the Syrophoenician woman (7:24-30) –– the blind man at Bethsaida (8:22-25) –– the boy with a spirit (9:14-29) –– little children (10:13-16) –– and now this blind man who sits beside the road.
Jesus does not address the blind man directly, but orders the crowd to "call him here" (v. 49) –– commands them to stop obstructing and to start enabling –– turns stiff arms into helping hands. Then, before healing the blind man, Jesus dignifies him –– moves him from the wings to center stage –– puts him in the spotlight –– gives him a starring role. "The contrast is marked: Jesus, the son of David (and, as such, Israel's 'first' citizen), stopping to help a beggar of no account… (…one of Israel's 'last' citizens)" (Evans, 131).
There are strong parallels between this story and Jesus' earlier blessing of little children (10:13-16):
• The disciples tried to prevent parents from bringing their children to Jesus just as the crowd tried to shush Bartimaeus (vv. 13, 48)
• Jesus' instructions to the disciples "Let the little children come to me" (v. 14), parallel his instructions to this crowd, "Call him here" (v. 49).
• In both cases, Jesus reaches out with authority to include powerless, vulnerable people, modeling authentic Christian ministry.
"So throwing off (apobalon –– casting aside –– abandoning) his cloak, (Bartimaeus) sprang up and came to Jesus" (v. 50). Beggars typically sit with their cloak spread on the ground before them to catch coins tossed by passersby. This man's cloak is as important to his livelihood as boats are to a fisherman or a booth to a tax collector. Just as others abandoned boats and booths to follow Jesus, this man tosses aside cloak and coins to stand before the Son of David. He is quite unlike the rich man who, earlier in this chapter, could not bring himself to abandon his wealth (10:17-27). The blind man's actions bring to mind:
• The admonition to "lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and…run with perseverance the race that is set before us" (Hebrews 12:1).
• Jesus' words, "No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth" (Matthew 6:24).
This is the last healing miracle recorded in this Gospel.
VERSE 51: "WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO FOR YOU?"
51Then Jesus said to him, "What do you want me to do for you?" The blind man said to him, "My teacher (Greek: Rabbouni), let me see again."
"What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus has brought this man to center stage. Now he further dignifies him by asking what he wants. He asks the same question that he asked of James and John (10:36) in the incident immediately preceding this story. James and John responded by asking for places of honor at Jesus' right- and left-hand –– positions where they would be seen and envied –– where ordinary people would have to look up to them.
"My teacher" (Rabbouni). In the New Testament, we see this word Rabbouni only here and when Mary recognizes the risen Christ outside the tomb (John 20:16). It is a reverent form of Rabbi, "used by the rabbis themselves only in addressing God" (Boring, 306).
"let me see again." The blind man's petition is very different from that of James and John. He asks not to be seen, but to see –– not for honor, but for vision –– not to be superior to ordinary people, but to become ordinary himself –– not to rule over others, but to join them in their experience of a normal life.
VERSE 52: HE REGAINED HIS SIGHT AND FOLLOWED HIM ON THE WAY
52Jesus said to him, "Go; your faith has made you well" (Greek: sesoken se –– healed or saved you). Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way (Greek: hodo).
"Go; your faith has made you well" (sesoken). The word sesoken (root word sozo) has a happy ambiguity. It can mean healed, made whole, or saved. In this man's case, all three are true. The man not only regains his sight and, thereby, his place in society, but he also becomes a follower of Jesus "on the way." On the way to where? To Jerusalem! To the cross! To the open tomb!
"Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way" (hodo). At the beginning of this story, we found Bartimaeus "sitting by the roadside (hodon)" (v. 46). Now, at the end of the story, we find him following Jesus "on the way" (hodo). While in verse 46 hodon "is simply a geographical indication, in 10:52 the same word functions theologically as a reference to the 'way' of discipleship" (Donahue and Harrington, 317). The different sense of the word in these two verses illustrates how dramatically a brief encounter with Jesus changed Bartimaeus' life.
It is only a few days until Good Friday. We can't help but wonder how Bartimaeus will fare during the tumultuous events of the coming week. Given the vigor of his faith, it seems possible that he will fare better than the other disciples. After all, Bartimaeus can see now, but the disciples are still blind.
"The healing of Bartimaeus is especially significant for those who sit outside the church…. (It) calls attention to persons who, though lost in the crowd, may be ready and eager for some vital contact with Jesus Christ" (Williamson, 199-200).
TRUE STORY:
When I was a little boy, I studied piano, and my mother was my teacher. When it came time for a recital, my mother made me go over the conclusion again and again. I had to get it down perfect! "Keep on practicing the conclusion, Bob. Learn those last measures!" she used to say. "Look, Bob, you can make a mistake in the beginning; or you can make a mistake in the middle; the people will forget it –– if you make the ending glorious!" Make the ending glorious!
I don't know what kind of childhood you had. I don't know what kind of life you had. I don't know where you are now! But where you are now, Jesus is present. Take Him into your life now, and I can tell you the ending will be glorious!
Robert Schuller, Life Changers
THOUGHT PROVOKERS:
* * * * * * * * * *
When Jesus prayed to the one who could save him from death,
he did not get that salvation;
he got instead the salvation of the world.
Philip Yancey
* * * * * * * * * *
For as the devil through pride
leads man from pride to death,
so Christ through lowliness
leads back man through obedience to life.
St. Augustine
* * * * * * * * * *
Jesus Christ is God's everything
for man's total need.
Richard Halverson
* * * * * * * * * *
The terms for "salvation" in many languages
are derived from roots like salvus, saos, whole, heil,
which all designate health,
the opposite of disintegration and disruption.
Salvation is healing in the ultimate sense;
it is final cosmic and individual healing.
Paul Tillich
* * * * * * * * * *
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Barclay, William, The Daily Study Bible: Gospel of Mark (Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1954)
Boring, M. Eugene, The New Testament Library, Mark, A Commentary (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006)
Brooks, James A, The New American Commentary: Mark (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1991)
Brueggemann, Walter; Cousar, Charles B.; Gaventa, Beverly R.; and Newsome, James D., Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary Based on the NRSV –– Year B (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993)
Craddock, Fred B.; Hayes, John H.; Holladay, Carl R.; Tucker, Gene M., Preaching Through the Christian Year, B (Valley Forge: Trinity Press International, 1993)
Donahue, John R. and Harrington, Daniel J., Sacra Pagina: The Gospel of Mark (Collegeville: The Liturgical Press, 2002)
Edwards, James R., The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
Evans, Craig A., Word Biblical Commentary: Mark 8:27 –– 16:20 (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2001)
France, R.T., The New International Greek Testament Commentary: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
Geddert, Timothy J., Believers Church Bible Commentary: Mark (Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2001)
Grant, Frederick C. and Luccock, Halford E., The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 7 (Nashville: Abingdon, 1951)
Hare, Douglas R. A., Westminster Bible Companion: Mark (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996)
Hooker, Morna D., Black's New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Saint Mark (Hendrickson Publishers, 1991)
Hurtado, Larry W., New International Biblical Commentary: Mark (Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1983, 1989)
Lane, William L., The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1974)
Moule, C.F.D., The Cambridge Bible Commentary on the New English Bible: The Gospel of Mark (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965)
Perkins, Pheme, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VIII (Nashville: Abingdon, 1995)
Williamson, Lamar Jr., Interpretation: Mark (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1983)
Richard Niell Donovan, SermonWriter.com
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Saturday, September 12, 2009
September 12, 2009 - The Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost
SCRIPTURE STUDY
The Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost
PROPER 19,YEAR B
SEPTEMBER 13, 2009
The Lessons Appointed for Use on the
Sunday closest to September 14
Proper 19
Year B
RCL
Wisdom of Solomon 7:26-8:1
Psalm 116:1-8
James 3:1-12
Mark 8:27-38
The Collect
O God, because without you we are not able to please you, mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Wisdom of Solomon 7:26-8:1
Wisdom is a reflection of eternal light,
a spotless mirror of the working of God,
and an image of his goodness.
Although she is but one, she can do all things,
and while remaining in herself, she renews all things;
in every generation she passes into holy souls
and makes them friends of God, and prophets;
for God loves nothing so much as the person who lives with wisdom.
She is more beautiful than the sun,
and excels every constellation of the stars.
Compared with the light she is found to be superior,
for it is succeeded by the night,
but against wisdom evil does not prevail.
She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other,
and she orders all things well.
Psalm 116:1-8
1
I love the LORD, because he has heard the voice of my supplication, *
because he has inclined his ear to me whenever I called upon him.
2
The cords of death entangled me;
the grip of the grave took hold of me; *
I came to grief and sorrow.
3
Then I called upon the Name of the LORD: *
"O LORD, I pray you, save my life."
4
Gracious is the LORD and righteous; *
our God is full of compassion.
5
The LORD watches over the innocent; *
I was brought very low, and he helped me.
6
Turn again to your rest, O my soul, *
for the LORD has treated you well.
7
For you have rescued my life from death, *
my eyes from tears, and my feet from stumbling.
8
I will walk in the presence of the LORD *
in the land of the living.
James 3:1-12
Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits.
How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell. For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, but no one can tame the tongue-- a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water? Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.
Mark 8:27-38
Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" And they answered him, "John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets." He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah." And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."
He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."
EXEGESIS:
VERSES 27-38: THE CONTEXT
This lesson is bracketed by the story of Jesus healing a blind man at Bethsaida (8:22-26) and another blind man, Bartimaeus, at Jericho (10:46-25). During this period, Jesus is struggling with disciples who are blind to the truth that he would teach them. "Do you have eyes, and fail to see? Do you have ears, and fail to hear?" he asked (8:18). "Do you not yet understand?" (8:21). In his great confession (v. 29), Peter shows that he has caught a glimpse of the truth, but the following verses will show that his vision was distorted by his prior understanding of messiahship.
In verses 31-33, Jesus speaks to the disciples. In verses 34-38, he calls the crowd to join the disciples in hearing the criteria for discipleship.
This is the first of three occasions in this section where Jesus predicts his suffering and death (see also 9:31 and 10:33-34). On all three occasions, the disciples demonstrate their lack of understanding and Jesus responds by expanding his teaching on discipleship.
"The significance of this text lies in its paradoxes. I learn who I am by discovering who Jesus is. The way to self-fulfillment is the way of self denial." (Williamson, 156)
VERSES 27-30: YOU ARE THE MESSIAH
27Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way (Greek: te hodo) he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" 28And they answered him, "John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets." 29He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah (Greek: Christos)." 30And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
"Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi" (v. 27a). Jesus has most recently been at Bethsaida (8:22-26), a town on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee. Now he travels to the villages of Caesarea Philippi, about 25 miles (40 km) further north, at the foot of Mount Hermon. This far to the north, and symbolizes a major turning point in his ministry. He has been working in Galilee, a relatively friendly place, healing and teaching. Now he will begin his journey southward toward Jerusalem, the center of the opposition to him and the place where he will die.
"and on the way" (te hodo) (v. 27b). The phrase, "the way" (te hodo) is important to this Gospel. John the Baptist came to prepare the way (hodon) of the Lord (1:2), and Mark uses the word hodo at 9:33; 10:17 and 10:32, 52 to remind us that Jesus and his disciples are on their way to Jerusalem, where Jesus will be crucified. Caesarea Philippi seems like an odd place for Jesus to begin such a significant journey. Its roots are more Greek and Roman than Jewish.
"Who do people say that I am?" (v. 27c). Earlier named Paneas after the Greek God Pan, the city was then named Caesarea to honor Caesar Augustus. They built a temple to Caesar not far from the temple to Pan. Then they changed the name to Caesarea Philippi to honor the local ruler, Philip the tetrarch, son of Herod the Great –– and to distinguish this city from another Caesarea located on the Mediterranean shore. "It was here, amid the interplay between the forces of nature and the deification of the state in the emperor, that Christ asked his disciples: "Who do men say that the Son of man is?" (Myers, 180).
"John the Baptist; …Elijah; …one of the prophets" (vv. 27-28). Earlier, when Jesus was performing miracles, people speculated regarding his identity and came up with these same three possibilities –– and in the same order (6:14-15). The people think of Jesus, not as the Messiah, but as a great man like one of the great men of their history. They have their own ideas about the Messiah, and Jesus does not fit the mold. They think of the Messiah as David's successor, who will drive out the Roman garrison, re-establish Israel's glory, and usher in a golden age. To accomplish these goals, they expect the Messiah to use traditional power –– military or economic dominance. They expect the Messiah to be a super-man –– a man like other men except for his greater power. Jesus re-defines power to mean drawing people to himself through love. His love will be expressed in self-denial and cross-bearing.
"But who do you say that I am?" (v. 29). In the Greek, the "you" is emphatic.
"You are the Messiah" (Christos) (v. 29). Christos is the Greek word and Messias is the Hebrew equivalent. Both mean "anointed." Mark began this Gospel by saying, "The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ (Greek: Christou), the Son of God" (1:1) –– thus establishing Jesus as both Christ and Son of God.
• The NRSV translates Christos as Christ in 1:1 and Messiah here in 8:29. It would seem better to use Christ in both verses, maintaining the parallelism that Mark surely intended. Messiah transliterates the Hebrew mashiach, which means, "anointed." The Jews anointed three classes of people: priests, prophets and kings. Jesus is all three.
• Shortly before Jesus' death, the high priest will ask, "Are you the Christos, the Son of the Blessed One?" and Jesus will answer, "I am."
• At 15:39, at the conclusion of Jesus' journey, the centurion will restate that Jesus is God's Son.
"And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him" (v. 30). Matthew adds an account of Jesus' blessing of Peter for this confession (Matthew 16:17-19), but neither Mark nor Luke (9:18-22) includes it. Jesus orders the disciples not to tell anyone about him. Peter believes that Jesus is the Messiah, but will not understand how Jesus is redefining the role Messiah until after the resurrection. "The time for...public declaration will come in 14:61-62, but for now it is inappropriate. When that time comes, it will be Jesus himself, not the disciples, who breaks the secrecy" (France, 330).
VERSES 31-33: HE BEGAN TO TEACH THEM
31Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must (Greek: dei) undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me (Greek: opiso mou), Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."
The words, "he began to teach them" (v. 31a) signal a change. Until now, this Gospel has been establishing Jesus' power and authority. Now Jesus turns his disciples away from Galilee, where he has experienced such success, and faces them towards Jerusalem, where he will die. As he changes to this new phase of his ministry, he must begin to teach the disciples what to expect.
"that the Son of man must undergo great suffering" (v. 31b). Jesus refers to himself as Son of Man rather than Christ or Messiah, which is how Peter identified him in v. 29. The title, Son of Man, is more neutral than the title, Christos. The Jewish people expect the Christos to be a great king and military leader like David, but have no such expectations of the Son of Man. "Instead of emphasizing Jesus' human nature, ...the term connotes his glorious, celestial, supernatural, indeed his divine, nature, in the sense of Dan. 7" (Grant, 768). "More sophisticated readers might know that the figure in Daniel is identified with the righteous of Israel who suffer…. (I)t promises that God has not abandoned them to the evils of the oppressor. They will be vindicated" (Perkins, 624).
While the Jews expect a triumphant Messiah, Isaiah 52:13 –– 53:12 speaks of a suffering servant who "shall be exalted and lifted up" (52:13) –– who "was despised and rejected by others; a man of suffering and acquainted with infirmity" (53:3) –– who "was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities" (53:5) –– who "was cut off from the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people. They made his grave with the wicked" (53:8-9). (See also Psalm 22, Psalm 69, and Zechariah 9-14).
"the Son of Man must" (dei –– it is necessary) (v. 31b). This little word dei appears frequently in the Gospels, and in precisely this manner. Some scholars speak of it as the Divine Imperative, because it is God's will that Jesus suffer, die, and be resurrected.
"and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes" (v. 31c). These three groups comprise the Sanhedrin, the ruling body for the Jewish people. "It is not humanity at its worst that will crucify the Son of God but humanity at its absolute best…. He will be arrested with official warrants, and tried and executed by the world's envy of jurisprudence –– the Jewish Sanhedrin and the principia iuris Romanorum" (Edwards, 254).
"and be killed" (v. 31d). Jesus predicts his death, but does not yet reveal that it will be by crucifixion.
"and after three days rise again" (v. 31e). Upon hearing the word, "killed," we are inclined to stop listening, because death usually spells the end of the story –– but we must not stop listening prematurely. The bad news of Jesus' death will be trumped by the good news of his resurrection. Jesus must (dei) not only die, but he must also rise again.
"He said all this quite openly" (v. 32a). Many of Jesus' teachings have been couched in parables or stories, which conceal as much as they reveal. Here, however, Jesus "said all this quite openly" (v. 32). Given this clarity, we wonder why the disciples fail to understand. The answer, of course, is that Jesus' teachings run counter to everything that they believe. Regardless of what is said, people often hear what they expect to hear.
Also, the disciples have sacrificed a great deal to follow Jesus, and it is beginning to pay off. Jesus has been working wonder after wonder, and the crowds are responding nicely. The disciples see great possibilities ahead, and cannot welcome anything that suggests otherwise. We should not be too critical of them for refusing to accept Jesus' talk of suffering and death. It must sound to them as if he is having a bad moment and needs a bit of encouragement. Even today, having known all our lives how the story turns out, we prefer a gospel that promises success. The cross is a hard sell.
"And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him" (v. 32b). Note Peter's boldness. He has just identified Jesus as the Messiah, but now he is rebuking Jesus. How bold to rebuke even the Messiah! We too are tempted to rebuke Jesus when he fails to meet our expectations –– when he fails to answer our prayers as we expect.
"Peter 'took him' and 'began to rebuke him.' Both verbs express superiority and authority…. The issue is, who is in charge…. Jesus will not be patronized" (Williamson, 153). Note the parallel between "began to teach" (v. 31) and "began to rebuke" (v. 32).
"Get behind me" (opiso mou) (v. 33). When he first met Peter, Jesus said, "Deute opiso mou" –– "Come after me" –– a phrase translated "Follow me" in the NRSV. Peter has been coming after Jesus ever since, however imperfectly –– but in rebuking Jesus he steps out in front. Now Jesus orders him to resume his proper place as a disciple –– coming after –– following rather than leading.
"Get behind me, Satan!" (v. 33a). Jesus refers to Peter as Satan. This Gospel provides little detail about the temptation in the wilderness (1:12-13). Some scholars think of this encounter between Peter and Jesus as "the temptation story in Mark…. Mark tells the story this way so that we will recognize that the enduring temptation of Jesus' life was to resist the cross, to use his charisma to muster enough political clout to become what the crowds wanted him to become" (Johnson, 61). It seems likely that Jesus finds Peter's temptation even more dangerous than Satan's earlier temptations, because Peter is a disciple and friend rather than an opponent –– a well-intentioned man rather than the personification of evil. We are much more inclined to be persuaded by a friendly voice than by that of a known evildoer.
Note the story's twists and turns. First, Peter stuck out his neck and got the right answer. How good it feels to get the right answer! Now Jesus calls him Satan. In the blink of an eye, Peter has gone from Star Pupil to Dunce. Imagine how confused he must feel. Jesus' response makes it clear that the disciples belong behind Jesus. They are to follow, not lead.
"For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things" (v. 33b). Cousar thinks that Peter would see it very differently –– would believe that he is thinking of divine things while Jesus is introducing human things. The question is, "Which person, Jesus or Peter, knows what things are 'human things' and what things are 'divine things'? A side glance at 1 Cor. 1:18-25 would be helpful…. (T)he cross appears to be foolishness, but by God's standards it is wisdom" (Cousar, 209).
Some scholars think that Peter was one of Mark's sources for the stories in this Gospel. If so, Peter may be the source for this negative story about himself.
VERSES 34-38: DENY YOURSELF, TAKE UP YOUR CROSS, AND FOLLOW
34He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. 36For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? 37Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? 38Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."
"He called the crowd with his disciples" (v. 34a). Jesus has been speaking to the disciples, but now he calls the crowd to join the disciples for a lesson on discipleship. "By calling the crowd Jesus indicates that the conditions for following him are relevant for all believers, and not for the disciples alone" (Lane, 306).
"If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me" (v. 34b). Discipleship involves self-denial and cross-bearing. At the time in which this Gospel was written, Christians were literally bearing crosses and losing their lives. These words of Jesus speaks very directly to their situation, and hold out a great promise. "The end of the road of discipleship is not crucifixion; it is resurrection…. Mark 8:34-38 is not finally about losing one's life, forfeiting the world, and unashamedly joining the Son of Man's rejection. It is finally about saving one's life, gaining one's soul, and seeing the kingdom" (Geddert, 211).
Sports provide an analogy. Games are won, not just on the playing field, but also on the practice field. To experience glory on game day, the athlete must first push himself or herself to the limit on the practice field. Physical conditioning is painful and practicing fundamentals is tiresome, but the purpose of discipline is neither pain nor boredom but victory. So it is in the spiritual realm. Spiritual discipline begets spiritual victory. The church is always tempted to offer less costly discipleship in the hope of attracting more people. A weak call, however, produces weak disciples. "A church may win people by disguising the true meaning of discipleship. But it cannot do anything with them after it gets them" (Luccock, 768).
The challenge to lose our lives for Jesus' sake conflicts with modern values. Preservation of life is a major industry. Modern medicine, proper diet, and exercise extend our lives. Cosmetics and plastic surgeons preserve our appearance. Funeral directors continue the work even after we die. We find it difficult to hear Jesus' call to lose our lives for his sake.
When this Gospel was first written, Christians were literally in danger of losing their lives for their faith. They were tempted to deny Christ to save their lives. That is still true for many Christians today. Persecution of Christians is alive and well. More Christians died for their faith in the 20th Century than in the 1st Century. The list of nations where Christians are routinely persecuted is a long one: China, North Korea, Laos, Vietnam, Indonesia, East Timor, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Egypt, Sudan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Cuba –– to name only a few. We who are not subject to martyrdom need to keep that issue before our congregations. We need to support and pray for Christian brothers and sisters to alleviate their suffering in any way possible. The fact that Christ blesses Christian martyrs is no excuse for allowing our apathy to contribute to the martyrdom of our Christian brothers and sisters.
The challenges that most of us face seem trivial by comparison. Workplaces are inhospitable to Christian witness. Coaches schedule games on Sunday mornings, forcing young people to choose between sports and Jesus. People label Christians as fanatics or bigots for beliefs that run counter to the prevailing culture. These are serious and painful issues, but fall far short of the kind of persecution that Christians endured through the centuries and are still enduring even today in many parts of the world.
Since our challenges are not issues of life-and-death, we are tempted to feel that they aren't important. We would be willing to die for Christ, but find it difficult to live for Christ day by day. Fred Craddock reminds us that most Christians are never called to make the grand gesture, but are instead called to pay the price of discipleship a quarter at a time. That is not as glorious as martyrdom, but our willingness to spend quarters when they are needed is more important than our willingness to die when that is not needed.
Jesus gives a threefold standard for discipleship. We are to (1) deny ourselves (2) to take up our cross and (3) to follow Jesus. Jesus does not call us to deny our value. We are created in God's image, so how could we not have value? Neither does he call us to deny ourselves pleasure. The ascetic can be the most ego-centered person of all. "The denial of self…is making ourselves not an end, but a means, in the kingdom of God. It is subordinating the clamoring ego….for Christ's sake, for the sake of putting the self into his cause" (Luccock, 770). "It is (replacing) the self with God-in-Christ as the object of affections. It is (placing) the divine will before self-will" (Brooks, 137).
"For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life?" (vv. 35-37). The game is for the biggest stakes of all –– life itself–– eternal life –– meaningful life –– life lived in the presence of the Father. There is no no-risk strategy where faith is concerned–– no safe but profitable harbor. People speak of "the leap of faith" precisely because faith, at some point, involves letting go of traditional forms of security and leaping into the darkness in the faith that Jesus will help us to land safely.
Jim Elliot, a missionary who was murdered on the mission field by the Auca Indians as he tried to minister to them, earlier assessed the risk, saying: "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."
"Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels" (v. 38). "In the first century being ashamed of Jesus and his words had particular reference to denying him in time of persecution" (Brooks, 138). The picture is of a judgment scene where we will be utterly dependent on Jesus' help. Jesus is portrayed elsewhere as our advocate (Greek: parakleton) (1 John 2:1). (The Holy Spirit is also called a paraclete –– John 14:16, 26; 15:26, etc.) A paraclete is a helper –– a defender. A defense lawyer is one kind of paraclete, and that is an appropriate image here. On Judgment Day, we will need Christ to serve as our paraclete –– our advocate –– our defender.
Because we live among an "adulterous and sinful generation" (v. 38), we cannot expect a pat on the back for faithful proclamation, but should instead expect opposition. An adulterous and sinful generation cannot abide truth. We should expect it to twist truth so it sounds like a lie –– and to deal ruthlessly with truth-tellers. Living among such people, we will always be tempted to mute our witness to Christ to avoid controversy and to escape persecution.
However, Jesus warns that, on Judgment Day, he will be ashamed of the person who has been ashamed of him –– the person who has muted his/her witness. Jesus warns that he will not "be there" for that person –– will not serve as his/her advocate –– thus leaving that person vulnerable –– defenseless.
Jesus implies that the reciprocal is also true –– that Jesus will "be there" to speak for the person who has spoken for Jesus –– that he will serve as our advocate. Matthew and Luke make this explicit –– "Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven" (Matthew 10:32; see also Luke 12:8). Jesus' purpose in v. 38 is not to establish grounds for abandoning us, but is rather to tell us how to gain his support and to avoid forfeiting life (v. 36).
THOUGHT PROVOKERS:
Certain it is that we are saved not by one cross but by two ––
Christ's and our own.
We must be crucified with Christ,
must die with him, and rise with him
into a new way of life and being.
Arthur John Gossip
* * * * * * * * * *
In our day heaven and earth are on tiptoe
waiting for the emerging of a spirit-led, spirit-intoxicated,
spirit-empowered people.
All of creation watches expectantly
for the springing up of a disciplined, freely gathered, martyr people
who know in this life the life and power of the kingdom of God.
It has happened before. It can happen again.
Individuals can be found here and there
whose hearts burn with divine fire.
But they are like flaming torches scattered in the night.
As yet there has been no gathering of a people of the spirit.
Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline
* * * * * * * * * *
If we answer this call to discipleship, where will it lead us?
What decisions and partings will it demand?
To answer this question we shall have to go to him,
for he only knows the answer.
Only Jesus Christ, who bids us follow him,
knows the journey's end.
But we do know that it will be a road of boundless mercy.
Discipleship means joy.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship
* * * * * * * * * *
Faith is obedience, nothing else;
literally nothing else at all.
Emil Brunner
* * * * * * * * * *
To accept the will of God
never leads to the miserable feeling that it is useless to strive any more.
God does not ask for the dull, weak, sleepy acquiescence of indolence.
He asks for something vivid and strong.
He asks us to cooperate with him,
actively willing what he wills,
our only aim his glory.
Amy Carmichael
* * * * * * * * * *
HYMN STORY: Nearer My God to Thee
This hymn was written by two sisters. Sarah Flower Adams wrote the words and her sister, Eliza Flower, wrote the music. Together they wrote a number of hymns, but this is the only one still in common use today.
Sarah (the author of the words) enjoyed a successful career on the stage playing Lady MacBeth in Shakespearean drama, but retired from the stage due to health problems. Not long thereafter, her sister, Eliza, came down with tuberculosis. Sarah, determined to nurse her, came down with the disease as well, and both died at a relatively young age.
However, their hymn acknowledges the possibility of suffering but refuses to allow suffering to have the last word. It says:
"E'en though it be a cross
that raiseth me;
Still all my song shall be,
nearer my God to Thee."
The message of the hymn is that every experience, good or bad, can draw us nearer to God, who gives us comfort and strength.
• Bearing a cross brings us nearer to God.
• Darkness brings us nearer to God.
• Angels bring us nearer to God.
• And grief brings us nearer to God.
The things that the hymn mentions (a cross, darkness, grief) tend to be difficulties. Sometimes when life is good we tend to forget that we need God. It is the difficult times that reinforce our deep need for God's grace -- that do, indeed, bring us nearer to God.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Boring, M. Eugene, The New Testament Library, Mark, A Commentary (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006)
Brooks, James A, The New American Commentary: Mark (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1991)
Cousar, Charles B., in Brueggemann, Walter; Cousar, Charles B.; Gaventa, Beverly R.; and Newsome, James D., Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary Based on the NRSV –– Year B (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993)
Craddock, Fred B.; Hayes, John H.; Holladay, Carl R.; Tucker, Gene M., Preaching Through the Christian Year, B (Valley Forge: Trinity Press International, 1993)
Edwards, James R., The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
Evans, Craig A., Word Biblical Commentary: Mark 8:27 –– 16:20 (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2001)
France, R.T., The New International Greek Testament Commentary: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
Geddert, Timothy J., Believers Church Bible Commentary: Mark (Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2001)
Grant, Frederick C. and Luccock, Halford E., The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 7 (Nashville: Abingdon, 1951)
Hare, Douglas R. A., Westminster Bible Companion: Mark (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996)
Hooker, Morna D., Black's New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Saint Mark (Hendrickson Publishers, 1991)
Hurtado, Larry W., New International Biblical Commentary: Mark (Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1983, 1989)
Lane, William L., The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1974)
Moule, C.F.D., The Cambridge Bible Commentary on the New English Bible: The Gospel of Mark (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965)
Myers, Allen C. (ed.), The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1987)
Perkins, Pheme, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VIII (Nashville: Abingdon, 1995)
Williamson, Lamar Jr., Interpretation: Mark (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1983)
Richard Niell Donovan, SermonWriter.com
The Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost
PROPER 19,YEAR B
SEPTEMBER 13, 2009
The Lessons Appointed for Use on the
Sunday closest to September 14
Proper 19
Year B
RCL
Wisdom of Solomon 7:26-8:1
Psalm 116:1-8
James 3:1-12
Mark 8:27-38
The Collect
O God, because without you we are not able to please you, mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Wisdom of Solomon 7:26-8:1
Wisdom is a reflection of eternal light,
a spotless mirror of the working of God,
and an image of his goodness.
Although she is but one, she can do all things,
and while remaining in herself, she renews all things;
in every generation she passes into holy souls
and makes them friends of God, and prophets;
for God loves nothing so much as the person who lives with wisdom.
She is more beautiful than the sun,
and excels every constellation of the stars.
Compared with the light she is found to be superior,
for it is succeeded by the night,
but against wisdom evil does not prevail.
She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other,
and she orders all things well.
Psalm 116:1-8
1
I love the LORD, because he has heard the voice of my supplication, *
because he has inclined his ear to me whenever I called upon him.
2
The cords of death entangled me;
the grip of the grave took hold of me; *
I came to grief and sorrow.
3
Then I called upon the Name of the LORD: *
"O LORD, I pray you, save my life."
4
Gracious is the LORD and righteous; *
our God is full of compassion.
5
The LORD watches over the innocent; *
I was brought very low, and he helped me.
6
Turn again to your rest, O my soul, *
for the LORD has treated you well.
7
For you have rescued my life from death, *
my eyes from tears, and my feet from stumbling.
8
I will walk in the presence of the LORD *
in the land of the living.
James 3:1-12
Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits.
How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell. For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, but no one can tame the tongue-- a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water? Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.
Mark 8:27-38
Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" And they answered him, "John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets." He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah." And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."
He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."
EXEGESIS:
VERSES 27-38: THE CONTEXT
This lesson is bracketed by the story of Jesus healing a blind man at Bethsaida (8:22-26) and another blind man, Bartimaeus, at Jericho (10:46-25). During this period, Jesus is struggling with disciples who are blind to the truth that he would teach them. "Do you have eyes, and fail to see? Do you have ears, and fail to hear?" he asked (8:18). "Do you not yet understand?" (8:21). In his great confession (v. 29), Peter shows that he has caught a glimpse of the truth, but the following verses will show that his vision was distorted by his prior understanding of messiahship.
In verses 31-33, Jesus speaks to the disciples. In verses 34-38, he calls the crowd to join the disciples in hearing the criteria for discipleship.
This is the first of three occasions in this section where Jesus predicts his suffering and death (see also 9:31 and 10:33-34). On all three occasions, the disciples demonstrate their lack of understanding and Jesus responds by expanding his teaching on discipleship.
"The significance of this text lies in its paradoxes. I learn who I am by discovering who Jesus is. The way to self-fulfillment is the way of self denial." (Williamson, 156)
VERSES 27-30: YOU ARE THE MESSIAH
27Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way (Greek: te hodo) he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" 28And they answered him, "John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets." 29He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah (Greek: Christos)." 30And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
"Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi" (v. 27a). Jesus has most recently been at Bethsaida (8:22-26), a town on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee. Now he travels to the villages of Caesarea Philippi, about 25 miles (40 km) further north, at the foot of Mount Hermon. This far to the north, and symbolizes a major turning point in his ministry. He has been working in Galilee, a relatively friendly place, healing and teaching. Now he will begin his journey southward toward Jerusalem, the center of the opposition to him and the place where he will die.
"and on the way" (te hodo) (v. 27b). The phrase, "the way" (te hodo) is important to this Gospel. John the Baptist came to prepare the way (hodon) of the Lord (1:2), and Mark uses the word hodo at 9:33; 10:17 and 10:32, 52 to remind us that Jesus and his disciples are on their way to Jerusalem, where Jesus will be crucified. Caesarea Philippi seems like an odd place for Jesus to begin such a significant journey. Its roots are more Greek and Roman than Jewish.
"Who do people say that I am?" (v. 27c). Earlier named Paneas after the Greek God Pan, the city was then named Caesarea to honor Caesar Augustus. They built a temple to Caesar not far from the temple to Pan. Then they changed the name to Caesarea Philippi to honor the local ruler, Philip the tetrarch, son of Herod the Great –– and to distinguish this city from another Caesarea located on the Mediterranean shore. "It was here, amid the interplay between the forces of nature and the deification of the state in the emperor, that Christ asked his disciples: "Who do men say that the Son of man is?" (Myers, 180).
"John the Baptist; …Elijah; …one of the prophets" (vv. 27-28). Earlier, when Jesus was performing miracles, people speculated regarding his identity and came up with these same three possibilities –– and in the same order (6:14-15). The people think of Jesus, not as the Messiah, but as a great man like one of the great men of their history. They have their own ideas about the Messiah, and Jesus does not fit the mold. They think of the Messiah as David's successor, who will drive out the Roman garrison, re-establish Israel's glory, and usher in a golden age. To accomplish these goals, they expect the Messiah to use traditional power –– military or economic dominance. They expect the Messiah to be a super-man –– a man like other men except for his greater power. Jesus re-defines power to mean drawing people to himself through love. His love will be expressed in self-denial and cross-bearing.
"But who do you say that I am?" (v. 29). In the Greek, the "you" is emphatic.
"You are the Messiah" (Christos) (v. 29). Christos is the Greek word and Messias is the Hebrew equivalent. Both mean "anointed." Mark began this Gospel by saying, "The beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ (Greek: Christou), the Son of God" (1:1) –– thus establishing Jesus as both Christ and Son of God.
• The NRSV translates Christos as Christ in 1:1 and Messiah here in 8:29. It would seem better to use Christ in both verses, maintaining the parallelism that Mark surely intended. Messiah transliterates the Hebrew mashiach, which means, "anointed." The Jews anointed three classes of people: priests, prophets and kings. Jesus is all three.
• Shortly before Jesus' death, the high priest will ask, "Are you the Christos, the Son of the Blessed One?" and Jesus will answer, "I am."
• At 15:39, at the conclusion of Jesus' journey, the centurion will restate that Jesus is God's Son.
"And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him" (v. 30). Matthew adds an account of Jesus' blessing of Peter for this confession (Matthew 16:17-19), but neither Mark nor Luke (9:18-22) includes it. Jesus orders the disciples not to tell anyone about him. Peter believes that Jesus is the Messiah, but will not understand how Jesus is redefining the role Messiah until after the resurrection. "The time for...public declaration will come in 14:61-62, but for now it is inappropriate. When that time comes, it will be Jesus himself, not the disciples, who breaks the secrecy" (France, 330).
VERSES 31-33: HE BEGAN TO TEACH THEM
31Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must (Greek: dei) undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me (Greek: opiso mou), Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."
The words, "he began to teach them" (v. 31a) signal a change. Until now, this Gospel has been establishing Jesus' power and authority. Now Jesus turns his disciples away from Galilee, where he has experienced such success, and faces them towards Jerusalem, where he will die. As he changes to this new phase of his ministry, he must begin to teach the disciples what to expect.
"that the Son of man must undergo great suffering" (v. 31b). Jesus refers to himself as Son of Man rather than Christ or Messiah, which is how Peter identified him in v. 29. The title, Son of Man, is more neutral than the title, Christos. The Jewish people expect the Christos to be a great king and military leader like David, but have no such expectations of the Son of Man. "Instead of emphasizing Jesus' human nature, ...the term connotes his glorious, celestial, supernatural, indeed his divine, nature, in the sense of Dan. 7" (Grant, 768). "More sophisticated readers might know that the figure in Daniel is identified with the righteous of Israel who suffer…. (I)t promises that God has not abandoned them to the evils of the oppressor. They will be vindicated" (Perkins, 624).
While the Jews expect a triumphant Messiah, Isaiah 52:13 –– 53:12 speaks of a suffering servant who "shall be exalted and lifted up" (52:13) –– who "was despised and rejected by others; a man of suffering and acquainted with infirmity" (53:3) –– who "was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities" (53:5) –– who "was cut off from the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people. They made his grave with the wicked" (53:8-9). (See also Psalm 22, Psalm 69, and Zechariah 9-14).
"the Son of Man must" (dei –– it is necessary) (v. 31b). This little word dei appears frequently in the Gospels, and in precisely this manner. Some scholars speak of it as the Divine Imperative, because it is God's will that Jesus suffer, die, and be resurrected.
"and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes" (v. 31c). These three groups comprise the Sanhedrin, the ruling body for the Jewish people. "It is not humanity at its worst that will crucify the Son of God but humanity at its absolute best…. He will be arrested with official warrants, and tried and executed by the world's envy of jurisprudence –– the Jewish Sanhedrin and the principia iuris Romanorum" (Edwards, 254).
"and be killed" (v. 31d). Jesus predicts his death, but does not yet reveal that it will be by crucifixion.
"and after three days rise again" (v. 31e). Upon hearing the word, "killed," we are inclined to stop listening, because death usually spells the end of the story –– but we must not stop listening prematurely. The bad news of Jesus' death will be trumped by the good news of his resurrection. Jesus must (dei) not only die, but he must also rise again.
"He said all this quite openly" (v. 32a). Many of Jesus' teachings have been couched in parables or stories, which conceal as much as they reveal. Here, however, Jesus "said all this quite openly" (v. 32). Given this clarity, we wonder why the disciples fail to understand. The answer, of course, is that Jesus' teachings run counter to everything that they believe. Regardless of what is said, people often hear what they expect to hear.
Also, the disciples have sacrificed a great deal to follow Jesus, and it is beginning to pay off. Jesus has been working wonder after wonder, and the crowds are responding nicely. The disciples see great possibilities ahead, and cannot welcome anything that suggests otherwise. We should not be too critical of them for refusing to accept Jesus' talk of suffering and death. It must sound to them as if he is having a bad moment and needs a bit of encouragement. Even today, having known all our lives how the story turns out, we prefer a gospel that promises success. The cross is a hard sell.
"And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him" (v. 32b). Note Peter's boldness. He has just identified Jesus as the Messiah, but now he is rebuking Jesus. How bold to rebuke even the Messiah! We too are tempted to rebuke Jesus when he fails to meet our expectations –– when he fails to answer our prayers as we expect.
"Peter 'took him' and 'began to rebuke him.' Both verbs express superiority and authority…. The issue is, who is in charge…. Jesus will not be patronized" (Williamson, 153). Note the parallel between "began to teach" (v. 31) and "began to rebuke" (v. 32).
"Get behind me" (opiso mou) (v. 33). When he first met Peter, Jesus said, "Deute opiso mou" –– "Come after me" –– a phrase translated "Follow me" in the NRSV. Peter has been coming after Jesus ever since, however imperfectly –– but in rebuking Jesus he steps out in front. Now Jesus orders him to resume his proper place as a disciple –– coming after –– following rather than leading.
"Get behind me, Satan!" (v. 33a). Jesus refers to Peter as Satan. This Gospel provides little detail about the temptation in the wilderness (1:12-13). Some scholars think of this encounter between Peter and Jesus as "the temptation story in Mark…. Mark tells the story this way so that we will recognize that the enduring temptation of Jesus' life was to resist the cross, to use his charisma to muster enough political clout to become what the crowds wanted him to become" (Johnson, 61). It seems likely that Jesus finds Peter's temptation even more dangerous than Satan's earlier temptations, because Peter is a disciple and friend rather than an opponent –– a well-intentioned man rather than the personification of evil. We are much more inclined to be persuaded by a friendly voice than by that of a known evildoer.
Note the story's twists and turns. First, Peter stuck out his neck and got the right answer. How good it feels to get the right answer! Now Jesus calls him Satan. In the blink of an eye, Peter has gone from Star Pupil to Dunce. Imagine how confused he must feel. Jesus' response makes it clear that the disciples belong behind Jesus. They are to follow, not lead.
"For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things" (v. 33b). Cousar thinks that Peter would see it very differently –– would believe that he is thinking of divine things while Jesus is introducing human things. The question is, "Which person, Jesus or Peter, knows what things are 'human things' and what things are 'divine things'? A side glance at 1 Cor. 1:18-25 would be helpful…. (T)he cross appears to be foolishness, but by God's standards it is wisdom" (Cousar, 209).
Some scholars think that Peter was one of Mark's sources for the stories in this Gospel. If so, Peter may be the source for this negative story about himself.
VERSES 34-38: DENY YOURSELF, TAKE UP YOUR CROSS, AND FOLLOW
34He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. 36For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? 37Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? 38Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."
"He called the crowd with his disciples" (v. 34a). Jesus has been speaking to the disciples, but now he calls the crowd to join the disciples for a lesson on discipleship. "By calling the crowd Jesus indicates that the conditions for following him are relevant for all believers, and not for the disciples alone" (Lane, 306).
"If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me" (v. 34b). Discipleship involves self-denial and cross-bearing. At the time in which this Gospel was written, Christians were literally bearing crosses and losing their lives. These words of Jesus speaks very directly to their situation, and hold out a great promise. "The end of the road of discipleship is not crucifixion; it is resurrection…. Mark 8:34-38 is not finally about losing one's life, forfeiting the world, and unashamedly joining the Son of Man's rejection. It is finally about saving one's life, gaining one's soul, and seeing the kingdom" (Geddert, 211).
Sports provide an analogy. Games are won, not just on the playing field, but also on the practice field. To experience glory on game day, the athlete must first push himself or herself to the limit on the practice field. Physical conditioning is painful and practicing fundamentals is tiresome, but the purpose of discipline is neither pain nor boredom but victory. So it is in the spiritual realm. Spiritual discipline begets spiritual victory. The church is always tempted to offer less costly discipleship in the hope of attracting more people. A weak call, however, produces weak disciples. "A church may win people by disguising the true meaning of discipleship. But it cannot do anything with them after it gets them" (Luccock, 768).
The challenge to lose our lives for Jesus' sake conflicts with modern values. Preservation of life is a major industry. Modern medicine, proper diet, and exercise extend our lives. Cosmetics and plastic surgeons preserve our appearance. Funeral directors continue the work even after we die. We find it difficult to hear Jesus' call to lose our lives for his sake.
When this Gospel was first written, Christians were literally in danger of losing their lives for their faith. They were tempted to deny Christ to save their lives. That is still true for many Christians today. Persecution of Christians is alive and well. More Christians died for their faith in the 20th Century than in the 1st Century. The list of nations where Christians are routinely persecuted is a long one: China, North Korea, Laos, Vietnam, Indonesia, East Timor, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Egypt, Sudan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Cuba –– to name only a few. We who are not subject to martyrdom need to keep that issue before our congregations. We need to support and pray for Christian brothers and sisters to alleviate their suffering in any way possible. The fact that Christ blesses Christian martyrs is no excuse for allowing our apathy to contribute to the martyrdom of our Christian brothers and sisters.
The challenges that most of us face seem trivial by comparison. Workplaces are inhospitable to Christian witness. Coaches schedule games on Sunday mornings, forcing young people to choose between sports and Jesus. People label Christians as fanatics or bigots for beliefs that run counter to the prevailing culture. These are serious and painful issues, but fall far short of the kind of persecution that Christians endured through the centuries and are still enduring even today in many parts of the world.
Since our challenges are not issues of life-and-death, we are tempted to feel that they aren't important. We would be willing to die for Christ, but find it difficult to live for Christ day by day. Fred Craddock reminds us that most Christians are never called to make the grand gesture, but are instead called to pay the price of discipleship a quarter at a time. That is not as glorious as martyrdom, but our willingness to spend quarters when they are needed is more important than our willingness to die when that is not needed.
Jesus gives a threefold standard for discipleship. We are to (1) deny ourselves (2) to take up our cross and (3) to follow Jesus. Jesus does not call us to deny our value. We are created in God's image, so how could we not have value? Neither does he call us to deny ourselves pleasure. The ascetic can be the most ego-centered person of all. "The denial of self…is making ourselves not an end, but a means, in the kingdom of God. It is subordinating the clamoring ego….for Christ's sake, for the sake of putting the self into his cause" (Luccock, 770). "It is (replacing) the self with God-in-Christ as the object of affections. It is (placing) the divine will before self-will" (Brooks, 137).
"For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life?" (vv. 35-37). The game is for the biggest stakes of all –– life itself–– eternal life –– meaningful life –– life lived in the presence of the Father. There is no no-risk strategy where faith is concerned–– no safe but profitable harbor. People speak of "the leap of faith" precisely because faith, at some point, involves letting go of traditional forms of security and leaping into the darkness in the faith that Jesus will help us to land safely.
Jim Elliot, a missionary who was murdered on the mission field by the Auca Indians as he tried to minister to them, earlier assessed the risk, saying: "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."
"Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels" (v. 38). "In the first century being ashamed of Jesus and his words had particular reference to denying him in time of persecution" (Brooks, 138). The picture is of a judgment scene where we will be utterly dependent on Jesus' help. Jesus is portrayed elsewhere as our advocate (Greek: parakleton) (1 John 2:1). (The Holy Spirit is also called a paraclete –– John 14:16, 26; 15:26, etc.) A paraclete is a helper –– a defender. A defense lawyer is one kind of paraclete, and that is an appropriate image here. On Judgment Day, we will need Christ to serve as our paraclete –– our advocate –– our defender.
Because we live among an "adulterous and sinful generation" (v. 38), we cannot expect a pat on the back for faithful proclamation, but should instead expect opposition. An adulterous and sinful generation cannot abide truth. We should expect it to twist truth so it sounds like a lie –– and to deal ruthlessly with truth-tellers. Living among such people, we will always be tempted to mute our witness to Christ to avoid controversy and to escape persecution.
However, Jesus warns that, on Judgment Day, he will be ashamed of the person who has been ashamed of him –– the person who has muted his/her witness. Jesus warns that he will not "be there" for that person –– will not serve as his/her advocate –– thus leaving that person vulnerable –– defenseless.
Jesus implies that the reciprocal is also true –– that Jesus will "be there" to speak for the person who has spoken for Jesus –– that he will serve as our advocate. Matthew and Luke make this explicit –– "Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven" (Matthew 10:32; see also Luke 12:8). Jesus' purpose in v. 38 is not to establish grounds for abandoning us, but is rather to tell us how to gain his support and to avoid forfeiting life (v. 36).
THOUGHT PROVOKERS:
Certain it is that we are saved not by one cross but by two ––
Christ's and our own.
We must be crucified with Christ,
must die with him, and rise with him
into a new way of life and being.
Arthur John Gossip
* * * * * * * * * *
In our day heaven and earth are on tiptoe
waiting for the emerging of a spirit-led, spirit-intoxicated,
spirit-empowered people.
All of creation watches expectantly
for the springing up of a disciplined, freely gathered, martyr people
who know in this life the life and power of the kingdom of God.
It has happened before. It can happen again.
Individuals can be found here and there
whose hearts burn with divine fire.
But they are like flaming torches scattered in the night.
As yet there has been no gathering of a people of the spirit.
Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline
* * * * * * * * * *
If we answer this call to discipleship, where will it lead us?
What decisions and partings will it demand?
To answer this question we shall have to go to him,
for he only knows the answer.
Only Jesus Christ, who bids us follow him,
knows the journey's end.
But we do know that it will be a road of boundless mercy.
Discipleship means joy.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship
* * * * * * * * * *
Faith is obedience, nothing else;
literally nothing else at all.
Emil Brunner
* * * * * * * * * *
To accept the will of God
never leads to the miserable feeling that it is useless to strive any more.
God does not ask for the dull, weak, sleepy acquiescence of indolence.
He asks for something vivid and strong.
He asks us to cooperate with him,
actively willing what he wills,
our only aim his glory.
Amy Carmichael
* * * * * * * * * *
HYMN STORY: Nearer My God to Thee
This hymn was written by two sisters. Sarah Flower Adams wrote the words and her sister, Eliza Flower, wrote the music. Together they wrote a number of hymns, but this is the only one still in common use today.
Sarah (the author of the words) enjoyed a successful career on the stage playing Lady MacBeth in Shakespearean drama, but retired from the stage due to health problems. Not long thereafter, her sister, Eliza, came down with tuberculosis. Sarah, determined to nurse her, came down with the disease as well, and both died at a relatively young age.
However, their hymn acknowledges the possibility of suffering but refuses to allow suffering to have the last word. It says:
"E'en though it be a cross
that raiseth me;
Still all my song shall be,
nearer my God to Thee."
The message of the hymn is that every experience, good or bad, can draw us nearer to God, who gives us comfort and strength.
• Bearing a cross brings us nearer to God.
• Darkness brings us nearer to God.
• Angels bring us nearer to God.
• And grief brings us nearer to God.
The things that the hymn mentions (a cross, darkness, grief) tend to be difficulties. Sometimes when life is good we tend to forget that we need God. It is the difficult times that reinforce our deep need for God's grace -- that do, indeed, bring us nearer to God.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Boring, M. Eugene, The New Testament Library, Mark, A Commentary (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006)
Brooks, James A, The New American Commentary: Mark (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1991)
Cousar, Charles B., in Brueggemann, Walter; Cousar, Charles B.; Gaventa, Beverly R.; and Newsome, James D., Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary Based on the NRSV –– Year B (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993)
Craddock, Fred B.; Hayes, John H.; Holladay, Carl R.; Tucker, Gene M., Preaching Through the Christian Year, B (Valley Forge: Trinity Press International, 1993)
Edwards, James R., The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
Evans, Craig A., Word Biblical Commentary: Mark 8:27 –– 16:20 (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2001)
France, R.T., The New International Greek Testament Commentary: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
Geddert, Timothy J., Believers Church Bible Commentary: Mark (Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2001)
Grant, Frederick C. and Luccock, Halford E., The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 7 (Nashville: Abingdon, 1951)
Hare, Douglas R. A., Westminster Bible Companion: Mark (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996)
Hooker, Morna D., Black's New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Saint Mark (Hendrickson Publishers, 1991)
Hurtado, Larry W., New International Biblical Commentary: Mark (Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1983, 1989)
Lane, William L., The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1974)
Moule, C.F.D., The Cambridge Bible Commentary on the New English Bible: The Gospel of Mark (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965)
Myers, Allen C. (ed.), The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1987)
Perkins, Pheme, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VIII (Nashville: Abingdon, 1995)
Williamson, Lamar Jr., Interpretation: Mark (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1983)
Richard Niell Donovan, SermonWriter.com
Saturday, September 5, 2009
September 6, 2009 - 14th Sunday after Pentecost
Scripture Study
The Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost
PROPER 18, YEAR B
SEPTEMBER 6, 2009
The Lessons Appointed for Use on the
Sunday closest to September 7
Proper 18
Year B
RCL
or
Isaiah 35:4-7a
Psalm 146
James 2:1-10, (11-13), 14-17
Mark 7:24-37
The Collect
Grant us, O Lord, to trust in you with all our hearts; for, as you always resist the proud who confide in their own strength, so you never forsake those who make their boast of your mercy; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Old Testament
Isaiah 35:4-7a
Say to those who are of a fearful heart,
"Be strong, do not fear!
Here is your God.
He will come with vengeance,
with terrible recompense.
He will come and save you."
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
and the ears of the deaf unstopped;
then the lame shall leap like a deer,
and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy.
For waters shall break forth in the wilderness,
and streams in the desert;
the burning sand shall become a pool,
and the thirsty ground springs of water.
The Psalm
Psalm 146 Page 803, BCP
Lauda, anima mea
1
Hallelujah!
Praise the LORD, O my soul! *
I will praise the LORD as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
2
Put not your trust in rulers, nor in any child of earth, *
for there is no help in them.
3
When they breathe their last, they return to earth, *
and in that day their thoughts perish.
4
Happy are they who have the God of Jacob for their help!*
whose hope is in the LORD their God;
5
Who made heaven and earth, the seas, and all that is in them; *
who keeps his promise for ever;
6
Who gives justice to those who are oppressed, *
and food to those who hunger.
7
The LORD sets the prisoners free;
the LORD opens the eyes of the blind; *
the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;
8
The LORD loves the righteous;
the LORD cares for the stranger; *
he sustains the orphan and widow,
but frustrates the way of the wicked.
9
The LORD shall reign for ever, *
your God, O Zion, throughout all generations.
Hallelujah!
James 2:1-10, [11-13], 14-17
My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ? For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, "Have a seat here, please," while to the one who is poor you say, "Stand there," or, "Sit at my feet," have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you? Is it not they who drag you into court? Is it not they who blaspheme the excellent name that was invoked over you?
You do well if you really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." But if you show partiality, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. [For the one who said, "You shall not commit adultery," also said, "You shall not murder." Now if you do not commit adultery but if you murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment will be without mercy to anyone who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.]
What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill," and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.
Mark 7:24-37
Jesus set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. He said to her, "Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs." But she answered him, "Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." Then he said to her, "For saying that, you may go-- the demon has left your daughter." So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.
Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him. He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened." And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. They were astounded beyond measure, saying, "He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak."
EXEGESIS:
CHAPTERS 6-8: EYES TO SEE & EARS TO HEAR
Beginning with the Feeding of the Five Thousand (6:30-44), Mark relates a series of miracles, including the restoration of the deaf man's hearing and speech (7:31-37) and a blind man's sight (8:22-26). The passage culminates in Peter's confession of faith, "You are the Messiah" (8:29). Along the way, Jesus encounters the antagonism of the scribes and Pharisees (7:1-23; 8:11-13) and the lack of faith of the disciples (8:14-21). When the latter worry about not having enough bread (keep in mind that Mark has just related both the Feeding of the Five Thousand and the Feeding of the Four Thousand), Jesus says, "Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes, and fail to see? Do you have ears, and fail to hear?" (8:17-18). Jesus' has come to impart physical healing, but his greater purpose is opening spiritual eyes and ears.
VERSES 24-30: THE GENTILE WOMAN OF SYROPHOENICIAN ORIGIN
24From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, 25but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. 26Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27He said to her, "Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs" (Greek: kynariois) 28But she answered him, "Sir (kurie –– sir or Lord), even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." 29Then he said to her, "For saying that, you may go––the demon has left your daughter." 30So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.
"From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre" (v. 24a). This is Gentile country. The region of Tyre and Sidon was the home of Jezebel, Elijah's enemy (1 Kings 16:31). It inspired the ire of the prophets (Ezekiel 26:15-17; Zechariah 9:3). "Tyre probably represented the most extreme expression of paganism, both actually and symbolically, that a Jew could expect to encounter…. In journeying to 'the vicinity of Tyre,' and particularly in receiving a Syrophoenician woman, Jesus expands the scope of his ministry beyond anything conceivable of the Messiah. From a socioreligious perspective, Jesus' visit to Tyre universalizes the concept of Messiah in terms of geography, ethnicity, gender, and religion in a way entirely unprecedented in Judaism" (Edwards, 217).
"He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there" (v. 24b). Given the character of this story, the house seems likely to be a Jewish home. Jesus' purpose for visiting this area is unclear. Verse 24 makes it sound as if he is looking for solitude from the crowds that have pursued him in his Galilean ministry. Perhaps he simply wants time alone with the disciples.
Craddock suggests that, having redefined clean and unclean (vv. 1-23), Jesus is now putting that teaching into practice by ministering to the unclean (Craddock, 405). Williamson echoes that sentiment, saying, "If in the preceding passage Jesus 'declared all foods clean' (7:19), in these stories he declares all persons clean" (Williamson, 137; see also Brooks, 120).
When Mark wrote this Gospel (65-70 A.D.), the church included many Gentiles. The fact that Mark must explain Jewish customs (7:3-4; 7:11, 19) suggests that his readership is predominantly Gentile. By Mark's time, the church has gone through considerable struggles to determine its right relationship to Gentiles. This story of Jesus and the Syrophoenician woman reflects that struggle in its earliest moments. "The Markan Jesus... rejects both Jewish exclusivism ('The Gentiles get no 'bread' unless they become Jews first...') and Gentile supersessionism ('The Jewish 'bread' has been taken from them and now given to us Gentiles')" (Boring, 213).
"Yet he could not escape notice" (v. 24c). In both this story and the next, Jesus' efforts to maintain a low profile are frustrated. Just as the sun cannot be hidden in the sky, neither can the Son be hidden on the earth.
The "woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin" (vv. 25-26). Mark double-emphasizes that this woman who lives in Gentile territory is herself a Gentile –– a Syrophoenician Gentile, no less –– a Gentile of this abominable Gentile area. "She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter" (v. 26).
Phoenicia is a long narrow coastal strip bounded by the Mediterranean Sea on the west and mountains on the east –– the coastal plain of modern-day Lebanon. Its southern boundary is Mount Carmel (due east of the Sea of Galilee), and it extends approximately 185 miles (300 km) north from there. Major cities include Ptolemais, Tyre, and Sidon. "Syrophoenician" links this woman with Syria and Phoenicia.
We are shocked at Jesus' response. "Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs" (kynariois) (v. 27). This is one of the most troubling verses in the New Testament. The mother is asking healing, not for herself, but for her daughter. It must be difficult for a Gentile woman to ask a Jewish man for help, but her need is overwhelming. She comes in faith as a deferential supplicant –– what more could Jesus ask? As it turns out, he could ask that she be Jewish –– "Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs."
Some scholars try to soften Jesus' words, suggesting that this is a well-known proverb that would not sound so harsh in context –– or that the diminutive, kynariois, refers to household pets, implying an affectionate tone. However, it seems inappropriate to try to domesticate Jesus' words. We cannot validate this saying as a common proverb, and it is a cutting remark even if it refers to household pets. Most Biblical references to dogs are negative (see Exodus 22:31; 1 Samuel 24:14; 2 Samuel 16:9; 1 Kings 21:23; 22:38; 2 Kings 9:36; Isaiah 56:10; Matthew 7:6; Luke 16:21; Philippians 3:2).
R.T. France gives a refreshing perspective with regard to this problem. He says, "Misunderstandings of (this passage) spring largely from the failure to read it as a whole..... The whole encounter builds up to the totally positive conclusion of vv. 29-30, while the preceding dialogue serves to underline the radical nature of this new stage in Jesus' ministry into which he has allowed himself to be 'persuaded' by the woman's realism and wit. He appears like the wise teacher who allows, and indeed incites, his pupil to mount a victorious argument against the foil of his own reluctance. He functions as what in a different context might be called 'devil's advocate', and is not disappointed to be 'defeated' in argument" (France, 296).
The scriptures are clear that Jesus knows people's hearts and responds accordingly. A rich man comes asking what he must do to gain eternal life, and Jesus, knowing how the man loves money, says, "You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me" (Mark 10:21). There are other accounts like this in the New Testament –– accounts where Jesus knows people's hearts and responds accordingly (see 12:15). If that is true, Jesus surely knows this mother's heart too –– and knows that she will not buckle if he presses her a bit. He does so to give her the opportunity to win her case.
Jesus clearly feels it necessary to focus his mission on the Jews. "The four Gospels, all of which were written for primarily Gentile audiences, indicate that Jesus' contacts with Gentiles were few and exceptional" (Hare, 85). The time will come when Gentiles will be welcome in the church, but the time is not yet.
As Paul said in his letter to the Romans (written earlier than Mark's Gospel), "To the Jew first and also to the Greek" (Romans 1:16). There is a natural order in every good endeavor. A builder must lay a solid foundation before erecting walls and roof. So it is that Jesus limits his ministry to Gentiles in deference to the people whom God chose so many centuries prior. Ministry to Gentiles will come in good time.
"But she answered him, 'Sir (kurie –– sir or Lord), even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs' " (v. 28). In this Gospel, on several occasions Jesus refers to himself as Lord (2:28; 5:19; 11:3; 12:36), but this is the only place where another person calls him "Lord." It is ironic that the person calling him "Lord" is a Gentile woman rather than one of his disciples.
The woman answers well, acknowledging the special place of the Jews, calling attention to her own need, and using Jesus' words to press her plea. The kynarion –– pets indeed –– are part of the household and are under the master's care. The woman uses the image of children carelessly (or perhaps purposely) dropping bits of food on the floor. What harm will come from allowing the kynarion to partake of the scraps that will not be eaten by the children in any event? What harm will come of their participating in the bounty of the messianic banquet?
"Then he said to her, 'For saying that, you may go –– the demon has left your daughter' " (v. 29). Note that:
• Jesus does not accompany her to her home. He does not touch the child. He does not issue a healing command. He simply reports a healing that has already taken place. The emphasis in this story is not on the healing but on Jesus' relationship to Gentiles.
• In Matthew's account, Jesus commends the woman's faith (Matthew 15:28), but here he commends her good answer.
"So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone" (v. 30). The woman does not plead for Jesus to come to visit her daughter. She first expressed a simple but profound faith by coming to Jesus, and she now expresses a simple but profound faith by departing. Her faith is much like that of the Roman centurion (Matthew 5:5-13; Luke 7:1-10) –– also a Gentile. Arriving at her home, she finds the demon gone and the child well.
This woman serves as an example of persistent prayer that refuses to be discouraged when prayer is not immediately answered. She provides us with a model for engaging God fully and passionately in prayer rather than simply reciting rote prayers or a laundry list of our needs. Not every fervent prayer will be answered as we ask, but God honors fervor and has little regard for half-hearted, lukewarm prayer (Revelation 3:16). The archetypical model of fervent prayer is Jacob wrestling with God at Peniel until he received a blessing (Genesis 32:22-32).
This woman also serves as a model of a parent who loves her child enough to take an active role in the child's life. She could have found excuses for not going to Jesus, but she went. She could have allowed herself to be discouraged at Jesus' initial response, but she persisted. "Suppose that all Christian parents and all churches had the same persistence and ingenuity in bringing to their children the saving influence of Christ!" (Luccock, 755). It would be a different world! Many parents today are content to practice laissez faire parenting, and the results are often disastrous. The church needs to call parents to take an active role in guiding their children. Just as the inattentive gardener begets weeds, so do inattentive parents beget troubled children.
The woman also provides a stark contrast to the scribes and Pharisees who challenged Jesus in the preceding story (7:1-23). They know what the prophets said about the coming messiah. They have seen (or at least heard about) the Feeding of the Five Thousand (6:30-44) and the healing of the sick in Gennesaret (6:53-56), but they chose to find fault with Jesus and his disciples (7:1-23). In other words, given every opportunity to see through the eyes of faith, they chose to see through the eyes of unfaith. This woman, a Gentile, chooses to see through the eyes of faith.
VERSES 31-35: THE DEAF AND MUTE MAN
31Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. 32They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech (Greek: mogilalon); and they begged him to lay his hand on him. 33He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. 34Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened." 35And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released (Greek: kai eluthe ho desmos tes glosses –– and was loosened the bond of the tongue), and he spoke plainly.
"Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis" (v. 31). This itinerary seems odd. Sidon is north of Tyre and the Sea of Galilee is southeast, so Jesus goes out of his way to visit Sidon. Some scholars suggest that Mark is unfamiliar with the geography of this area, but it seems more likely that Jesus simply decides to visit Sidon before leaving the area.
The word Decapolis comes from two Greek words (deka and polis) that mean "ten cities" –– although more than ten cities were members over time. Most member cities are located south and east of the Sea of Galilee and the Jordan River, but Damascus (located 60 miles northeast of the Sea of Galilee) is a member city. The Decapolis is not only these cities but also the region in which they are located. The population of the region is primarily Gentile, but there are Jews living there as well.
These cities were established by Greeks, and the Jews resented this Gentile presence on their border –– a resentment that sometimes broke into open warfare. The Greeks responded by devising a loose confederation of cities to provide for the common defense, not only against Jewish incursions, but also against desert marauders.
The Romans encouraged the growth of Greek culture in the Decapolis as a way of limiting Jewish influence in the region.
The mention of the Decapolis in verse 31 is significant because it shows that Jesus is choosing to stay in Gentile territory rather than to return to the more familiar nearby cities of Galilee.
"They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him" (v. 32). This is reminiscent of the healing of the paralytic, whose friends brought him to Jesus (2:1-12). We know very little about this man or his friends. Some reliable scholars think of them as Gentiles (Edwards, 226-227), but it seems possible that they are Jewish. Given Mark's care to label the Syrophoenician woman as Gentile (v. 26), it would seem that he would do the same here if the man were not Jewish. Also, the laying on of hands is a Jewish healing practice, and the request that Jesus perform this act (v. 32) may indicate that the man's friends are Jewish. However, there is no mention of faith on the part of the friends or the deaf man.
Deaf people commonly have difficulty speaking clearly, because they cannot hear how words sound. The man has "an impediment in his speech," which might indicate that he was not deaf from birth but that he learned some speech (however imperfectly) before becoming deaf.
There is a significant parallel between the deaf man and Jesus' disciples. The man can neither hear nor speak properly. The disciples cannot understand what Jesus is telling them, and are thus hampered in their proclamation. They, too, need Jesus' touch so that they might see, hear, and understand.
We, too, need Jesus' touch so that we might understand. Just as Jesus' first disciples failed to understand and to proclaim him faithfully, the church today often experiences the same failings:
• Preachers are tempted to proclaim a Prosperity Gospel ("Believe and Grow Rich!") instead of challenging people to take up their cross and follow Jesus. Not only is the Prosperity Gospel is an easier "sell" than the cross (at least in some quarters), but preachers are more likely to grow rich by preaching it.
• The church too easily tolerates divisions within its midst –– racial, gender, national, denominational, and socio-economic –– because crossing these dividing lines makes us so uncomfortable. We find it far easier to stay with our own kind than to reach out to those who are different. However, Jesus' visit to the Decapolis demonstrates his commitment to those who are different and calls us to share that commitment.
• The scriptures call us to worship God –– to give God glory –– but our worship agenda is too often "what we get out of it" –– God serving us rather than us serving God.
• In these and a thousand other ways, we demonstrate our own blindness and deafness. We, too, need Christ's healing touch.
Jesus "took him aside in private, away from the crowd" (v. 33a). We don't know why Jesus takes the man aside for healing. Perhaps Jesus' action is related to his desire in the previous story to keep his presence secret (v. 24).
"and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue" (v. 33b). This healing is very different from that of the woman's daughter. In that story, Jesus took no action other than to report the healing to the mother (v. 29). If Jesus seemed too-little-engaged in that instance, he seems too-much-engaged in this one. He puts his fingers into the man's ears. He spits and touches the man's tongue. These are common healing procedures. If we were offended by Jesus' sharp words to the woman (v. 27), now we are offended by the fingers in the ears and the spittle on the tongue. If Jesus could heal the woman's daughter without even a word, why does he not do the same for this man?
"Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, 'Ephphatha,' that is, 'Be opened' " (v. 34). Looking to heaven demonstrates Jesus' dependency on the Father. His sigh demonstrates his sympathy and compassion. "Ephphatha" is an Aramaic word, which Mark translates for his Gentile readers –– "Be opened."
"And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released" (Greek: eluthe ho desmos tes glosses –– was loosened the bond of the tongue) (v. 35) The image is that of a man whose tongue was in bondage –– literally tongue-tied –– and whose tongue, at Jesus' command, finds freedom of movement and expression.
While Jesus puts his fingers in the man's ears and touches his tongue, "the actual healing takes place through Jesus' authoritative word. The presence and accumulation of the therapeutic gestures form part of the process" (Guelich, 395).
VERSES 36-37: THEY WERE ASTOUNDED BEYOND MEASURE
36Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed (Greek: ekerusson –– from kerusso –– a word related to kerygma, which is the preaching of the Gospel by the early church) it. 37They were astounded beyond measure, saying, "He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak."
"Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one" (v. 36a). The irony is that the deaf/mute man can now speak clearly, but Jesus forbids him and his friends to speak of this miracle –– the most important thing that has ever happened to him. Jesus has commanded silence in several earlier instances –– of unclean spirits (1:25, 34; 3:12) –– of a leper (1:44) –– and of the little girl's parents (5:43). We are not sure why, but there are several possibilities:
• Perhaps these commands to silence are intended to emphasize the impossibility of silence –– "that the spread of the good news about Jesus is an act of God, and no one can stop it –– not even Jesus himself (Marcus, 479).
• Perhaps "these physical cures cannot really be spoken of with understanding at this stage, because they point forward to events and spiritual changes which still lie in the future" –– after the resurrection (Hooker, 185).
• "The identical language in Ch. 1:44f. and Ch. 7:36 suggests that the purpose of the injunction was to avoid a recurrence of the situation which developed subsequent to the healing of the leper when the presence of crowds in each town clamoring for Jesus' healing touch hindered his movement and interrupted his healing mission" (Lane, 268).
"but the more he ordered them the more zealously they proclaimed it" (v. 36b). Just as in the previous story (v. 24), Jesus will not be permitted anonymity or privacy. However, Mark gives no hint that the crowd's kerygma –– their proclamation –– is bad (v. 36). Instead he portrays them as "astounded beyond measure" (v. 37).
"They were astounded beyond measure, saying, 'He has done everything well' " (v. 37a). Their proclamation, "he has done everything well" (v. 37), hearkens back to Genesis 1:31: "God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good."
Their assessment, "he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak" (v. 37b), alludes to Isaiah 35:5-6a: "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy." This allusion is strengthened by the use of the word mogilalos in v. 32. This word is used only twice in the Bible –– here and in Isaiah 35:6 (LXX –– the Septuagint or Greek version of the Old Testament).
There is a good deal of linkage between Isaiah 35 and the Gospel of Mark. Geddert notes the following parallels:
1. The promise, "The wilderness and the dry land shall… see the glory of the LORD" (Isaiah 35:1-2), is fulfilled in the feeding miracles in the desert (Mark 6:35; 8:4).
2. The promise, "Say to those who are of a fearful heart, 'Be strong, do not fear! Here is your God…. He will come and save you' " (Isaiah 35:4), is fulfilled when Jesus comes to the disciples on the sea in a storm, saying, "Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid" (Mark 6:50).
3. The promise, "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped" (Isaiah 35:5) is fulfilled with the healing of the deaf/mute man (Mark 7:35) and the blind man (Mark 8:22-26).
4. The promise, "A highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Holy Way" (Isaiah 35:8) is fulfilled when Jesus takes the twelve on the road to Jerusalem and begins to tell them what is going to happen to him (Mark 10:32).
5. The promise, "And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing" (Isaiah 35:10) is fulfilled on Palm Sunday as the crowds greet Jesus with the words, "Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!" (Mark 11:9).
"The parallels are close and the chronological order identical" (Geddert, 192).
The Isaiah passage looked forward to the coming of the Messiah, and the crowd's proclamation in verse 37 reveals Jesus as the Messiah. In the next chapter, Peter will confess Jesus as Messiah (8:27-30), but the crowd (perhaps without fully realizing the significance of their proclamation) has already beaten him to it.
THOUGHT PROVOKERS:
God doesn't always smooth the path,
but sometimes he puts springs in the wagon.
Marshall Lucas
* * * * * * * * * *
There are three ways that prepare us for life's trials. One is the Spartan way that says, "I have strength within me to do it, I am the captain of my soul. With the courage and will that is mine, I will be master when the struggle comes." Another way is the spirit of Socrates, who affirmed that we have minds, reason and judgment to evaluate and help us cope with the enigmas and struggles of life. The Christian way is the third approach. It doesn't exclude the other two, but it adds, "You don't begin with yourself, your will or your reason. You begin with God, who is the beginning and the end."
Lowell R. Ditzen
* * * * * * * * * *
I am quite happy to be called an optimist,
but my optimism is not of the utopian variety.
It is based on hope.
The optimist is a person who has the conviction
that God knows, can do, and will do
what is best for mankind.
Father Pedro Arrupe, S.J.
EDITOR'S NOTE: To fully appreciate the significance of Fr. Arrupe's comment, it is helpful to know something about his life. Serving as a missionary to Japan at the outbreak of World War II, he was arrested and imprisoned on the day that the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Later, he was freed and allowed to continue his ministry. He was living in Hiroshima when the atomic bomb exploded there, and he used his medical skills to help the wounded and dying. On August 7, 1981, he suffered a stroke that robbed him of his ability to speak. He lived his last ten years with very little ability to communicate. He was a man who knew suffering and was "acquainted with infirmity" (Isaiah 53:3), but whose faith was undiminished throughout his long life.
* * * * * * * * * *
God does not offer us a way out of testings of life.
He offers us a way through,
and that makes all the difference.
W. T. Purkiser
* * * * * * * * * *
Many of us have experienced healing miracles without ever knowing it. Dr. Karl Menninger, founder of the Menninger Clinic, said:
"If all families were loving,
our national health would improve to the point
where we might have a surplus of physicians."
So if you were raised in a loving family or live in one now, it is quite possible that Christ has given you the gift of healing by helping you to avoid getting ill in the first place.
Richard Niell Donovan
* * * * * * * * * *
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Boring, M. Eugene, The New Testament Library, Mark, A Commentary (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006)
Brooks, James A, The New American Commentary: Mark (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1991)
Brueggemann, Walter; Cousar, Charles B.; Gaventa, Beverly R.; and Newsome, James D., Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary Based on the NRSV –– Year B (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993)
Craddock, Fred B.; Hayes, John H.; Holladay, Carl R.; Tucker, Gene M., Preaching Through the Christian Year, B (Valley Forge: Trinity Press International, 1993)
Edwards, James R., The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
France, R.T., The New International Greek Testament Commentary: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
Geddert, Timothy J., Believers Church Bible Commentary: Mark (Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2001)
Grant, Frederick C. and Luccock, Halford E., The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 7 (Nashville: Abingdon, 1951)
Guelich, Robert A., Word Biblical Commentary: Mark 1 - 8:26 (Dallas: Word Books, 1989)
Hamilton, V.P., "Decapolis," in Bromiley, Geoffrey (General Editor), The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Volume One: A-D - Revised (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1979), pages 907-908
Hare, Douglas R. A., Westminster Bible Companion: Mark (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996)
Hooker, Morna D., Black's New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Saint Mark (Hendrickson Publishers, 1991)
Hurtado, Larry W., New International Biblical Commentary: Mark (Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1983, 1989)
Lane, William L., The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1974)
Marcus, Joel, The Anchor Bible: Mark 1-8 (New York: Doubleday, 1999)
Moule, C.F.D., The Cambridge Bible Commentary on the New English Bible: The Gospel of Mark (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965)
Myers, Allen C. (ed.), The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1987)
Perkins, Pheme, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VIII (Nashville: Abingdon, 1995)
Rasmussen, Carl G., Zondervan NIV Atlas of the Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1989)
Williamson, Lamar Jr., Interpretation: Mark (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1983)
Richard Niell Donovan, SermonWriter.com
The Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost
PROPER 18, YEAR B
SEPTEMBER 6, 2009
The Lessons Appointed for Use on the
Sunday closest to September 7
Proper 18
Year B
RCL
or
Isaiah 35:4-7a
Psalm 146
James 2:1-10, (11-13), 14-17
Mark 7:24-37
The Collect
Grant us, O Lord, to trust in you with all our hearts; for, as you always resist the proud who confide in their own strength, so you never forsake those who make their boast of your mercy; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Old Testament
Isaiah 35:4-7a
Say to those who are of a fearful heart,
"Be strong, do not fear!
Here is your God.
He will come with vengeance,
with terrible recompense.
He will come and save you."
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
and the ears of the deaf unstopped;
then the lame shall leap like a deer,
and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy.
For waters shall break forth in the wilderness,
and streams in the desert;
the burning sand shall become a pool,
and the thirsty ground springs of water.
The Psalm
Psalm 146 Page 803, BCP
Lauda, anima mea
1
Hallelujah!
Praise the LORD, O my soul! *
I will praise the LORD as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
2
Put not your trust in rulers, nor in any child of earth, *
for there is no help in them.
3
When they breathe their last, they return to earth, *
and in that day their thoughts perish.
4
Happy are they who have the God of Jacob for their help!*
whose hope is in the LORD their God;
5
Who made heaven and earth, the seas, and all that is in them; *
who keeps his promise for ever;
6
Who gives justice to those who are oppressed, *
and food to those who hunger.
7
The LORD sets the prisoners free;
the LORD opens the eyes of the blind; *
the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;
8
The LORD loves the righteous;
the LORD cares for the stranger; *
he sustains the orphan and widow,
but frustrates the way of the wicked.
9
The LORD shall reign for ever, *
your God, O Zion, throughout all generations.
Hallelujah!
James 2:1-10, [11-13], 14-17
My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ? For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, "Have a seat here, please," while to the one who is poor you say, "Stand there," or, "Sit at my feet," have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you? Is it not they who drag you into court? Is it not they who blaspheme the excellent name that was invoked over you?
You do well if you really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." But if you show partiality, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. [For the one who said, "You shall not commit adultery," also said, "You shall not murder." Now if you do not commit adultery but if you murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment will be without mercy to anyone who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.]
What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill," and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.
Mark 7:24-37
Jesus set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. He said to her, "Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs." But she answered him, "Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." Then he said to her, "For saying that, you may go-- the demon has left your daughter." So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.
Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him. He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened." And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. They were astounded beyond measure, saying, "He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak."
EXEGESIS:
CHAPTERS 6-8: EYES TO SEE & EARS TO HEAR
Beginning with the Feeding of the Five Thousand (6:30-44), Mark relates a series of miracles, including the restoration of the deaf man's hearing and speech (7:31-37) and a blind man's sight (8:22-26). The passage culminates in Peter's confession of faith, "You are the Messiah" (8:29). Along the way, Jesus encounters the antagonism of the scribes and Pharisees (7:1-23; 8:11-13) and the lack of faith of the disciples (8:14-21). When the latter worry about not having enough bread (keep in mind that Mark has just related both the Feeding of the Five Thousand and the Feeding of the Four Thousand), Jesus says, "Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes, and fail to see? Do you have ears, and fail to hear?" (8:17-18). Jesus' has come to impart physical healing, but his greater purpose is opening spiritual eyes and ears.
VERSES 24-30: THE GENTILE WOMAN OF SYROPHOENICIAN ORIGIN
24From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, 25but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. 26Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27He said to her, "Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs" (Greek: kynariois) 28But she answered him, "Sir (kurie –– sir or Lord), even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." 29Then he said to her, "For saying that, you may go––the demon has left your daughter." 30So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.
"From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre" (v. 24a). This is Gentile country. The region of Tyre and Sidon was the home of Jezebel, Elijah's enemy (1 Kings 16:31). It inspired the ire of the prophets (Ezekiel 26:15-17; Zechariah 9:3). "Tyre probably represented the most extreme expression of paganism, both actually and symbolically, that a Jew could expect to encounter…. In journeying to 'the vicinity of Tyre,' and particularly in receiving a Syrophoenician woman, Jesus expands the scope of his ministry beyond anything conceivable of the Messiah. From a socioreligious perspective, Jesus' visit to Tyre universalizes the concept of Messiah in terms of geography, ethnicity, gender, and religion in a way entirely unprecedented in Judaism" (Edwards, 217).
"He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there" (v. 24b). Given the character of this story, the house seems likely to be a Jewish home. Jesus' purpose for visiting this area is unclear. Verse 24 makes it sound as if he is looking for solitude from the crowds that have pursued him in his Galilean ministry. Perhaps he simply wants time alone with the disciples.
Craddock suggests that, having redefined clean and unclean (vv. 1-23), Jesus is now putting that teaching into practice by ministering to the unclean (Craddock, 405). Williamson echoes that sentiment, saying, "If in the preceding passage Jesus 'declared all foods clean' (7:19), in these stories he declares all persons clean" (Williamson, 137; see also Brooks, 120).
When Mark wrote this Gospel (65-70 A.D.), the church included many Gentiles. The fact that Mark must explain Jewish customs (7:3-4; 7:11, 19) suggests that his readership is predominantly Gentile. By Mark's time, the church has gone through considerable struggles to determine its right relationship to Gentiles. This story of Jesus and the Syrophoenician woman reflects that struggle in its earliest moments. "The Markan Jesus... rejects both Jewish exclusivism ('The Gentiles get no 'bread' unless they become Jews first...') and Gentile supersessionism ('The Jewish 'bread' has been taken from them and now given to us Gentiles')" (Boring, 213).
"Yet he could not escape notice" (v. 24c). In both this story and the next, Jesus' efforts to maintain a low profile are frustrated. Just as the sun cannot be hidden in the sky, neither can the Son be hidden on the earth.
The "woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin" (vv. 25-26). Mark double-emphasizes that this woman who lives in Gentile territory is herself a Gentile –– a Syrophoenician Gentile, no less –– a Gentile of this abominable Gentile area. "She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter" (v. 26).
Phoenicia is a long narrow coastal strip bounded by the Mediterranean Sea on the west and mountains on the east –– the coastal plain of modern-day Lebanon. Its southern boundary is Mount Carmel (due east of the Sea of Galilee), and it extends approximately 185 miles (300 km) north from there. Major cities include Ptolemais, Tyre, and Sidon. "Syrophoenician" links this woman with Syria and Phoenicia.
We are shocked at Jesus' response. "Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs" (kynariois) (v. 27). This is one of the most troubling verses in the New Testament. The mother is asking healing, not for herself, but for her daughter. It must be difficult for a Gentile woman to ask a Jewish man for help, but her need is overwhelming. She comes in faith as a deferential supplicant –– what more could Jesus ask? As it turns out, he could ask that she be Jewish –– "Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs."
Some scholars try to soften Jesus' words, suggesting that this is a well-known proverb that would not sound so harsh in context –– or that the diminutive, kynariois, refers to household pets, implying an affectionate tone. However, it seems inappropriate to try to domesticate Jesus' words. We cannot validate this saying as a common proverb, and it is a cutting remark even if it refers to household pets. Most Biblical references to dogs are negative (see Exodus 22:31; 1 Samuel 24:14; 2 Samuel 16:9; 1 Kings 21:23; 22:38; 2 Kings 9:36; Isaiah 56:10; Matthew 7:6; Luke 16:21; Philippians 3:2).
R.T. France gives a refreshing perspective with regard to this problem. He says, "Misunderstandings of (this passage) spring largely from the failure to read it as a whole..... The whole encounter builds up to the totally positive conclusion of vv. 29-30, while the preceding dialogue serves to underline the radical nature of this new stage in Jesus' ministry into which he has allowed himself to be 'persuaded' by the woman's realism and wit. He appears like the wise teacher who allows, and indeed incites, his pupil to mount a victorious argument against the foil of his own reluctance. He functions as what in a different context might be called 'devil's advocate', and is not disappointed to be 'defeated' in argument" (France, 296).
The scriptures are clear that Jesus knows people's hearts and responds accordingly. A rich man comes asking what he must do to gain eternal life, and Jesus, knowing how the man loves money, says, "You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me" (Mark 10:21). There are other accounts like this in the New Testament –– accounts where Jesus knows people's hearts and responds accordingly (see 12:15). If that is true, Jesus surely knows this mother's heart too –– and knows that she will not buckle if he presses her a bit. He does so to give her the opportunity to win her case.
Jesus clearly feels it necessary to focus his mission on the Jews. "The four Gospels, all of which were written for primarily Gentile audiences, indicate that Jesus' contacts with Gentiles were few and exceptional" (Hare, 85). The time will come when Gentiles will be welcome in the church, but the time is not yet.
As Paul said in his letter to the Romans (written earlier than Mark's Gospel), "To the Jew first and also to the Greek" (Romans 1:16). There is a natural order in every good endeavor. A builder must lay a solid foundation before erecting walls and roof. So it is that Jesus limits his ministry to Gentiles in deference to the people whom God chose so many centuries prior. Ministry to Gentiles will come in good time.
"But she answered him, 'Sir (kurie –– sir or Lord), even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs' " (v. 28). In this Gospel, on several occasions Jesus refers to himself as Lord (2:28; 5:19; 11:3; 12:36), but this is the only place where another person calls him "Lord." It is ironic that the person calling him "Lord" is a Gentile woman rather than one of his disciples.
The woman answers well, acknowledging the special place of the Jews, calling attention to her own need, and using Jesus' words to press her plea. The kynarion –– pets indeed –– are part of the household and are under the master's care. The woman uses the image of children carelessly (or perhaps purposely) dropping bits of food on the floor. What harm will come from allowing the kynarion to partake of the scraps that will not be eaten by the children in any event? What harm will come of their participating in the bounty of the messianic banquet?
"Then he said to her, 'For saying that, you may go –– the demon has left your daughter' " (v. 29). Note that:
• Jesus does not accompany her to her home. He does not touch the child. He does not issue a healing command. He simply reports a healing that has already taken place. The emphasis in this story is not on the healing but on Jesus' relationship to Gentiles.
• In Matthew's account, Jesus commends the woman's faith (Matthew 15:28), but here he commends her good answer.
"So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone" (v. 30). The woman does not plead for Jesus to come to visit her daughter. She first expressed a simple but profound faith by coming to Jesus, and she now expresses a simple but profound faith by departing. Her faith is much like that of the Roman centurion (Matthew 5:5-13; Luke 7:1-10) –– also a Gentile. Arriving at her home, she finds the demon gone and the child well.
This woman serves as an example of persistent prayer that refuses to be discouraged when prayer is not immediately answered. She provides us with a model for engaging God fully and passionately in prayer rather than simply reciting rote prayers or a laundry list of our needs. Not every fervent prayer will be answered as we ask, but God honors fervor and has little regard for half-hearted, lukewarm prayer (Revelation 3:16). The archetypical model of fervent prayer is Jacob wrestling with God at Peniel until he received a blessing (Genesis 32:22-32).
This woman also serves as a model of a parent who loves her child enough to take an active role in the child's life. She could have found excuses for not going to Jesus, but she went. She could have allowed herself to be discouraged at Jesus' initial response, but she persisted. "Suppose that all Christian parents and all churches had the same persistence and ingenuity in bringing to their children the saving influence of Christ!" (Luccock, 755). It would be a different world! Many parents today are content to practice laissez faire parenting, and the results are often disastrous. The church needs to call parents to take an active role in guiding their children. Just as the inattentive gardener begets weeds, so do inattentive parents beget troubled children.
The woman also provides a stark contrast to the scribes and Pharisees who challenged Jesus in the preceding story (7:1-23). They know what the prophets said about the coming messiah. They have seen (or at least heard about) the Feeding of the Five Thousand (6:30-44) and the healing of the sick in Gennesaret (6:53-56), but they chose to find fault with Jesus and his disciples (7:1-23). In other words, given every opportunity to see through the eyes of faith, they chose to see through the eyes of unfaith. This woman, a Gentile, chooses to see through the eyes of faith.
VERSES 31-35: THE DEAF AND MUTE MAN
31Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. 32They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech (Greek: mogilalon); and they begged him to lay his hand on him. 33He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. 34Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened." 35And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released (Greek: kai eluthe ho desmos tes glosses –– and was loosened the bond of the tongue), and he spoke plainly.
"Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis" (v. 31). This itinerary seems odd. Sidon is north of Tyre and the Sea of Galilee is southeast, so Jesus goes out of his way to visit Sidon. Some scholars suggest that Mark is unfamiliar with the geography of this area, but it seems more likely that Jesus simply decides to visit Sidon before leaving the area.
The word Decapolis comes from two Greek words (deka and polis) that mean "ten cities" –– although more than ten cities were members over time. Most member cities are located south and east of the Sea of Galilee and the Jordan River, but Damascus (located 60 miles northeast of the Sea of Galilee) is a member city. The Decapolis is not only these cities but also the region in which they are located. The population of the region is primarily Gentile, but there are Jews living there as well.
These cities were established by Greeks, and the Jews resented this Gentile presence on their border –– a resentment that sometimes broke into open warfare. The Greeks responded by devising a loose confederation of cities to provide for the common defense, not only against Jewish incursions, but also against desert marauders.
The Romans encouraged the growth of Greek culture in the Decapolis as a way of limiting Jewish influence in the region.
The mention of the Decapolis in verse 31 is significant because it shows that Jesus is choosing to stay in Gentile territory rather than to return to the more familiar nearby cities of Galilee.
"They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him" (v. 32). This is reminiscent of the healing of the paralytic, whose friends brought him to Jesus (2:1-12). We know very little about this man or his friends. Some reliable scholars think of them as Gentiles (Edwards, 226-227), but it seems possible that they are Jewish. Given Mark's care to label the Syrophoenician woman as Gentile (v. 26), it would seem that he would do the same here if the man were not Jewish. Also, the laying on of hands is a Jewish healing practice, and the request that Jesus perform this act (v. 32) may indicate that the man's friends are Jewish. However, there is no mention of faith on the part of the friends or the deaf man.
Deaf people commonly have difficulty speaking clearly, because they cannot hear how words sound. The man has "an impediment in his speech," which might indicate that he was not deaf from birth but that he learned some speech (however imperfectly) before becoming deaf.
There is a significant parallel between the deaf man and Jesus' disciples. The man can neither hear nor speak properly. The disciples cannot understand what Jesus is telling them, and are thus hampered in their proclamation. They, too, need Jesus' touch so that they might see, hear, and understand.
We, too, need Jesus' touch so that we might understand. Just as Jesus' first disciples failed to understand and to proclaim him faithfully, the church today often experiences the same failings:
• Preachers are tempted to proclaim a Prosperity Gospel ("Believe and Grow Rich!") instead of challenging people to take up their cross and follow Jesus. Not only is the Prosperity Gospel is an easier "sell" than the cross (at least in some quarters), but preachers are more likely to grow rich by preaching it.
• The church too easily tolerates divisions within its midst –– racial, gender, national, denominational, and socio-economic –– because crossing these dividing lines makes us so uncomfortable. We find it far easier to stay with our own kind than to reach out to those who are different. However, Jesus' visit to the Decapolis demonstrates his commitment to those who are different and calls us to share that commitment.
• The scriptures call us to worship God –– to give God glory –– but our worship agenda is too often "what we get out of it" –– God serving us rather than us serving God.
• In these and a thousand other ways, we demonstrate our own blindness and deafness. We, too, need Christ's healing touch.
Jesus "took him aside in private, away from the crowd" (v. 33a). We don't know why Jesus takes the man aside for healing. Perhaps Jesus' action is related to his desire in the previous story to keep his presence secret (v. 24).
"and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue" (v. 33b). This healing is very different from that of the woman's daughter. In that story, Jesus took no action other than to report the healing to the mother (v. 29). If Jesus seemed too-little-engaged in that instance, he seems too-much-engaged in this one. He puts his fingers into the man's ears. He spits and touches the man's tongue. These are common healing procedures. If we were offended by Jesus' sharp words to the woman (v. 27), now we are offended by the fingers in the ears and the spittle on the tongue. If Jesus could heal the woman's daughter without even a word, why does he not do the same for this man?
"Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, 'Ephphatha,' that is, 'Be opened' " (v. 34). Looking to heaven demonstrates Jesus' dependency on the Father. His sigh demonstrates his sympathy and compassion. "Ephphatha" is an Aramaic word, which Mark translates for his Gentile readers –– "Be opened."
"And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released" (Greek: eluthe ho desmos tes glosses –– was loosened the bond of the tongue) (v. 35) The image is that of a man whose tongue was in bondage –– literally tongue-tied –– and whose tongue, at Jesus' command, finds freedom of movement and expression.
While Jesus puts his fingers in the man's ears and touches his tongue, "the actual healing takes place through Jesus' authoritative word. The presence and accumulation of the therapeutic gestures form part of the process" (Guelich, 395).
VERSES 36-37: THEY WERE ASTOUNDED BEYOND MEASURE
36Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed (Greek: ekerusson –– from kerusso –– a word related to kerygma, which is the preaching of the Gospel by the early church) it. 37They were astounded beyond measure, saying, "He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak."
"Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one" (v. 36a). The irony is that the deaf/mute man can now speak clearly, but Jesus forbids him and his friends to speak of this miracle –– the most important thing that has ever happened to him. Jesus has commanded silence in several earlier instances –– of unclean spirits (1:25, 34; 3:12) –– of a leper (1:44) –– and of the little girl's parents (5:43). We are not sure why, but there are several possibilities:
• Perhaps these commands to silence are intended to emphasize the impossibility of silence –– "that the spread of the good news about Jesus is an act of God, and no one can stop it –– not even Jesus himself (Marcus, 479).
• Perhaps "these physical cures cannot really be spoken of with understanding at this stage, because they point forward to events and spiritual changes which still lie in the future" –– after the resurrection (Hooker, 185).
• "The identical language in Ch. 1:44f. and Ch. 7:36 suggests that the purpose of the injunction was to avoid a recurrence of the situation which developed subsequent to the healing of the leper when the presence of crowds in each town clamoring for Jesus' healing touch hindered his movement and interrupted his healing mission" (Lane, 268).
"but the more he ordered them the more zealously they proclaimed it" (v. 36b). Just as in the previous story (v. 24), Jesus will not be permitted anonymity or privacy. However, Mark gives no hint that the crowd's kerygma –– their proclamation –– is bad (v. 36). Instead he portrays them as "astounded beyond measure" (v. 37).
"They were astounded beyond measure, saying, 'He has done everything well' " (v. 37a). Their proclamation, "he has done everything well" (v. 37), hearkens back to Genesis 1:31: "God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good."
Their assessment, "he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak" (v. 37b), alludes to Isaiah 35:5-6a: "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy." This allusion is strengthened by the use of the word mogilalos in v. 32. This word is used only twice in the Bible –– here and in Isaiah 35:6 (LXX –– the Septuagint or Greek version of the Old Testament).
There is a good deal of linkage between Isaiah 35 and the Gospel of Mark. Geddert notes the following parallels:
1. The promise, "The wilderness and the dry land shall… see the glory of the LORD" (Isaiah 35:1-2), is fulfilled in the feeding miracles in the desert (Mark 6:35; 8:4).
2. The promise, "Say to those who are of a fearful heart, 'Be strong, do not fear! Here is your God…. He will come and save you' " (Isaiah 35:4), is fulfilled when Jesus comes to the disciples on the sea in a storm, saying, "Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid" (Mark 6:50).
3. The promise, "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped" (Isaiah 35:5) is fulfilled with the healing of the deaf/mute man (Mark 7:35) and the blind man (Mark 8:22-26).
4. The promise, "A highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Holy Way" (Isaiah 35:8) is fulfilled when Jesus takes the twelve on the road to Jerusalem and begins to tell them what is going to happen to him (Mark 10:32).
5. The promise, "And the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing" (Isaiah 35:10) is fulfilled on Palm Sunday as the crowds greet Jesus with the words, "Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!" (Mark 11:9).
"The parallels are close and the chronological order identical" (Geddert, 192).
The Isaiah passage looked forward to the coming of the Messiah, and the crowd's proclamation in verse 37 reveals Jesus as the Messiah. In the next chapter, Peter will confess Jesus as Messiah (8:27-30), but the crowd (perhaps without fully realizing the significance of their proclamation) has already beaten him to it.
THOUGHT PROVOKERS:
God doesn't always smooth the path,
but sometimes he puts springs in the wagon.
Marshall Lucas
* * * * * * * * * *
There are three ways that prepare us for life's trials. One is the Spartan way that says, "I have strength within me to do it, I am the captain of my soul. With the courage and will that is mine, I will be master when the struggle comes." Another way is the spirit of Socrates, who affirmed that we have minds, reason and judgment to evaluate and help us cope with the enigmas and struggles of life. The Christian way is the third approach. It doesn't exclude the other two, but it adds, "You don't begin with yourself, your will or your reason. You begin with God, who is the beginning and the end."
Lowell R. Ditzen
* * * * * * * * * *
I am quite happy to be called an optimist,
but my optimism is not of the utopian variety.
It is based on hope.
The optimist is a person who has the conviction
that God knows, can do, and will do
what is best for mankind.
Father Pedro Arrupe, S.J.
EDITOR'S NOTE: To fully appreciate the significance of Fr. Arrupe's comment, it is helpful to know something about his life. Serving as a missionary to Japan at the outbreak of World War II, he was arrested and imprisoned on the day that the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Later, he was freed and allowed to continue his ministry. He was living in Hiroshima when the atomic bomb exploded there, and he used his medical skills to help the wounded and dying. On August 7, 1981, he suffered a stroke that robbed him of his ability to speak. He lived his last ten years with very little ability to communicate. He was a man who knew suffering and was "acquainted with infirmity" (Isaiah 53:3), but whose faith was undiminished throughout his long life.
* * * * * * * * * *
God does not offer us a way out of testings of life.
He offers us a way through,
and that makes all the difference.
W. T. Purkiser
* * * * * * * * * *
Many of us have experienced healing miracles without ever knowing it. Dr. Karl Menninger, founder of the Menninger Clinic, said:
"If all families were loving,
our national health would improve to the point
where we might have a surplus of physicians."
So if you were raised in a loving family or live in one now, it is quite possible that Christ has given you the gift of healing by helping you to avoid getting ill in the first place.
Richard Niell Donovan
* * * * * * * * * *
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Boring, M. Eugene, The New Testament Library, Mark, A Commentary (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006)
Brooks, James A, The New American Commentary: Mark (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1991)
Brueggemann, Walter; Cousar, Charles B.; Gaventa, Beverly R.; and Newsome, James D., Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary Based on the NRSV –– Year B (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993)
Craddock, Fred B.; Hayes, John H.; Holladay, Carl R.; Tucker, Gene M., Preaching Through the Christian Year, B (Valley Forge: Trinity Press International, 1993)
Edwards, James R., The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
France, R.T., The New International Greek Testament Commentary: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
Geddert, Timothy J., Believers Church Bible Commentary: Mark (Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2001)
Grant, Frederick C. and Luccock, Halford E., The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 7 (Nashville: Abingdon, 1951)
Guelich, Robert A., Word Biblical Commentary: Mark 1 - 8:26 (Dallas: Word Books, 1989)
Hamilton, V.P., "Decapolis," in Bromiley, Geoffrey (General Editor), The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Volume One: A-D - Revised (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1979), pages 907-908
Hare, Douglas R. A., Westminster Bible Companion: Mark (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996)
Hooker, Morna D., Black's New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Saint Mark (Hendrickson Publishers, 1991)
Hurtado, Larry W., New International Biblical Commentary: Mark (Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1983, 1989)
Lane, William L., The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1974)
Marcus, Joel, The Anchor Bible: Mark 1-8 (New York: Doubleday, 1999)
Moule, C.F.D., The Cambridge Bible Commentary on the New English Bible: The Gospel of Mark (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965)
Myers, Allen C. (ed.), The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1987)
Perkins, Pheme, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VIII (Nashville: Abingdon, 1995)
Rasmussen, Carl G., Zondervan NIV Atlas of the Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1989)
Williamson, Lamar Jr., Interpretation: Mark (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1983)
Richard Niell Donovan, SermonWriter.com
Friday, August 28, 2009
August 30, 2009 -3th Sunday after Pentecost
The Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost
August 30, 2009
Proper 17, Year B, RCL
Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9
Psalm 15
James 1:17-27
Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
The Collect
Lord of all power and might, the author and giver of all good things: Graft in our hearts the love of your Name; increase in us true religion; nourish us with all goodness; and bring forth in us the fruit of good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever. Amen.
OLD TESTAMENT
Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9
Moses said: So now, Israel, give heed to the statutes and ordinances that I am teaching you to observe, so that you may live to enter and occupy the land that the LORD, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. You must neither add anything to what I command you nor take away anything from it, but keep the commandments of the LORD your God with which I am charging you.
You must observe them diligently, for this will show your wisdom and discernment to the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, "Surely this great nation is a wise and discerning people!" For what other great nation has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is whenever we call to him? And what other great nation has statutes and ordinances as just as this entire law that I am setting before you today?
But take care and watch yourselves closely, so as neither to forget the things that your eyes have seen nor to let them slip from your mind all the days of your life; make them known to your children and your children's children.
The Psalm
Psalm 15 Page 599, BCP
Domine, quis habitabit?
1 LORD, who may dwell in your tabernacle?
who may abide upon your holy hill?
2 Whoever leads a blameless life and does what is right,
who speaks the truth from his heart.
3 There is no guile upon his tongue;
he does no evil to his friend;
he does not heap contempt upon his neighbor.
4 In his sight the wicked is rejected,
but he honors those who fear the LORD.
5 He has sworn to do no wrong
and does not take back his word.
6 He does not give his money in hope of gain,
nor does he take a bribe against the innocent.
7 Whoever does these things
shall never be overthrown.
THE EPISTLE
James 1:17-27
Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave us birth by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures.
You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; for your anger does not produce God's righteousness. Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls.
But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act-they will be blessed in their doing.
If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
THE GOSPEL
Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus, they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. (For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders; and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles.) So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, "Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?" He said to them, "Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written,
'This people honors me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me;
in vain do they worship me,
teaching human precepts as doctrines.'
You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition."
Then he called the crowd again and said to them, "Listen to me, all of you, and understand: there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile. For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."
EXEGESIS:
VERSES 1-23: CONTEXT:
This story is bracketed by stories of Jesus' power to do miraculous works and people's response to his display of power.
It is preceded by the feeding of the five thousand (6:30-44), Jesus walking on water (6:45-52) and the healing of the sick in Gennesaret (6:53-56). The concluding verse of chapter 6 reads, "And wherever he went, into villages or cities or farms, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his cloak; and all who touched it were healed" (6:56).
It is followed by several stories of ministry with Gentiles:
• The healing of the Syrophoenician woman's daughter (7:24-30).
• Travel through Tyre, Sidon, and the Decapolis (literally, "Ten Cities") (7:31). Tyre and Sidon are Phoenician cities. The Decapolis has a large Greek and Roman population. To speak of Tyre, Sidon, and the Decapolis is to speak of Gentiles.
• The healing of a deaf man in the Decapolis (7:31-37).
• The Feeding of the Four Thousand which, in the absence of any additional geographical marker, appears to have taken place in or near the Decapolis.
"The Markan church, predominantly Gentile, struggles with not only the issues that separate them from the Jewish community but the problem of table fellowship among Jewish and Gentile Christians in its own midst" (Boring, 196).
The Pharisees in today's lesson ignore compelling evidence of Jesus' power to do good, and focus instead on the failure of his disciples to observe their traditions. They ignore the inbreaking of God's power, and focus on trivial concerns. The church today is similarly tempted to ignore its core ministry –– word and sacrament –– and focus instead on new fads in ministry –– or even the color of the carpet.
We should be careful not to portray the Pharisees as completely bad. The Pharisees are dedicated to obeying and pleasing God. They observe distinctive practices, such as kosher food and circumcision, that help them to maintain their identity as God's people in a world that tempts them to worship their neighbors' gods. Their traditions, which come into question in this text, grow out of a need to maintain that identity.
The Jewish law, while quite detailed, leaves room for interpretation in many situations. The Pharisees, out of a desire to obey God, established rules to clarify the law in those situations. Their findings became known as tradition of the elders. As time passed, these traditions hardened into a surrogate law that Jewish leaders regarded as equal to scripture. They lost sight of the line between God's law and their opinion, and that was their sin.
The church always struggles with knowing God's will. What is God's will concerning abortion? Homosexuality? AIDS? A host of other issues? Men and women of faith find themselves in opposition to other men and women of faith over such issues. How do we determine God's will in such matters? As we consider that question, perhaps we can appreciate the Pharisees and the problems that they were trying to solve.
"The tendency that Jesus criticizes in the Pharisees and scribes appears in most religious groups. People come to hold on to merely human traditions as if they were divinely revealed" (Williamson, 133). And so we find ourselves asking, What did Wesley have to say about this issue? Or Luther? Or Calvin? Or our denominational convention? It is not wrong to ask such questions, but we must be careful not to equate the answers with scripture. Scripture reveals truth –– the rest is opinion.
Denominational loyalties often assume far too much importance. Over the years, I have too often heard sermons entitled, "Why I am a (Methodist, Lutheran, Disciples of Christ, etc.)." Seeing the title, I knew that I was going to hear, not an exposition of scripture, but a collection of not-very-helpful opinion. Where, by the way, do you find a text for such a sermon? We have no right to criticize the Pharisees for love of their traditions when we hew so firmly to our own.
Furthermore, if we paint the Pharisees as bad-to-the-core, we gut the story. The story has life only insofar as Jesus faces worthy opponents. The Pharisees are, indeed, worthy opponents. However misguided, they are deeply religious men trying to do God's will.
VERSES 1-5: EATING WITH DEFILED HANDS
1Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him, 2they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. 3(For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders; 4and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles.) 5So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, "Why do your disciples not live (Greek: peripatousin –– walk) according to the tradition of the elders (Greek: ten paradosin ton presbyteron), but eat with defiled hands?"
"Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him" (v. 1). Mark seems to be distinguishing local Pharisees from Jerusalem scribes. It is possible that the Jerusalem scribes are also Pharisees, given the nature of their challenge to Jesus. "The local Pharisees are already established in the narrative as the focus of opposition to Jesus in Galilee (2:16, 24; 3:6)" (France, 280).
The word "Jerusalem" carries an ominous quality, because Jerusalem is the seat of opposition to Jesus, and they will kill him in Jerusalem. Mark has already told us that the scribes have determined that Jesus is demonic (3:22), and the Pharisees have begun a conspiracy to kill him (3:6). It seems odd that these Jerusalemites are in Galilee. Jerusalem draws pilgrims from afar, and not the other way around. It seems likely that these men have come to Galilee for the purpose of destroying Jesus (3:6, 22).
"they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them" (v. 2). Leviticus 11-15 prescribes in detail how Israel is to deal with various issues of ritual cleanliness, to include food (11:1-23; see also Deuteronomy 14:3-21) –– animals (11:24-47) –– purification of women after childbirth (chapter 12) –– leprosy (chapters 13-14), and bodily discharges. This is Torah law, handed down by God, so we cannot criticize the Pharisees and scribes for taking it seriously.
However, by criticizing Jesus' disciples because they eat with defiled hands, the Pharisees and scribes go beyond the requirements of the law by trying to enforce human interpretations of the law that have been handed down by rabbis through the centuries. Exodus 30:18-21 and 40:31 require the cleansing of hands, but only for priests ("Aaron and his sons") –– and only when they go into the tent of meeting or come near the altar –– in other words, when they are attending to sacred duties within sacred space. The Pharisees gradually adopted this practice of ritual handwashing as a way of showing devotion to God –– and as a "boundary marker," a way for Jews to proclaim their identity as distinct from their pagan neighbors (Hooker, 441).
Ritual cleanliness has nothing to do with hygiene –– Pasteur will not discover germs until the 17th century, and will have difficulty even then persuading physicians to wash their hands before performing surgery. People of the first century have no understanding of hygiene. Pharisaic handwashing involves the use of only a small amount of water poured over the hands to wash away ritual defilement, such as defilement caused by touching an unclean object or person (i.e., a bodily discharge such as spittle or semen, a dead body, a leper, a menstruating woman, or a Gentile). While most of us would want to wash our hands for hygienic purposes in many of these circumstances, the manner in which ritual handwashing is done offers no hygienic benefit.
By the time of the writing of this Gospel (probably 65 to 70 A.D.), Christians have begun to free themselves from the observance of Jewish law. Stories such as this one help to provide a rationale for the church to distance itself from Jewish law. They also instruct Christians who might otherwise hold too closely to Jewish law and traditions.
"For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands" (v. 3a). In verses 3-4, Mark explains Pharisaic tradition to Gentile readers who might not otherwise understand it. "All the Jews" is hyperbole. Only some Jews follow these strict rules.
"thus observing the tradition of the elders" (v. 3b). "In distinction from the Sadducees for whom the written law of the Torah alone was authoritative, Pharisees accepted the evolving oral law as equally authoritative…. By Jesus' day, adherence to the unwritten oral tradition was as important for the Pharisees as was adherence to the Torah itself" (Edwards, 208). Prior to his Damascus road experience, Paul (a Pharisee) was especially zealous with regard to observing and enforcing the traditions of the elders (Galatians 1:14). The "tradition of the elders" is oral tradition at this point. By the third century it will be codified as the Mishnah.
"and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles" (v. 4). This is consistent with the emphasis on ritual purity of food. If the food is to be clean (ritually clean in accord with Torah law), the vessels in which it is cooked or served must also be clean. Leviticus 11 prescribes the washing of clothes and other objects that have been touched by unclean animals (Leviticus 11:28-38), saying, "Any food that could be eaten shall be unclean if water from any such (unclean) vessel comes upon it; and any liquid that could be drunk shall be unclean if it was in any such vessel. Everything on which any part of the carcass falls shall be unclean; whether an oven or stove, it shall be broken in pieces; they are unclean, and shall remain unclean for you" (Leviticus 11:33-35). We see this sort of emphasis on dishes and utensils reflected in kosher kitchens today where people have "meat" dishes and "milk" dishes to avoid mixing meat and milk. They do this to honor the commandment of Exodus 23:19, "You shall not boil a kid in its mother's milk."
We must recognize, then, that Jewish people have cause for concern regarding the ritual cleanliness of food and the containers in which food is prepared or served. Torah law requires them to be concerned about such things. In being observant, they are trying to carry out God's will as prescribed by scripture, a concern which we must respect.
Jesus' dispute with these Pharisees and scribes has to do, not with the observance of Torah law, but with traditions that had grown up around the law. These traditions were an attempt by rabbis to define how the law should be applied in specific situations. That, too, was honorable –– an honest attempt to determine what people must do to please God. The problem arose when people began to equate their traditions with the law itself –– to regard their interpretations as equal in importance to the law.
"Why do your disciples not live (peripatousin –– walk) according to the tradition of the elders (presbyteron), but eat with defiled hands?" (v. 5). Jesus has given his opponents plenty of opportunity to criticize him directly. He has healed on the Sabbath (1:21-34; 3:1-6); touched a leper (1:41); claimed to forgive sins (2:5); called a tax collector to be his disciple (2:14); defended his disciples for plucking grain on the sabbath (2:23-28); and blessed an unclean woman who touched him (5:24-34). While his opponents criticize Jesus directly on occasion, here they choose an indirect approach –– drawing attention to the failure of Jesus' disciples' to observe their tradition. If Jesus is an authentic teacher, why can't he control his disciples?
VERSES 6-8: YOU ABANDON THE COMMANDMENT OF GOD
6He said to them, "Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites (Greek: hypokriton), as it is written,
'This people honors me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me;
7in vain do they worship me,
teaching human precepts as doctrines.'
8You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition" (Greek: ten paradosin ton anthropon –– the tradition of men).
"Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites" (hypokriton) (v. 6a). Instead of defending the disciples (and himself), Jesus goes on the offense, accusing his accusers of hypocrisy. In classical Greek literature, the word translated "hypocrites" (hypokriton) is used for acting on a stage.
"This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching human precepts as doctrines" (vv. 6b-7). Jesus quotes scripture, adding force to his accusations. The quotation is from Isaiah 29:13, and is in keeping with other prophetic pronouncements (see also Isaiah 1:10-17; Amos 5:21-24; and Micah 6:6-8). As noted above, Exodus 30:19 requires priests to practice ritual handwashing before coming near the altar, but later Pharisaic tradition expanded such observance to ordinary people on ordinary occasions. While the expanded practice is intended to honor God, it has the opposite effect. "The elevation of the oral law (or the tradition of the elders) to a place of parity alongside the Torah ultimately undercuts the Torah" (Brueggemann, 192).
"You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition" (ten paradosin ton anthropon –– the tradition of men) (v. 8). Jesus employs two contrasts here:
• The first is the contrast between the tradition of the elders (the phrase used by the Pharisees) and the tradition of men (the phrase used by Jesus). By changing one word (presbyteron to anthropon), Jesus brings the lofty elders down to earth. They are no longer elders, enforcing God's laws. They are only men, enforcing human opinions.
• The second is the contrast between "the commandment of God" and "the tradition of men" (or "human tradition"). This contrast highlights the Pharisaic reliance on the opinions of men rather than the will of God. "In the apocalyptic Markan worldview, to take one's cues from human beings is to oppose the will of the holy God, whose eschatological power is now revealing itself through Jesus' teaching (cf. 8:33; 10:9; 11:27, 30, 32; 12:4, where the antithesis between God and human beings is repeated" (Marcus, 451).
Jesus does not condemn all tradition, but only the improper elevation of human tradition to sacred status. The church has a responsibility to preserve tradition, but must take care to distinguish between scriptural teachings (essential) and other traditions (non-essential). We are always tempted to require that which is not essential. For instance, a generation ago, many Christians emphasized "dressing up" for worship as a mark of respect for God, but that is no longer an issue for most Christians. Today, we are more inclined to make a litmus test of Political Correctness. We, too, find it difficult to keep secondary issues secondary. "The immediate and burning issues of the controversy (between Jesus and the Pharisees) have long since passed away into history; but the principles which Jesus laid down have been immediate and burning issues in every century" (Luccock, 746-747).
VERSES 9-13: CORBAN
While these verses are omitted from the lectionary reading, they illustrate what Jesus meant when he said, "You abandon the commandment of God" (v. 8a). In these verses, Jesus shows how his accusers, apparently devout men, use human tradition to sidestep one of the Ten Commandments –– "Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you" (Exodus 20:12). This commandment means, among other things, providing financial support to aging parents. In Jesus' day, aging parents often transferred property to their children, who then assumed a responsibility for the parents' welfare in their old age.
Corban is a form of deferred giving, similar to today's tax-avoidance scheme of transferring title to a charity now (and receiving a tax deduction now) with the provision that we can continue to use the property until our death. In like manner, a person in Jesus' day could declare something Corban –– dedicated to God –– and then tell his or her parents that their old-age support had been given to God. In truth, the property has only been promised to God, but that promise gives the child an excuse to dodge his or her obligation to parents. "A man goes through the formality of vowing something to God, not that he may give it to God, but in order to prevent some other person from having it" (T. W. Mansori, quoted in Edwards, 210). It is treachery cloaked in religious garb. The religious establishment encourages the practice, because the deferred gift ultimately ends up in the religious treasury.
VERSES 14-15: THAT WHICH DEFILES
14Then he called the crowd again and said to them, "Listen to me, all of you, and understand: 15there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile."
"Then he called the crowd again" (vs. 14a). The fact that Jesus can summon a crowd means that the Pharisees and scribes have failed to discredit him. The people are anxious to hear Jesus' response.
"Listen to me, all of you, and understand" (v. 14b). It is not just the Pharisees and scribes who do not understand, but "all of you" –– Pharisees, scribes, crowd, and disciples alike.
"there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile" (v. 15a). When Jesus explains this to his disciples, he makes it clear that he is speaking about food (vv. 18-19). He says that it is not the food that we eat or ritual defilement that make us unclean, but the thoughts and feelings of our hearts. This is strong language in the context of a culture that prizes Jewish food laws and other ritual observance. The Torah goes into great detail regarding clean and unclean foods, and Jewish people distinguish themselves from their pagan neighbors by observance of these food laws. To say that a person is not defiled by what he or she eats is a bold statement, although in keeping with Jesus actions in other situations. He touched a leper (1:41), ate with sinners (2:15-17), and was not troubled that an unclean woman touched him (5:30-34).
"but the things that come out are what defile" (v. 15b). In his explanation to the disciples, Jesus will make it clear that he is not talking about excrement (vv. 18b-19a). The things that defile are the things that come out of an evil heart, "fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly" (vv. 21b-22).
It would seem that Jesus is guilty of replacing God's commandment with his own teaching –– in effect, doing the same thing that he accuses the Pharisees of doing. In fact, he "is teaching with an authority given to him by God…. (He) –– like Moses –– is entrusted by God to declare his commandments directly" (Hooker, 180). Jesus does not abolish the law and prophets, but expands our understanding of how to fulfill them (Matthew 5:17).
VERSES 16, 19b: THUS HE DECLARED ALL FOODS CLEAN
Verse 16 is not included in the best manuscripts, and most modern translations leave it out or mention it in a footnote.
Verse 19b (not included in this lesson) says, "Thus he declared all foods clean." These are not Jesus' words, but Mark's interpretation. "For Mark's early gentile readers the practical effect was to legitimate their ignoring the ritual laws of Judaism" (Hurtado, 111).
VERSES 21-23: EVIL THINGS COME FROM WITHIN
21For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, 22adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. 23All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."
"For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come" (v. 21a). "The vices include actions proscribed by the Ten Commandments (theft, murder, adultery, avarice or envy, deceit). Consequently, Jesus continues to uphold the commandment of God, which his opponents undermine" (Perkins, 608).
In an environment that emphasizes piety (honoring God by devout fulfillment of religious duties), Jesus changes the emphasis to ethical behavior (honoring God by right actions in relationship to other people). He teaches us to be especially mindful of thoughts and feelings that give rise to unethical behavior in our relationships with family, friends and neighbors. It is those thoughts and feelings, conceived and nurtured in our hearts that give rise to truly serious sins. "The source of true defilement in man is the human heart, and the tragedy… reaches its demonic fulfillment in man's wanting to sin…. By this interpretation Jesus does not alleviate the demand for purity but sharpens it" (Lane, 257-258).
This is an important word for us to hear today. We live in a culture that honors that which comes from within the human heart –– that gives us permission to act on our feelings instead of bringing them under control. Our culture tells us to "get in touch" with our inner selves, and to "go with the flow." It celebrates freedom and personal choice, and fiercely resists any constraint that Christ or common sense would place on behavior. The result is that we live in a world characterized by "fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, and folly" (vv. 21b-22).
"The initial six items are in the plural, denoting repeatable actions, with the final six entries in the singular, pointing more to traits of character" (Boring, 205).
"All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person" (v. 23). Jesus points us in a radically different direction. His "main point is that uncleanness is moral rather than ritual" (Brooks, 119). He tells us that "evil things come from within" –– from the human heart –– and implies that we have a responsibility to nurture holy things rather than evil things in our hearts.
In recent years, we have become increasingly aware that what we take into our bodies can make a great deal of difference to our physical health. We need to learn that what we take into our hearts and minds is even more important, because what we take into our hearts and minds has the potential to injure us spiritually as well as physically –– to kill the soul as well as the body (see Matthew 10:28).
In recent years, we have become increasingly aware of the importance of environmental issues. In some cases, the church has placed far more emphasis on the cleanliness of our world than the cleanliness of our hearts –– ignoring the degree to which Jesus emphasized the latter. That is ironic, because it is easy to teach a person with a holy heart to respect the environment. Psychologist Gordon Allport observed, "We could probably prove that throughout history those Christians who have accomplished the most practical benefit in this world are those who have believed most fervently in the next." Our first concern needs to be the creation of holy hearts and holy lives.
The church needs to emphasize healthy reading, television viewing, and entertainment. We need to highlight the corrosive effects of drugs and alcohol, violent video games, vulgar sitcoms, pornography, gambling, and consumerism. We need to call people away from an "anything goes" business ethic. The sea in which people swim today is filthy with spiritual pollution, but we tend to say little about it. We are embarrassed to make a serious issue of "fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly," but Jesus was not. He tells us that "All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person." (v. 23).
THOUGHT PROVOKERS:
He that accuses all mankind of corruption
ought to remember that he is sure to convict only one.
Edmund Burke
* * * * * * * * * *
No man's really any good
till he knows how bad he is, or might be;
till he's realized exactly how much right he has
to all this snobbery and sneering,
and talking about "criminals"
as if they were apes in a forest ten thousand miles away;
till he's got rid of all the dirty self-deception
of talking about low types and deficient skulls;
till he's squeezed out of his soul
the last drop of the oil of the Pharisees;
till his only hope is somehow or other
to have captured one criminal,
and kept him safe and sane under his own hat.
G.K. Chesterton
* * * * * * * * * *
If you judge people,
you have no time to love them.
Mother Teresa
* * * * * * * * * *
If it be an evil to judge rashly or untruly any single man,
how much greater sin it is to condemn a whole people.
William Penn, A Key Opening the Way
* * * * * * * * * *
Rare is the person who can weigh the faults of others
without putting his thumb on the scales.
Byron J. Langenfield
* * * * * * * * * *
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Boring, M. Eugene, The New Testament Library, Mark, A Commentary (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006)
Barclay, William, The Daily Study Bible: Gospel of Mark (Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1954)
Brooks, James A, The New American Commentary: Mark (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1991)
Brueggemann, Walter; Cousar, Charles B.; Gaventa, Beverly R.; and Newsome, James D., Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary Based on the NRSV –– Year B (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993)
Craddock, Fred B.; Hayes, John H.; Holladay, Carl R.; Tucker, Gene M., Preaching Through the Christian Year, B (Valley Forge: Trinity Press International, 1993)
Edwards, James R., The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
France, R.T., The New International Greek Testament Commentary: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
Geddert, Timothy J., Believers Church Bible Commentary: Mark (Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2001)
Grant, Frederick C. and Luccock, Halford E., The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 7 (Nashville: Abingdon, 1951)
Guelich, Robert A., Word Biblical Commentary: Mark 1 - 8:26 (Dallas: Word Books, 1989)
Hare, Douglas R. A., Westminster Bible Companion: Mark (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996)
Hooker, Morna D., Black's New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Saint Mark (Hendrickson Publishers, 1991)
Hurtado, Larry W., New International Biblical Commentary: Mark (Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1983, 1989)
Lane, William L., The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1974)
Marcus, Joel, The Anchor Bible: Mark 1-8 (New York: Doubleday, 1999)
Moule, C.F.D., The Cambridge Bible Commentary on the New English Bible: The Gospel of Mark (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965)
Perkins, Pheme, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VIII (Nashville: Abingdon, 1995)
Williamson, Lamar Jr., Interpretation: Mark (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1983)
Richard Niell Donovan, SermonWriter.com
August 30, 2009
Proper 17, Year B, RCL
Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9
Psalm 15
James 1:17-27
Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
The Collect
Lord of all power and might, the author and giver of all good things: Graft in our hearts the love of your Name; increase in us true religion; nourish us with all goodness; and bring forth in us the fruit of good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever. Amen.
OLD TESTAMENT
Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9
Moses said: So now, Israel, give heed to the statutes and ordinances that I am teaching you to observe, so that you may live to enter and occupy the land that the LORD, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. You must neither add anything to what I command you nor take away anything from it, but keep the commandments of the LORD your God with which I am charging you.
You must observe them diligently, for this will show your wisdom and discernment to the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, "Surely this great nation is a wise and discerning people!" For what other great nation has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is whenever we call to him? And what other great nation has statutes and ordinances as just as this entire law that I am setting before you today?
But take care and watch yourselves closely, so as neither to forget the things that your eyes have seen nor to let them slip from your mind all the days of your life; make them known to your children and your children's children.
The Psalm
Psalm 15 Page 599, BCP
Domine, quis habitabit?
1 LORD, who may dwell in your tabernacle?
who may abide upon your holy hill?
2 Whoever leads a blameless life and does what is right,
who speaks the truth from his heart.
3 There is no guile upon his tongue;
he does no evil to his friend;
he does not heap contempt upon his neighbor.
4 In his sight the wicked is rejected,
but he honors those who fear the LORD.
5 He has sworn to do no wrong
and does not take back his word.
6 He does not give his money in hope of gain,
nor does he take a bribe against the innocent.
7 Whoever does these things
shall never be overthrown.
THE EPISTLE
James 1:17-27
Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave us birth by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures.
You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; for your anger does not produce God's righteousness. Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls.
But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act-they will be blessed in their doing.
If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
THE GOSPEL
Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus, they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. (For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders; and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles.) So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, "Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?" He said to them, "Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written,
'This people honors me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me;
in vain do they worship me,
teaching human precepts as doctrines.'
You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition."
Then he called the crowd again and said to them, "Listen to me, all of you, and understand: there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile. For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."
EXEGESIS:
VERSES 1-23: CONTEXT:
This story is bracketed by stories of Jesus' power to do miraculous works and people's response to his display of power.
It is preceded by the feeding of the five thousand (6:30-44), Jesus walking on water (6:45-52) and the healing of the sick in Gennesaret (6:53-56). The concluding verse of chapter 6 reads, "And wherever he went, into villages or cities or farms, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged him that they might touch even the fringe of his cloak; and all who touched it were healed" (6:56).
It is followed by several stories of ministry with Gentiles:
• The healing of the Syrophoenician woman's daughter (7:24-30).
• Travel through Tyre, Sidon, and the Decapolis (literally, "Ten Cities") (7:31). Tyre and Sidon are Phoenician cities. The Decapolis has a large Greek and Roman population. To speak of Tyre, Sidon, and the Decapolis is to speak of Gentiles.
• The healing of a deaf man in the Decapolis (7:31-37).
• The Feeding of the Four Thousand which, in the absence of any additional geographical marker, appears to have taken place in or near the Decapolis.
"The Markan church, predominantly Gentile, struggles with not only the issues that separate them from the Jewish community but the problem of table fellowship among Jewish and Gentile Christians in its own midst" (Boring, 196).
The Pharisees in today's lesson ignore compelling evidence of Jesus' power to do good, and focus instead on the failure of his disciples to observe their traditions. They ignore the inbreaking of God's power, and focus on trivial concerns. The church today is similarly tempted to ignore its core ministry –– word and sacrament –– and focus instead on new fads in ministry –– or even the color of the carpet.
We should be careful not to portray the Pharisees as completely bad. The Pharisees are dedicated to obeying and pleasing God. They observe distinctive practices, such as kosher food and circumcision, that help them to maintain their identity as God's people in a world that tempts them to worship their neighbors' gods. Their traditions, which come into question in this text, grow out of a need to maintain that identity.
The Jewish law, while quite detailed, leaves room for interpretation in many situations. The Pharisees, out of a desire to obey God, established rules to clarify the law in those situations. Their findings became known as tradition of the elders. As time passed, these traditions hardened into a surrogate law that Jewish leaders regarded as equal to scripture. They lost sight of the line between God's law and their opinion, and that was their sin.
The church always struggles with knowing God's will. What is God's will concerning abortion? Homosexuality? AIDS? A host of other issues? Men and women of faith find themselves in opposition to other men and women of faith over such issues. How do we determine God's will in such matters? As we consider that question, perhaps we can appreciate the Pharisees and the problems that they were trying to solve.
"The tendency that Jesus criticizes in the Pharisees and scribes appears in most religious groups. People come to hold on to merely human traditions as if they were divinely revealed" (Williamson, 133). And so we find ourselves asking, What did Wesley have to say about this issue? Or Luther? Or Calvin? Or our denominational convention? It is not wrong to ask such questions, but we must be careful not to equate the answers with scripture. Scripture reveals truth –– the rest is opinion.
Denominational loyalties often assume far too much importance. Over the years, I have too often heard sermons entitled, "Why I am a (Methodist, Lutheran, Disciples of Christ, etc.)." Seeing the title, I knew that I was going to hear, not an exposition of scripture, but a collection of not-very-helpful opinion. Where, by the way, do you find a text for such a sermon? We have no right to criticize the Pharisees for love of their traditions when we hew so firmly to our own.
Furthermore, if we paint the Pharisees as bad-to-the-core, we gut the story. The story has life only insofar as Jesus faces worthy opponents. The Pharisees are, indeed, worthy opponents. However misguided, they are deeply religious men trying to do God's will.
VERSES 1-5: EATING WITH DEFILED HANDS
1Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him, 2they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. 3(For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders; 4and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles.) 5So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, "Why do your disciples not live (Greek: peripatousin –– walk) according to the tradition of the elders (Greek: ten paradosin ton presbyteron), but eat with defiled hands?"
"Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him" (v. 1). Mark seems to be distinguishing local Pharisees from Jerusalem scribes. It is possible that the Jerusalem scribes are also Pharisees, given the nature of their challenge to Jesus. "The local Pharisees are already established in the narrative as the focus of opposition to Jesus in Galilee (2:16, 24; 3:6)" (France, 280).
The word "Jerusalem" carries an ominous quality, because Jerusalem is the seat of opposition to Jesus, and they will kill him in Jerusalem. Mark has already told us that the scribes have determined that Jesus is demonic (3:22), and the Pharisees have begun a conspiracy to kill him (3:6). It seems odd that these Jerusalemites are in Galilee. Jerusalem draws pilgrims from afar, and not the other way around. It seems likely that these men have come to Galilee for the purpose of destroying Jesus (3:6, 22).
"they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them" (v. 2). Leviticus 11-15 prescribes in detail how Israel is to deal with various issues of ritual cleanliness, to include food (11:1-23; see also Deuteronomy 14:3-21) –– animals (11:24-47) –– purification of women after childbirth (chapter 12) –– leprosy (chapters 13-14), and bodily discharges. This is Torah law, handed down by God, so we cannot criticize the Pharisees and scribes for taking it seriously.
However, by criticizing Jesus' disciples because they eat with defiled hands, the Pharisees and scribes go beyond the requirements of the law by trying to enforce human interpretations of the law that have been handed down by rabbis through the centuries. Exodus 30:18-21 and 40:31 require the cleansing of hands, but only for priests ("Aaron and his sons") –– and only when they go into the tent of meeting or come near the altar –– in other words, when they are attending to sacred duties within sacred space. The Pharisees gradually adopted this practice of ritual handwashing as a way of showing devotion to God –– and as a "boundary marker," a way for Jews to proclaim their identity as distinct from their pagan neighbors (Hooker, 441).
Ritual cleanliness has nothing to do with hygiene –– Pasteur will not discover germs until the 17th century, and will have difficulty even then persuading physicians to wash their hands before performing surgery. People of the first century have no understanding of hygiene. Pharisaic handwashing involves the use of only a small amount of water poured over the hands to wash away ritual defilement, such as defilement caused by touching an unclean object or person (i.e., a bodily discharge such as spittle or semen, a dead body, a leper, a menstruating woman, or a Gentile). While most of us would want to wash our hands for hygienic purposes in many of these circumstances, the manner in which ritual handwashing is done offers no hygienic benefit.
By the time of the writing of this Gospel (probably 65 to 70 A.D.), Christians have begun to free themselves from the observance of Jewish law. Stories such as this one help to provide a rationale for the church to distance itself from Jewish law. They also instruct Christians who might otherwise hold too closely to Jewish law and traditions.
"For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands" (v. 3a). In verses 3-4, Mark explains Pharisaic tradition to Gentile readers who might not otherwise understand it. "All the Jews" is hyperbole. Only some Jews follow these strict rules.
"thus observing the tradition of the elders" (v. 3b). "In distinction from the Sadducees for whom the written law of the Torah alone was authoritative, Pharisees accepted the evolving oral law as equally authoritative…. By Jesus' day, adherence to the unwritten oral tradition was as important for the Pharisees as was adherence to the Torah itself" (Edwards, 208). Prior to his Damascus road experience, Paul (a Pharisee) was especially zealous with regard to observing and enforcing the traditions of the elders (Galatians 1:14). The "tradition of the elders" is oral tradition at this point. By the third century it will be codified as the Mishnah.
"and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles" (v. 4). This is consistent with the emphasis on ritual purity of food. If the food is to be clean (ritually clean in accord with Torah law), the vessels in which it is cooked or served must also be clean. Leviticus 11 prescribes the washing of clothes and other objects that have been touched by unclean animals (Leviticus 11:28-38), saying, "Any food that could be eaten shall be unclean if water from any such (unclean) vessel comes upon it; and any liquid that could be drunk shall be unclean if it was in any such vessel. Everything on which any part of the carcass falls shall be unclean; whether an oven or stove, it shall be broken in pieces; they are unclean, and shall remain unclean for you" (Leviticus 11:33-35). We see this sort of emphasis on dishes and utensils reflected in kosher kitchens today where people have "meat" dishes and "milk" dishes to avoid mixing meat and milk. They do this to honor the commandment of Exodus 23:19, "You shall not boil a kid in its mother's milk."
We must recognize, then, that Jewish people have cause for concern regarding the ritual cleanliness of food and the containers in which food is prepared or served. Torah law requires them to be concerned about such things. In being observant, they are trying to carry out God's will as prescribed by scripture, a concern which we must respect.
Jesus' dispute with these Pharisees and scribes has to do, not with the observance of Torah law, but with traditions that had grown up around the law. These traditions were an attempt by rabbis to define how the law should be applied in specific situations. That, too, was honorable –– an honest attempt to determine what people must do to please God. The problem arose when people began to equate their traditions with the law itself –– to regard their interpretations as equal in importance to the law.
"Why do your disciples not live (peripatousin –– walk) according to the tradition of the elders (presbyteron), but eat with defiled hands?" (v. 5). Jesus has given his opponents plenty of opportunity to criticize him directly. He has healed on the Sabbath (1:21-34; 3:1-6); touched a leper (1:41); claimed to forgive sins (2:5); called a tax collector to be his disciple (2:14); defended his disciples for plucking grain on the sabbath (2:23-28); and blessed an unclean woman who touched him (5:24-34). While his opponents criticize Jesus directly on occasion, here they choose an indirect approach –– drawing attention to the failure of Jesus' disciples' to observe their tradition. If Jesus is an authentic teacher, why can't he control his disciples?
VERSES 6-8: YOU ABANDON THE COMMANDMENT OF GOD
6He said to them, "Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites (Greek: hypokriton), as it is written,
'This people honors me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me;
7in vain do they worship me,
teaching human precepts as doctrines.'
8You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition" (Greek: ten paradosin ton anthropon –– the tradition of men).
"Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites" (hypokriton) (v. 6a). Instead of defending the disciples (and himself), Jesus goes on the offense, accusing his accusers of hypocrisy. In classical Greek literature, the word translated "hypocrites" (hypokriton) is used for acting on a stage.
"This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching human precepts as doctrines" (vv. 6b-7). Jesus quotes scripture, adding force to his accusations. The quotation is from Isaiah 29:13, and is in keeping with other prophetic pronouncements (see also Isaiah 1:10-17; Amos 5:21-24; and Micah 6:6-8). As noted above, Exodus 30:19 requires priests to practice ritual handwashing before coming near the altar, but later Pharisaic tradition expanded such observance to ordinary people on ordinary occasions. While the expanded practice is intended to honor God, it has the opposite effect. "The elevation of the oral law (or the tradition of the elders) to a place of parity alongside the Torah ultimately undercuts the Torah" (Brueggemann, 192).
"You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition" (ten paradosin ton anthropon –– the tradition of men) (v. 8). Jesus employs two contrasts here:
• The first is the contrast between the tradition of the elders (the phrase used by the Pharisees) and the tradition of men (the phrase used by Jesus). By changing one word (presbyteron to anthropon), Jesus brings the lofty elders down to earth. They are no longer elders, enforcing God's laws. They are only men, enforcing human opinions.
• The second is the contrast between "the commandment of God" and "the tradition of men" (or "human tradition"). This contrast highlights the Pharisaic reliance on the opinions of men rather than the will of God. "In the apocalyptic Markan worldview, to take one's cues from human beings is to oppose the will of the holy God, whose eschatological power is now revealing itself through Jesus' teaching (cf. 8:33; 10:9; 11:27, 30, 32; 12:4, where the antithesis between God and human beings is repeated" (Marcus, 451).
Jesus does not condemn all tradition, but only the improper elevation of human tradition to sacred status. The church has a responsibility to preserve tradition, but must take care to distinguish between scriptural teachings (essential) and other traditions (non-essential). We are always tempted to require that which is not essential. For instance, a generation ago, many Christians emphasized "dressing up" for worship as a mark of respect for God, but that is no longer an issue for most Christians. Today, we are more inclined to make a litmus test of Political Correctness. We, too, find it difficult to keep secondary issues secondary. "The immediate and burning issues of the controversy (between Jesus and the Pharisees) have long since passed away into history; but the principles which Jesus laid down have been immediate and burning issues in every century" (Luccock, 746-747).
VERSES 9-13: CORBAN
While these verses are omitted from the lectionary reading, they illustrate what Jesus meant when he said, "You abandon the commandment of God" (v. 8a). In these verses, Jesus shows how his accusers, apparently devout men, use human tradition to sidestep one of the Ten Commandments –– "Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you" (Exodus 20:12). This commandment means, among other things, providing financial support to aging parents. In Jesus' day, aging parents often transferred property to their children, who then assumed a responsibility for the parents' welfare in their old age.
Corban is a form of deferred giving, similar to today's tax-avoidance scheme of transferring title to a charity now (and receiving a tax deduction now) with the provision that we can continue to use the property until our death. In like manner, a person in Jesus' day could declare something Corban –– dedicated to God –– and then tell his or her parents that their old-age support had been given to God. In truth, the property has only been promised to God, but that promise gives the child an excuse to dodge his or her obligation to parents. "A man goes through the formality of vowing something to God, not that he may give it to God, but in order to prevent some other person from having it" (T. W. Mansori, quoted in Edwards, 210). It is treachery cloaked in religious garb. The religious establishment encourages the practice, because the deferred gift ultimately ends up in the religious treasury.
VERSES 14-15: THAT WHICH DEFILES
14Then he called the crowd again and said to them, "Listen to me, all of you, and understand: 15there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile."
"Then he called the crowd again" (vs. 14a). The fact that Jesus can summon a crowd means that the Pharisees and scribes have failed to discredit him. The people are anxious to hear Jesus' response.
"Listen to me, all of you, and understand" (v. 14b). It is not just the Pharisees and scribes who do not understand, but "all of you" –– Pharisees, scribes, crowd, and disciples alike.
"there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile" (v. 15a). When Jesus explains this to his disciples, he makes it clear that he is speaking about food (vv. 18-19). He says that it is not the food that we eat or ritual defilement that make us unclean, but the thoughts and feelings of our hearts. This is strong language in the context of a culture that prizes Jewish food laws and other ritual observance. The Torah goes into great detail regarding clean and unclean foods, and Jewish people distinguish themselves from their pagan neighbors by observance of these food laws. To say that a person is not defiled by what he or she eats is a bold statement, although in keeping with Jesus actions in other situations. He touched a leper (1:41), ate with sinners (2:15-17), and was not troubled that an unclean woman touched him (5:30-34).
"but the things that come out are what defile" (v. 15b). In his explanation to the disciples, Jesus will make it clear that he is not talking about excrement (vv. 18b-19a). The things that defile are the things that come out of an evil heart, "fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly" (vv. 21b-22).
It would seem that Jesus is guilty of replacing God's commandment with his own teaching –– in effect, doing the same thing that he accuses the Pharisees of doing. In fact, he "is teaching with an authority given to him by God…. (He) –– like Moses –– is entrusted by God to declare his commandments directly" (Hooker, 180). Jesus does not abolish the law and prophets, but expands our understanding of how to fulfill them (Matthew 5:17).
VERSES 16, 19b: THUS HE DECLARED ALL FOODS CLEAN
Verse 16 is not included in the best manuscripts, and most modern translations leave it out or mention it in a footnote.
Verse 19b (not included in this lesson) says, "Thus he declared all foods clean." These are not Jesus' words, but Mark's interpretation. "For Mark's early gentile readers the practical effect was to legitimate their ignoring the ritual laws of Judaism" (Hurtado, 111).
VERSES 21-23: EVIL THINGS COME FROM WITHIN
21For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, 22adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. 23All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."
"For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come" (v. 21a). "The vices include actions proscribed by the Ten Commandments (theft, murder, adultery, avarice or envy, deceit). Consequently, Jesus continues to uphold the commandment of God, which his opponents undermine" (Perkins, 608).
In an environment that emphasizes piety (honoring God by devout fulfillment of religious duties), Jesus changes the emphasis to ethical behavior (honoring God by right actions in relationship to other people). He teaches us to be especially mindful of thoughts and feelings that give rise to unethical behavior in our relationships with family, friends and neighbors. It is those thoughts and feelings, conceived and nurtured in our hearts that give rise to truly serious sins. "The source of true defilement in man is the human heart, and the tragedy… reaches its demonic fulfillment in man's wanting to sin…. By this interpretation Jesus does not alleviate the demand for purity but sharpens it" (Lane, 257-258).
This is an important word for us to hear today. We live in a culture that honors that which comes from within the human heart –– that gives us permission to act on our feelings instead of bringing them under control. Our culture tells us to "get in touch" with our inner selves, and to "go with the flow." It celebrates freedom and personal choice, and fiercely resists any constraint that Christ or common sense would place on behavior. The result is that we live in a world characterized by "fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, and folly" (vv. 21b-22).
"The initial six items are in the plural, denoting repeatable actions, with the final six entries in the singular, pointing more to traits of character" (Boring, 205).
"All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person" (v. 23). Jesus points us in a radically different direction. His "main point is that uncleanness is moral rather than ritual" (Brooks, 119). He tells us that "evil things come from within" –– from the human heart –– and implies that we have a responsibility to nurture holy things rather than evil things in our hearts.
In recent years, we have become increasingly aware that what we take into our bodies can make a great deal of difference to our physical health. We need to learn that what we take into our hearts and minds is even more important, because what we take into our hearts and minds has the potential to injure us spiritually as well as physically –– to kill the soul as well as the body (see Matthew 10:28).
In recent years, we have become increasingly aware of the importance of environmental issues. In some cases, the church has placed far more emphasis on the cleanliness of our world than the cleanliness of our hearts –– ignoring the degree to which Jesus emphasized the latter. That is ironic, because it is easy to teach a person with a holy heart to respect the environment. Psychologist Gordon Allport observed, "We could probably prove that throughout history those Christians who have accomplished the most practical benefit in this world are those who have believed most fervently in the next." Our first concern needs to be the creation of holy hearts and holy lives.
The church needs to emphasize healthy reading, television viewing, and entertainment. We need to highlight the corrosive effects of drugs and alcohol, violent video games, vulgar sitcoms, pornography, gambling, and consumerism. We need to call people away from an "anything goes" business ethic. The sea in which people swim today is filthy with spiritual pollution, but we tend to say little about it. We are embarrassed to make a serious issue of "fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly," but Jesus was not. He tells us that "All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person." (v. 23).
THOUGHT PROVOKERS:
He that accuses all mankind of corruption
ought to remember that he is sure to convict only one.
Edmund Burke
* * * * * * * * * *
No man's really any good
till he knows how bad he is, or might be;
till he's realized exactly how much right he has
to all this snobbery and sneering,
and talking about "criminals"
as if they were apes in a forest ten thousand miles away;
till he's got rid of all the dirty self-deception
of talking about low types and deficient skulls;
till he's squeezed out of his soul
the last drop of the oil of the Pharisees;
till his only hope is somehow or other
to have captured one criminal,
and kept him safe and sane under his own hat.
G.K. Chesterton
* * * * * * * * * *
If you judge people,
you have no time to love them.
Mother Teresa
* * * * * * * * * *
If it be an evil to judge rashly or untruly any single man,
how much greater sin it is to condemn a whole people.
William Penn, A Key Opening the Way
* * * * * * * * * *
Rare is the person who can weigh the faults of others
without putting his thumb on the scales.
Byron J. Langenfield
* * * * * * * * * *
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Boring, M. Eugene, The New Testament Library, Mark, A Commentary (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006)
Barclay, William, The Daily Study Bible: Gospel of Mark (Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1954)
Brooks, James A, The New American Commentary: Mark (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1991)
Brueggemann, Walter; Cousar, Charles B.; Gaventa, Beverly R.; and Newsome, James D., Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary Based on the NRSV –– Year B (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993)
Craddock, Fred B.; Hayes, John H.; Holladay, Carl R.; Tucker, Gene M., Preaching Through the Christian Year, B (Valley Forge: Trinity Press International, 1993)
Edwards, James R., The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
France, R.T., The New International Greek Testament Commentary: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2002)
Geddert, Timothy J., Believers Church Bible Commentary: Mark (Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2001)
Grant, Frederick C. and Luccock, Halford E., The Interpreter's Bible, Vol. 7 (Nashville: Abingdon, 1951)
Guelich, Robert A., Word Biblical Commentary: Mark 1 - 8:26 (Dallas: Word Books, 1989)
Hare, Douglas R. A., Westminster Bible Companion: Mark (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996)
Hooker, Morna D., Black's New Testament Commentary: The Gospel According to Saint Mark (Hendrickson Publishers, 1991)
Hurtado, Larry W., New International Biblical Commentary: Mark (Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1983, 1989)
Lane, William L., The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1974)
Marcus, Joel, The Anchor Bible: Mark 1-8 (New York: Doubleday, 1999)
Moule, C.F.D., The Cambridge Bible Commentary on the New English Bible: The Gospel of Mark (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965)
Perkins, Pheme, The New Interpreter's Bible, Vol. VIII (Nashville: Abingdon, 1995)
Williamson, Lamar Jr., Interpretation: Mark (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1983)
Richard Niell Donovan, SermonWriter.com
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About Me
- Calvin Girvin
- Southern Methodist University... (Perkins School of Theology)... Dallas, TX ... Degree: D.Min. (cum laude)... Major: Pastoral Care... Minor: Church History... 1984 - 1987.......... Nashotah House Theological Seminary... Nashotah, WI ... Degree: Master's Degree... Major: Parish Ministry... Minor: Liturgy... 1972 - 1975.......... The University Of Texas At Arlington... Arlington, TX ... Degree: Master's Degree... Major: Medieval Literature... Minor: Shakespeare... Greek: Sigma Tau Delta... 1970 - 1971.......... The University Of Texas At Arlington ... Arlington, TX ... Degree: Bachelor's Degree... Major: English... Minor: History... Greek: Sigma Tau Delta... 1965 - 1969