The Gospel According to Mark, chapters 10 - 13
10 ON LEAVING THOSE PARTS he came into the region of Judaea and Trans-
jordan; and when a crowd gathered round him once again, he followed his
usual practice and taught them. The question was put to him: 'Is it
lawful for a man to divorce his wife?' This was to test him. He asked in
return, 'What did Moses command you? They answered, 'Moses per-
mitted a man to divorce his wife by note of dismissal.' Jesus said to them,
'It was because your minds were closed that he made this rule for you;
but in the beginning, at the creation, God made them male and female.
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother, and be made one
with his wife; and the two shall become one flesh. It follows that they
are no longer individuals: they are one flesh. What God has joined
together, man must not separate.'
When they were indoors again the disciples questioned him about this
matter; he said to them, 'Whoever divorces his wife and marries another
commits adultery against her: so too, if she divorces her husband and
marries another, she commits adultery.'
They brought children for him to touch. The disciples rebuked them,
but when Jesus saw this he was indignant, and said to them, 'Let the
children come to me; do not try to stop them; for the kingdom of God
belongs to such as these. I tell you, whoever does not accept the kingdom
of God like a child will never enter it.' And he put his arms round them,
laid his hands upon them, and blessed them.
As he was starting out on his journey, a stranger ran up, and, kneeling
before him, asked, 'Good Master, what must I do to win eternal life?'
Jesus said to him, 'Why do you call me good? No one is good except God
alone. You know the commandments: 'Do not murder; do not commit
adultery; do not steal; do not give false evidence; do not defraud; honour
your father and mother." ' 'But, Master,' he replied, 'I have kept all these
since I was a boy.' Jesus looked straight at him; his heart warmed to him,
and he said, 'One thing you lack: go, sell everything you have, and give to
the poor, and you will have riches in heaven; and come, follow me.' At
these words his face fell and he went away with a heavy heart; for he was a
man of great wealth.
Jesus looked round at his disciples and said to them, 'How hard it will
be for the wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!' They were amazed that
he should say this, but Jesus insisted, 'Children, how hard it is to enter
the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of
a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.' They were more
astonished than ever, and said to one another, 'Then who can be saved?'
Jesus looked at them and said, 'For men it is impossible, but not for God;
everything is possible for God.'
At this Peter spoke. 'We here', he said, 'have left everything to become
your followers.' Jesus said, 'I tell you this: there is no one who has given
up home, brothers or sisters, mother, father or children, or land, for my
sake or for the Gospel, who will not receive in this age a hundred times as
much — houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and land —
and persecutions besides; and in the age to come eternal life. But many
who are first will be last and the last first.'
THEY WERE ON THE ROAD, going up to Jerusalem, Jesus leading the
way; and the disciples were filled with awe, while those who followed
behind were afraid. He took the Twelve aside and began to tell them
what was to happen to him. 'We are now going to Jerusalem,' he said;
'and the Son of Man will be given up to the chief priests and the doctors
of the law; they will condemn him to death and hand him over to the foreign
power. He will be mocked and spat upon, flogged and killed; and three days
afterwards, he will rise again.'
James and John, the sons of Zebedee, approached him and said, 'Master
we should like you to do us a favour.' 'What is it you want me to do?' he
asked. They answered, 'Grant us the right to sit in state wit you, one at
your right and the other at your left.' Jesus said to them, 'You do not under-
stand what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I drink, or be bap-
tized with the baptism I am baptized with?' 'We can', they answered. Jesus
said, 'The cup that I drink you shall drink, and the baptism I am baptized
with shall be your baptism; but to sit at my right or left is not for me to
grant; it is for those to whom it has already been assigned.'
When the other ten heard this, they were indignant with James and
John. Jesus called to them and said, 'You know that in the world
the recognized rulers lord over their subjects, and their great men make
them feel the weight of authority. That is not the way with you; among you,
whoever wants to be great must be your servant, and whoever wants to be
first must be the willing slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come
to be served but to serve, and to give up his life as a ransom for many.'
They came to Jericho; and as he was leaving the town, with his disciples
and a large crowd, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was seated
at the roadside. Hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout,
'Son of David, Jesus, have pity on me!' Many of the people told him to hold
his tongue; but he shouted all the more, 'Son of David, have pity on me.'
Jesus stopped and said, 'Call him'; so they called the blind man and said,
'Take heart; stand up; he is calling you.' At that he threw off his cloak,
sprang up, and came to Jesus. Jesus said to him, 'What do you want me to
do for you?' 'Master,' the blind man answered, 'I want my sight back.'
Jesus said to him, 'Go; your faith has cured you.' And at once he recovered
his sight and followed him on the road.
11 THEY WERE NOW APPROACHING Jerusalem, and when they reached
Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples
with these instructions: 'Go to the village opposite, and, as you enter,
you will find tethered there a colt which no one has yet ridden. Untie it
and bring it here. If anyone asks, 'Why are you doing that?", say, "Or
Master needs it, and will send it back here without delay." ' So they went
off, and found the colt tethered at a door outside in the street. They were
untying it when some of the bystanders asked, 'What are you doing, un-
tying that colt?' They answered as Jesus had told them, and were then
allowed to take it. So they brought the colt to Jesus and spread their cloaks,
while others spread brushwood which they had cut in the fields; and those
who went ahead and the others who came behind shouted, 'Hosanna!
Blessings on him who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessings on the
coming kingdom of our father David ! Hosanna in the heavens1!'
He entered Jerusalem and went into the temple, where he looked at the
whole scene; but, as it was now late, he went out to Bethany with the
Twelve.
On the following day, after they had left Bethany, he felt hungry, and,
noticing in the distance a fig-tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find
anything on it. But when he came there he found nothing but leaves; for
it was not the season for figs. He said to the tree, 'May no one ever again
eat fruit from you!' And his disciples were listening.
So they came to Jerusalem, and he went into the temple and began
driving out those who bought and sold in the temple. He upset the tables
of the money-changers and the seats of the dealers in pigeons; and he
would not allow anyone to use the temple court as a thoroughfare for
carrying goods. Then he began to teach them, and said, 'Does not Scripture
say, "My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations"? But
you have made it a robbers' cave.' The chief priests and the doctors of the
law heard of this and sought some means of making away with him; for
they were afraid of him, because the whole crowd was spellbound by his
teaching. And when evening came he went out of the city.
Early next morning, as they passed by, they saw that the fig-tree had
withered from the roots up; and Peter, recalling what had happened, said
to him, 'Rabbi, look, the fig-tree which you cursed has withered.' Jesus
answered them, 'Have faith in God. I tell you this: if anyone says to this
mountain, "Be lifted from your place and hurled into the sea", and has no
inward doubts, but believes that what he says is happening, it will be done
for him. I tell you, then, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you
have received it and it will be yours.
'And when you stand praying, if you have a grievance against anyone,
forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you the wrongs
you have done.'
THEY CAME ONCE MORE to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the
temple court the chief priests, lawyers, and elders came to him and said,
'By what authority are you acting like this? Who gave you authority to
act in this way?' Jesus said to them, 'I have a question to ask you too;
and if you give me an answer, I will tell you by what authority I act. The
baptism of John: was it from God, or from men? Answer me.' This set
them arguing among themselves: 'What shall we say? If we say, "from
God", he will say, "Then why did you not believe him?" Shall we say,
"from men"?' — but they were afraid of the people, for all held that John
was in fact a prophet. So they answered, 'We do not know.' And Jesus said
to them, 'That neither will I tell you by what authority I act.'
12 He went on to speak to them in parables: 'A man planted a vineyard
and put a wall round it, hewed out a winepress, and built a watch-tower;
then he let it out to vine-growers and went abroad. When the season came,
he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them his share of the produce.
But they took him, thrashed him, and sent him away empty-handed. Again,
he sent them another servant, whom they beat about the head and treated
outrageously. So he sent another, and that one they killed; and many more
besides, of whom they beat some, and killed others. He had now only one
left to send, his own dear son. In the end he sent him. "They will respect
my son", he said. But the tenants said to one another, "This is the heir;
come on, let us kill him, and the property will be ours." So they seized him
and killed him, and flung his body out of the vineyard. What will the owner
of the vineyard do? He will come and put the tenants to death and give the
vineyard to others.
'Can it be that you have never read this text: "The stone which the
builders rejected has become the main corner-stone. This is the Lord's
doing, and it is wonderful in our eyes"?'
Then they began to look for a way to arrest him, for they saw that the
parable was aimed at them; but they were afraid of the people, so they left
him alone and went away.
A NUMBER OF PHARISEES and men of Herod's party were sent to trap
him with a question. They came and said, 'Master, you are an honest man,
we know, and truckle to no one, whoever he may be; you teach in all
honesty the way of life that God requires. Are we or are we not permitted
to pay taxes to the Roman Emperor? Shall we pay or not?' He saw how
crafty their question was, and said, 'Why are you trying to catch me out?
Fetch me a silver piece, and let me look at it.' They brought one, and he
said to them, 'Whose head is this, and whose inscription?' 'Caesar's', they
replied. Then Jesus said, 'Pay Caesar what is due to Caesar, and pay God
what is due to God.' And they heard him with astonishment.
Next Sadducees came to him. (It is they who say there is no resur-
rection.) Their question was this: 'Master, Moses laid it down for us that
if there are brothers, and one dies leaving a wife and a child, then the next
should marry the widow and carry on his brother's family. Now there were
seven brothers. The first took a wife and died without issue. So did the third.
Eventually the seven of them died, all without issue. Finally the woman
died. At the resurrection, when they come back to life, whose wife will she
be, since all seven had married her?' Jesus said to them, 'You are mistaken,
and surely this is the reason: you do not know either the scriptures or the
power of God. When they rise from the dead, men and women do not
marry; they are like angels in heaven.
'But about the resurrection of the dead, have you never read in the Book
of Moses, in the story of the burning bush, how God spoke to him and said,
"I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob"?
God is not God of the dead but of the living. You are greatly mistaken.'
Then one of the lawyers, who had been listening to these discussions and
had noted how well he answered, came forward and asked him, 'Which
commandment is first of all?' Jesus answered, 'The first is, "Hear, O
Israel: the Lord God is the only Lord; love your Lord your God with
all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your
strength." The second is this: "Love your neighbour as yourself." There is
no other commandment greater than these.' The lawyer said to him, 'Well
said, Master. You are right in saying that God is one and beside him there
is no other. And to love him with all your heart, all your understanding,
and all your strength, and to love your neighbour as yourself — that is far
more than any burnt offerings or sacrifices.' When Jesus saw how sensibly
he answered, he said to him, 'You are not far from the kingdom of God.'
After that nobody ventured to put any more questions to hm; and Jesus
went on to say, as he taught in the temple, 'How can the teachers of he law
maintain that the Messiah is "son of David"? David himself said, when
inspired by the Holy Spirit, "The Lord said to my Lord, 'Sit at my right
hand until I put your enemies under your feet.' " David himself calls him
"Lord"; how can also be David's son?'
There was a great crowd and they listened eagerly. He said as he taught
them, 'Beware of the doctors of the law, who love to walk up and down in
long robes, receiving respectful greetings in the street; and to have the
chief seats in synagogues, and places of honour at feasts. These are the men
who eat up the property of widows, while they say long prayers for appear-
ance' sake, and they will receive the severest sentence.'
Once he was standing opposite the temple treasury, watching as people
dropped their money into the chest. Many rich people were giving large
sums. Presently there came a poor widow who dropped in two tiny coins,
together with a farthing. He called his disciples to him. 'I tell you this,'
he said: 'this poor widow has given more than any of the others; for those
others who have given had more than enough, but she, wit less than
enough, has given all that she had to live on.'
13 AS HE WAS LEAVING the temple, one of the disciples exclaimed, 'Look,
Master, what huge stones! What fine buildings!' Jesus said to him, 'You
see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left upon another; all will
be thrown down.'
When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives facing the temple he was
questioned privately by Peter, James, John, and Andrew. 'Tell us,' they
said, 'when this will happen? What will be the sign when the fulfilment of
all this is at hand?'
Jesus began: 'Take care that no one misleads you. Many will come
claiming my name, and saying, "I am he"; and many will be misled by
them.
When you hear the noise of battle near at hand and the news of battles
far away, do not be alarmed. Such things are bound to happen; but the end
is still to come. For nation will make war upon nation, kingdom upon
kingdom; there will be earthquakes in many places; there will be famines.
With these things the birth-pangs of a new age begin.
'As for you, be on your guard. You will be handed over to the courts .
You will be flogged in synagogues. You will be summoned to appear before
governors and kings on my account to testify in their presence. But before
the end the Gospel must be proclaimed to all nations. So when you are
arrested and taken away, do not worry beforehand about what you will say,
but when the time comes say whatever is given you to say; for t is not you
who will be speaking, but the Holy Spirit. Brother will betray brother to
death, and the father his child; children will turn against their parents
and send them to their death. All will hate you for your allegiance to me;
but the man who holds out to the end will be saved.
'But when you see "the abomination of desolation" usurping a place
which is not his (let the reader understand, then those who are in Judaea
must take to the hills. If a man is on the roof, he must not come down into
the house to fetch anything out; if in the field, he must not turn back for his
coat. Alas for women with child in those days, and for those who have
children at the breast! Pray that it may not come in winter. For those days
will bring distress such as never has been until now since the beginning
of the world which God created — and will never be again. If the Lord had
not cut short that time of troubles, no living thing could survive. However,
for the sake of his own, whom he has chosen, he has cut short the time.
'Then, if anyone says to you, "Look, here is the Messiah", or, "Look,
there he is", do not believe it. Imposters will come claiming to be messiahs
or prophets, and they will produce signs and wonders to mislead God's
chosen, if such a thing were possible. But you be on your guard; I have
forewarned you of it all.
'But in those days, after that distress, the sun will be darkened, the moon
will not give her light; the stars will come falling from the sky, the celestial
powers will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in the
clouds with great power and glory, and he will send out the angels and
gather his chosen from the four winds, from the farthest bounds of earth
to the farthest bounds of heaven.
'Learn a lesson from the fig-tree. When its tender shoots appear and are
breaking into leaf, you know that summer is near. In the same way, when
you see this happening, you may know that the end is near, at the very
door. I tell you this: the present generation will live to see it all. Heaven
and earth will pass away; my words will never pass away.
'But about that day or that hour no one knows, not even the angels in
heaven, not even the Son; only the Father.
'Be alert, be wakeful. You do not know when the moment comes. It is
like a man away from home: he has left his house and put his servants in
charge, each with his own work to do, and he has ordered the door-keeper
to stay awake. Keep awake, then, for you do not know when the master
of the house is coming. Evening or midnight, cock-crow or early dawn —
if he comes suddenly, he must not find you asleep. And what I say to you,
I say to everyone: Keep awake.'
The New English Bible (with Apocrypha)
Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, 1970
Posted Dec 20, 2018, 4:04 PM UTC
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