The Word Made Fresh
1Jesus moved on from that place toward Judea on the other side of the Jordan. Crowds gathered around him and, as always, he taught them.
2Some Pharisees came to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?”
3“What did Moses command you?” Jesus answered.
4“Moses said a man can write a certificate of divorce and dismiss her,” they said.
5Then Jesus told them, “Moses said this because of your hard-heartedness. 6But since the time of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ 7And that is why ‘a man shall leave his parents and be joined to his wife, 8and the two will become one.’ So, they are no longer two, but one. 9What God has joined, no one should separate.”
10Back in the house, the disciples questioned him further on the subject. 11He told them, “Any man who divorces his wife and marries another has committed adultery. 12Any woman who divorces her husband and marries another has committed adultery.”
13People had begun to bring little children to Jesus just to have him touch them. The disciples tried to turn them away, 14but Jesus saw it and was angry. He told them, “Let the children come to me. Don’t hold them back. The kingdom of God belongs to little ones like these. 15The truth is that anyone who does not accept the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” 16Then he gathered them in his arms and held them and blessed them.
17Jesus was preparing for a journey when he was interrupted by a man who ran up and knelt in front of him and asked, “Good Teacher, what do I need to do to inherit life eternal?”
18“Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked him. “Only God is good. 19Surely you know the commandments – don’t commit adultery; don’t steal; don’t lie when asked to testify; don’t cheat; honor your parents.’”
20The man said, “Teacher, I have obeyed all these since I was young.”
21Jesus looked at him lovingly and said, “You only lack one thing, then. Go and sell what you have and give it all to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come and follow me.”
22When the man heard this, he was crestfallen, and walked away sadly because he was very wealthy.
23Jesus said to his disciples, “How difficult it will be for the wealthy to enter God’s kingdom.”
24The disciples were taken aback by this, and Jesus explained further, “Children, how difficult it is for the wealthy to enter the kingdom of God. 25It’s easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a wealthy person to enter God’s kingdom.”
26They were very shocked at this, and said among themselves, “Who, then, can be saved?”
27Jesus looked at them and said, “It is impossible for men and women, but not for God. Anything is possible for God.”
28Peter started to argue with him. “We have left everything to follow you!” he said.
29“The truth,” Jesus told him, “is that there is no one who has left home and family and farms for my sake and for the sake of the gospel 30who will not receive a hundred times what they have in this life – houses, siblings, parents, children, and fields. And in the age to come they will also receive eternal life. 31But many of those who are first now will be last then, and those who are last will be first.”
32They were on the road that leads up to Jerusalem. Jesus walked ahead of them, and the disciples were surprised and others who followed were afraid. He gathered the twelve together and began to explain what was going to happen to him. 33He said, “We are going to Jerusalem, and there the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and scribes. They will condemn him to death and hand him over to the Gentiles. 34They will make fun of him and spit on him and whip him and kill him. But after three days he will rise again.”
35James and John, the sons of Zebedee, approached Jesus and said, “Teacher, we want you to do what we ask of you.”
36Jesus said, “And what do you want me to do for you?”
37They said, “Let one of us be seated at your right hand and the other at your left when you come into your glory.”
38Jesus replied, “You don’t understand what you ask. Can you drink the cup I will drink, or be baptized the way I will be baptized?”
39“We can!” they said.
Then Jesus explained, “Oh, you will drink the cup I drink and you will be baptized in the way I will be, 40but to sit at my side is not for me to grant; it is for those for who it has been planned.”
41When the other ten disciples heard this exchange they were angry with James and John. 42So Jesus called them together and told them, “You know how the Gentile rulers lord it over them and their great men are tyrants. 43But that’s not how things are with you. Whoever among you wishes to be great must be your servant, 44and whoever wishes to be first must serve as a slave to the others. 45For the Son of Man came, not to be served, but to serve and to give up his life as a ransom for many others.”
46They arrived at Jericho and as Jesus and his disciples were leaving the city with a large crowd following, a blind beggar, Bartimaeus the son of Timaeus, was sitting beside the road. 47When he heard that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by he began to shout, “Jesus! Son of David! Have mercy on me!”
48The people around him told him to be quiet, but he called out even louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
49Jesus stopped and said, “Tell him to come here.”
They called to the blind man, “Calm down and get up on your feet! He’s asking for you!”
50Bartimaeus threw off his blanket and got to his feet and came to Jesus. 51Then Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?”
The blind man said, “Teacher, let me see again!”
52“Go,” said Jesus. “Your faith has healed you.”
And immediately Bartimaeus could see, and began to follow Jesus on the road.
Commentary
1: Jesus’ route to Jerusalem avoids Samaria, but crowds are now following him everywhere.
2-9: The Pharisees show up again. The territory beyond the Jordan was in a region known as Perea in Jesus’ day, which was part of the kingdom of Herod Antipas. The Pharisees challenge Jesus with a question about divorce. Remember that John the baptizer had been put to death because he challenged Herod’s divorce and remarriage (see 6:17-18), and the Pharisees see an opportunity to entrap Jesus. Jesus does not hesitate to take the same stance as John had taken, quoting Genesis 2:24 and declaring that marriage is a permanent covenant between a man and a woman.
10-12: Mark often depicts Jesus having private sessions with the disciples immediately following public pronouncements to instruct them in more detail, but it says something about them that he has to give further explanation for the sacredness of marriage vows.
13-16: The disciples just cannot give up the idea that their relationship with Jesus somehow gives them an elevated status in the world. They simply cannot fathom that little children might be just as important, or even more important, than they. Once again Jesus emphasizes child-like faith as an essential character trait in the kingdom of God.
17-22: The story of the rich man who would earn eternal life is told in Matthew, Mark, and Luke with only slight variations. Jesus rebuffs the man’s patronizing tone (“good teacher”). Interestingly, Jesus recites only those commandments that have to do with our relationships with one another, not the ones that have to do with our relationship with God. But then Jesus decides that the rich man might become the thirteenth disciple, and gives him an invitation on the spot. There is one requirement, however: the man must get rid of his great wealth first. He can’t bring himself to do that.
23-27: Again, Jesus uses a public event to instruct his disciples privately. You cannot buy your way into the kingdom of God, he tells them.
28-31: Peter protests. He and the others have made great sacrifices to follow Jesus. What’s in it for them? Jesus tells them that earthly wealth is a fleeting thing. They may very well obtain much in the way of material and familial rewards, but persecutions will come “in this age.” Eternal life in the “age to come” is their true reward, but it will not be based on who is first “in this age.”
32-34: Although the disciples still follow him, the confrontation over rewards has left them shaken. One last time Jesus tells them privately what is going to happen to him, and this time he gives them much more in the way of details about the suffering he is going to experience at the hands of both Jewish and Gentile authorities.
35-40: In response, James and John ask a favor! They understand that Jesus must suffer before his elevation to the throne, and they are willing to go through that with him, but can you believe their nerve? Jesus assures them that they will indeed suffer, but he will not designate a pecking order for his disciples.
41-45: The other disciples are indignant. Jesus tells them to stop acting like Gentiles. In the kingdom of God leadership is a way to serve others.
46-52: They cross back over the Jordan and come to Jericho on the way to Jerusalem. A blind man named Bartimaeus interrupts him as he is leaving Jericho with a large crowd. This is the last healing miracle Mark will report, and this time Jesus heals the blind man with just a word. Bartimaeus’ story must be read as a commentary on discipleship: he is an example of the attitude the twelve should themselves exhibit by now.
Takeaway
The squabbling that arises among the disciples is like the kinds of squabbles that arise among leaders in the local church, and sometimes between pastors and laity. Being given a title, or holding a leadership position in a congregation is an honor, but in no way elevates our status in heaven. God calls us to serve, not to be important.