New Testament

Week 5: Mark 11:1–16:20

1) Introduction.
a) The last six chapters of Mark focus exclusively on the final week of Jesus’ life, from his
triumphal entry on Palm Sunday (11:1–11) to the discovery of his empty tomb on
Resurrection Sunday (16:1–8).
b) My lesson outline presumes that you are already familiar with the basic chain of events
leading up to the crucifixion and resurrection. I won’t be giving a detailed account of the
events; instead I’ll be focusing on what Mark has to say about some of the events. We’ll
also be comparing and contrasting what Matthew and Luke had to say.
2) If we’re reading solely from Mark’s gospel, this is the first time Jesus has set foot in
Jerusalem since he began his ministry.
a) John has Jesus making multiple trips to Jerusalem, which is where get the idea that
Jesus’ ministry lasted three years. But if we read only the Synoptic Gospels, Jesus’
ministry appears to last less than a year.1
b) But even though his ministry has been confined largely to the area around Galilee, he’s
clearly known in Jerusalem, because he’s hailed by many people as a messiah.
3) Mark 11:1–11. Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
a) It may seem strange to us that the bystanders just let Jesus’ disciples take the colt, but it
was a common custom anciently to allow the use of animals for service to an important
figure.
i) The KJV translation “and straightway he will send him hither” (11:3b) is difficult to
follow. It means that Jesus will return the animal immediately when he’s done with
it. The bystanders take him at his word.
b) Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem on the colt has many ties to Old Testament customs, psalms,
and prophecies:
i) In the days of Kings David and Solomon, a new king would ride on a mule to the
place where he would be anointed by the high priest. The people would follow him,
playing music and celebrating. (1 Kings 1:38–40.)
ii) When Elisha anointed Jehu king to overthrow the wicked king Ahab, the king’s
officers took their cloaks and spread them on the steps in front of him (2 Kings 9:13
[1–13]).
iii) When the Maccabean army retook Jerusalem from the Syrian Greek occupiers in 141
B.C., “the Jews entered [the city] with praise and palm branches…because a great
army had been crushed and removed from Israel” (1 Maccabees 13:51). The palm
branches symbolized victory and independence (2 Maccabees 10:7).
iv) The people hailing Jesus shouted a psalm of thanksgiving: “Hosanna! Blessed is the
one who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Mark 11:9 = Psalm 118:25–26).

1
The Synoptic Gospels make no mention of Jesus celebrating the Passover (the Feast of Unleavened Bread), except during
the final week of his life (Matthew 26:2, 17–19; Mark 14:1, 12–16; Luke 22:1, 7–13). John mentions Jesus celebrating the
Passover three times (John 2:13; 6:4; 11:55), indicating a ministry greater than two and less than three years long.

© 2010, Mike Parker For personal use only. Not a Church publication.
Hurricane West Stake Adult Religion Class New Testament: Mark 11:1–16:20 Week 5, Page 2

(1) Hosanna is a Hebrew word that means, “O Lord, save us.” It’s a call to the Lord,
the King, to reign and prosper while protecting his people.
v) The entire episode is a fulfillment of the prophecy of Zechariah:
KJV Zechariah 9:9–10 NRSV Zechariah 9:9–10
9
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, 9
Rejoice greatly, O daughter Zion!
O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem!
cometh unto thee: he is just, and having Lo, your king comes to you;
salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, triumphant and victorious is he,
and upon a colt the foal of an ass.2 humble and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
And I will cut off the chariot from
10 10
He will cut off the chariot from Ephraim
Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the warhorse from Jerusalem;
and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he and the battle-bow shall be cut off,
shall speak peace unto the heathen: and and he shall command peace to the
his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, nations;
and from the river even to the ends of the his dominion shall be from sea to sea,
earth. and from the River3 to the ends of the
earth.
(1) This is a song celebrating the arrival of the king in Jerusalem (cf. Psalm 72). The
choice of the mount—a donkey instead of a war-horse—indicates he has peaceful
intentions.
(2) The verse 10 anticipates a peaceful kingdom that covers the entire earth,
something that was not fulfilled at this time (although the multitude who came to
see Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem certainly expected it to).
c) Clearly the people who came to honor Jesus as he entered the city saw him as the
Messiah and successor to the throne of David, and expected him to fulfill Old Testament
prophecies by overthrowing the Roman occupation and establishing an independent
nation of Israel.
i) But Jesus wasn’t here to save his people militarily—he came to save them spiritually,
something even his own disciples didn’t understand until after his resurrection.
4) In the three days between his entry into Jerusalem and the Last Supper, Jesus taught and
had interactions with other people. We’re going to cover most these events over the course
of our study of all four gospels. In this lesson, we’ll cover three stories:
a) Mark 11:12–14. The cursing of the fig tree.
i) I mentioned this story back in lesson 3 as an example of the “passionate Jesus” of
Mark. On the surface Jesus’ actions seem harsh and arbitrary, but what he did
actually has a symbolic meaning: 4
(1) The prophet Jeremiah frequently used figs and fig trees to symbolize the people
of Israel.5 He compared the corrupt and disobedient people of Judah to a fig tree
that grew no figs (Jeremiah 8:13).

2
The phrase “riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass” is a Hebrew parallelism; a single animal is meant here.
Matthew (21:5–7) misunderstood this and assumed two animals were meant.
3
The reference is to the Euphrates River in northern Syria.
4
In addition to the direct meaning given here, Jesus also used the cursed fig tree as an object lesson in faith; see Mark
11:20–25 (verse 26 is not in the oldest and best Greek manuscripts; it’s probably a scribal addition based on Matthew 6:15).
5
See Jeremiah 5:17; 8:13; 24:1–10; 29:17.

© 2010, Mike Parker For personal use only. Not a Church publication.
Hurricane West Stake Adult Religion Class New Testament: Mark 11:1–16:20 Week 5, Page 3

(2) Jesus’ cursing of the fig tree is representative of cursing of the people—or more
likely the leaders—of Israel, who have rejected the covenant and failed to
recognize their King. They have borne no fruit and are now cursed.
b) Mark 12:1–12. The parable of the wicked husbandmen.
i) This parable has a connection to the cursing of the fig tree (Mark 11:12–14, above).
ii) In this parable, a landowner leases his vineyard to tenants (KJV “husbandmen”), but
when the owner sends a slave to collect his portion of the fruit as rent, the tenants
beat the slave and send him away empty-handed. Several other slaves are beaten or
killed, and when the owner finally sends his own son, the tenants kill him. The owner
then destroys the tenants and gives the vineyard to others.
iii) After the parable Jesus quotes Psalm 118:22–23: The stone that the builders of a
house rejected ends up becoming the chief cornerstone.
(1) The stone, of course, represents Christ,6 as does the son in the parable.
iv) After Mark 12:11, insert Matthew 21:43–44, where Jesus interprets the parable.
v) Contrast the reaction of the Pharisees with Mark 4:11–12: These people understand
the parable, but not to salvation.7
c) Mark 12:28–34. Jesus on the greatest commandment.
i) A scribe approaches Jesus and asks him which is the first, or greatest,
commandment.
ii) Jesus responds by first quoting Deuteronomy 6:4–5, the opening passage from the
Shema.
(1) The Shema is the very heart of Jewish confession and faith. Twice each day,
observant Jews to this day recite the Shema in prayer, beginning with these
words: “Shema Yisrael Adonai Elohaynu Adonai Echad” (“Hear, o Israel, the
Lord our God, the Lord is One”).
(a) The word Shema is Hebrew for “hear,” the first word in the passage.
(b) This is an affirmation that Jehovah was the sole object of their devotion
(Deuteronomy 6:5, 14), as well as his superiority to all other gods and
therefore the only one worthy of their worship (Deuteronomy 7:9; 10:17).8
(2) Jesus’ response, then, would not have been surprising—in fact, the Jewish people
who heard him would certainly have responded, “of course!”
iii) Jesus then goes on to quote Leviticus 19:18, elevating that passage to the level of the
second great commandment.
iv) The other Synoptic writers have some interesting differences from Mark’s version of
this story:
(1) Unlike Matthew (22:35) and Luke (10:25), the scribe is favorable to Jesus (he
doesn’t “test” him)

6
Compare 1 Corinthians 10:4; Helaman 5:12.
7
See lesson 3, page7; http://scr.bi/LDSARCNT03n
8
See notes to Old Testament lesson 11, pages 5–7; http://scr.bi/LDSARCOT11n

© 2010, Mike Parker For personal use only. Not a Church publication.
Hurricane West Stake Adult Religion Class New Testament: Mark 11:1–16:20 Week 5, Page 4

(2) The scribe also reacts positively to Jesus’ answer, agreeing with Jesus and
receiving his blessing. (There is no analogue Mark 12:32–34 in Matthew and
Luke.)
5) Mark 14–15. Jesus’ betrayal and crucifixion.
a) Jesus prophesied three times that he would be betrayed, abused, and killed, and that he
would rise again on the third day after his death (Mark 8:31–33; 9:30–32; 10:32–34).
b) Mark 14:1–2, 10–11. The conspiracy against Jesus.
i) Since the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, people in positions of power have seen him as
a threat and have tried to find a way to destroy him (Mark 3:6).
(1) The tipping point is Jesus’ cleansing of the Jerusalem Temple, after which the
chief priests actively plot to have Jesus put to death (Mark 11:18).
(a) It seems that the priests saw Jesus’ actions in the temple, his teaching against
them, and his popular support among the people as a threat to their power
and the status quo that enabled them to enjoy their position.
ii) Matthew (26:3) says this conspiracy goes all the way to the high priest’s office.
c) Mark 14:17–25. The Last Supper.
i) The Synoptic Gospels approach the Last Supper in a very different manner than we
find in John.
(1) Firstly, the Synoptic accounts are much shorter:
(a) Mark only has 9 verses, the shortest of all.
(b) Matthew has 10 verses (26:20–29).
(c) Luke is the longest of the Synoptics, at 25 verses (22:14–38). He adds some
unique material, and moves some sayings of Jesus from other locations in
Mark to the Last Supper.9
(d) John, in contrast, has 155 verses—5 lengthy chapters (13–17).
(2) In the Synoptics Jesus only does two things during the Last Supper: Identifies
that he will be betrayed by one of the Twelve (but he doesn’t say who10), and
institutes the Lord’s Supper.
(a) Luke (22:21–38) adds a few sayings of Jesus on greatness in the kingdom of
God and Peter’s betrayal.
(b) Everything else we know, we get from John: Jesus washing the feet of the
apostles, his commandment to love one another, his teachings on the
Comforter and his relationship with the Father, and his great Intercessory
Prayer.

9
The Last Supper material that is unique to Luke is found in 22:35–38, where Jesus discourses about taking supplies with
them on their missionary journeys. Material that is moved from other locations in Mark to the Last Supper includes Jesus’
teaching on greatness in the kingdom of God (Luke 22:24–30; cf. Mark 10:42–45; Matthew 20:25–28). Luke also moves the
statement about drinking new wine in the kingdom to an earlier cup before the one representing his blood (22:15–17), moves
the revelation of a traitor in their midst from before the sacrament (Mark 14:17–21; Matthew 26:20–25) to after it (Luke
22:21–23), and moves his prediction of Peter’s denial from the Mount of Olives (Mark 14:26–31; Matthew 26:30–35) to the
Last Supper (Luke 22:31–34).
10
For that, we have to go to John (13:21–30).

© 2010, Mike Parker For personal use only. Not a Church publication.
Hurricane West Stake Adult Religion Class New Testament: Mark 11:1–16:20 Week 5, Page 5

ii) In the Synoptics, the Last Supper is identified as a Passover Seder (Mark 14:12–16;
cf. Matthew 26:17–19; Luke 22:7–13).
(1) The Passover, or Feast of Unleavened Bread, is kept by faithful Jews in
remembrance of God’s miracle in bringing the children of Israel out of Egypt. The
meal has very specific dishes—including lamb, bitter herbs, and unleavened
bread—each of which symbolize something about the Exodus.
(a) It’s called the Passover because the children of Israel took the blood of the
lambs they had slaughtered and spread it on the lintel and doorposts of their
homes. The angel of death saw the blood and passed over the homes of
Israelites. (Exodus 12:1–28.)
(b) This meal reaffirms the covenant between Jehovah and his people.
iii) At this Seder, Jesus instituted a new covenant, using symbols of bread and wine.
(1) The bread represents Jesus’ body, “which is given for you. Do this in
remembrance of me.” (Luke 22:19b).
(a) At the Lord’s Supper they used unleavened bread, what Jews refer to as
matzah,11 which looks like a giant saltine cracker.
(2) The new covenant12 (KJV “testament”) is in Jesus’ blood “which is shed [NRSV
“poured out”] for many for the remission of sins” (Matthew 26:28b).
(a) The replaces the blood the lambs that the people of Israel would sacrifice
(Mark 14:24).
(3) Bread and wine are items on the menu in the Passover Seder. Jesus is converting
the symbolism from one type of salvation (the Exodus) to another (the
Atonement).
(4) The prophet Jeremiah prophesied that the Lord would establish a new covenant
with Israel:
KJV Jeremiah 31:31–34 NRSV Jeremiah 31:31–34
31
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, 31
The days are surely coming, says the
that I will make a new covenant with the LORD, when I will make a new covenant
house of Israel, and with the house of with the house of Israel and the house of
Judah: Judah.
32
Not according to the covenant that I 32
It will not be like the covenant that I
made with their fathers in the day that I made with their ancestors when I took
took them by the hand to bring them out them by the hand to bring them out of
of the land of Egypt; which my covenant the land of Egypt—a covenant that they
they brake, although I was an husband broke, though I was their husband, says
unto them, saith the LORD: the LORD.
33
But this shall be the covenant that I will 33
But this is the covenant that I will make
make with the house of Israel; After with the house of Israel after those days,
those days, saith the LORD, I will put my says the LORD: I will put my law within
law in their inward parts, and write it in them, and I will write it on their hearts;
their hearts; and will be their God, and and I will be their God, and they shall be
they shall be my people. my people.

11
The Hebrew word is ‫( מצה‬mats•tsaw’). It appears 53 times in the Old Testament, where the KJV translates it as
“unleavened bread” (33×), “unleavened” (14×), “cakes” (5×), or “without leaven” (1×).
12
The word “new” not in found in the oldest and best manuscripts of Mark 14:24 and Matthew 26:28, but it is found in
Luke 22:20. Later scribes harmonized the gospels by inserting the word there.

© 2010, Mike Parker For personal use only. Not a Church publication.
Hurricane West Stake Adult Religion Class New Testament: Mark 11:1–16:20 Week 5, Page 6

And they shall teach no more every man

34 34
No longer shall they teach one another,
his neighbour, and every man his brother, or say to each other, “Know the Lord”,
saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all for they shall all know me, from the least
know me, from the least of them unto of them to the greatest, says the LORD; for
the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I I will forgive their iniquity, and
will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
remember their sin no more.
(a) According to Jeremiah’s prophecy not only would the new covenant replace
the one given through Moses when Israel was at Mount Sinai, it would be
superior to it (31:32).
(b) It will not be built around a visible symbol, like the tablets given to Moses, but
will be written in the hearts and minds of the people (31:33).
iv) Jesus concluded the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper by declaring that he would
“drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the
kingdom of God” (Mark 14:25).
(1) This prophecy appears to refer to a time after his second coming.
(a) None of the gospels record him drinking wine after his resurrection, and in
the presentation of the sacrament to the Nephites he himself did not partake
(3 Nephi 18:1–9).
(b) In August 1830 the Lord revealed to Joseph Smith that “the hour cometh that
I will drink of the fruit of the vine with you on the earth” (D&C 27:5a).
v) At the conclusion of the Seder, Jesus and his disciples sung “the hymn,” which refers
to Psalms 115–118, and then went out of the city, east to the Mount of Olives (Mark
14:26).
d) Mark 14:32–42. Mark’s Jesus in Gethsemane.
i) There are some significant differences between Mark and Luke about Jesus’
demeanor as he approaches the Passion:
(1) Mark’s Jesus is distressed and agitated, while Luke’s is calm and assured. (Mark
14:33–34 has no analogue in Luke.)
(2) Mark’s Jesus throws himself on the ground (Mark 14:35), while Luke’s kneels to
pray (Luke 22:41).
(3) Mark’s Jesus asks three times for “the cup” (his suffering) to removed (Mark
14:36, 39, 41), while Luke’s asks only once (22:42).
(4) This same attitude goes to the cross, which we’ll discuss shortly.
ii) Is there some significance in these differences? Note that both versions both end the
same way, with Jesus’ ultimate decision to go to the cross and complete the
Atonement. The only real difference between Mark and Luke is in Jesus’ attitude
toward it at the time.
(1) In my opinion, Mark’s is probably the more accurate account. Not only is his
version earlier than Luke’s, but it’s not driven by Luke’s agenda to present Jesus
as stoic and unflappable.
iii) I’d like to address the “urban legend” about Jesus’ use of the term “Abba” in Mark
14:36.

© 2010, Mike Parker For personal use only. Not a Church publication.
Hurricane West Stake Adult Religion Class New Testament: Mark 11:1–16:20 Week 5, Page 7

(1) This Aramaic word is found only in Mark; it is not in any of the other gospels.13
(2) Many Christians—including Latter-day Saints—have claimed that this is a
familial word that means something like “daddy” or “papa,” and that this shows
Jesus’ close relationship with his Father at this hour of his greatest need.14
(3) Unfortunately, this assertion is incorrect. It’s based on the work of a single
individual—the German Lutheran theologian Joachim Jeremias, in a book he
published in 1971.15 His analysis has since been shown to be inaccurate; abba
simply means “father.”16
(4) It’s a sweet and tender interpretation, but it isn’t true.
e) Mark 14:42–52. Jesus’ betrayal.
i) Again, there are some differences in this story among the Synoptic Gospels:
(1) Judas kisses Jesus in Mark (14:45) and Matthew (26:49), but only attempts to
kiss him in Luke before Jesus stops him (22:47–48).
(2) In all three accounts an unnamed disciple cuts off the ear of an unnamed slave of
the high priest, but only in Matthew and Luke does Jesus rebuke the disciple, and
only in Luke does Jesus heal the slave’s ear (Mark 14:47; Matthew 26:51–54;
Luke 22:49–51).17
(3) Only Mark (14:50) and Matthew (26:56b) indicate that his disciples deserted and
fled him.
ii) Mark 14:51–52 is probably the most cryptic passage in all of the gospels.
(1) There are so many unanswered questions about this:
(a) Who was the young man?
(b) Why was he following Jesus?
(c) Why was he wearing only a linen sheet, and not the tunic most people wore?
(d) Why didn’t the guards try to arrest him?
(2) There are several theories that try to explain this story:
(a) The traditional account is that the young man is Mark himself, who inserts
himself anonymously into the story.
(b) A second explanation is that this is the young man who was sitting in Jesus’
empty tomb when the women arrived (Mark 16:5–7). This would mean that
an angel was standing nearby in Gethsemane and fled when the soldiers tried
to arrest him.

13
It also appears twice in Paul’s letters: Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:6.
14
This claim has even shown up in General Conference: See Jeffrey R. Holland, “The Hands of the Fathers,” April 1999
(http://bit.ly/Ensign199905Holland); Russell M. Nelson, “The Atonement,” October 1996, footnote 38
(http://bit.ly/Ensign199611Nelson).
15
Joachim Jeremias, New Testament Theology, Vol. 1: The Proclamation of Jesus (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1971).
16
See James Barr, “’Abbā Isn’t ‘Daddy,’” The Journal of Theological Studies 39/1 (April 1988), 28–47. This article is not
available for free online, but a brief summary is available at http://graphe.wordpress.com/2006/10/05/does-abba-mean-
daddy/
17
John’s gospel identifies the disciple as Simon Peter, and the slave as Malchus (John 18:10–11). Jesus does not heal
Malchus’ ear in John’s account, either.

© 2010, Mike Parker For personal use only. Not a Church publication.
Hurricane West Stake Adult Religion Class New Testament: Mark 11:1–16:20 Week 5, Page 8

(c) A third possibility is that this portion of the story is symbolic. The young man
who runs off represents all of Jesus’ companions, and his nakedness
represents how they’ve been exposed as unfaithful and defenseless deserters.18
(3) Whatever its meaning, it appears that Mark intended that his readers would
understand it, but that message has been lost.19 Matthew and Luke don’t repeat
this passage, so it seems they didn’t know what to make of it, either.20
f) Mark 14:53–65. Jesus before the Sanhedrin.
i) Jesus is much more direct in Mark’s account. When asked if he is the Christ, or
Messiah, he answers affirmatively (14:61–62), while Matthew (26:63b–64) and Luke
(22:67–69) portray him as being more coy and indirect.
g) Mark 15:1–15. Jesus before Pontius Pilate.
i) All three Synoptic Gospels tell the same story about Jesus’ encounter with the
Roman prefect over Judea: Pilate asks him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” and
Jesus simply responds, “You say so” (Mark 15:2; Matthew 27:11; Luke 23:3).
ii) Mark (15:5) and Matthew (27:14) record that Jesus refused to say anything else, and
that Pilate was amazed.
(1) Contrast this with John, where Jesus has a long discussion with Pilate on Jesus’
authority and the nature of truth (John 18:33–38; 19:8–11).
iii) Luke provides the most sympathetic portrayal of Pilate, recording that he told the
Jewish leaders that he could find no fault in Jesus and he intended to release him
(Luke 23:4, 14–16; cf. John 19:12–16).21
(1) Historical records outside the New Testament aren’t so kind to him.
(a) The Jewish historian Philo, a contemporary of Jesus (20 B.C.–A.D. 50) recorded
that Pilate was “a man of a very inflexible disposition, and very merciless as
well as very obstinate,” and referred to Pilate’s “corruption, and his acts of
insolence, and his rapine [theft of property], and his habit of insulting people,
and his cruelty, and his continual murders of people untried and
uncondemned, and his never ending, and gratuitous, and most grievous
inhumanity.”22
(2) It seems likely that Luke and John were attempting to reinforce the argument
that the guilt for Jesus’ death lay squarely in the hands of the Jewish authorities,
and that the Roman officers were simply accessories to murder.23

18
In Amos 2:16 a prophecy against Israel foresees that even the “stout of heart among the mighty will flee away naked”
(NRSV).
19
Mark includes several passages that are apparently designed for people who already know the story and would recognize
what’s going on. Mark 15:21, for example, mentions that Simon the Cyrenian, who was impelled to carry Jesus’ cross, was “the
father of Alexander and Rufus.” Mark doesn’t tell us who Alexander and Rufus were; it’s assumed his readers were familiar
with them.
20
New Testament scholar Morton Smith claimed to have discovered a 17th-century transcript of an ancient account that
has more details from Mark about the young man in the linen cloth. The expanded account, known as the Secret Gospel of
Mark, describes Jesus raising the young man from the dead, after which he remains with Jesus all night and learns “the
mystery of the kingdom of God.” Smith was not able to produce the original document, only photographs of it, so there has
been considerable dispute over its authenticity and meaning. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secret_Gospel_of_Mark
21
Luke also records an additional event not in Mark or Matthew: Pilate sends Jesus to Herod Antipas, who was in
Jerusalem at the time. Jesus refuses to speak to Herod, so Herod sends him back to Pilate. (Luke 23:6–12.)
22
Philo, On The Embassy of Gauis, Book XXXVIII, 301–02; http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/yonge/book40.html
23
JST Luke 23:35 seems to support this by adding the parenthetical remark “(Meaning the soldiers who crucified him)” to
explain Jesus plea for the Father to “forgive them; for they know not what they do.”

© 2010, Mike Parker For personal use only. Not a Church publication.
Hurricane West Stake Adult Religion Class New Testament: Mark 11:1–16:20 Week 5, Page 9

h) Mark 15:22–41. The crucifixion.

i) The demeanor of Jesus on the cross in Mark is very consistent with how Mark has
described him thus far: He’s clearly distressed and alone, and doesn’t say much.
(1) He is derided by passersby (15:29–30), the chief priests and scribes (15:31–32a),
and the two thieves who were crucified with him (15:32b).
(2) Jesus hung on the cross for six hours—from 9:00 AM until 3:00 PM24—until he
expired.
(3) The one thing he does say is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (in
Aramaic, which Mark and Matthew quote and then translate into Greek—Mark
15:34; Matthew 27:46). He then gives a loud cry and dies (Mark 15:37).
ii) Luke’s Jesus is much more composed and assured during his time on the cross.
(1) In Luke, Jesus says two things: He promises the thief who pleaded for mercy that
he would be with him that day in paradise (Luke 23:42–43), and his cry at the
end isn’t one of abandonment, but rather of submission: “Father, into your hands
I commend my spirit” (23:46).
(2) Luke eliminates the mocking of the passersby and adds mocking from the Roman
soldiers (Luke 23:36). In fact, the passersby in Luke are remorseful at Jesus’
crucifixion (23:48).
(3) One other interesting detail from Luke is that, at the moment of Jesus’ death, the
veil in the Jerusalem Temple is torn in two (23:45). Luke doesn’t interpret the
meaning of this for us, but the general assumption is that it represents the end of
the covenant through Moses, signified by the ordinances of the old temple, and
the beginning of direct, personal access to God through Jesus rather than through
the mediation of a human high priest.25
6) Mark 16. Jesus’ resurrection and the four endings of Mark.
a) In the earliest and best manuscripts, Mark’s gospel ends at 16:8.
i) The women encounter the “young man” (who’s assumed to be an angel), who tells
them to inform the disciples that he has been resurrected and gone to Galilee. They
flee in terror and ignore his instructions by not saying anything to anyone.
ii) This is a very mysterious and unsatisfying ending. It’s very much unlike the endings
to the other gospels, which have Jesus appearing in glory to his disciples, giving
them final instructions, and ascending into heaven.
iii) Why does Mark end his gospel this way? There are at least four possibilities:26
(1) He intended to end it that way. Perhaps he wanted to be enigmatic and allow the
readers to decide for themselves what they would have done.27 This seems
unlikely, but it is possible.

24
The Romans reckoned time beginning at sunrise. The “third hour” (Mark 15:25) would have been three hours after
sunrise, or about 9:00 AM, and the “ninth hour” (Mark 15:34) would have been about 3:00 PM.
25
This is the argument made in Hebrews 8–9.
26
For a good overview of different viewpoints on this, see http://www.bible-researcher.com/endmark.html
27
Or perhaps it was a call for early Christians to gather to Galilee (Mark 16:7; cf. 14:28)to await the Jesus’ coming in power
and glory, as he predicted in Mark 13:24–31.

© 2010, Mike Parker For personal use only. Not a Church publication.
Hurricane West Stake Adult Religion Class New Testament: Mark 11:1–16:20 Week 5, Page 10

(2) He was unable to finish it. Maybe he died before completing it, or there were
political events (like the fall of Jerusalem in A.D. 70) that prevented him from
writing more. This also seems unlikely.
(3) Mark did have a longer ending, but it was lost. Maybe his original manuscript
was a scroll or codex that lost its final section or page.
(4) Mark did have a longer ending, but it was suppressed. Perhaps some early
Christians either opposed it on doctrinal grounds, or considered it sacred and
were afraid of non-Christians reading it.
b) Whatever the reason, later scribes, who were not satisfied with the ending, added their
own endings the story so that it concluded in a more satisfactory way.
i) There were at least three longer endings circulating in the first few centuries.
(1) The shortest ending simply states:
And all that had been commanded them they told briefly to those around
Peter. And afterwards Jesus himself sent out through them, from east to west,
the sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal salvation.28
(2) The longer ending, which is in our King James Bible as Mark 16:9–20, was
written sometime in the 2nd century, and was circulating with Mark before A.D.
200.
(a) It contains 17 words or word-usages that are found nowhere else in Mark, and
the transition from 16:8 to 16:9 is forced.
(b) It appears to be assembled from phrases in Matthew and Luke. For example it
refers to Mary Magdalene “out of whom [Jesus] had cast seven devils” (Mark
16:9 = Luke 8:2), Jesus’ appearance to the two unnamed disciples (Mark
16:12–13 = Luke 24:13–35), and his ascension to heaven where he sits on the
right hand of God (Mark 16:19 = Matthew 26:64; Luke 22:69).
(c) Like many changes to later manuscripts, the longer ending became part of the
Latin Vulgate, then was introduced into the Textus Receptus, and then
became part of the King James text.
(i) All modern Bibles either set 16:9–20 apart as an appendix, or offset it in
brackets or a smaller font.
(3) There was an addition to the longer ending that circulated in the 4th century.
This added the following text after verse 14 to explain the apostles’ “unbelief and
hardness of heart”:
And they [the apostles] excused themselves, saying, “This age of lawlessness
and unbelief is under Satan, who does not allow the truth and power of God to
prevail over the unclean things of the spirits. Therefore reveal your
righteousness now”—thus they spoke to Christ.
And Christ replied to them, “The term of years of Satan’s power has been
fulfilled, but other terrible things draw near. And for those who have sinned I
was handed over to death, that they may return to the truth and sin no more,
that they may inherit the spiritual and imperishable glory of righteousness that
is in heaven.”

28
This ending is found after verse 8 in four Greek manuscripts from the 7th, 8th, and 9th centuries, as well as in Codex
Bobiensis, an important Old Latin manuscript written about A.D. 400.

© 2010, Mike Parker For personal use only. Not a Church publication.
Hurricane West Stake Adult Religion Class New Testament: Mark 11:1–16:20 Week 5, Page 11

ii) Are any of these longer endings true? It’s not impossible that they represent a textual
tradition that comes from the 1st century. They’re certainly not part of Mark’s
original text, but they may be legitimate.
7) In this lesson we’ve covered Jesus’ final week in Jerusalem and his Atonement, as described
by Mark.
a) There will be no class next week.
b) In two weeks we’ll start Matthew’s gospel, and we’ll cover his birth narrative, the calling
of the apostles, and the Sermon on the Mount.
i) Reading: Matthew 1:1–7:29.

© 2010, Mike Parker For personal use only. Not a Church publication.