Gospel of Mark, Week 2, Page 1 of 10

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1 Gospel of Mark, Week 2, Page 1 of 10 Pre-lecture note: The good news is that the sound is better than last week. The bad news is that we had technical problems with the video. The disc on which the first four lectures were recorded is defective, so these will be audio only. Lectures 5-9 will be audio-video. We have recorded literally hundreds of lectures in the past few years, and this is the first time this problem has occurred. Please accept my apologies. Fr. Pat Music: Excerpt from Al-Horishonim, available in MP3 from Tara Publications. Read Greek Text Lecture 1. Mark 2:1-11, Healing a Paralytic, Aland 43 Literary Form mixed: Healing story / Controversy Story (For elements of typical healing story, see the notes on Mark 1:29-31, Simon's mother-in-law) Controversy Story 1) A controversy story places the teacher in a situation where his teaching is challenged. 2) The teaching is of interest to the writer's audience. Otherwise, he would not have included the story. Elements of a Controversy Story a) Situation b) Point of dispute. c) Decisive Saying (the whole story is told for the sake of this "punch line." d) Reaction (of disciples / bystanders / opponents Function of the Miracle In this pericope, the miracle functions to authorize the power of the Son of Man to forgive sins. Lecture 2. Brief Remarks on "Son of Man" Video trouble continues through this lecture, plus two more. 3 Stages of Tradition found in Gospels (for details, take Introduction to the NT course) Stage One: Words and deeds of Jesus Stage Two: Preaching / Teaching of Early Church Stage Three: Writing of Evangelists Implications Simply because one of the Gospels attributes an idea / insight to Jesus or the disciples in Stage One We cannot be sure whether the insight in fact goes back to Stage One Or comes from Stage Two or Stage Three. Son of Man occurs 14x in Mark; first occurrence is 2:10, in this passage. Point 1: Poetry. In the OT it is generally (99%+) a poetic way of saying human being Note the poetic parallelism in Ps 8:4 what is man that thou art mindful of him, and the son of man that thou dost care for him? (RSV) Point 2: Symbolism. In Daniel 7:13 the phrase refers to a person who approaches God s throne in heaven.

2 Gospel of Mark, Week 2, Page 2 of I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. 14 And to him was given dominion and glory and kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. (RSV) An angel later (7:27) explains to Daniel that the figure in his vision is a collective symbol for many people, for all who have been faithful to God in the persecution. And the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High; their kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey them. Point 3. Evolution of the idea. In Daniel (ca. 170 BC) Son of Man is a collective figure. By 70 AD Son of Man had become a title that referred to an individual, rather than to a collective. There are two main theories about when this evolution took place. Theory One By the time of Jesus, Jews had already begun to use Son of Man as a title for an individual. The Son of Man was the one God would send to judge the world in his name. Some Jews identified this Son of Man with the Messiah; others kept these characters separate. The only difference between Jews and early Christians was 1) For other Jews the Son of Man was a fearsome, unknown character 2) For Christians the Son of Man was no stranger, but the Lord they worshipped every day. Possible Corollaries of Theory One. Some claim that Jesus thought of himself as the one who would judge the world in God s name. Others claim that Jesus thought God was going to send somebody else to be the Son of Man. e.g., Matt 16:13-15 can be understood to refer to somebody else (so Bultmann) Theory Two (Fitzmyer) Early Christians were the first Jews to use Son of Man as a title for an individual. They did this after the resurrection. The image of Jesus ascending to heaven reminded them of the Son of Man in Daniel 7. Implications of Theory Two If Jesus ever used the phrase son of Man, he was simply saying human being in a poetic way. The historical Jesus (Stage One) never imagined himself as the one who would judge the world in God s name. (Fitzmyer disagrees with Bultmann s interpretation of Matt 16:13-15, because at Stage One, nobody--including Jesus himself--used of son of Man as a title for an individual.) After the resurrection (Stages 2 and 3), Christians read their post-resurrectional understanding back into the life of Jesus. Lecture 3. Notes on Mark 2:1-11 Video trouble continues through this lecture and the next one. 2:1 "at home" en oikō, εν οικω could also be translated "in a house." The Q tradition has a saying that the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head (Matt 8:20 Luke 9:58) Mark, not knowing this tradition, has no problem portraying Jesus as a home-owner in Capernaum.

3 Gospel of Mark, Week 2, Page 3 of 10 "in a housse" (Tyndale, 1534). "at the house" (Darby Bible, 1890). Italics note "the" is not in the Greek. "in the house" (Peshitta 1, BNT 2, Douay, ERV, 3 KJV, Geneva Bible 4, NJB, NKJV, NWB 5, RNWB 6, YLT 7 ). "at home" (BBE 8, CSB 9, CJB 10, ESV 11, NAB, NASB, NET, NRSV, RSV ) "home" (GWN 12, NIV, NLT 13 ) 2:5 "their faith" This is ambiguous. It can refer to the faith of the stretcher-bearers only OR It can refer to the faith of the stretcher-bearers and the faith of the paralytic. 2:5 "are forgiven" a "divine passive" A reverent Jewish way of avoiding saying "God" too often. Your sins are forgiven = God has forgiven your sins. Other NT examples Blessed are they who mourn for they shall be comforted (Matt 5:4) Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy (Matt 5:7) 2:7 Puzzling question of the scribes Jesus has not claimed to forgive sins. He has reverently used a divine passive. In doing this, he has acted as a prophet--a prophet's job is to "speak for God." E.g., Nathan's words to David in 2 Sam 12:13 Then David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the LORD." Nathan answered David: "The LORD on his part has forgiven your sin: you shall not die (NAB). Two possibilities 1) Perhaps the "blasphemy" is in claiming to be one of God's prophets? 2) These are not words of Jewish scribes in the 30's, who would know a "divine passive." Rather, these are words of Mark--who did not understand divine passives!--put into the mouth of those scribes to deal with a problem his community was having about the year 70. The Problem (in Mark's Day) The Bible provides God's people with the means to have their sins forgiven. In general, these involve various sacrifices, and forms of restitution. Christians believe that through baptism, their sins have been forgiven by Jesus, the risen Son of Man. Do they still have to offer sacrifices? The Scribes (in the late 60's) say: Yes, sacrifice is still necessary. 1 No Greek manuscripts say "the house, but the Peshitta (4th century Aramaic version) can be so translated. English translations by Etheridge (1849), Murdock (1851), and Mageira (2006) all read "the." 2 Bishops' NT, 1595 (before King James). 3 English Revised Version, (before King James). 5 Noah Webster Bible, Revised Noah Webster Bible, Young's Literal Translation, Bible in Basic English, Holman Christian Standard Bible, Complete Jewish Bible, David Stern, English Standard Version, God's Word to the Nations, New Living Translation, 2004.

4 Gospel of Mark, Week 2, Page 4 of 10 Mark answers that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins. The (now risen) Son of Man works through Baptism, and that is enough! 2:8-11 Where do the "red letters" belong? All punctuation removed and immediately Jesus perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves said to them why do you question thus in your hearts which is easier to say to the paralytic your sins are forgiven or to say rise take up your pallet and walk but that you may know that the son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins he said to the paralytic I say to you rise take up your pallet and go home RSV And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, "Why do you question thus in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, `Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, `Rise, take up your pallet and walk'? 10 But that you may know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins" -- he said to the paralytic "I say to you, rise, take up your pallet and go home." This punctuation interprets most of verse 10 as what Jesus said to the scribes in 30 A.D. Alternative Punctuation And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, "Why do you question thus in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, `Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, `Rise, take up your pallet and walk'?" 10 But that you may know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins -- he said to the paralytic "I say to you, rise, take up your pallet and go home." This punctuation interprets all of verse 10 as an aside from the author to the reader in 70 A.D. For another Marcan aside to the reader, see 13:14 Reminder: Important Distinction Occasionally (when difficulties in the text make it necessary) I will discuss the historical Jesus (Stage 1). This course is primarily a course about the Marcan Jesus (Stage 3). Mark s faith portrait of Jesus written about the year 70. Read Greek Text Lecture 4. Mark 2:13-17, Call of Levi, Aland 44, Part 1 Video trouble continues until the end of this lecture. Literary Form: Call Story (13-14), Dispute Story (15-17) Call Story: See notes on Mark 1:16-20 Dispute Story: See notes on Mark 2:1-11 Notes Verse 13 is transitional. Teaching is one of Mark s main themes. Verse 14 is actually contains the entire call story. Verse 14. Levi. Not included in Mark s list of the Twelve (3:16-19). Probably why the name was changed to Matthew in the first Gospel.

5 Gospel of Mark, Week 2, Page 5 of 10 Tax Office / Customs House Galilee was occupied by the Romans. Levi collected taxes for them They were probably about as welcome as Americans in Iraq or Afghanistan. Those who collaborated with them were probably as popular as those who work with us. Think of the scalawags who worked with carpet baggers after the US Civil War It is significant that Jesus invites this scalawag to be his disciple. Lecture 5. Mark 2:13-17, Part 2 Now the video is working! v. 15 his house The phrase is ambiguous. It can refer to the house of Jesus (2:1) or the house of Levi. NAB note. Luke 5:29 clearly calls it Levi's house. Note to NAB note. It would be a mistake to think Luke had more historical information than Mark. He is, however, a better writer! ( Better in the sense of more clear. ) Joel Marcus thinks it was Peter s house --???? (J. Marcus, Mark 1-8 AB ) Sinners (J. Marcus, Mark 1-8 AB ) tax-collectors and sinners can be a hendiadys (literally, one-through-two ), i.e. sinful tax-collectors J. Jeremias, people of the land who were often ritually impure. E. P. Sanders. Flagrant violators of the law (see e.g., Mark 7:21-22) The (omniscient) narrator calls them sinners (v. 15) The Marcan Jesus calls them sinners (v. 17). A prophetic gesture OT prophets prophesied not only with words, but also with actions. E.g., Jeremiah, Hananiah, and the yoke (Jeremiah 28) The gesture is sacramental. It effects what it signifies. Jeremiah s actions are treasonous. The Kingdom as a Banquet OT prophets sometimes portrayed God s future blessings as a great banquet (e.g. Isa 25:6) On this mountain the LORD of hosts will provide for all peoples A feast of rich food and choice wines, juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines (NAB). By dining with outsiders Jesus prophesies a big tent view of the kingdom. This offends the pious--even today! Verse 16, Pharisees One of 3 Jewish philosophies described by Josephus A pious lay movement (in contrast to the priestly Sadducees) They were admired by most people for their high religious standards They built a fence around the Torah (did more than God s Law required) After the destruction of the Temple they were the only game in town --other than Christianity. They are the ancestors of all modern forms of Judaism They get a lot of bad press in the NT; some of it deserved, some of it cheap shots Verse 17a hearing In 2:8 ( knowing in his spirit ) Jesus is portrayed has having prophetic insight. Holy men are often portrayed as being especially perceptive E.g., Curé of Ars

6 Gospel of Mark, Week 2, Page 6 of 10 In this case, by contrast, there is nothing unusual about his perception. Verse 17b is the punch line The whole story is told for the sake of the punch line. Those who preach / teach on a controversy story will do well to focus on the punch line! Read Greek Text Lecture 6. Mark 2:18-22, Question about Fasting, Aland 45 Literary Forms Overall: A Controversy Story, See notes on 2:1-11 Contained within it: several short Parables (2:19,21-22) and a Prophetic Oracle (2:20) Verse 18 The repetition of the disciples of John and the [disciples of] the Pharisees is awkward. Testimony to Mark s limited writing skills. Both Matthew and Luke omit the first mention of John and the Pharisees. The verse sets the scene, describing the point of the controversy. Verse 19, the parable of the bridegroom Jesus compares his proclamation of good news with the joy of a wedding. Message: Fasting is inappropriate at this happy time. Verse 20 This prophetic oracle interrupts the series of parables with which Jesus makes his point. The message of this verse would have been of little concern to Jesus questioners in the 30 s. The message of this verse is of concern to the Marcan community. It explains why they fast, even though Jesus original disciples did not fast. It is possible that this comes from Stage 2 or Stage 3 of the tradition (See lecture 1 of this week). In any case, the Marcan Jesus prophesies that in the future his disciples will fast. The Marcan Jesus When a scholar says the Marcan Jesus (or Matthean, Lucan, Johannine Jesus) this generally means: I am aware this word or deed might or might not come from Jesus himself. I am not taking sides on that argument here. I am focusing on the faith-portrait of Jesus by a particular evangelist. Verse 21, the parable of the patch. Patchwork spirituality will not be enough. Message: traditional practices such as fasting are not an appropriate response to the arrival of the Kingdom. This verse has inspired the title of a worthwhile book Sandra M. Schneiders. Beyond Patching: Faith and Feminism in the Catholic Church. Revised Edition. Paulist Press, ISBN Verse 22, the parable of the wine skins. Message similar to the previous parable. Jesus teaching is new wine. Putting it into old wineskins will not work.

7 Gospel of Mark, Week 2, Page 7 of 10 Message: traditional practices are not an appropriate response to the arrival of the Kingdom. This is very different from the teaching of the Matthean Jesus "Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. 18 Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. 19 Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven. (Matt 5:17-19 NAB) We will not find anything like this in Mark! Lecture 7. Mark 2:23-28, Plucking Grain on the Sabbath, Aland 46, Part 1. Read Greek Text Literary Form: Controversy Story / Pronouncement Story See notes on 2:1-11 Sometimes Controversy Stories are called Pronouncement Stories because the who story is told for the sake of the pronouncement which forms the punch line. I will deal with subsidiary questions before getting to the main point of the story. Verse 23 making a road In Latin iter facere (literally to make a road ) can mean to make a journey. Cf. the English phrase to make one s way. In Greek hodon poiein means to build a road. It does not have a metaphorical meaning. Both Matthew and Luke omit the phrase. This literal translation of a Latin idiom into Greek is one argument for Mark being written in Rome. An argument is not a proof. Mark s Limited Writing Skills I will refer to these from time-to-time during the course. They tell us about the social location of the first Gospel to be written They are an important argument against the verbal dictation model of inspiration. If inspired writers are simply taking dictation why can t Mark write as well as Matthew? Verse 26, Abiathar The high priest was not Abiathar (David s famous high-priest), but his less famous father, Ahimelech. 2 David went to Ahimelech, the priest of Nob, who came trembling to meet him... 4 Now what have you on hand? Give me five loaves, or whatever you can find." 5 But the priest replied to David, "I have no ordinary bread on hand, only holy bread; if the men have abstained from women, you may eat some of that." (1Sam 21:2a,4-5 NAB) This verse raises a Christological question: How much did Jesus know? Here he appears to be quoting scripture from memory, and getting it wrong. Stage 1, Stage 3? (John Meier, Marginal Jew, Volume 2 somewhere). It is almost certain, however, that this verse does not go back to Jesus. The Pharisees were experts in scripture. If Jesus had actually said this, they would have hooted with laughter, and nailed him then and there!

8 Gospel of Mark, Week 2, Page 8 of 10 The problem is the Marcan Jesus (Stage3), not the historical Jesus (Stage 1). Mark has made up this story 1) to pass on his understanding of Jesus teaching on the law 2) which is relevant for his community Matthew and Luke Neither the Matthean Jesus nor the Lucan Jesus makes this mistake. Both Matthew and Luke leave out the name of the priest, thus solving the problem. This is not an indication that they had more accurate historical information about Jesus than Mark. Rather it is an indication that they knew the OT better than Mark did. They consider it their job as writers to remove mistakes attributed to Jesus. Lecture 8. Mark 2:23-28, The Main Point. Verses In Verse 24, the Pharisees ask about Sabbath observance. The reply of the Marcan Jesus in verses has nothing to do with the Sabbath! The Matthean Jesus adds 3 verses addressing the Sabbath question (12:5-7). Argument for Marcan Priority (I could not resist this subsidiary issue!) If Mark condensed Matthew, he would have had to: 1) omit the verses which actually answered the question, and 2) keep the verses that were not to-the-point. Those who argue for Matthean priority must also answer 1) Why does Luke follow the beside-the-point answer of the Marcan Jesus 2) Instead of the to-the-point answer of the Matthean Jesus? Verses (back to the main point! ) The Marcan Jesus makes a general statement about the function of God s Law in human life. The argument is as follows David and his men were hungry. Therefore it was okay for them to break God s law. My disciples were hungry. Therefore it is okay for them to break God s law. Is this radical or what?! When I teach a course on Matthew, we will see how he tones down Mark many times! Verses 27-28, the conclusion It consists of a proverb (v. 27) and a pronouncement (v. 28) Verse 27, Interpreting Proverbs Proverbs say a lot in few words. They give a general application from a particular instance Most people realize this intuitively. Certain types of mental illness impair the ability to generalize There is more than one way to skin a cat. You can start at the tail, or start at the nose. You can start on top of the back and work down, or on the feet and work up. This person will be committed! The sabbath is made for people, not people for the sabbath. God made religious rules for the sake of people; God did not make people for the sake of religious rules. Case: A family has 7 children, cannot afford more. Response: The sabbath is made for people; not people for the sabbath.

9 Gospel of Mark, Week 2, Page 9 of 10 Case: God made them male and female by my son is attracted to men, not women. Response: The sabbath is made for people; not people for the sabbath. Is this radical or what! In fact it is so radical that both Matthew and Luke omit it! The Marcan Jesus is often more radical than the Matthean Jesus or the Lucan Jesus. Verse 28 The interpretation depends on how one understands Son of Man. (See Lecture 2 for today). There are two main possibilities. Interpretation # 1, If son of man is understood as a title it means 1) Jesus is the Son of Man, the one designated by God to judge the world. 2) If he gives his disciples permission to pluck grain on the Sabbath, they can jolly well do it! 3) Christians can ignore the Law of Moses in specific cases where Jesus has given permission to do so. By omitting the proverb of verse 27, Matthew and Luke make it clear this is how they understand it. Interpretation # 2, if son of man is a poetic way for saying human being it means 1) Human beings are Lord of the Sabbath 2) They may disregard the Law of Moses whenever it seems reasonable for them to do so. This, in fact, is similar to the position taken by many Reform Jews in our own day. The placement of the proverb immediately preceding verse 28 makes it likely this was how Mark understood the saying. Lecture 9, Mark 3:1-6, Man with Withered Hand, Aland 47 Read Greek Text Literary Form, Mixed: Healing Story & Controversy Story (See notes on Mark 1:29-32) Verse 4 saving life It is a good rabbinic principle that saving life overrules the Sabbath (b. Yoma 85b) (Marcus, 248.)... The problem for the exegete is that... the question is not one of saving life; the man with the withered hand is not in mortal danger, and if Jesus waits a few hours to allow the Sabbath to end before performing the cure, he will not be killing him. Here as elsewhere, however, Jesus reinterprets the OT... in an apocalyptically intensified manner.... here the Markan Jesus makes withholding the cure of the mans paralyzed hand, even for a few hours, tantamount to killing him, and performing the cure immediately tantamount to saving his life.... For Mark s Jesus the eschatological war is already raging, and on that battlefield every human action either strikes a blow for life or wields one for death; the cautious middle ground, upon which one might wait a few minutes before doing good, has disappeared (Marcus, 252). This reinforces the radical interpretation of the previous story. Verse 5, with anger, exceedingly grieved More than any other evangelist, Mark portrays the emotions of Jesus. Both Matthew and Luke omit these words. In the ancient world holy men / wise men who were not subject to emotions were admired. Matthew and Luke adapt their faith-portraits of Jesus to these cultural standards by suppressing emotion.

10 Gospel of Mark, Week 2, Page 10 of 10 Verse 6, Pharisees and Herodians This is an unlikely alliance Like Saddam Hussein and the Taliban Like the ACLU and Right-to-Life Herodians were hard-nosed, realistic politicians Pharisees were religious idealists Ironically, neither the Herodians nor the Pharisees are mentioned in the Marcan Passion Narrative. There, the ones actually responsible for the death of Jesus are the Sadducees and the Romans.