Bible Commentaries
Mark 14

Verses 1-72

1-2 Compare Matthew 26:1-5; Luke 22:1-2.

1 The actual festival of Unleavened Bread did not commence until the day after the Passover (Leviticus 23:5-6), but, since all leaven was removed on the day of the Passover, and it was eaten with unleavened bread (Exodus 12:8), it came to be included in "unleavened bread".

2 How blind they were! The Passover must be killed before the festival, not because it might create a tumult of the people, but because this was God's order. They were at great pains and trouble, in their rabid rebellion against God, that they might fulfill the will of God! So it is always. God's enemies are carrying out His will in their very opposition. The Lamb must be slain on the fourteenth, and God can use the fearfulness of the priests to fulfill it, so long as He cannot use their faithfulness.

3-9 Compare Matthew 26:6-13; John 12:1-8. See Luke 7:36-38.

3 How precious to the heart of our Lord must have been the intelligent, sacrificing worship of this woman! She alone seems to have understood Him concerning His impending death, or appreciated, in some measure, its preciousness. It is the time, the effort, the treasure, that we "waste" in our worship of Him that gains His gratitude and touches His heart. "Practical" religion provides for the poor; spiritual worship lavishes its all on Him. Benefactors receive their reward in the gratitude of those whom they help. But when has even such a costly gift been so richly rewarded? Men have given as much as a million times the sum she did for philanthropy. But whose name can be mentioned with hers? Yet she simply did with what she had. We do not need to have much, but only give our best and our reward will be beyond all calculation.

10 The woman gave, Judas got. They resented the woman's act and would have taken her treasure from her had they known. The chief priests rejoiced and promised Judas a substantial reward. Who would like to earn thirty pieces of silver? Religious men who know not Christ are always ready to pay for His betrayal.

10-16 Compare Matthew 26:14-19; Luke 22:3-13.

12 "The first day of the unleavened bread" was not, as might be supposed, the first day of the festival of unleavened bread (Leviticus 23:7), but the day before, the day of the Passover proper. Similarly, the term Passover was often applied to the festival which followed.

12 The passover must be sacrificed on the fourteenth day of the first month "between [not in] the [two] evenings [of one day]" (Exodus 12:6). This made it possible for our Lord to eat the passover and be the Passover all in one day, between the sunset which began the fourteenth of Nisan, and the suhset which closed it.

13 Bearing water jars was "women's work" and it was a singular sight to see a man with a water jar. There probably was not another in all Jerusalem. His household must have been small, hence he could accommodate so many extra guests at the Passover. It was the custom for families to join into groups large enough to eat a whole lamb (Exodus 12:4).

17-21 Compare Matthew 26:20-25; Luke 22:14; Luke 22:21-23; John 13:18-30.

17 With what mingled feelings would our Lord eat this passover! Joy to see the fruit of His labors, sorrow at the treachery of Judas, while over all was the shadow of the cross.

21 So atrocious was the treachery of Judas Iscariot that we sympathize with those who find it difficult to see how God's grace can ever reach him. But Paul was a greater sinner (1 Timothy 1:15). Judas did not commit his crime until after the Slanderer had put it into his heart

(John 13:2). He regretted his action (Matthew 27:3). Not so Paul. We can have no sympathy, however, with the attempts to twist the translation to agree with their thoughts. The phrase "that man" refers to Judas in one sentence, so must also refer to him in the next. The Lord is thinking of His own sufferings and Judas' share in them, not of Judas' fate.

22-25 Compare Matthew 26:26-29; Luke 22:15-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-25.

22 It is notable that in this account, as in Matthew, the last dinner is considered apart of the Passover and no mention is made of any memorial for their future observance. The simple figure of speech here used has caused much misunderstanding. The Greek and Hebrew substantive, to be, is not expressed when dealing with matters of fact. But when a figure is intended, the verb must be used. "This IS My body" means that the bread represents His body. "This My body" (without is) could be used only when He was actually speaking of His own physical frame. The sustenance and joy of all believers in Christ is symbolized by partaking of the bread and drinking of the cup. The flesh is benefiting nothing. The spirit is that which is vivifying (John 6:63). It is the spiritual and hearty appropriation of Christ's sufferings which brings satisfaction and delight. This will be ours in its fullness when we are with Him. Till He comes we are reminded of it by partaking of the broken bread and poured out wine.

24 The new covenant is with the nation of Israel (Jeremiah 31:32; Jeremiah 32:40; Ezekiel 36:24-30; Hebrews 8:7-12; Hebrews 10:15-17) even as the old one was. The first was dedicated with the blood of calves and hegoats (Exodus 24:8), but the new with the precious blood of Christ (Hebrews 9:15-27). The first was conditioned on their obedience, the second on His.

26-28 Compare Matthew 26:30-32; Luke 22:35-39.

27 Compare Zechariah 13:7.

29-31 Compare Matthew 26:33-35; Luke 22:31-34; John 13:36-38.

32-42 Compare Matthew 26:36-46; Luke 22:46; John 18:1-2.

34 The problem of evil is solved for us in the dark shadows of Gethsemane. No one will dispute that He did not deserve to drink the cup that His Father set before Him. No one will find fault with His will, though it was not in line with His Father's. How easily it might have passed from Him! A word would have sufficed to destroy all His enemies. But He had not come to do His own will. And now that the will of God led Him into the sorest suffering and deepest distress, He receives this evil from the hand of God, Who makes it the basis of boundless blessing, not only to mankind and all creation, but to Christ Himself and to His own glory and praise. The evil was short, sharp and temporary. The results will be without limits in time or space. The terrible treatment of the Holy One by the God Whom He so faithfully served is a far more perplexing problem than the introduction of evil into the creation. In both cases it is a temporary infliction fraught with infinite blessing for God and all His creatures.

36 See Hebrews 5:7-8.

36 It was quite possible for God to have spared Christ the sufferings of the cross. But it could only be done at the cost of untold loss to God, to His creatures and to Christ Himself. God's love could never be known apart from this bitter cup. His grace could never flow forth apart from it. Let us thank Him that He is not doing merely what is possible and easy, but what is for our highest good and His greatest glory.

37 The indifference of the apostles in this, His hour of deepest trial, seems unutterably sad. More and more He is becoming the Lonely One. His nearest friends are far from Him in spirit. God alone is with Him. And soon He also will abandon Him. Only the betrayer is active. He is not drowsing. Neither is the vast throng of His enemies. And then the apostles also become alert. His sufferings did not seem sufficiently serious to ward off sleep. But when they were in danger of suffering themselves, they are suddenly wide awake, and feel no more need of sleep.

43-46 Compare Matthew 26:47-50; Luke 22:47-48; John 18:3-9.

47-50 Compare Matthew 26:51-56; Luke 22:49-53. See John 18:10-11.

45 The perfidious kiss of Judas was the last token of affection He received from His apostles. Judas was among those who so recently vowed to stand by Him to the death, if need be. He had been entrusted with the funds (John 12:6; John 13:29), though he was a thief. There is reason to believe that he was above the peasant class in the social scale, and so of superior breeding to the rest of the apostles. The betrayal of his Lord was an awful crime, and yet it seems ten times more terrible, the way he sought to conceal it under a show of affection. May God keep us from hypocrisy! It is ever so much better to be an open enemy of Christ than to cover an alien and avaricious heart with the cloak of Christianity.

47 How often do the Lord's servants show such zeal! By some swift sword thrust they cut off a hearing for their message.

48 See Luke 24:44.

48 All this show of force was a symptom of fear. If they wanted to arrest Him, why did they not do it on the previous day when He was in their stronghold, the sanctuary? Nothing could have been simpler. There were temple guards, the Sanhedrin and the high priest's house were near at hand, and, if need be, the Roman soldiers were within call. That ought to suffice to arrest a harmless unarmed Man, even if He has a few followers. But they were afraid of the populace. It was a deed of darkness best done in the night. So the chief priests arm their followers, and hire the traitor, and get false witnesses, and stir up the people, and put political pressure on Pilate, all to secure the demolition of the true Temple and the murder of the true Messiah. How terrible is religion apart from the grace of God! Yet beneath it all we can see that, unconsciously, they are carrying out the purpose of God. Though they fail to worship their God, they do not fail to sacrifice the Lamb of God. It was the work of the priests. No one else could do it. Such is the wisdom of God that He uses their hatred to fulfill His will.

52 Linen, used as clothing, typifies righteousness. No one could fly from Him in His hour of need without exposing his own shame and utter lack of righteousness.

53-59 Compare Matthew 26:57-61; Luke 22:54-55; Luke 22:66; John 18:12-16.

57 The priests were the teachers of the people. We might reasonably expect the chief priest to have a measure of spiritual intelligence. No one in Israel should know more than he concerning the dwelling place of God. He alone, once a year, went into the most holy place.

Yet he did not even know that it was empty! God was not there. The glory had departed. Ezekiel describes how it left the cherubim for the threshold of the house (Ezekiel 9:3), then went to the east gate (Ezekiel 10:18-19), and thence to the mountain on the east (Ezekiel 11:23). Now the glory returned, yet he did not recognize the Lord of Glory, or he would not have crucified Him. The glory returned by the same path which marked its departure. It was, in humiliation, at the foot of the mountain on the east, and came through the east gate into the sanctuary, not, as they would expect, with a marvelous display of visible splendor, amid the plaudits of the people and the praises of the priests, but as the despised and forsaken impostor. The high priest in Israel has sunk so low that he does not even recognize the Shekinah!

58 See John 2:18-22.

58 The testimony ought to have opened the high priest's eyes, if anything could. Though paid to testify against Him, they were repeating the great truth that He was the true Temple. No man in Israel could commit a greater crime than to demolish the temple. Yet this was what the chief priests were determined to do. This they charged against Him while they themselves were plotting it.

60-61 Compare Matthew 26:62-63

62 Compare Matthew 26:63-64; Luke 22:66-70 John 18:19-24

63-64 Compare Matthew 26:65-66; Luke 22:71. See Leviticus 21:10

62 Christ is the faithful and true Witness. When Moses was sent to the sons of Israel, they were to recognize his credentials when he told them "I WILL BE sends me to you" (Exodus 3:14). So now the greater Mediator's final testimony is "I am". Then the high priest utters the blasphemy: "Lo! now you hear the blasphemy." He convicts himself of all the charges against Christ.

65 Compare Matthew 26:67-68; Luke 22:63-65. See Micah 5:1

66 Poor Peter! Recklessly brave when his courage was called into question, he finds himself a contemptible coward, in spite of all his protestations. Only a few hours before he was ready to die for His Master and was proud of being not merely one of His disciples, but one of the three most intimate with Him. Of course, all the others might renounce Christ, but not he! His thoughts should have remained fixed on the fate of his Master. Instead he is concerned about himself and does not hesitate to find comfort in the enemy's camp. He was not risking his life to save his Master, but deserting his Master to save his own life. But let us not blame Peter too severely. He is the great and fearless apostle in the making. Satan is sifting the chaff out of him. God is teaching him the lesson of his own untrustworthy self, and leading him to confidence in Him.

66-71 Compare Matthew 26:69-74; Luke 22:55-60 John 18:15-18.

69-71 Compare John 18:25-27.

72 Compare Matthew 26:75; Luke 22:61-62.