Bible Commentaries
Mark 11

Introduction

Watson - Exposition of the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Mark

1 Christ rideth with triumph into Jerusalem:

12 curseth the fruitless leafy tree:

15 purgeth the temple:

20 exhorteth his disciples to steadfastness of faith, and to forgive their enemies:

27 and defendeth the lawfulness of his actions, by the witness of John, who was a man sent of God.

Verse 1

Watson - Exposition of the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Mark

And when they came nigh unto Jerusalem, &c.— On this whole transaction, the entrance of Christ into Jerusalem, see the notes on Matthew 21:1-11. St. Matthew says, “an ass tied, and a colt with her.” St. Mark only mentions the colt, and adds, whereon never man sat. — By bringing the ass the colt followed by natural instinct; but our Lord used only the colt, on which no man had sat. In ancient times, both among Jews and heathens, animals unused by man were selected for sacred uses. Thus the Philistines put two milch kine, “on which had come no yoke,” to the cart in which they sent back the ark. — See also Deuteronomy 21:3. Oxen never yoked, injuges boves, were sacrificed to Minerva.

Verse 10

Watson - Exposition of the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Mark

The kingdom of our father David. — That is, the kingdom of Messiah promised to David, and which was to be perpetual in the person of his great son and descendant, THE CHRIST. Of the spiritual nature of this kingdom, those exulting multitudes, however, had no conception, and were soon to be offended in him because of his cross.

Verse 13

Watson - Exposition of the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Mark

A fig tree. — See note on Matthew 21:19. In addition to what is there said, it may be observed, that it has been made a difficulty against the interpretation there given, that the last clause of this verse, for the time of figs, the time of gathering figs, the fig harvest, was not yet, is given as a reason why our Lord found nothing but leaves. But it is rather given as a reason of the barrenness of the tree, and would be so understood by all who knew the nature of the fig tree, which puts forth fruit even before its leaf; and so for a tree of this kind to have leaves would indicate that its fruit was well advanced toward maturity, if not barren. If, indeed, the full time of gathering figs had been come, the tree having leaves would have been no proof of its barrenness, because the fruit might have been already gathered; but as the fig harvest had not arrived, the hopeless barrenness of the tree was demonstrated from the very circumstance of its having leaves, which is the reason why the circumstance of the time of gathering figs not being come is stated. This is sufficient to remove the difficulty, and renders it unnecessary to take, as several critics have done, the clause from και ελθων to φυλλα , parenthetically; which, however, may be done without violence. — The words will then read, “And seeing a fig tree afar off, having leaves, he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon; (and being come, he found nothing but leaves;) for the time of figs was not yet.” Instances of this kind of trajection are occasionally found in the gospels as well as in other Greek writers; and one especially has been pointed out in this evangelist himself, chap. 16:3, 4, “Who shall roll us away the stone? and when they looked, the stone was rolled away: for it was very great;” where the greatness of the stone certainly is not the reason why it was rolled away, but the reason of the preceding question, “Who shall roll us away the stone?”

Verse 15

Watson - Exposition of the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Mark

Cast out them that sold and bought, &c. — See notes on Matthew 21:12-13.

Verse 17

Watson - Exposition of the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Mark

My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer. —

The sense is, “a house of prayer to, or for, all nations,” agreeably to Isaiah 56:7, from which it is quoted, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all people.” As our Lord forbade them to carry any vessel or burden of any kind through the temple, which the Jews themselves were careful not to do in those parts of it where they themselves worshipped, it is probable that all this worldly traffic and profane secularity was carried on in the court of the Gentiles, which, through their contempt of other nations, and their own pride, they did not consider as holy. — This indeed appears from the inscription which was placed upon the wall which separated the court of the Jews from that of the Gentiles: “No alien, αλλοφυλον , shall enter the holy place.” Thus, in opposition to God’s original appointment, by which a court for those Gentiles and strangers, who came to worship him, was appointed, and consecrated and made holy with the rest of the building, the Jews of our Lord’s time desecrated it, and treated it as a common place, in pure enmity to Gentiles, even though worshippers of the same God; and, as though to discourage all such pious foreigners from going up to the temple, disturbed their devotions by worldly noise, and frowned upon their piety with haughty contempt. Our Lord treats this hypocritical bigotry, this proud, exclusive self- righteousness, with just severity; claims a hallowed seclusion from noisy interruption for the pious Gentiles in their own court, and reminds the Jews, from one of their own prophets himself, that God had made his house a house of prayer for all nations, πασι τοις εθνεσιν , for all Gentiles. The latter part of the verse is quoted with great force of reproof from Jeremiah 7:11: “Is this house, which is called by my name become a DEN OF ROBBERS in your eyes? Behold, even I have seen it, saith the Lord.”

Verse 22

Watson - Exposition of the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Mark

Have faith in God. — Θεου is a genitive of the object, as in Romans 3:22.

Verse 24

Watson - Exposition of the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Mark

What things soever ye desire, &c. — This is a general encouragement added, as in St. Matthew, to what is said as to the faith by which miracles were wrought. See note on Matthew 21:21. It is, however, expressed a little more fully by St. Mark, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. An ill use has sometimes been made of this passage, as though it meant that, when praying, whatever we believe, that is, persuade ourselves that we receive, we do receive, — an absurdity and a self-contradiction. Here, however, to believe, does not signify to persuade ourselves into an opinion; but to trust, or to have faith in God. This trust must necessarily be regulated by God’s own PROMISE and WARRANT, and it is exercised in order that we may receive. — The sense therefore is, believe, trust, that ye shall receive them, and ye shall obtain them; that is, all things which God both expressly promises, and which are, as St. John states, “according to his will.”

Verse 25

Watson - Exposition of the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Mark

And when ye stand praying, forgive. — See notes on Matthew 6:12; Matthew 6:14-15.

Verse 28

Watson - Exposition of the Gospels of St. Matthew and St. Mark

By what authority doest thou these things? — See notes on Matthew 21:23-27.