14:25 Truly I tell you. See note on 3:28. I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine. This probably means that he will not celebrate Passover again until he does so in the kingdom (as he explicitly says in Lk 22:16) at the Messianic banquet (Isa 25:6–9). kingdom of God. See note on Mt 3:2.

14:26 hymn. The Passover meal ended with the second half of the Hallel psalms (Ps 115–118). Mount of Olives. See note on 11:1.

14:27 You will all fall away. Not that the disciples will lose their faith in Jesus but that their courage will fail and they will forsake him (see note on Mt 26:31).

14:28 I will go ahead of you into Galilee. See 16:7.

14:30 Truly I tell you. See note on 3:28. crows twice. See NIV text note here and on v. 72.

14:32 Gethsemane. A “garden” (Jn 18:1) on the lower slopes of the Mount of Olives, one of Jesus’ favorite places (see Lk 22:39 and note; Jn 18:2). The name is Hebrew and means “oil press,” i.e., a place for squeezing the oil from olives. See photo.

14:33 Peter, James and John. See note on 5:37.

14:36 Abba, Father. Expressive of an especially close relationship to God (see also NIV text note). this cup. The cup of God’s judgment against sin that Jesus took from the Father’s hand in fulfillment of his mission. What Jesus dreaded was not so much death as such but the manner of his death as the one who was taking “the sin of the world” (Jn 1:29) upon himself. See 10:38; Mt 26:39; 2Co 5:21 and notes.

14:37 Simon. See note on 1:16. Perhaps he is singled out because of his bold assertion that he would not fail Jesus (vv. 29–31).

14:38 fall into temptation. Be attacked by temptation. Here the temptation is to be unfaithful in face of the threatening circumstances confronting them. The spirit is willing. The expression is taken from Ps 51:12 (see note on 51:10–12). When one’s spirit is under God’s control, it strives against human weakness.

14:41 Son of Man. See note on 8:31.

14:43 Judas. See note on 3:19. crowd armed with swords and clubs. Jn 18:3 indicates that at least some of the Roman cohort of soldiers were in the arresting group, along with officers of the temple guard. chief priests . . . teachers of the law . . . elders. See notes on 8:31; Mt 2:4. The warrant for Jesus’ arrest had been issued by the Sanhedrin.

14:45 Rabbi. Hebrew for “(my) teacher.” kissed him. A token of respect with which disciples customarily greeted their rabbi. Such a signal was deemed necessary because of the darkness and the crowd. See note on Lk 22:47.

14:47 one of those standing near. Identified as Peter in John’s Gospel (Jn 18:10). servant of the high priest. Identified as Malchus in Jn 18:10.

14:48 See note on Mt 26:55.

14:49 temple courts. See note on 11:27. Scriptures must be fulfilled. Perhaps a reference to Isa 53, or more particularly to Zec 13:7 (see note there), quoted by Jesus in v. 27 and fulfilled (at least in part) at this time (v. 50). See v. 21 and note.

14:50 deserted him. In fulfillment of vv. 27–31.

14:51 young man. Referred to only in Mark’s Gospel. He is not specifically identified, but his anonymity may suggest that he was John Mark, writer of this Gospel (see Introduction: Author; John Mark in the NT). linen garment. Ordinarily the outer garment was made of wool. The fine linen garment left behind in the hand of a guard indicates that the youth was from a wealthy family.

14:52 fled naked. That he was wearing only a linen garment suggests that he had dressed hastily to follow Jesus and his disciples to Gethsemane.

14:53—15:15 Jesus’ trial took place in two stages: a Jewish trial and a Roman trial. By harmonizing the four Gospels, it becomes clear that each trial had three episodes (see chart). Since Matthew, Mark and John give no account of Jesus before Herod Antipas, the trial before Pilate forms a continuous and uninterrupted narrative in these Gospels.

14:53 high priest. Caiaphas, son-in-law of Annas, the former high priest (see note on Jn 18:13). all the chief priests, the elders and the teachers of the law. The entire Sanhedrin (see note on v. 43; see also chart).

14:54 courtyard of the high priest. The Sanhedrin may have met at Caiaphas’s house to ensure secrecy. warmed himself at the fire. See note on Jn 18:18.

14:55 Sanhedrin. The high court of the Jews. In NT times it was made up of three kinds of members: chief priests, elders and teachers of the law. Its total membership numbered 71, including the high priest, who was presiding officer (see note on Ac 5:21). Under Roman jurisdiction the Sanhedrin was given a great deal of authority, but it could not impose capital punishment (see Mt 27:2; Jn 18:31 and notes).

14:56 Many testified falsely against him. In Jewish judicial procedure, witnesses functioned as the prosecution. did not agree. According to Dt 17:6 (see note there) a person could not be put to death except on the testimony of two or more witnesses.

14:58 This statement of Jesus is probably an allusion to what is reported in Jn 2:19 (see note there).

14:61 remained silent. See Isa 53:7 and note. Messiah. See first NIV text note on 1:1. Son of the Blessed One. “The Blessed One” was a way of referring to God without pronouncing his name (cf. note on 11:30). The title was therefore equivalent to “Son of God” (1:1; 15:39), though in this context it would seem not to refer to deity but to royal Messiahship, since in popular Jewish belief the Messiah was to be a man, not God.

14:62 See Mt 26:64 and note. Son of Man. See note on 8:31. This Son of Man saying brings together Da 7:13 (see note there) and Ps 110:1 (see note there). Together they indicate that God will vindicate Jesus by raising him to the place of supreme authority at his right hand (Ps 110:1) and Jesus will one day return to judge all people (Da 7:13). Though Jesus is standing before the high priest now, one day the high priest will stand before him.

14:63 tore his clothes. A sign of great grief or shock (see Ge 37:29; 2Ki 18:37 and note; 19:1). In the case of the high priest it was a form of judicial act expressing the fact that he regarded Jesus’ answer as blasphemous (see note on Mt 26:65).

14:64 blasphemy. Not only involved reviling the name of God (Lev 24:10–16) but also included any affront to his majesty or authority (see Mk 2:7 and note; 3:28–29; Jn 5:18 and note; 10:33). Jesus’ claim to be the Messiah and, in fact, to have majesty and authority belonging only to God was therefore regarded by Caiaphas as blasphemy, for which the Mosaic law prescribed death by stoning (Lev 24:16).

14:65 began to spit at him . . . struck him with their fists. Conventional gestures of rejection and condemnation (see Nu 12:14; Dt 25:9; Job 30:10; Isa 50:6 and note). blindfolded him. A rabbinic interpretation of Isa 11:2–4 held that the Messiah could judge by smell without the aid of sight. Prophesy! Say who it was who struck you!

14:66 below. While Jesus was being beaten in an upstairs room of Caiaphas’s house, Peter was below in the courtyard. one of the servant girls. The doorkeeper (see Jn 18:16; cf. Ac 12:3).

14:67 Nazarene. See note on Mt 2:23.

14:68 I don’t know or understand what you’re talking about. An expression used in Jewish law courts for a formal, legal denial.

14:70 Galilean. Peter’s Galilean dialect showed him to be from Galilee, and his presence among the Judeans in the courtyard suggested he was a follower of Jesus.

14:72 Before . . . times. See v. 30.

15:1 Very early in the morning. The working day of a Roman official began at daylight but often lasted only until noon or early afternoon. morning. Friday of Passion Week. Sanhedrin. See note on 14:55. made their plans. Apparently to accuse Jesus before the civil authority for treason rather than blasphemy (see Lk 23:1–14 and note on 23:2). Pilate. The Roman prefect (governor) who then ruled in Judea, Samaria and Idumea.

15:2 king of the Jews. See Jn 18:33–37 and notes on 18:33,36. asked Pilate. Judgment in a Roman court was the sole responsibility of the imperial magistrate.

15:3 many things. According to Lk 23:2, Jesus was accused before Pilate of subverting the nation, opposing payment of taxes to Caesar and claiming to be Messiah, a king. Multiple charges were common in criminal cases.

15:4 Aren’t you going to answer? If Jesus made no defense, according to Roman law Pilate would have to pronounce against him.

15:5 made no reply. See 14:61; Isa 53:7 and note.

15:6 custom. See note on Jn 18:39. festival. Passover (see 14:1–2 and notes).

15:7 Barabbas. See Mt 27:16–17 and note on 27:16; probably a member of a Jewish revolutionary group (see Mt 10:4; Jn 18:40; Ac 5:37 and note; see also chart). uprising. Under the Roman governors such revolts were common (Lk 13:1).

15:13–14 Crucify. See note on v. 24.

15:15 flogged. The Romans used a whip made of several strips of leather, into which were embedded (near the ends) pieces of bone and lead. The Jews limited the number of stripes to a maximum of 40 (in practice to 39 in case of a miscount; see Dt 25:3 and note), but no such limitation was recognized by the Romans, and victims of Roman floggings often did not survive (cf. Ac 22:24 and note). crucified. The Roman historian Tacitus (Annals, 15.44) indicates that “Christus . . . suffered the extreme penalty . . . at the hands of . . . Pontius Pilate.” See note on v. 24.

15:16 Praetorium. The word was used originally of a general’s tent or of the headquarters in a military camp (see note on v. 1). whole company. The soldiers quartered in the Praetorium were recruited from non-Jewish inhabitants of the Holy Land and assigned to the military governor.

15:17 purple robe. Probably an old military cloak, whose color suggested royalty (see Ex 25:4; Mt 27:28; Ac 16:14 and notes). crown of thorns. Made from the branches of a thorny tree, of which there were many in the Holy Land. Both robe and crown were parts of the mock royal attire placed on Jesus.

15:18 Hail, king of the Jews! A mocking salutation that corresponded to “Hail, Caesar!”

15:19 spit on him. Probably a parody on the kiss of homage that was customary when greeting royalty (see note on 14:65).

15:20 mocked him. Cf. Ps 22:6–7; Isa 50:6 and note.

15:21 Cyrene. A city in Libya in North Africa. See Ac 6:9 and note. Simon, the father of Alexander. A first-century ad ossuary (a limestone box containing the bones of the dead; see note on Mt 26:3) bearing the inscription “Alexander (son) of Simon” was found in 1941 in Jerusalem (see photo). Simon was probably a Jew who was in Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. Alexander and Rufus. Mentioned only by Mark, but referred to in such a way as to suggest that they were known by those to whom he wrote (cf. Ro 16:13). carry the cross. People condemned to death were usually forced to carry a beam of the cross, often weighing 30 or 40 pounds, to the place of crucifixion. Jesus started out by carrying his (see Jn 19:17 and note), but he had been so weakened by flogging that Simon was pressed into service.

15:22 the place of the skull. It may have been a small hill that looked like a skull, or it may have been so named because of the many executions that took place there.

15:23 wine mixed with myrrh. The Talmud gives evidence that incense was mixed with wine to deaden pain (cf. Pr 31:6). Myrrh is a spice derived from plants native to the Arabian deserts and parts of Africa (see note on Ge 37:25).

15:24 crucified. A Roman means of execution in which the prisoner was nailed or tied to a stake or cross (see note on Jn 19:17). In the case of Jesus, heavy wrought-iron nails were driven through the wrists and the heel bones (see Jn 20:25; see also photo). If the victims lingered too long, death was hastened by breaking their legs (see Jn 19:31 and note). Archaeologists have discovered the bones of a crucified man, named Johanan, near Jerusalem, dating between ad 7 and 66, which shed light on the position of a person when nailed to a cross. Only slaves, the basest of criminals and offenders who were not Roman citizens were executed in this manner. First-century authors vividly describe the agony and disgrace of being crucified (see Php 2:8 and note). Dividing up his clothes. It was the accepted right of the executioner’s squad to claim the minor possessions of the victim. Jesus’ clothing probably consisted of an under and an outer garment, a belt, sandals and possibly a head covering (see note on Jn 19:18). cast lots. See Ps 22:18 and introduction to that psalm; see also Jn 19:23–24 and notes.

15:25 nine in the morning. See Lk 23:44; Jn 19:14 and notes.

15:26 charge against him. It was customary to write the charge on a wooden board that was carried before the victim as he walked to the place of execution, and then the board was affixed to the cross above his head. THE KING OF THE JEWS. The wording of the charge differs slightly in the Gospels, but all agree that Jesus was crucified for claiming to be the king of the Jews. One possible reconstruction of the original is THIS IS JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS (cf. Mt 27:37; Lk 23:38; Jn 19:19).

15:27 two rebels. Traditionally rendered “thieves.” The Greek term here refers to those guilty of insurrection. Lk 23:32 calls them “criminals.” Cf. Isa 53:2.

15:29 See 14:58 and note.

15:32 Messiah. See first NIV text note on 1:1. Those crucified with him. According to Luke, one of the criminals later repented and asked to be included in Jesus’ kingdom (Lk 23:39–43).

15:34 The words were spoken in a dialect of Aramaic, one of the languages commonly spoken in Israel in Jesus’ day and his primary language. These words reveal how deeply Jesus felt abandoned by God as he bore “the sin of the world” (Jn 1:29; but see introduction to Ps 22 and note on Ps 22:1). Some interpreters believe that Jesus has the whole psalm in view and so expresses hope for his ultimate vindication (Ps 22:22–31) after his immediate anguish.

15:35 Elijah. The bystanders mistook the first words of Jesus’ cry (“Eloi, Eloi”) to be a cry for Elijah. Some believed that Elijah would come in times of critical need to protect the innocent and rescue the righteous (v. 36).

15:36 wine vinegar. A sour wine, the drink of laborers and common soldiers (see note on Lk 23:36).

15:37 With a loud cry. See note on Jn 19:30. The strength of the cry indicates that Jesus did not die the ordinary death of those crucified, who normally suffered long periods of complete agony, exhaustion and then unconsciousness before dying (see note on v. 24).

15:38 curtain of the temple. The curtain that separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place (see Ex 26:31–35; 26:31 and notes). The tearing of the curtain indicated that Christ had entered heaven itself for us so that we too may now enter God’s presence (see Heb 9:8–10, 12; 10:19–20 and notes). It may also indicate judgment against Israel for rejecting the Messiah. torn. At the beginning of Mark’s Gospel, heaven was “torn” open (1:10), and the Father declared that Jesus was his Son (1:11). Now at the end, the temple curtain is “torn,” and the centurion declares that Jesus is the Son of God (v. 39).

15:39 centurion. A commander of about men in the Roman army (see note on Ac 10:1). saw how he died. See note on v. 37. Son of God. See note on Mt 27:54.

15:40 Mary Magdalene. From Lk 8:2 we learn that Jesus had driven seven demons out of her. Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joseph. See v. 47; 16:1. Salome. Probably the wife of Zebedee and the mother of James and John (Mt 27:56).

15:41 women had . . . cared for his needs. See notes on Mt 27:55; Lk 8:3.

15:42 Preparation Day. Friday. Since it was now late in the afternoon, there was an urgency to get Jesus’ body down from the cross before sundown, when the Sabbath began.

15:43 Joseph. See note on Lk 23:50. Arimathea. See note on Mt 27:57. Council. The Sanhedrin (see note on 14:55). kingdom of God. See note on Mt 3:2. Pilate. See note on v. 1. asked for Jesus’ body. See note on Lk 23:52.

15:44 surprised. Crucified men often lived two or three days before dying, and the early death of Jesus was therefore extraordinary.

15:45 gave the body to Joseph. Some claim that the release of the body of one who had been condemned for high treason was unlikely. But Pilate may have been inclined to grant Joseph’s request in order to avoid trouble from the Jewish leadership, who were very concerned not to defile the land with an unburied corpse. In spite of Jewish subjugation to Roman authority, it was not uncommon for Jewish leaders to complain to Caesar about abuses of Roman governors.

15:46 tomb cut out of rock. Mt 27:60 states that the tomb belonged to Joseph and that it was new, i.e., it had not been used before. Its location was in a garden very near the site of the crucifixion (Jn 19:41). There is archaeological evidence that the traditional site of the burial of Jesus (the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem) was a cemetery during the first century ad. stone. A “very large” (16:4) disc-shaped stone that rolled in a sloped channel (see photo).

16:1 Sabbath was over. About 6:00 p.m. Saturday evening. No purchases were possible on the Sabbath. Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome. See note on 15:40. spices. Embalming was not practiced by the Jews. These spices were brought as an act of devotion and love (see note on Lk 23:56). anoint Jesus’ body. The women had no expectation of Jesus’ resurrection.

16:3 Who will roll the stone away . . . ? Not a question of disbelief that the stone can be moved, but a realization that they will need help to do so. Setting the large stone in place was a relatively easy task, but once it had slipped into the groove cut in bedrock in front of the entrance it was very difficult to remove.

16:5 As they entered the tomb. Inside the large opening of the facade of the tomb was a forechamber, at the back of which a low, rectangular opening led to the burial chamber. young man dressed in a white robe. Mt 28:2 identifies him as an angel. See Lk 24:4 and note.

16:6 the Nazarene. Probably means “of Nazareth” (see note on Mt 2:23). crucified. See note on 15:24. He has risen! The climax of Mark’s Gospel is the resurrection, without which Jesus’ death, though noble, would be indescribably tragic (see 1Co 15:12–20 and notes). But in the resurrection he “was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead” (Ro 1:4; see NIV text note there).

16:7 and Peter. Jesus showed special concern for Peter, in view of his confident boasting and subsequent denials (14:29–31,66–72). just as he told you. See 14:28.

16:9–20 Serious doubt exists as to whether these verses belong to the Gospel of Mark. See article.

16:9 Mary Magdalene. See note on 15:40.

16:11,13 did not believe. See vv. 14,16; cf. Jn 20:24–29 and notes on 20:25,29.

16:12–13 A shortened account of the two men going to Emmaus (Lk 24:13–35).

16:14 the Eleven. Judas Iscariot had committed suicide (see Mt 27:5 and note).

16:15–16 See the Great Commission in Mt 28:18–20 (see also note on Mt 28:19–20; cf. Lk 24:46–49; Jn 20:21–23; Ac 1:8).

16:16 believes and is baptized. See notes on 1:4; Ac 2:38; Ro 6:3–4.

16:18 pick up snakes. Cf. Paul in Ac 28:1–6. drink deadly poison. No occurrence of drinking deadly poison without harm is found in the NT.

16:19 taken up into heaven. The ascension was witnessed by the apostles (see Lk 24:51; Ac 1:9; cf. 1Ti 3:16 and note). right hand of God. See 14:62; Ps 110:1 and note.