Mark 16:14

Ὕστερον. These verses seem to be a summary of what the writer had heard or read respecting manifestations of the risen Lord to the Apostles on and after Easter Day. What may have been said on different occasions is strung together and assigned to a single occasion, the scene of which seems to be Jerusalem. But the narrative does not seem to be dependent on the Canonical Gospels, although the language is less unlike the language of those Gospels than Mark 16:9-13 are. Ὕστερον, seven times in Mt. and once each in Lk. and Jn, is found nowhere in Mk, who prefers ἔσχατον.

αὐτοῖς τοῖς ἕνδεκα. To the Eleven themselves (R.V.), ipsis undecim (Beza), i.e. to the official body as distinct from Mary Magdalen and the two unnamed disciples. “The Eleven” proves nothing as to the presence of Thomas; both “the Eleven” and “the Twelve” are used to designate the Apostolic College, independently of the exact number (John 20:24; 1 Corinthians 15:5). The terms Decemviri and Centumviri were used in a similar manner. Cf. the English “hundred.”

ὠνείδισεν. Nowhere else is this verb used of Christ’s rebuking His disciples, not even when Peter ventured to rebuke Him (Mark 8:32-33). R.V. renders “upbraid” here and Matthew 11:20, but “reproach” Mark 15:32; Matthew 5:11; Matthew 27:44; Luke 6:22. Vulg. commonly has exprobro, but also convicior (Mark 15:32), inpropero (Matthew 27:44), and dico omne malum adversus (Matthew 5:11).

ἀπιστίαν καὶ σκληροκαρδίαν. Nowhere else is either of these grave faults laid to the charge of the Apostles. They had shown ὀλιγοπιστία (Matthew 17:20), had had πεπωρωμένην τὴν καρδίαν (Mark 8:17); but they were neither unbelieving nor impenitent. We conclude that the words are not Christ’s but the narrator’s, who seems to have been much impressed by the fact that many of Christ’s disciples treated the report of His Resurrection as something too good to be true. He emphasizes this (Mark 16:11; Mark 16:13-14; cf. Mark 16:16-17).

It was probably because the change from this severe rebuke to the commission in Mark 16:15 appeared to be intolerably abrupt that an insertion was made of a reply on the part of the disciples. Respecting this interesting interpolation, of which we have now recovered the whole in the original Greek, see Appendix. But there is point in the abrupt change which this interpolation seeks to mitigate. The disciples are told, not merely to believe, but to preach to all the world, what they themselves had doubted. In a similar way Christ shows to Saul of Tarsus, not merely that he must cease to persecute Him, but how great things he must suffer for His sake (Acts 9:16).

ADDITIONAL NOTE

ON Mark 16:14

The now well-known interpolation in this verse was known to Jerome, who says that it existed in “some copies and especially Greek MSS.” (Dial. c. Pelag. ii. 15), and he quotes a portion of the reply put into the mouths of the Apostles. His quotation runs thus: Et illi satisfaciebant dicentes; Saeculum istud iniquitatis et incredulitatis sub Satana est, qui non sinit per immundos spiritus veram Dei apprehendi virtutem. Idcirco jam nunc revela justitiam tuam. Instead of sub Satana est qui some MSS. have substantia est quae, which yields very poor sense and is now known to be certainly wrong. For in 1907 Mr C. L. Freer bought in Cairo a very interesting MS. of the Four Gospels in Greek, and the text of Mk contains the whole of the interpolation of which Jerome has given part in a Latin translation. This Greek MS. is believed to be of the fifth or sixth century; indeed some critics have thought that it may be of the fourth. The order of the Gospels is that of [3589][3590] and the old Latin MSS., viz. Mt., Jn, Lk., Mk, and the MS. (or that from which it was copied) seems to have been made from different texts. The text of Jn is superior to that of Mt. In Jn it generally agrees with [3591] in Mt. generally with the later official or Byzantine text. In Lk. down to Mark 8:12 it agrees mainly with [3592] and for the rest of the Gospel mainly with the later text. These features, however, do not greatly concern us. In Mk the text varies, but it has one or two unique readings. In Mark 1:27 it has “What is this new, this authoritative teaching, and that He commandeth even the unclean spirits and they obey Him?” In Mark 9:24 it has “the spirit of the child” instead of “the father of the child.” But for us the most interesting feature is that it contains the appendix to Mk (Mark 16:9-20) and after Mark 16:14 has the interpolation in question. The text of it runs thus:—

[3589] Codex Bezae. 6th cent. Has a Latin translation (d) side by side with the Greek text, and the two do not quite always agree. Presented by Beza to the University Library of Cambridge in 1581. Remarkable for its frequent divergences from other texts. Contains Mark, except Mark 16:15-20, which has been added by a later hand. Photographic facsimile, 1899.

[3590] Codex Monacensis. 10th cent. Contains Mark 6:47 to Mark 16:20. Many verses in 14, 15, 16 are defective.

[3591] Codex Vaticanus. 4th cent., but perhaps a little later than א. In the Vatican Library almost since its foundation by Pope Nicolas V., and one of its greatest treasures. The whole Gospel, ending at Mark 16:8. Photographic facsimile, 1889.

[3592] Codex Vaticanus. 4th cent., but perhaps a little later than א. In the Vatican Library almost since its foundation by Pope Nicolas V., and one of its greatest treasures. The whole Gospel, ending at Mark 16:8. Photographic facsimile, 1889.

κἀκεῖνοι�(ο) λέγοντες ὅτι ὁ

αἰὼν οὗτος τῆς�(υμ)άτων�

τοῦ θ(εο)ῦ καταλαβέσθαι (καὶ) δύναμιν. διὰ

τοῦτο�-

νην ἤδη, ἐκεῖνοι ἔλεγον τῷ Χ(ριστ)ῷ καὶ ὁ

Χ(ριστὸ)ς ἐκείνοις προσέλεγεν ὅτι πεπλήρω-

ται ὁ ὅρος τῶν ἐτῶν τῆς ἐξουσίας τοῦ
Σατανᾶ, ἀλλὰ ἐγγίζει ἄλλα δ(ε)ινά· καὶ ὑ-

πὲρ (τ)ῶν [ἐγὼ] ἁμαρτησάντων (ἐγὼ) παρεδόθην

εἰς θάνατον ἵνα ὑποστρέψωσιν εἰς τὴν
ἀλήθειαν καὶ μηκέτι ἁμαρτήσωσιν,

ἵνα τὴν ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ πν(ευματ)ικὴν καὶ ἄ-

φθαρτον τῆς δικαιοσύνης δόξαν
κληρονομήσωσιν. ἀλλὰ πορευθέντες …

This is evidently the work of a careless and unintelligent scribe, and the text here and there is evidently corrupt, but the disciples’ reply to Christ’s rebuke is clear enough, and what He said to them in resuming His address is also fairly clear. We may render the whole thus:—“And they excused themselves (Romans 2:15; 2 Corinthians 12:19), saying that this age of lawlessness and unbelief is under Satan, who, through the agency of unclean spirits, suffereth not the truth and power of God to be apprehended (Ephesians 3:18). For this cause reveal Thy righteousness now, they said to Christ. And Christ addressed them, The limit of the years of the authority of Satan has been fulfilled, but other terrors draw nigh. And for the sake of those who have sinned I was delivered over unto death, that they may return unto the truth and sin no more, that they may inherit the spiritual and incorruptible glory of righteousness which is in heaven. But go ye into all the world, etc.”

When we had only the short extract in Jerome, Zahn was inclined to believe that it was not a gloss, but a bit of conversation handed down by tradition (Introd. to N.T. II. p. 472). The words attributed to Christ have not much resemblance to those which are preserved in the Gospels; they most probably represent what some Egyptian Christians of the second or third century thought that He might have said.