And they forced him to carry Jesus' cross. See notes on Matthew 27:32-56. Only Mark tells us that Simon was the father of Alexander and Rufus. Compare Romans 16:13; Acts 19:33. Evidently both were well known to Mark's first readers. Even though Cyrene was in North Africa, it had a large Jewish population. Simon was probably a Jew, come to Jerusalem for the Passover, but some think he may have been a "black" man.

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Old Testament