Mark 3:1-35

Christ in the Bible: Mark’s Gospel

Keith Simons

This commentary has been through Advanced Checking.

Chapter 3

The day for rest

Verses 1-5

Jesus obeyed God, his father, completely. Jesus did only those things that God wanted him to do. Some people were against Jesus. So they were against God too. But these people did not always know that fact.

These people thought that Jesus was doing something bad. They were wrong, because Jesus was doing God’s work. And God never does anything bad. But these people thought that Jesus was not obeying God’s *law. It was Saturday; and the *Jews do not work on that day. That is in God’s *law (Deuteronomy 5:12-15).

Jesus told the people that they should think about the *law’s purpose. God had given his *law so that people would do good things.

And God was still doing good things. It was God who made the man well. This was not against God’s *law. It was the purpose of God’s *law.

But the people who were against Jesus were not happy. They wanted to kill him. They thought that some friends of King Herod would help them.

Jesus teaches from a boat

Verses 6-12

This was a very large crowd. Many people had travelled for several days to be there. They wanted Jesus to help them.

Many people in the crowd were ill. They wanted to touch Jesus. They believed that they would then become well.

Jesus taught the people from the boat. The crowd stayed on the shore (Mark 4:1).

There were also people who had bad *spirits in the crowd. These *spirits were from *Satan. They knew who Jesus was. But Jesus always told them that they must be quiet. God is completely good. And *Satan is completely bad. So Jesus would not listen to the words that those bad *spirits caused people to say. He did not even want them to say true things about him. God, and not the bad *spirits, would show people who Jesus was.

The 12 *disciples

Verses 13-19

Jesus chose 12 men to work with him. He wanted to teach them. And he would send them out to tell God’s message to people. They worked together for about 3 years.

Judas was among these men. He worked with the other *disciples. But in the end, he joined the people who were against Jesus.

But the other 11 men did God’s work. They became very afraid because of Jesus’ death. But after Jesus became alive again, they continued their work for God. You can read about them in the Book of Acts.

People say bad things about Jesus

Verses 20-30

Many people were saying bad things about Jesus. Even Jesus’ family were saying bad things about him. They should not have said those things. But they did not know the true facts.

Other people were saying bad things for worse reasons. And those people were doing something that was very bad. They were against God’s work. God works by his *Holy Spirit. So these people were speaking against the *Holy Spirit.

Those people said that *Satan was using Jesus. They told people that they must not believe Jesus. *Satan wanted to rule people’s lives. So they said that Jesus was working on behalf of *Satan. This was a very bad thing to say. And they were very wrong.

Jesus explained that God always does good things. And *Satan always does bad things. God caused the bad *spirits to leave the people. And God was doing a good thing. *Satan did not want this good thing to happen. Nobody chooses to fight against himself. *Satan would not want to fight against his own bad *spirits.

But God was helping his people.

Jesus’ family

Verses 31-35

Jesus’ family wanted to take Jesus away from the crowd. They thought that he was crazy (Mark 3:21). But nothing crazy was happening. The crowds were sitting quietly round Jesus. And Jesus was teaching them about the Bible.

People told Jesus that his family had come. Jesus replied that, really, he was already with his family. The crowds included people who, like Jesus, wanted to obey God. Those people belong to the family of God. So they were really Jesus’ family.

This book is in EasyEnglish Level A (1200 words).

Gospel ~ a book that tells about the things that Jesus did. And it includes some things that he taught. There are 4 Gospels in the Bible. They are the books by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
law ~ a country’s rules; the rules that God gave to Moses; one of these rules. The Jews had to obey the laws that God gave to Moses.
Jew ~ a person who is born from the families of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Jew ~ a person who is born from the families of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
spirit ~ the part of a person that is alive, but which we cannot see. There are also bad spirits and good spirits. The Holy Spirit is God’s Spirit.
holy ~ special for God.
Satan ~ the bad angel whom God sent away from heaven a long time ago.
angel ~ one of God’s special servants in heaven. Angels bring messages from God.
heaven ~ God’s home.
disciple ~ a student of a great teacher. Usually, the disciple travelled with his teacher and he worked for his teacher.
holy ~ special for God.

Mark’s Good News

Mark’s Gospel

Hilda Bright

Chapter 3

Jesus cures a man’s hand on God’s rest day 3:1-6

v1 Jesus went again into the building where they met to *worship God. A man was there. Something had damaged his hand. v2 The *Pharisees wanted a reason to say that Jesus was not obeying the law. So they watched him to see if he would cure on God’s rest day. v3 Jesus said to the man with the bad hand, ‘Come here.’ v4 And Jesus asked them, ‘Does the law allow us to do good things on God’s rest day or to do bad things? Does it allow us to save life or to kill?’ But they would not answer. v5 Jesus looked round at them in anger. He was very upset because their hearts were so hard. He said to the man, ‘Reach out your hand.’ So the man reached out his hand, and it became well again. It was quite as good as his other hand. v6 The *Pharisees went out and they immediately plotted with the *Herodians. They tried to decide how to kill Jesus.

Verse 2 The *Pharisees were jealous of Jesus’ popularity. He had shown that their attitudes were wrong. They were very careful about what they should not do on the rest day. They were less careful about what they should do. They allowed someone to cure on the rest day if the patient might die. Anyone else who was ill must wait until the end of the rest day.

Verse 4 Jesus was going to use the rest day to do a good deed. They were already trying to find a reason to kill him.

Verse 5 Mark made it clear that Jesus was angry. Many people are angry for selfish reasons. They are angry when other people have not been kind to them. Jesus was angry because the *Pharisees were going to use the man as a way to oppose Jesus. They were showing no love towards a man who needed their sympathy. Jesus cured the man with a brief order.

Verse 6 The *Herodians were friends of Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee. Usually the *Pharisees hated the *Herodians because Herod’s *disciples were friends with the *Romans. But both the *Pharisees and the *Herodians were afraid of Jesus. The *Pharisees thought that they might lose their *religious authority. The *Herodians thought that trouble with the *Romans would spoil their political ambitions. So the *Pharisees and the *Herodians joined together in order to oppose Jesus.

Jesus teaches by the lake 3:7-12

v7 Jesus went off to the Sea of Galilee with his *disciples. A large crowd from Galilee followed. v8 Many people heard about all that Jesus was doing. So they came to him. They came from Judea, Jerusalem and Idumea. They came from the lands east of the River Jordan. They came from the area of Tyre and Sidon. v9 Because of the crowd, Jesus told his *disciples to get a boat ready for him. Crowds of people were coming too close to Jesus. There was a danger that they would hurt him by their pressure. v10 Jesus had cured many people. So all those with diseases were pushing forward in order to touch him. v11 Whenever people with evil *spirits saw him, they fell down in front of him. They shouted, ‘You are the Son of God.’ v12 But Jesus gave them a strict order not to tell who he was.

Verse 7 Jesus left the *Jewish meeting places because the *scribes were trying stop his work. He wanted to teach more people. So he chose the side of the lake as a place where he could teach.

Verse 8 The crowds came to him from beyond the region called Galilee. They travelled long distances from Jerusalem in the south, and from the region called Idumea even further south. People came from the *Gentile cities east of the Jordan. They even came from the foreign ports of Tyre and Sidon in the north.

Verses 9-10 The crowd was so large that it was difficult for Jesus to teach them. Also, people who wanted Jesus to cure them were trying to get near enough to touch him. Jesus was therefore in danger because the crowd were pressing against him. So he used a small boat a little way from the shore. Then everyone could see and hear him.

Verse 11 The men with evil *spirits knew that Jesus had a very close *relationship with God. They were afraid and they fell down in front of him.

Verse 12 It was too soon for people to know that Jesus was the *Messiah. They needed to know that Jesus brought freedom from *sin. They were hoping for a country free from *Roman rule. Jesus did not want people to think that a political *Messiah had arrived. There would have been trouble if people thought that. They would want him to lead them against the *Romans. So Jesus insisted that the men with evil *spirits should keep their knowledge secret.

Jesus chooses 12 *apostles 3:13-19

v13 Jesus went up into the hills. He called those that he wanted to go with him. And they came to him. v14 He chose 12 men to be with him. He also wanted to send them out to *preach. v15 And he wanted them to have authority to throw out evil *spirits. v16 He chose Simon, to whom he gave the name Peter. v17 He chose James and John, the sons of Zebedee. He gave them the name ‘Boanerges’. Boanerges means ‘Sons of *Thunder’. v18 There were Andrew, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus. There were Thaddeus and Simon the Eager Man. v19 Judas Iscariot was one of them. He was the person who handed Jesus over to his enemies.

Verse 13 Jesus knew that he must find a way for his work to continue. He went up into the hills in order to get away from the crowds. He needed to decide which of his *disciples he should teach in a special way. Luke says that he prayed all night (Luke 6:12).

Verses 14-15 There were 12 *tribes of the *Jews. Jesus chose 12 men to become the beginning of the new people of God, the church. They would be with Jesus. They would learn more about him and they would follow his example. They would learn his message so that they could tell other people. Then he would send them out with his authority. Jesus would give them the power to cure people that evil *spirits controlled.

None of those whom he chose was a rich person or an important person. Jesus chose ordinary people. But those people would become extraordinary because they had been with him.

Verse 16 Jesus gave Simon, who used to catch fish, the name ‘Peter’. The name Peter means ‘Rock’. He would become a person whom God could use. God would use him as people use a rock to build on (Matthew 16:18).

Verse 17 The two sons of Zebedee were very ready to give their opinions in a loud, angry way. So Jesus called them ‘Sons of Thunder’. (Thunder is the loud noise that you may hear in a storm.)

Verse 18 Andrew was Simon’s brother. Bartholomew is a surname. He was probably the same person as Nathanael, whom Philip knew (John 1:45). Bible students think that Thaddeus is the same person as Judas, son of James (Luke 6:16). Matthew had collected taxes for the *Romans. Mark calls Simon an ‘Eager Man’. The Eager Men were a group who wanted to force out the *Romans. Matthew and Simon became friends because they both served Jesus.

Verse 19 Kerioth was a village in Judea. ‘Iscariot’ may mean ‘man from Kerioth’. If so, Judas was the only man of the 12 *disciples who did not come from Galilee.

Jesus and *Beelzebub 3:20-30

The *religious leaders say that Jesus is getting his power from *Satan.

v20 Then Jesus went into a house. A crowd gathered again. The crowd was so large that Jesus and his *disciples could not even find time to eat. v21 When his friends heard it, they said, ‘He is mad.’ So they went to take care of him. v22 Some *scribes were there who had come down from Jerusalem. They said, ‘*Beelzebub controls him. He throws out evil *spirits with the power of the prince of evil *spirits.’ v23 Jesus called them to him. He spoke to them in *parables. ‘Surely *Satan cannot drive out *Satan. v24 If a *kingdom fights against itself, it cannot remain. v25 And if a family fights against itself, it cannot last. v26 And if *Satan fights against himself, his power will be divided. And he will come to an end. v27 But nobody can enter a strong man’s house and steal his things. He must first tie up the strong man. Then he can steal from his house.

v28 I am telling you the truth. God will forgive everyone’s *sins and the insults that they speak against him. v29 But God can never forgive anyone who insults the *Holy Spirit. He is in danger of *eternal punishment.’ v30 The *scribes had said that Jesus had an evil *spirit. That is why Jesus said this.

Verses 20-21 Jesus’ friends thought that a sensible person would not behave like Jesus. He had left the security of his home. He was getting into trouble with the *religious authorities. He was working so hard that he was even missing meals. They thought that he had gone mad. They must go to take him home.

Verse 22 *Beelzebub was the name of a false god in the *Old Testament (2 Kings 1:3). The *Jews used it as a name for *Satan. The *scribes did not deny that Jesus could free people from evil *spirits. But they said that he got this power from *Satan, the chief evil *spirit.

Verses 23-26 It would not be sensible for *Satan to fight against himself. Jesus showed that by what he said. If one part of a *kingdom fights against another part, the *kingdom will not last. If there are quarrels in a family, that family will suffer. If *Satan was fighting his own evil *spirits, he was destroying himself.

Verse 27 Nobody can steal from a strong man’s house unless a stronger man first ties him up. *Satan was the ‘strong man’. Jesus is more powerful than *Satan. Because he had defeated the evil *spirits, Jesus had begun to rob *Satan of his power.

Verses 28-30 Someone may decide to take no notice of his conscience. He knows that certain things are wrong. But he still does them. If he continues to do this, he will no longer be able to distinguish right things from wrong things. Isaiah spoke about people like that. He said that ‘they call evil things good, and they call good things evil’ (Isaiah 5:20). The *scribes had seen all the good things that Jesus had done. But they said that *Satan was giving him the power. So they were insulting the *Holy Spirit, who gave Jesus the power to do his work. God is willing to forgive almost anything. But he will not forgive someone who insults the *Holy Spirit.

The family of Jesus 3:31-35

Jesus shows his human family the nature of God’s family.

v31 Jesus’ mother and brothers came. They stood outside the house. They sent someone in to give him a message. v32 A crowd was sitting round Jesus. They told him, ‘Your mother and your brothers are outside. They are asking for you.’ v33 Jesus replied, ‘Who are my mother and my brothers?’ v34 Jesus looked at the people who were sitting in a circle round him. He said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers. v35 Whoever obeys God is my brother and my sister and my mother.’

Verse 31 Jesus had four brothers and at least two sisters (Mark 6:3). The brothers were probably the sons of Joseph and Mary that were born after Jesus, her ‘first son’ (Luke 2:7). Some Christians believe that Mary did not have any more children after Jesus. Some of them believe that the word ‘brothers’ may mean cousins or close relatives. And some of them believe that the word ‘brothers’ may mean the sons and daughters of Joseph by a former wife. If so, this wife died before Joseph married Mary.

Verses 33-35 Jesus was not saying that he did not care about his human family. The *Pharisees did not take responsibility for their parents. But Jesus told them that they were wrong about that (Mark 7:9-13). Even when he was hanging on the *cross, he was looking after his mother. He made sure that she had a home (John 19:26-27). But he has a much larger family. His brothers and sisters are all those who obey God. They are not relatives by birth. But they are part of God’s family. So their *relationship with each other can be stronger than a *physical *relationship.

worship ~ show honour to God, usually with other people.
Pharisees ~ a group of Jews who thought that they obeyed all God’s commands. Many Pharisees did not like the things that Jesus taught. These men thought that they were not doing any wrong things. So, they became very proud.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.
Herodians ~ a political group, who were friends of Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee.
disciples ~ people who follow someone in order to learn from him.
Roman ~ Rome was the capital city of the rulers at that time. That which belonged to Rome was Roman.
religious ~ something that people do as part of the worship of God.
worship ~ show honour to God, usually with other people.
spirit ~ the part of a person who is alive that we cannot see. There are good spirits, like God’s Spirit and his angels. And there are bad spirits, like Satan and his angels.
angel ~ God’s special messenger.
Satan ~ the chief evil spirit.
messenger ~ a person who gives a message.
Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew or anything about Jews.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.
scribes ~ writers, especially the Jewish lawyers.
Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew or anything about Jews.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.
Gentiles ~ people who are not Jews.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.
relationship ~ people have a relationship when they are relatives or good friends; or when they live together.
Messiah ~ the Jews' word for the king who would come and rescue them.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.
sin ~ when people do not obey God’s commands.
apostle ~ one of the 12 special men that Jesus sent out.
preach ~ to tell and explain the good news about Jesus to someone or to a group of people.
thunder ~ the loud noise that you may hear in a storm.
tribe ~ family from one man. The nation called Israel grew from the 12 sons of Jacob. These 12 families formed the 12 tribes of Israel.
Jew ~ a person who is from the family of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; a person who believes what Jews believe.
Beelzebub ~ a name for God’s enemy, the devil.
Satan ~ the chief evil spirit.
spirit ~ the part of a person who is alive that we cannot see. There are good spirits, like God’s Spirit and his angels. And there are bad spirits, like Satan and his angels.
angel ~ God’s special messenger.
messenger ~ a person who gives a message.
parable ~ a story with a hidden meaning.
kingdom ~ people or place that a king rules; or people that God rules.'Holy Spirit ~ God’s Spirit. We cannot see him but he is there.
eternal ~ with no beginning or end.'Old Testament ~ the first part of the Bible, which the writers wrote before the life of Jesus.
cross ~ two pieces of wood that someone has fixed together in the shape of a cross. People put Jesus on a cross in order to kill him.
physical ~ about the body.