Mark 10:39

And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized: AND THEY SAID UNTO HIM, WE CAN. Here we see them owning their mother's petition for them as their own; and doubtless they were perfectly sincere in professing their willingness to follow their Master to any suffering He might have to endure. Well, and they shall have to do it. As for James, he was the first of the apostles who was honoured, and showed himself able, to be baptized with his Master's baptism of blood (Acts 12:1); while John, after going through all the persecutions to which the infant Church was exposed from the Jews, and sharing in the struggles and sufferings occasioned by the first triumphs of the Gospel among the Gentiles, lived to be the victim, after a...

32-45 Christ's going on with his undertaking for the salvation of mankind, was, is, and will be, the wonder of all his disciples. Worldly honour is a glittering thing, with which the eyes of Christ's own disciples have many times been dazzled. Our care must be, that we may have wisdom and grace to know how to suffer with him; and we may trust him to provide what the degrees of our glory shall be. Christ shows them that dominion was generally abused in the world. If Jesus would gratify all our desires, it would soon appear that we desire fame or authority, and are unwilling to taste of his cup, or to have his baptism; and should often be ruined by having our prayers answered. But he loves us, and will only give his people what is good for them....

See the notes at Matthew 20:20. Mark 10:35 AND JAMES AND JOHN ...CAME UNTO HIM - They did this through the instrumentality of their mother. They did not come in “person,” but they got their mother to make the request for them. Compare the notes at Matthew 20:20....

EXPOSITION MARK 10:1 INSTEAD OF THE WORDS, INTO THE COASTS OF JUDEA BY THE FARTHER SIDE OF JORDAN, the passage, by a change of reading from διὰ τοῦ to καὶ. He will run thus: _into the coasts _(_borders_)_ of Judaea and beyond Jordan. Our _Lord was now on his last progress towards Jerusalem. It would appear from St. Luke (Luke 9:51) that in the earlier part of his journey he touched the frontier of Samaria. Putting the accounts together, we conclude that, being refused by the Samaritans, he passed eastwards along their frontier, having Galilee on his left, and Samaria on his right; and then crossed the Jordan, perhaps at Scythopolis, where was a bridge, and so entered Peraea. As Judaea and Galilee both lay west of the Jordan, this route above

AND THEY SAID UNTO HIM WE CAN,.... That is, drink of Christ's cup and be baptized with his baptism which is another instance of their ignorance; for as they knew not the glorious state of things and the nature of it they desired places in so they were unacquainted with themselves; they were ignorant of their own weakness as well as of the greatness of the sufferings Christ should endure or even they should be called unto: had they had a just notion of either, they would not have expressed themselves in this manner without any mention of the grace of God or any dependence on the strength of Christ; Matthew 20:22. AND JESUS SAID UNTO THEM, YE SHALL INDEED DRINK OF THE CUP THAT I DRINK OF; AND WITH THE BAPTISM THAT I AM BAPTIZED WITHAL SHALL YE BE BAPTIZED; meaning, not that they should undergo the same sufferings he did and much less for the same end and purpose: he trod

Mark 10:13. _And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them._ They thought them too little, too insignificant, and that the Master had greater things to do; but he thinketh not so. None are too little for him. He receiveth even childish honours to himself. Mark 10:14. _But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God._ Many of them come into that kingdom, and all who some think must be like them. The child is not the hardest subject of conversion; nay, rather: Mark 10:15. Verily I say unto you,

CHAPTER 10. In Judea _ 1. The question concerning Divorce. (Mark 10:1 .Matthew 19:1 ._ 2. Children are blessed by Him. (Mark 10:13. Matthew 19:13; Luke 18:15 . 3. The rich young Ruler and Warning against Riches. (Mark 10:17. Matthew 19:16; Luke 18:18 . 4. Concerni

THE REQUEST OF THE SONS OF ZEBEDEE. THE CHRISTIAN STANDARD OF GREATNESS. In spite of anticipation of ill, the disciples continued to hope for a kingdom of worldly power, and to dispute as to their places in such a kingdom. Wellhausen claims that the reference to glory in Mark 10:37 is apocalyptic in character, and that the disciples may have been expecting a brief period of trial before the final splendour. If so, they have some dim idea that the cup and the baptism [75] mean suffering. They claim to be ready for it. The assurance of Jesus that they shall share His cup is held to point to the martyrdom of the two brothers. Perhaps it strengthens the tradition that John was martyred early in the Church's history, like James (p. 744; also Acts 12:2 *). But the passage might have been retained though John were still aliv

FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE (Mark 10:1-12)...

WE CAN. We are able. And they were able, by grace. James (Acts 12:2); and John, if, according to tradition, he died in boiling oil....