Mark 1:40-45, The Cleansing of a Leper (The Study of Mark)

Μάρκον 1·40 Καὶ ἔρχεται πρὸς αὐτὸν λεπρὸς παρακαλῶν αὐτὸν [καὶ γονυπετῶν] καὶ λέγων αὐτῷ ὅτι ἐὰν θέλῃς δύνασαί με καθαρίσαι. 41 καὶ σπλαγχνισθεὶς ἐκτείνας τὴν χεῖρα αὐτοῦ ἥψατο καὶ λέγει αὐτῷ· θέλω, καθαρίσθητι· 42 καὶ εὐθὺς ἀπῆλθεν ἀπ ̓ αὐτοῦ ἡ λέπρα, καὶ ἐκαθαρίσθη. 43 καὶ ἐμβριμησάμενος αὐτῷ εὐθὺς ἐξέβαλεν αὐτὸν 44 καὶ λέγει αὐτῷ· ὅρα μηδενὶ μηδὲν εἴπῃς, ἀλλὰ ὕπαγε σεαυτὸν δεῖξον τῷ ἱερεῖ καὶ προσένεγκε περὶ τοῦ καθαρισμοῦ σου ἃ προσέταξεν Μωϋσῆς, εἰς μαρτύριον αὐτοῖς. 45 ὁ δὲ ἐξελθὼν ἤρξατο κηρύσσειν πολλὰ καὶ διαφημίζειν τὸν λόγον, ὥστε μηκέτι αὐτὸν δύνασθαι φανερῶς εἰς πόλιν εἰσελθεῖν, ἀλλ ̓ ἔξω ἐπ ̓ ἐρήμοις τόποις ἦν· καὶ ἤρχοντο πρὸς αὐτὸν πάντοθεν.

Translation

     40 And a leper1 comes to him begging him, kneeling before him, and saying to him, “If you would be willing2 , you are able to cleanse me." 41 And being compassionate3, stretching out his hand, he touched him and says to him, “I am willing. Be cleansed.” 42 And immediately the leprosy departed4 from him and he was cleansed. 43 And strictly warning5 him, he immediately threw6 him out, 44 and says to him, “See that you speak nothing to anyone7, but go show yourself to a priest and offer what Moses commanded concerning your cleansing as evidence to them8. 45 But going out, he began to proclaim and to spread the word around a lot, so that he was no longer able to openly go into a city, but was outside in deserted places, but they were coming to him from everywhere9.

1 Introduction

This is one of the most dramatic scenes where Jesus heals a person in the book of Mark. What makes it dramatic is the language that is used and the variant reading that may possibly be original. There are two things that you need to be known before going into this scene. 1. Touching a leper was against Jewish law. 2. A leper was not suppose to approach non-leprous people. In fact, lepers were “cut off” from society and had to announce that they were unclean if anyone came near to them.

2 ἐὰν θέλῃς (if you would be willing)

The verb θέλῃς is in the subjunctive. That adds a probability factor to the verb, thus the translation “if you would or may be willing”. In other words, the leper doesn’t know if Jesus will heal him or not. The way that the leper asked the question indicates that he doesn’t know what to expect from Jesus’ by way of a response. This teaches us that the leper had heard of Jesus even though he was cut off from the rest of society and was hoping for a miracle.

3 σπλαγχνισθεὶς (being compassionate)

This may be one of the most interesting variant readings in Mark. It is found in most documents, but the oldest documents has “being angry”. The scholars are back and forth on this one. Most agree that “being compassionate” is the original, but there is still much evidence to suggest that “being angry” could be the original. As one would not have to argue for “being compassionate” since Jesus was know for that, one could argue that “being angry” is original for the following reasons: 1. The leper was no suppose to approach “clean” people according to Jewish Law. 2. The leper was suppose to shout “unclean, unclean” if anyone came near. 3. The language that is used following the healing.

4 ἀπῆλθεν (departed) Or “went away”. The text indicates that the leprosy vanished before

their eyes.

5 ἐμβριμησάμενος (strictly warning)

This is a stunning passage! We don’t know what Jesus was “strictly warning” him about, it could just have been "speak nothing to anyone", but it could have been more than that.  It could have been that Jesus didn’t want him to speak to anyone about this, or it could be because Jesus was angry with him. More insight comes in the very next line.

6 εὐθὺς ἐξέβαλεν αὐτὸν (he immediately threw him out)

ἐξέβαλεν is the same verb that is used when Jesus casts out demons. It is very surprising and stunning to see it used here against a man that Jesus just healed. This may add to the debate that Jesus was angry with the leper.

So why would Jesus be angry? There are several valid reasons.

• The leper was breaking Jewish law by coming 

• Jesus could have been angry with the situation of the man being sick 

• Jesus could foresee that the man wouldn’t do what he told him to do

7 μηδενὶ μηδὲν (nothing to anyone)

Greek: “nothing to no one” The double negative was used to reinforce “no” or “don’t”. It may not be good english, but it’s great greek.

8 εἰς μαρτύριον αὐτοῖς. (as evidence to them)

Who is them? Well, the text doesn’t say, but we can assume that Jesus is referring to the priests. In order for the man to do what was required by Moses, he had to go to Jerusalem. Jerusalem was the only place he could become “clean” in Jewish law. He had to go to the temple. It is possible that the man didn’t do this which made Jesus angry, but we don’t have any evidence of such. If he did make the journey to Jerusalem, can you imagine what he told those priest!

9 Final notes

This was such a big deal that Jesus was not able to go into any city, but the crowd still found him where ever he was. The phrase “but they were coming to him from everywhere” indicates that Jesus had become so popular during this time, that he was never alone. This may also account for the journey of the healed man. If he went to Jerusalem, he would have told many people what had happened to him including priests! We can be assured that it did take some time for all of this to calm down.

Mark 1:35-39, A Preaching Tour (The Study of Mark)

Μάρκον 1·35 Καὶ πρωῒ ἔννυχα λίαν ἀναστὰς ἐξῆλθεν καὶ ἀπῆλθεν εἰς ἔρημον τόπον κἀκεῖ προσηύχετο. 36 καὶ κατεδίωξεν αὐτὸν Σίμων καὶ οἱ μετ ̓ αὐτοῦ, 37 καὶ εὗρον αὐτὸν καὶ λέγουσιν αὐτῷ ὅτι πάντες ζητοῦσίν σε. 38 καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· ἄγωμεν ἀλλαχοῦ εἰς τὰς ἐχομένας κωμοπόλεις, ἵνα καὶ ἐκεῖ κηρύξω· εἰς τοῦτο γὰρ ἐξῆλθον. 39 Καὶ ἦλθεν κηρύσσων εἰς τὰς συναγωγὰς αὐτῶν εἰς ὅλην τὴν Γαλιλαίαν καὶ τὰ δαιμόνια ἐκβάλλων.

Translation

     And early in the night, long before daylight, after getting up1, he went out and departed into a deserted place2 and was praying there. And Simon and they with him, searched for him diligently3. And they found him and say to him, “Everyone is seeking you.” And he says to them, “Let us go elsewhere, into the nearby market town4 so that I will preach there also: For I came out because of this5. And he went into their synagogues in the whole Galilee preaching and casting out demons6. Mark 1:35-39

Introduction

This storying marks the end of the 24-hour period. This also starts Jesus’ greater Galilee campaign.

1 ἀναστὰς (after getting up) 

This shows that Jesus was possibly asleep in bed or it simply could mean

that he got up from sitting.

2 εἰς ἔρημον τόπον (into a deserted place)

Not the desert, but a remote place where there were no people. τόπος (topos) is the word that we get topography, which relates to physical features of a landscape.

3 κατεδίωξεν (searched for him diligently)

καταδιώκω is a compound verb from κατα (against) and διώκω (I persecute or pursue) διώκω is used by Paul when he speaks of persecuting the Church of God. καταδιώκω is normally used in a hostile sense. This may mean that the disciples were angry with Jesus because they couldn’t find him.

4 κωμοπόλεις (market town) 

Too small to be a city, but too small to be village.

5 εἰς τοῦτο γὰρ ἐξῆλθον (I came out because of this) 

Literally, “I came out into this”. On a local sense, Jesus came out of Capernaum. On a broader sense, Jesus came out of heaven.

6 τὰ δαιμόνια ἐκβάλλων (casting out demons)

Mark is adding some drama here by just mentioning that Jesus was casting out demons. More than likely, Jesus was healing people as well.

Revelation 12:7-12, The Dragon is Thrown Down

Ἀποκάλυψις 12·7 Καὶ ἐγένετο πόλεμος ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, ὁ Μιχαὴλ καὶ οἱ ἄγγελοι αὐτοῦ τοῦ πολεμῆσαι μετὰ τοῦ δράκοντος. καὶ ὁ δράκων ἐπολέμησεν καὶ οἱ ἄγγελοι αὐτοῦ,  8 καὶ οὐκ ἴσχυσεν οὐδὲ τόπος εὑρέθη αὐτῶν ἔτι ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ.  9 καὶ ἐβλήθη ὁ δράκων ὁ μέγας, ὁ ὄφις ὁ ἀρχαῖος, ὁ καλούμενος Διάβολος καὶ ὁ Σατανᾶς, ὁ πλανῶν τὴν οἰκουμένην ὅλην, ἐβλήθη εἰς τὴν γῆν, καὶ οἱ ἄγγελοι αὐτοῦ μετ᾿ αὐτοῦ ἐβλήθησαν.  10 καὶ ἤκουσα φωνὴν μεγάλην ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ λέγουσαν·

ἄρτι ἐγένετο ἡ σωτηρία καὶ ἡ δύναμις

καὶ ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ ἡμῶν

καὶ ἡ ἐξουσία τοῦ χριστοῦ αὐτοῦ,

ὅτι ἐβλήθη ὁ κατήγωρ τῶν ἀδελφῶν ἡμῶν,

ὁ κατηγορῶν αὐτοὺς ἐνώπιον τοῦ θεοῦ ἡμῶν ἡμέρας καὶ νυκτός. 

11 καὶ αὐτοὶ ἐνίκησαν αὐτὸν διὰ τὸ αἷμα τοῦ ἀρνίου

καὶ διὰ τὸν λόγον τῆς μαρτυρίας αὐτῶν

καὶ οὐκ ἠγάπησαν τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτῶν ἄχρι θανάτου. 

12 διὰ τοῦτο εὐφραίνεσθε, [οἱ] οὐρανοὶ

καὶ οἱ ἐν αὐτοῖς σκηνοῦντες.

οὐαὶ τὴν γῆν καὶ τὴν θάλασσαν,

ὅτι κατέβη ὁ διάβολος πρὸς ὑμᾶς

ἔχων θυμὸν μέγαν,

εἰδὼς ὅτι ὀλίγον καιρὸν ἔχει.

Translation

7 And war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels made war with the dragon. And the dragon and his angels made war. 8 And he was not strong enough and a place was not found for them any longer in heaven1. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, the old snake, who is called the Devil and Satan, who deceives2 the whole world was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a great voice in heaven saying,

“Now have come the salvation and the power 

     and the kingdom of our God 

     and the authority of his Christ

because the accuser of our brothers, 

     who accuses them before our God day and night was thrown down.3

11 And they conquered him because of the blood of the lamb 

     and because of the word of their testimony

and they did not love their life to the point of death4. 

12 Because of this, celebrate, the heavens

     and those who are living in them! 

But woe to the earth and sea,

     because the Devil came down to you 

having great anger5,

     having known6 that he has a short time.” Revelation 12:7-12

1 ”and a place was not found for them any longer in heaven” 

The dragon was no longer welcomed in heaven. 

2 ὁ πλανῶν (who deceives) 

Greek: “Who leads astray” or “Who misleads”.

3 This may indicate that the Devil can no long accuse people before God (see Job chapter 1). This may be another reason why he makes war with people in verse 17. In other words, he makes it personal with believers instead of just accusing them before God. He goes from indirect to direct.

4 ἄχρι θανάτου (to the point of death) 

Greek: “as far as death”. They were willing to lose their life over this.

 5 θυμὸν (anger)

θυμός, οῦ m: an intense, passionate desire of an overwhelming and possibly destructive character — ‘intense desire, overwhelming passion. (Louw & Nida Lexicon)

6 εἰδὼς (having known)

This carries a perfect tense that may indicate that the dragon already knew that he only had a short time on earth before he was thrown down to it.

John 4:36, The Sower Rejoices!

ἤδη  36 ὁ θερίζων μισθὸν λαμβάνει καὶ συνάγει καρπὸν εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον, ἵνα ὁ σπείρων ὁμοῦ χαίρῃ καὶ ὁ θερίζων.

The one who reaps now receives wages and gathers fruit into eternal life, so that the one who sows and the one who reaps might rejoice together.  John 4:36

This is for all of the pastors who have started churches!  The real reward belongs to you!

In greek, if the writer wanted to show emphasis on someone or something, they would put that at the beginning of the sentence or clause.  In this case, the one who sows (ὁ σπείρων) or sower, appears at the beginning of the clause, and the one who reaps (ὁ θερίζων) or reaper is at the end of the clause.  In other words, the sower is the main subject of this clause and is the one who should really rejoice.  That makes a lot of sense because there would be no harvest if there was no sower.  No sower = no harvest and no harvest = no rejoicing.

To quote Daniel Wallace, “It is significant that in this dominical saying, prominence is given to the sower: This is the one who really rejoices!  How different this attitude is from many modern-day evangelist whose criterion of successful ministry is in the number of the scalps, not the depths of the plowing*.” 

*Greek Grammar: Beyond the Basics, page 402.

Revelation 12:1-6, The Fiery Red Dragon

Ἀποκάλυψις 12·1 Καὶ σημεῖον μέγα ὤφθη ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, γυνὴ περιβεβλημένη τὸν ἥλιον, καὶ ἡ σελήνη ὑποκάτω τῶν ποδῶν αὐτῆς καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτῆς στέφανος ἀστέρων δώδεκα, 2 καὶ ἐν γαστρὶ ἔχουσα, καὶ κράζει ὠδίνουσα καὶ βασανιζομένη τεκεῖν. 3 καὶ ὤφθη ἄλλο σημεῖον ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, καὶ ἰδοὺ δράκων μέγας πυρρὸς ἔχων κεφαλὰς ἑπτὰ καὶ κέρατα δέκα καὶ ἐπὶ τὰς κεφαλὰς αὐτοῦ ἑπτὰ διαδήματα, 4 καὶ ἡ οὐρὰ αὐτοῦ σύρει τὸ τρίτον τῶν ἀστέρων τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ ἔβαλεν αὐτοὺς εἰς τὴν γῆν. Καὶ ὁ δράκων ἕστηκεν ἐνώπιον τῆς γυναικὸς τῆς μελλούσης τεκεῖν, ἵνα ὅταν τέκῃ τὸ τέκνον αὐτῆς καταφάγῃ. 5 καὶ ἔτεκεν υἱὸν ἄρσεν, ὃς μέλλει ποιμαίνειν πάντα τὰ ἔθνη ἐν ῥάβδῳ σιδηρᾷ. καὶ ἡρπάσθη τὸ τέκνον αὐτῆς πρὸς τὸν θεὸν καὶ πρὸς τὸν θρόνον αὐτοῦ. 6 καὶ ἡ γυνὴ ἔφυγεν εἰς τὴν ἔρημον, ὅπου ἔχει ἐκεῖ τόπον ἡτοιμασμένον ἀπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ, ἵνα ἐκεῖ τρέφωσιν αὐτὴν ἡμέρας χιλίας διακοσίας ἑξήκοντα.

Translation

1 And a great sign was seen in heaven, a woman clothed with1 the sun, and the moon under her feet, and a wreath2 of twelve stars on her head. 2 And being pregnant3, she cries out in labor and suffered terrible pain in giving birth. 3 And another sign was seen in heaven, and behold, a great red4 dragon having seven heads, ten horns, and seven royal headbands5 on his head. 4 His tail pulled down by force6 a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood in front of the woman, who is about to give birth, so that when she may give birth, he might devour her child. 5 And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is destined to mind7 all nations with an iron rod. 6 And her child was caught up8 to God and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she had a place prepared9 there by God, so that he might take care of her there for one thousand two hundred and sixty (1,260) days.  Revelation 12:1-6

1 περιβεβλημένη (clothed with)

Greek: “having been thrown around”. In other words, the sun has been thrown around the woman like clothing.

2 στέφανος (a wreath) 

A sign of royalty or great achievement. A crown. This may also

indicate a “heavenly” form of royalty.

3 ἐν γαστρὶ ἔχουσα (being pregnant)

Greek: “in having a womb”. An idiom for “being pregnant”.

4 πυρρὸς (red)

Greek: “fiery red”. Indicates that the color was orange, yellow, and red like fire.

5 διαδήματα (headband)

A type of crown employed as a symbol of the highest ruling power in a particular area and therefore often associated with kingship — ‘diadem crown. Since this is a different type of crown than is found in verse 1, it may indicate an “earthly” form of royalty.

6 σύρει (pulled down by force)

Most of the time, this verbs indicates that a resistance was in place that made the doer of the action to use force while performing the action. It’s possible that the 1/3 of the stars of heaven didn’t want to be pulled down.

7 ποιμαίνειν (to mind) 

Greek: “to shepherd” or “to rule” as "to shepherd sheep".

8 ἡρπάσθη (was caught up)

ἁρπάζω is the same verb that we get “rapture” in 1 Thessalonians 4:17.

9 ἡτοιμασμένον (prepared) 

Greek: “having been prepared”. This is in the perfect tense indicating

that the place was already prepared for the woman before hand.

Mark 1:29-34, The Healing of Many People (The Study of Mark)

Μάρκον 1·29 Καὶ εὐθὺς ἐκ τῆς συναγωγῆς ἐξελθόντες ἦλθον εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν Σίμωνος καὶ Ἀνδρέου μετὰ Ἰακώβου καὶ Ἰωάννου.  30 ἡ δὲ πενθερὰ Σίμωνος κατέκειτο πυρέσσουσα, καὶ εὐθὺς λέγουσιν αὐτῷ περὶ αὐτῆς.  31 καὶ προσελθὼν ἤγειρεν αὐτὴν κρατήσας τῆς χειρός· καὶ ἀφῆκεν αὐτὴν ὁ πυρετός, καὶ διηκόνει αὐτοῖς.  32 Ὀψίας δὲ γενομένης, ὅτε ἔδυ ὁ ἥλιος, ἔφερον πρὸς αὐτὸν πάντας τοὺς κακῶς ἔχοντας καὶ τοὺς δαιμονιζομένους·  33 καὶ ἦν ὅλη ἡ πόλις ἐπισυνηγμένη πρὸς τὴν θύραν.  34 καὶ ἐθεράπευσεν πολλοὺς κακῶς ἔχοντας ποικίλαις νόσοις καὶ δαιμόνια πολλὰ ἐξέβαλεν καὶ οὐκ ἤφιεν λαλεῖν τὰ δαιμόνια, ὅτι ᾔδεισαν αὐτόν. 

Translation

And immediately after going out from the synagogue, they went into Simon and Andrew’s house with James and John.  And Simon’s mother-n-law was laying in bed sick with fever, and immediately, they are speaking to him about her.  And after going in, taking her hand, he raised her up.  And the fever left her and she waited on them.  And the evening came, when the sun had set, they were bringing to him all who had sickness and were demon-possessed.  And the whole city was gathered in front of the door.  And he healed many of the sick having all kinds of diseases and he casted out many demons and he did not allow the demons to speak because they knew him. Mark 1:29-34

Introduction to Part 1 of the scene

Here is a two part scene. In this first part of the scene, we find Jesus going from a very public place to a very private place.  In this case, Jesus is in Peter’s house.  It is still the Sabbath.  

λέγουσιν αὐτῷ περὶ αὐτῆς. (they were telling him about her)

Since they immediately tell Jesus about Peter’s mother-n-law, this may indicate that they expect Jesus to heal her.

ἤγειρεν αὐτὴν κρατήσας τῆς χειρός (taking her hand, he raised her up)

The literal greek is “grasping her hand, he raised her up”.  This may indicate that he was helping her up.  We don’t have anymore insight into the healing other than once she was up, the fever left her.  This may indicate that Peter’s mother-n-law had to put out a little faith and effort in order to receive her healing.  In other words, she had to be willing to get up in order to receive what Jesus had for her.

καὶ ἀφῆκεν αὐτὴν ὁ πυρετός (and the fever left her)

Here’s our favorite verb ἀφίημι again.  The text could also be rendered “and the fever let her go”.  We may think we see here that the ancients could have seen sickness as a demonic thing, but that’s just not seen in the New Testament.  In most instances, sickness and demon-possession were two different things.

καὶ διηκόνει αὐτοῖς (and she waited on them)

As in "served them food at a table".

Introduction to Part 2 of the scene

Jesus is still at Peter’s house, but now we find that the evening has come, which ends the Sabbath.  The people were not coming because the laws of the Sabbath were not hindering them any longer.  After Jesus’ exorcism in the Synagogue, things really started to heat up.

ἔφερον πρὸς αὐτὸν (they were bringing)

Greek: Continual aspect.  Indicates a continual stream of people coming.

τοὺς κακῶς ἔχοντας (having sickness)

The literal greek is “having badly”.  An idiom for sickness.

πρὸς τὴν θύραν (in front of the door)

Greek: “to the door”.  Although it was impossible for the “whole city” to be at the door, the text does show us than many people has come.  Jesus had become the “talk of the town”.  Note on ἡ πόλις (po-lis).  For you Superman fans, Metropolis was the city were Superman lived.  Also, Minneapolis or Indianapolis. 

ἐθεράπευσεν (he healed)

θεραπεύω (the-ra-peu-o): therapy, therapeutic.  Notice that the text doesn’t say that he healed all of them.  It just says that he healed many of them.  This may indicate that the healing and deliverance from demons was an individual act and not a collective act.  Person to person.  It’s quick possible that there were so many people that some gave up on their healing and went home.  Note to self: Never give up and always hold out for my healing.

οὐκ ἤφιεν (did not allow)

ἀφίημι again.  In this text, it means “permit”.  With οὐκ, it means “he did not permit”.

Final notes on healing and casting out demons

We find many instances where Jesus heals or casts out a demon.  Many times, he incorporated touching the sick person in order to heal them.  When it came to casting out demons, Jesus never used touching as part of it.  Jesus never touched a demon-possessed person as long as that person was demon-possessed.  One more thing.  Jesus never went out to find people to heal.  They always found him where ever he was.

Mark 1:21-28, The Man with an Unclean Spirit (The Study of Mark)

Μάρκον 1·21 Καὶ εἰσπορεύονται εἰς Καφαρναούμ· καὶ εὐθὺς τοῖς σάββασιν εἰσελθὼν εἰς τὴν συναγωγὴν ἐδίδασκεν.  22 καὶ ἐξεπλήσσοντο ἐπὶ τῇ διδαχῇ αὐτοῦ· ἦν γὰρ διδάσκων αὐτοὺς ὡς ἐξουσίαν ἔχων καὶ οὐχ ὡς οἱ γραμματεῖς. 23 Καὶ εὐθὺς ἦν ἐν τῇ συναγωγῇ αὐτῶν ἄνθρωπος ἐν πνεύματι ἀκαθάρτῳ καὶ ἀνέκραξεν  24 λέγων· τί ἡμῖν καὶ σοί, Ἰησοῦ Ναζαρηνέ; ἦλθες ἀπολέσαι ἡμᾶς; οἶδά σε τίς εἶ, ὁ ἅγιος τοῦ θεοῦ.  25 καὶ ἐπετίμησεν αὐτῷ ὁ Ἰησοῦς λέγων· φιμώθητι καὶ ἔξελθε ἐξ αὐτοῦ.  26 καὶ σπαράξαν αὐτὸν τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἀκάθαρτον καὶ φωνῆσαν φωνῇ μεγάλῃ ἐξῆλθεν ἐξ αὐτοῦ.  27 καὶ ἐθαμβήθησαν ἅπαντες ὥστε συζητεῖν πρὸς ἑαυτοὺς λέγοντας· τί ἐστιν τοῦτο; διδαχὴ καινὴ κατ᾿ ἐξουσίαν· καὶ τοῖς πνεύμασι τοῖς ἀκαθάρτοις ἐπιτάσσει, καὶ ὑπακούουσιν αὐτῷ.  28 καὶ ἐξῆλθεν ἡ ἀκοὴ αὐτοῦ εὐθὺς πανταχοῦ εἰς ὅλην τὴν περίχωρον τῆς Γαλιλαίας. 

Translation

And they went into Capernaum.  And immediately, after going into the synagogue on the Sabbath, he taught them.  And they were overwhelmed at his teaching; for he was teaching them as one having authority and not as the scribes.  And immediately, there was a man with an unclean spirit in their synagogue and he cried out saying, “What to us and to you, Jesus the Nazarene?  Did you come to destroy us?  I know who you are, the Holy One of God.”  And Jesus rebuked him saying, “Be silent and come out of him.”  And the unclean spirit shook him violently and cried out in a great voice and came out of him.  And they were amazed, thus all discussed it among themselves saying, “What is this?  A new teaching according to authority!  He even commands the unclean spirits, and they obey.”  And the news about him went out immediately everywhere in the region of the Galilee. Mark 1:21-28

Introduction

The next four stories happen within a 24-hour period.  One could call it “a day in Capernaum”.  Capernaum was a pretty large city for the 1st century.  It had a detachment of Roman troops, a customs post, and an assigned leader.  The population was around 10,000.  It was a major trade route on the day.

Although Jesus has disciples around him, he alone does all of the teaching and healing.  Later on, the disciples will also teach and heal.  By this time, the text suggests that Jesus must have been known in the area.  In the 1st century, only the leader of the Synagogue could allow people to teach in the Synagogue.

ἐξεπλήσσοντο (overwhelmed)

This verb means to be “overwhelmed” or “struck out of their minds”  It’s interesting that Mark doesn’t mention what Jesus was teaching.  Mark carries on with his suspense by not sharing with the reader what the teaching was about.  We will find out in due time.

οὐχ ὡς οἱ γραμματεῖς (not as the scribes)

The scribes were the well-educated religious leaders of the day.  So, in order for Jesus to “out do” the scribes, he must have really been “something else”!

ἄνθρωπος ἐν πνεύματι ἀκαθάρτῳ (a man with an unclean spirit)

The greek literally says “a man in an unclean spirit”.  This really means that the man was under the special influence of the spirit.  The same is true when we receive the Holy Spirit.

τί ἡμῖν καὶ σοί (What to us and to you)

Here’s my favorite idiom.  In ancient times, this was a Jewish idiom that people used when someone was doing something to them that they believe wasn’t deserved.  You would certainly here it in the courts.  It really means “what have I done to you that you would do this to me?”  You will see it translated “What do you have to do with me?”, “Leave me alone.”, and in other ways.  The take away is that the demon did not what Jesus there.

It’s pretty interesting that the demon speaks in the plural; “what to us”.  There are a couple to explanations.  1. There are more that one unclean spirit in the man.  This is not likely as the demon immediately switches from the plural to the singular before he finishes his discourse.  2. This demon may be asking this on behalf of all demons on earth.

Ἰησοῦ Ναζαρηνέ (Jesus the Nazarene)

What’s in a name?  In that time, exorcists were believed to gain power by possession of the demon’s name.  Maybe the demon is trying to turn that around on Jesus.  Notice that he indicates where Jesus is from in an “earthly” sense, as well as “divinity aspects” (Holy one of God).  The big take away here is that Jesus is known among the demons.  It’s interesting that the most evil beings know Jesus, but the most religious people do not.

ὁ ἅγιος τοῦ θεοῦ (the Holy One of God)

Mark doesn’t use “son of God” yet.  Mark is linking Jesus to the “Holy Spirit” back in verses 1:8 (but he will baptize you in the Holy Spirit) and 1:10 (And immediately, while coming up from the water, he saw the skies split and the spirit, as a dove, came down on him).  By doing this, he set Jesus up as being opposite of the unclean spirit.  

ἐπετίμησεν αὐτῷ (he rebuked him)

In this case, he warned him not to speak, thus silencing him.  We will see this word again.

φιμώθητι (Be silent)

In greek, this means “Be muzzled” as in muzzling a horse or cow.  A very colorful way of saying “Shut up”.

σπαράξαν αὐτὸν (he shook him violently)

Literally “to tear” or “to throw him into convulsions”

ἐθαμβήθησαν (They were amazed)

The on-lookers are still astonished.  At first it was Jesus’ teaching, and now by this demon incident.  Interestingly enough, we still don’t know what Jesus was teaching that day in the Synagogue.  Whatever it was, it left an impression on the people in attendance.

καὶ ἐξῆλθεν ἡ ἀκοὴ αὐτοῦ εὐθὺς (And the news about him went out immediately)

The reason that it went out so quickly was because Capernaum was a major trade route.  It was no mistake that Jesus choose Capernaum as his base of operation.

*Some material was taken from The Gospel of Mark: New International Commentary on the Greek Testament (New International Greek Testament Commentary) by R. T. France

Ruins of the Synagogue in Capernaum