Mark 6 - Introduction

Mark 3:7 to Mark 7:37. A new stage in the work of Jesus. Up to this point Christ's ministry is purely Galilean in scene, actors and horizon alike. Now crowds come from long distances and from all parts of the country. The attention of the religious authorities at Jerusalem is drawn to Him (cf. Mark 3:22). The work of evangelization is shared with twelve chosen disciples. The teaching of Jesus undergoes a twofold change. The seashore and the desert replace the synagogue, and the parables become Christ's customary form of utterance. How long this period of wider activity continues we do not know, nor is it quite clear at what point in his narrative Mk. would conclude it. But in Mark 7:17 ff. he begins to throw stress on the training of the Twelve, which has definitely led to the abandonment of the public ministry in Galilee when we reach Mark 9:30 f. Perhaps Mark 7:23 forms the point of transition.