Mark 10:46

τυφλὸς προσαίτης ἐκάθητο παρὰ τὴν ὁδόν ([2372][2373][2374][2375][2376]) rather than ὁ τυφλὸς ἐκάθ. π. τ. ὁδ. προσαιτῶν ([2377][2378]2[2379][2380][2381]).

[2372] Codex Sinaiticus. 4th cent. Discovered by Tischendorf in 1859 at the Monastery of St Katharine on Mount Sinai. Now at St Petersburg. The whole Gospel, ending at Mark 16:8. Photographic facsimile, 1911.

[2373] Codex Vaticanus. 4th cent., but perhaps a little later than א. In the Vatican Library almost since its foundation by Pope Nicolas V., and one of its greatest treasures. The whole Gospel, ending at Mark 16:8. Photographic facsimile, 1889.

[2374] Codex Regius. 8th cent. An important witness. At Paris. Contains Mark 1:1 to Mark 10:15; Mark 10:30 to Mark 15:1; Mark 15:20 to Mark 16:20, but the shorter ending is inserted between Mark 16:8 and Mark 16:9, showing that the scribe preferred it to the longer one.

[2375] Codex Sangallensis. 9th or 10th cent. Contains the Gospels nearly complete, with an interlinear Latin translation. The text of Mark is specially good, agreeing often with CL. At St Gall.
[2376] Codex Athous Laurae. 8th cent. Like N and Σ, it is written in silver letters on purple vellum. Contains Mark 9:5 to Mark 16:20, and, as in L, the shorter ending is inserted between Mark 16:8 and Mark 16:9. As in Δ, the text of Mark is specially good.

[2377] Codex Alexandrinus. 5th cent. Brought by Cyril Lucar, Patriarch of Constantinople, from Alexandria, and afterwards presented by him to King Charles I. in 1628. In the British Museum. The whole Gospel. Photographic facsimile, 1879.
[2378] Codex Ephraemi. 5th cent. A palimpsest: the original writing has been partially rubbed out, and the works of Ephraem the Syrian have been written over it; but a great deal of the original writing has been recovered; of Mark we have Mark 1:17 to Mark 6:31; Mark 8:5 to Mark 12:29; Mark 13:19 to Mark 16:20. In the National Library at Paris.

[2379] Codex Monacensis. 10th cent. Contains Mark 6:47 to Mark 16:20. Many verses in 14, 15, 16 are defective.

[2380] Codex Oxoniensis. 9th cent. Contains Mark, except Mark 3:35 to Mark 6:20.

[2381] Codex Petropolitanus. 9th cent. Gospels almost complete. Mark 16:18-20 is in a later hand.

46. We once more have three records, and no two agree. Mk and Lk. give one blind man, Mt. gives two. Mk and Mt. say that Christ healed as He was going out of Jericho, Lk., when He was approaching it. Mk and Lk. say that He healed with a word, but they do not quite agree as to the word, Mt. that He healed with a touch. These discrepancies are of no moment, except as part of the overwhelming evidence that not every statement in the Bible can be accepted as historically accurate. See on Mark 4:41. There is general agreement that near Jericho, as Jesus was near the last stage in His last journey to Jerusalem, a blind man called to Him for help, that the crowd tried to silence him, but that Jesus interfered on his behalf and restored his sight; and then the man followed Him. As in the case of the storm on the Lake, Mk gives graphic details, such as an eye-witness might remember, which Mt. and Lk. omit as unessential.

The Jericho of our Lord’s time was a fine city, much augmented and adorned by Herod the Great, who died there, and by Archelaus, but it was a mile or more from the old site. So far as we know, this was Christ’s only visit to it. The modern Jericho is a squalid village.

ὄχλου ἱκανοῦ. This use of ἱκανός = “plentiful” is freq. in Lk., Acts, and LXX., but occurs nowhere else in Mk. It is probably colloquial.

ὁ υἱὸς Τιμαίου Βαρτιμαῖος. Mk alone gives these names, which indicate that the man was still remembered when the Gospel was written. With the order of the names comp. υἱὲ Δαυεὶδ Ἰησοῦ (Mark 10:47). The derivation of Bartimaeus is doubtful. Keim, Jesus of Nazara, v. p. 61; Enc. Bibl. art. “Bartimaeus.” Matthew 8:28 has two demoniacs, where Mk and Lk have only one.

τυφλὸς προσαίτης. See crit. note; also John 9:8. In the Gospel of Nicodemus Mark 1:6, this man is said to have been born blind. Perhaps the two miracles are confused. Blind men were proverbially beggars; Quid aliud caecitas discit quam rogare, blandiri? (Quintil. Declam. 1). The roads being full of pilgrims on their way to the Passover, beggars would frequent them.

ἐκάθητο παρὰ τὴν ὁδόν. The acc. after a verb of rest is freq. in both N.T. and LXX. (Mark 4:1 = Matthew 13:1; Luke 18:35 = Matthew 20:30; Acts 10:6; Acts 10:32; Genesis 22:17; Genesis 41:3; etc.); see also Xen. Anab. III. 5. 1, VII. 2. 11. He was by the side of the road and commanding it, so that he could hear all that passed.