Mark 4:11

11. [716][717][718][719][720][721][722] omit γνῶναι (from Mt. and Lk.).

[716] 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.

[717] 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.
[718] 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.

[719] 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.

[720] An asterisk denotes that the word is not found elsewhere in N.T., and such words are included in the index, even if there is no note on them in the commentary.
[721] Codex Cyprius. 9th cent. One of the seven uncials which have the Gospels complete, the others being אBMSUΩ. At Paris.

[722] 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.

11. ἔλεγεν. Conversational imperf.; or possibly it introduces His customary explanation of the use of parables. Christ’s reply, as often, goes deeper than the question put to Him. They want explanations of the parables just spoken; He explains the purpose of parabolic teaching.

τὸ μυστήριον δέδοται. Emphasis on τὸ μυσ. Mt. and Lk. have δέδοται γνῶναι τὰ μυστήρια, which is not the same thing. Some texts here have γνῶναι, and some have τά μυστήρια. Christ Himself, the revelation of the Father, had been given to the disciples. He, as the embodiment of the Gospel, was τὸ μυστήριον, of the import of which they as yet knew very little. He was the embodiment of the Good Tidings that the Kingdom of Heaven had been sown here and would produce a glorious harvest hereafter. Nowhere else in the Gospels does μυστήριον occur, but it is very freq. in Paul. Dalman, Words, p. 283.

τοῖς ἔξω. “The multitude of followers who were outside the circle of disciples.” The meaning of such an expression, like our “outsiders,” must depend on the context. To Jews it means non-Jews; to Christians, non-Christians; to the initiated, the uninitiated. It is not found elsewhere in the Gospels; cf. 1 Corinthians 5:12-13; Colossians 4:5; 1 Thessalonians 4:12; 1 Timothy 3:7.

τὰ πάντα γίνεται. In Mk only. Not “all these things” (A.V.), nor “all things” (R.V.), but the whole, the whole contents of the mystery of the Gospel. Not “are done” (A.V., R.V.), but proves to be to them, because of the πώρωσις of their hearts. It was given as illumination and instruction, but in their case it becomes a riddle; cf. Luke 10:36; Luke 11:26.