Mark 10:35-40

Ver 35. And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, come unto Him, saying, "Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall desire." 36. And He said unto them, "What would ye that I should do for you?" 37. They said unto Him, "Grant unto us that we may sit, one on Thy right hand, and the other on Thy left hand, in Thy glory." 38. But Jesus said unto them, "Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?" 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: 40. But to sit on My right hand and on My left hand is not mine to give; but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared."

Chrys.: The disciples hearing Christ oftentimes speaking of His kingdom, thought that this kingdom was to be before His death, and therefore now that His death was foretold to them, they came to Him, that they might immediately be made worthy of the honours of the kingdom.

Wherefore it is said, "And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came unto Him, saying, Master, we would that Thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall desire."

For ashamed of the human weakness which they felt, they came to Christ, taking Him apart from the disciples; but our Saviour, not from ignorance of what they wanted to ask, but from a wish of making them answer Him, puts this question to them; "And He said unto them, What would ye that I should do for you?"

Theophylact: Now the abovementioned disciples thought that He was going up to Jerusalem, to reign there, and then to suffer what He had foretold. And with these thoughts, they desired to sit on the right hand and the left hand.

Wherefore there follows: "They said unto Him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on Thy right hand, the other on Thy left hand, in Thy glory."

Augustine, de Con. Evan., ii, 64: Matthew has expressed that this was said not by themselves, but by their mother, since she brought their wishes to the Lord; wherefore Mark briefly implies rather that they themselves, rather than their mother, had used the words.

Chrys.: Or we may fitly say that both took place; for seeing themselves honoured above the rest, they thought that they could easily obtain the foregoing petition; and that they might the more easily succeed in their request, they took their mother with them, that they might pray unto Christ together with her.

Augustine: Then the Lord both according to Mark, and to Matthew, answered them rather than their mother. For it goes on: "But Jesus said unto them, Ye know not what ye ask."

Theophylact: It will not be as ye think, that I am to reign as a temporal king in Jerusalem, but all these things, that is, these which belong to My kingdom, are beyond your understanding; for to site on My right hand is so great a thing that it surpasses the Angelic orders.

Bede: Or else, they know not what they ask, who seek from the Lord a seat of glory, which they do not yet merit.

Chrys.: Or else He says, "Ye know not what ye ask"; as if He said, Ye speak of honours, but I am discoursing of wrestlings and toil; for this is not a time of rewards, but of blood, of battles, and dangers.

Wherefore He adds, "Can ye drink of the cup that I drink of, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized withal?" He draws them on by way of question, that by communication with Himself, their eagerness might increase.

Theophylact: But by the cup and baptism, He means the cross; the cup, that is, as being a potion by Him sweetly received, but baptism as the cause of the cleansing of our sins. And they answer Him, without understanding what He had said; wherefore it goes on: "And they said unto Him, We can;" for they thought that He spoke of a visible cup, and of the baptism of which the Jews made use, that is, the washings before their meals.

Chrys.: And they answered thus quickly, because they expected that what they had asked would be listened to; it goes on: "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;" that is, ye shall be worthy of martyrdom, and suffer even as I.

Bede: A question is raised, however, how James and John drank the cup of martyrdom, or how they were baptized with the baptism of the Lord, when the Scripture relates, that only James the Apostle was beheaded by Herod whilst John finished his life by a natural death. But if we read ecclesiastical histories, in which it is related, that he also on account of the witness which he bore was cast into a cauldron of burning oil, and was immediately sent away to the island of Patmos, we shall then see that the spirit of martyrdom was in him, and that John drank the cup of confession, which the Three Children also drank in the furnace of fire, though the persecutor did not spill their blood.

It goes on: "But to sit on My right hand and on My left hand is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared."

Chrys.: Where two questions are raised, one is, whether a seat on His right hand is prepared for any one; the other, whether the Lord of all has it not in His power to give it to those for whom it is prepared. To the first then we say, that no one sits on His right hand or on His left, for that throne is inaccessible to a creature.

How then did He say, "To sit on My right hand or on My left is not mine to give you," as though it belonged to some who were to sit there? He however answers the thoughts of those who asked Him, condescending to their meaning; for they did not know that lofty throne and seat, which is on the right hand of the Father, but sought one thing alone, that is, to possess the chief place, and to be set over others. And since they had heard it said of the Apostles, that they were to sit on twelve [p. 212] thrones, they begged for a place higher than all the rest, not knowing what was said. To the second question we must say, that such a gift does not transcend the power of the Son of God, but what is said by Matthew, "it is prepared by My Father," [Matthew 20:23] is the same as if it were said, "by Me," wherefore also Mark did not say here, by My Father.

What therefore Christ says here is this, Ye shall die, He says, for Me, but this is not enough to enable you to obtain the highest place, for if another person comes possessing besides martyrdom all other virtues, he will possess much more than you; for the chief place is prepared for those, who by works are enabled to become the first. Thus then the Lord instructed them not to trouble themselves vainly and absurdly for high places; at the same time He would not have them made sad.

Bede: Or else, it is not mine to give to you, that is, to proud persons, for such as yet they were. It is prepared for other persons, and be ye other, that is, lowly, and it is prepared for you.