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Expositor's Greek Testament (Nicoll)

Mark 1

Mark 1:1

ἀρχὴ, etc.: This verse may best be taken as the superscription of the whole Gospel, and as meaning: Here begins the Gospel concerning Jesus Christ the Son of God. So viewed it should be made to stand apart, Mark 1:2 beginning a new section as in the Greek Testament of W. and H. [1] If we connect Mar... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:2-4

καθὼς introduces a prophetic citation as protasis to the historical statement about John in Mark 1:4 = in accordance with, etc., John appeared. The prophetic reference and the historical statement are given in inverse order in Matthew. ἐν τῷ Ἠσαίᾳ, in Isaiah, the actual quotation being from Isaiah a... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:4

ἐγένετο Ἰ.: in accordance with, and in fulfilment of, these prophetic anticipations, _appeared John_. ὁ βαπτίζων = the Baptist (substantive participle), that the function by which he was best known. εἰς ἄφεσιν ἁμαρτιῶν : this clause (in Luke, not in Matthew) may plausibly be represented as a Christi... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:5-8

Mark 1:5-8; Mark 1:5 describes the widespread character of the movement much as in Mt., only that Judaea comes before Jerusalem, and the district of the Jordan is not mentioned.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:6

describes John's way of life as in Mt., ἐνδεδυμένος standing for εἶχεν τὸ ἔνδυμα, and ἔσθων for ἡ τροφὴ ἦν.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:7

καὶ ἐκήρυσσεν, introducing a special and very important part of his _kerygma: inter alia_ he kept saying anxious to prevent men from forming a wrong impression of his position. This is what makes mention of his ministry relevant in the evangelic record. λῦσαι τὸν ἱμάντα, to loose the latchet of, ins... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:8

πνεύματι ἁγίῳ : καὶ πυρί omitted, whereby the view presented of Messiah's function becomes less judicial, more Christian. Mt.'s account here is truer to John's conception of the Messiah. Mk.'s was probably influenced by the destination of his Gospel for Gentile readers.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:9

ἐν ἐκείναις τ. ἡ. = in those days; an indefinite note of time = while John was carrying on his ministry of preaching and baptising. ῆλθεν Ἰησοῦς, came Jesus, with what feelings, as compared with Pharisees and Sadducees, _vide_ notes on Mt. ἀπὸ Ναζ. τ. Γαλ., from _Nazareth_, presumably His home; of _... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:10

εὐθὺς, straightway, a favourite word of Mk.'s, to be taken with εἶδε = as soon as He had ascended, etc., He _saw_. For similar usage in reference to εἶτα _vide_ Hermann, _Viger_, p. 772. σχιζομένους, being rent asunder, a sudden event; a stronger word than that used in Mt. and Lk. (ἀνεῴχθησαν ῆναι).... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:12

ἐκβάλλει : historic present, much used in Mk. with lively effect; introduces a new situation. The first thing the Spirit does (εὐθὺς) is to _drive_ Jesus into the wilderness, the expression not implying reluctance of Jesus to go into so wild a place (Weiss), but intense preoccupation of mind. Allowi... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:13

πειραζόμενος, being tempted, presumably the whole time; doubtless the real truth. Two powers at work all through, the Spirit of God and the spirit of evil. ἦν μετὰ τ. θηρ.: not merely pictorial or intended to hint danger; meant rather to indicate the uninhabited nature of the place; no supplies obta... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:14

τὸ εὐαγγ. τ. θεοῦ : _the Gospel of God_, the good news sent by God to men through Jesus, a strong name for Christ's message.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:15

ἡ βασιλεία τ. θ.: this defines more precisely the gospel Jesus preaches. It is the gospel of the Kingdom of God. But even this is vague. The kingdom may be differently conceived: as an awful thing or as a beneficent thing. The summons following throws light on its nature. μετανοεῖτε καὶ πιστεύετε :... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:16

ἀμφιβάλλοντας, just because different from Mt.'s expression, to which the T. R. assimilates Mk.'s, is likely to be the true reading, and is very expressive: casting about (their nets understood, here only).... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:17

γενέσθαι : I will make you _become_, implying a gradual process of training; therefore the disciples called as early as possible.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:20

μετὰ μισθωτῶν : they left their father _with the hired assistants_. This is taken by some as a merely pictorial trait, but others justly regard it as a touch of humanity. It comforted Mk. and probably his voucher Peter that the two brothers did not need to leave their father _alone_. He could do wit... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:21

εἰσπορεύονται : Jesus and the four newly acquired disciples _enter_ or _arrive at_. Καπ., Capernaum; first mention. From Mk.'s narrative alone we should gather that Jesus arrived at Capernaum on His way northwards from the south from the Jordan to Galilee, then along the shore of the lake to Caperna... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:22

ἐξεπλήσσοντο : they were amazed; a strong word, several times in Mk. (Matthew 7:28). ὡς ἐξουσίαν ἔχων, etc.: a similar remark in Matthew 7:29 (see notes there) appended to Sermon on Mount. Mk. gives no discourse, but only notes the impression made. “A poor substitute for the beautiful Sermon on the... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:23

εὐθὺς : almost = ἰδοὺ, Matthew's word for introducing something important. αὐτῶν, in _their_ synagogue, _i.e._, the synagogue of the same men who had been surprised at Christ's preaching. They are to get a new surprise, though one would have been enough for one day. We also get a surprise, for nothi... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:24

τί ἡμῖν καὶ σοί, what to _us_ and to Thee. The diseased man speaks for the demon in him, and the demon speaks for the fraternity as all having one interest. For the phrase used in a similar sense _vide_ 1 Kings 17:18. Ναζαρηνέ : first certain intimation (_cf._ Mark 1:9) that Jesus belonged to Nazare... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:26

σπαράξαν, convulsing, throwing into a spasm. This reveals a characteristic of the malady under which the man suffered. He appears to have been an epileptic. The Gadarene demoniac was a madman. This was the final fit before recovery.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:27

ἐθαμβήθησαν : another strong word peculiar to Mark = they were astonished, _i.e._, at the sudden and complete recovery. They saw at a glance that the attack had not run its usual course. ὥστε with the infinitive here expressing result. συζητεῖν, to seek together; in N. T. tropical = to inquire of on... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:28

ἡ ἀκοὴ, the report, as in Matthew 14:1; Matthew 24:6. εὐθὺς, expressive of the lightning speed with which rumour travels = πανταχοῦ = πανταχοῖ, in every direction. εἰς ὅλην τ. π. τ. Γαλ., a vague phrase suggestive of a wide range of circulation, even beyond the boundaries of Galilee. But that can ha... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:29-31

_Cure of Peter's mother-in-law_ (Matthew 8:14-15; Luke 4:38-39). ἐξελθόντες ἦλθον : even if the reading of [2] (participle and verb singular) be the true one, as it probably is just because the more difficult, the implied fact is that Jesus left the synagogue accompanied by His disciples, probably a... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:30

πυρέσσουσα (same word in Matthew), fevered, or feverish, doubtless a common occurrence in the damp, marshy flats by the lake. λέγουσι αὐτῷ π. α., forthwith they tell Him about her, not necessarily as expecting Him to heal her, but to account for her absence, or as one naturally tells a friend of fam... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:31

ἥγειρεν, etc., He took hold of her hand and so raised her up, the cure taking place simultaneously. In Matthew the _touch_ (ἥψατο) is the means of cure. Holtz. (H. C.) thinks Jesus took hold of her hand simply by way of greeting, and that the result was unexpected, Jesus thus discovering an unsuspec... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:32

ὀψίας, etc.: exact indication of time by two phrases, on the arrival of evening when the sun set; evening a vague phrase = late afternoon. It was _Sabbath_, and the people would wait till sunset when Sabbath closed. Hence the double note of time. So most recent commentators, also Victor Ant. in Cram... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:33

ὅλη ἡ πόλις, a colloquial exaggeration. πρὸς τ. θύραν : the door of Peter's house. Meyer thinks that in the interval Jesus had gone to His own house, and that it was there the people gathered. But does Mark's gospel think of Jesus as having a residence in Capernaum? Weiss answers in the negative.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:34

πολλοὺς, many; not all? In Matthew _many_ are brought and _all_ are healed. ἤφιε, allow, imperfect, as if from ἀφίω with augment on preposition, again in Mark 11:16; _prorsus barbara_ (Fritzsche). ὅτι ᾔδεισαν α., because they knew Him. On the insight of demoniacs _cf._ at Matthew 8:28 ff.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:35

πρωῒ, early, an elastic word, the last watch from three to six, defined more exactly by ἔννυχα λίαν = much in the night, at the beginning of the watch, or at the dark hour before dawn. ἔννυχα is the neuter plural of ἔννυχος, nocturnal, used as an adverb (here only). ἀναστὰς, etc.: He rose up, went o... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:36

κατεδίωξεν : followed Him up; almost pursued Him as a fugitive; verb singular, though more than one followed, _Peter_, the chief of them, being thought of mainly. A strong term like ἐκβάλλει, Mark 1:12, all allowance made for weakened force in Hellenistic usage.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:37

πάντες ζητοῦσί σε, all seek Thee, not merely all the people of Capernaum, but all the world: “nemo non te quaerit,” Fritzsche; a colloquial exaggeration.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:38

ἄγωμεν : let us go, intransitive; not so used in Greek authors. κωμοπόλεις, village towns; towns as to extent of population, villages as without walls (Kypke); _Oppidula_ (Beza); here only in N. T., found in Strabo. κηρύξω : that there I may _preach_, no word of healing; because no part of His vocat... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:39

ἦλθεν (_vide_ critical notes). εἰς τ. συν. may be connected with ἦλθεν, and the sentence will run thus: He came, preaching, to their synagogues, all over Galilee; also casting out devils, the healing ministry being referred to as subordinate to the teaching. If we connect εἰς τὰς συν with κηρύσσων t... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:40

καὶ ἔρχεται, etc., and there cometh to Him, historic present as so often; where this happened not said, probably an incident of the preaching tour; “in one of the cities,” says Lk. ἐὰν θέλῃς δύν.: the leper has seen or heard enough of Christ's healing ministry to be sure as to the _power_. He doubts... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:41

σπλαγχνισθεὶς, having compassion. Watch carefully the portraiture of Christ's _personality_ in this Gospel, Mk.'s speciality.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:42

ἀπῆλθεν, etc.: another instance of duality, the leprosy left him, and he or it was cleansed. Lk. has the former of the two phrases, Mt. the latter. καθαρίζειν is Hellenistic for καθαίρειν.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:43

ἐμβριμησάμενος, etc.: assuming a severe aspect, _vide_ notes on the word at Matthew 9:30, especially the quotation from Euthy. Zig. ἐξέβαλεν α., thrust him out of the synagogue or the crowd. It is not quite certain that the incident happened in a synagogue, though the inference is natural from the c... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:44

εἰς μαρτύριον αὐτοῖς : for a testimony from priest to people, without which the leper would not be received as clean.... [ Continue Reading ]

Mark 1:45

What Jesus feared seems to have happened. The man went about telling of his cure, and neglecting the means necessary to obtain social recognition as cured. τὸν λόγον : “the matter,” A. V [3] Perhaps we should translate strictly the _word, i.e._, the word Jesus spoke: “I will, be thou clean”. So Holt... [ Continue Reading ]

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