Mark 14

Q: Was Jesus' crucifixion ultimately a defeat in Mark?

Themes in Mark's Passion

The Passion as Confirmation of Jesus' Identity

• Jesus' faithfulness in the face of betrayal, suffering, and rejection (Judas, Gethsemane)

• The lack of faith and failure of the disciples (falling asleep in Gethsemane, Peter's denials, absence at crucifixion)

• Revelation of Jesus' identity (15:38-39) as the Son of God, realized most fully in his suffering on the cross

The Messianic Secret as a Narrative Device

Jesus’ identity is most clearly revealed in the passion

• Body “anointed for burial” in Bethany (14:1-18)
• Passover and the Lord’s supper -- this is my body. (14:12-25)
• Jesus’ faithfulness in Gethsemane, and his willingness to be arrested (14:32-50)
• Admission of his identity before the Sanhedrin (14:53-65)
• Admission before Pilate and sentencing before the Jews (15:1-15)
• Crucifixion as “The King of the Jews” (15:22-37)
• The temple curtain and the Roman centurion confirm Jesus’ identity (15:38-39)

32 There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged Jesus to place his hand on him.

33 After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. 34 He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means “Be opened!”). 35 At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly.

36 Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the more he did so, the more they kept talking about it. 37 People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

40 A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”

41 Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” 42 Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed.

43 Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning: 44 “See that you don’t tell this to anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.” 45 Instead he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news. As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places. Yet the people still came to him from everywhere.

• It seems clear that as we get further in Mark's Gospel Jesus’ desire to keep his identity secret shifts into a desire to make it known.

• Perhaps this is most clearly seen in Mark 11-12, where Jesus enters Jerusalem on the colt, an obvious and public allusion to Zechariah 9, confronts the money changers in the temple, and then tells a parable to the Jewish religious leaders clearly implying that he is the Son of God, and that they are against God’s purposes.

The Messianic (not so) Secret

• The "secret" doesn't stay secret very well (1:45; 7:36)

• Why might Jesus want to keep his identity as Messiah a secret?

William Wrede

Some Potential Solutions:

• Jesus' definition of 'messiah' was different from the overarching narrative, he may have wanted to control people's understanding of his messiahship
• Had the crowds known Jesus was messiah he would have been swarmed and developed an even more massive following
• If the demons shared his identity they may have distorted it
• Timing!!

• Published The Messianic Secret in 1901

• Basic claims:
• The historical Jesus never claimed to be the Messiah according to "early Gospel tradition"
• Post-resurrection, Mark had to rework his account of Jesus' ministry to deal with this
• Mark therefore inserted both Jesus' claims to messiahship and also his "cover-up" in order to account for why earlier stages of Christianity had not believed in Jesus as the messiah.

Why does Jesus hide his identity?

Q: What are some issues with Wrede's hypothesis?

• Where have we seen this theme pop up throughout Mark? (1:24-25, 34, 44; 3:11-12; 5:7, 34; 7:36; 8:26, 30; 9:9)

• Why does Jesus do this?

The Passion and The Messianic Secret