Markus 4:13

4:13 He said to them, “Don’t you understand this parable? Then ¹  how will you understand any parable?

Markus 3:23

3:23 So ²  he called them and spoke to them in parables: ³  “How can Satan cast out Satan?

Markus 4:2

4:2 He taught them many things in parables, ⁴  and in his teaching said to them:

Markus 4:33-34

The Use of Parables

4:33 So ⁵  with many parables like these, he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear. 4:34 He did not speak to them without a parable. But privately he explained everything to his own disciples.

Markus 7:17

7:17 Now ⁶  when Jesus ⁷  had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about the parable.

Markus 2:23

Lord of the Sabbath

2:23 Jesus ⁸  was going through the grain fields on a Sabbath, and his disciples began to pick some heads of wheat ⁹  as they made their way.

Markus 4:10

The Purpose of Parables

4:10 When he was alone, those around him with the twelve asked him about the parables.

Markus 4:30

The Parable of the Mustard Seed

4:30 He also asked, “To what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable can we use to present it?

Markus 12:10

12:10 Have you not read this scripture:

‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. ¹⁰ 

Markus 13:1-2

The Destruction of the Temple

13:1 Now ¹¹  as Jesus ¹²  was going out of the temple courts, one of his disciples said to him, “Teacher, look at these tremendous stones and buildings!” ¹³  13:2 Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left on another. ¹⁴  All will be torn down!” ¹⁵ 

Markus 13:28

The Parable of the Fig Tree

13:28 “Learn this parable from the fig tree: Whenever its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near.

Markus 12:1

The Parable of the Tenants

12:1 Then ¹⁶  he began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. ¹⁷  He put a fence around it, dug a pit for its winepress, and built a watchtower. Then ¹⁸  he leased it to tenant farmers ¹⁹  and went on a journey.

Markus 2:15

2:15 As Jesus ²⁰  was having a meal ²¹  in Levi’s ²²  home, many tax collectors ²³  and sinners were eating with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him.

Markus 4:11

4:11 He said to them, “The secret ²⁴  of the kingdom of God has been given ²⁵  to you. But to those outside, everything is in parables,

Markus 12:12

12:12 Now ²⁶  they wanted to arrest him (but they feared the crowd), because they realized that he told this parable against them. So ²⁷  they left him and went away. ²⁸ 

Markus 14:58

14:58 “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with hands and in three days build another not made with hands.’”

Markus 15:29

15:29 Those who passed by defamed him, shaking their heads and saying, “Aha! You who can destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days,

[4:13]  ¹ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[3:23]  ² tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.

[3:23]  ³ sn Jesus spoke two parables to demonstrate the absurdity of the thinking of the religious leaders who maintained that he was in league with Satan and that he actually derived his power from the devil. The first parable (vv. 23-26) teaches that if Jesus cast out demons by the ruler of the demons, then in reality Satan is fighting against himself, with the result that his kingdom has come to an end. The second parable (v. 28) about tying up a strong man proves that Jesus does not need to align himself with the devil because Jesus is more powerful. Jesus defeated Satan at his temptation (1:12-13) and by his exorcisms he clearly demonstrated himself to be stronger than the devil. The passage reveals the desperate condition of the religious leaders, who in their hatred for Jesus end up attributing the work of the Holy Spirit to Satan (a position for which they will be held accountable, 3:29-30). For an explanation of what a parable is, see the note on parables in 4:2.

[4:2]  ⁴ sn Though parables can contain a variety of figures of speech (cf. 2:19-22; 3:23-25; 4:3-9, 26-32; 7:15-17; 13:28), many times they are simply stories that attempt to teach spiritual truth (which is unknown to the hearers) by using a comparison with something known to the hearers. In general, parables usually advance a single idea, though there may be many parts and characters in a single parable and subordinate ideas may expand the main idea further. The beauty of using the parable as a teaching device is that it draws the listener into the story, elicits an evaluation, and demands a response.

[4:33]  ⁵ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.

[7:17]  ⁶ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

[7:17]  ⁷ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:23]  ⁸ tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:23]  ⁹ tn Or “heads of grain.” While the generic term στάχυς (stacus) can refer to the cluster of seeds at the top of grain such as barley or wheat, in the NT the term is restricted to wheat (L&N 3.40; BDAG 941 s.v. 1).

[12:10]  ¹⁰ tn Or “capstone,” “keystone.” Although these meanings are lexically possible, the imagery in Eph 2:20-22 and 1 Cor 3:11 indicates that the term κεφαλὴ γωνίας (kefalh gwnia") refers to a cornerstone, not a capstone.

[12:10]  sn The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. The use of Ps 118:22-23 and the “stone imagery” as a reference to Christ and his suffering and exaltation is common in the NT (see also Matt 21:42; Luke 20:17; Acts 4:11; 1 Pet 2:6-8; cf. also Eph 2:20). The irony in the use of Ps 118:22-23 in Mark 12:10-11 is that in the OT, Israel was the one rejected (or perhaps her king) by the Gentiles, but in the NT it is Jesus who is rejected by Israel.

[13:1]  ¹¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

[13:1]  ¹² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:1]  ¹³ sn The Jerusalem temple was widely admired around the world. See Josephus, Ant. 15.11 [15.380-425]; J. W. 5.5 [5.184-227] and Tacitus, History 5.8, who called it “immensely opulent.” Josephus compared it to a beautiful snowcapped mountain.

[13:2]  ¹⁴ sn With the statement not one stone will be left on another Jesus predicted the total destruction of the temple, something that did occur in a.d. 70.

[13:2]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “not one stone will be left here on another which will not be thrown down.”

[12:1]  ¹⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[12:1]  ¹⁷ sn The vineyard is a figure for Israel in the OT (Isa 5:1-7). The nation and its leaders are the tenants, so the vineyard here may well refer to the promise that resides within the nation. The imagery is like that in Rom 11:11-24.

[12:1]  ¹⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[12:1]  ¹⁹ sn The leasing of land to tenant farmers was common in this period.

[2:15]  ²⁰ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:15]  ²¹ tn Grk “As he reclined at table.”

[2:15]  sn As Jesus was having a meal. 1st century middle eastern meals were not eaten while sitting at a table, but while reclining on one’s side on the floor with the head closest to the low table and the feet farthest away.

[2:15]  ²² tn Grk “his.”

[2:15]  ²³ sn The tax collectors would bid to collect taxes for the Roman government and then add a surcharge, which they kept. Since tax collectors worked for Rome, they were viewed as traitors to their own people and were not well liked.

[4:11]  ²⁴ tn Grk “the mystery.”

[4:11]  sn The key term secret (μυστήριον, musthrion) can mean either (1) a new revelation or (2) a revealing interpretation of existing revelation as in Dan 2:17-23, 27-30. Jesus seems to be explaining how current events develop old promises, since the NT consistently links the events of Jesus’ ministry and message with old promises (Rom 1:1-4; Heb 1:1-2). The traditional translation of this word, “mystery,” is misleading to the modern English reader because it suggests a secret which people have tried to uncover but which they have failed to understand (L&N 28.77).

[4:11]  ²⁵ tn This is an example of a “divine passive,” with God understood to be the source of the revelation (see ExSyn 437-38).

[12:12]  ²⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to introduce a somewhat parenthetical remark by the author.

[12:12]  ²⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.

[12:12]  ²⁸ sn The point of the parable in Mark 12:1-12 is that the leaders of the nation have been rejected by God and the vineyard (v. 9, referring to the nation and its privileged status) will be taken from them and given to others (an allusion to the Gentiles).