Context at a Glance
Author:Traditional Attribution
Topic:mark Chapter 16 Study
This chapter provides a foundational look at the theological themes of mark, analyzed across multiple historic translations for maximum scholarly depth.
Mark 16
New Revised Standard Version
1When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him.
2And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb.
3They had been saying to one another, "Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?"
4When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back.
5As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.
6But he said to them, "Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him.
7But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you."
8So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. Two attempts to provide a more satisfactory ending to the Gospel of THE SHORTER ENDING OF MARK ] THE LONGER ENDING OF MARK
9[[Now after he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons.
10She went out and told those who had been with him, while they were mourning and weeping.
11But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it.
12After this he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country.
13And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them.
14Later he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were sitting at the table; and he upbraided them for their lack of faith and stubbornness, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen.
15And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation.
16The one who believes and is baptized will be saved; but the one who does not believe will be condemned.
17And these signs will accompany those who believe: by using my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues;
18they will pick up snakes in their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover."
19So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.
20And they went out and proclaimed the good news everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that accompanied it.]] LUKE
115LUKE Introduction The third Gospel, traditionally called the Gospel according to Luke, forms a unique literary and theological contribution to the New Testament story of Jesus Christ. Jesus is presented in an elegantly and deliberately crafted account so that readers perceive him to be "the Lord," God's Son who is the universal savior of humanity. Jesus himself is shown to inaugurate a mission to all humankind as the kingdom of God draws near to the earthly lives of people in Jesus' very person and work. Luke's telling of Jesus' story present Jesus' coming among humanity — in birth, life, ministry, suffering, death, and resurrection — as a fulfillment of God's promises of salvation, which brings peace and wholeness of life in a decisive way. This saving event began the "final days" of God's dealings with humanity in anticipation of the "Last Day," "the Day of the Lord." Jesus himself and, in turn, his disciples call people to true repentance, which means a new relationship to God and to other beings in a manner of life that embodies God's will for human "being." In recounting this story, Luke reveals the ability to write in different literary styles. The initial four verses of the book are a single Greek sentence that forms a highly stylized introductory statement typically found in ancient historiographical writings. The Greek is formal and refined in a fashion that would have been familiar to well-educated citizens of the Greco-Roman era. After this distinctive start, however, the storytelling shifts into a style of Greek reminiscent of the Septuagint (ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, with additional writings from Hellenistic Judaism). This Semitic-influenced form of Greek permeates the stories surrounding the birth and childhood of Jesus. Yet, the Septuagint-like style lightens into a more normal (and more typically secular) form of first-century Greek (called "koine") in the narrative that comprises the remainder of the Gospel. LUKE
116When situations shift in the story, the language of the account varies appropriately to suit the locale and characters in the narrative. Luke's appreciation of stylistic variation in narrative communication is apparent from his skilled employment in this technique. Indeed, it seems that the Gospel itself captures and conveys the universal significance of the story of God's salvation in and through Jesus Christ in the variety of ways that Luke styles the story. Readers from different religious, ethnic, and social backgrounds would find one level or another of the overall account to which they could relate and, thereby, find a point of identity and entry into the story of Jesus Christ. The oldest traditions of the Christian church identify Luke, a physician who was a traveling companion and coworker with Paul (Philem 1.24; Col 4.14), as the author of the Gospel and its sequel, The Acts of the Apostles. At times the tradition further identifies Luke as a Syrian from Antioch, but practically nothing else is remembered of the writer of the Third Gospel. The earliest of these traditions about the identity of the author are from the late second century, and scholarly analysis of the Gospel and Acts raises critical questions about the accuracy of the attribution of the writings to the doctor, Luke, who was Paul's associate. The strongest argument in favor of the validity of identifying Luke the physician as the author of the Gospel and Acts is the relative obscurity of this particular figure from early Christianity. Yet, even defenders of the traditional identity of Luke recognize difficulties with that understanding. In particular, Luke's familiarity with Judaism is extensive, though he seems to have more book-knowledge than practical experience with particular rituals and beliefs. Similarly, Luke recalls detailed information about Palestinian locations and practices, though readers encounter a tendency toward giving the story an urban aura rather than presenting the predominantly rural reality that Jesus would have known. Above all, Luke never mentions in Acts that Paul wrote letters, and his account of the Gospel is quite clearly dependent on other earlier writings, especially the Gospel of Mark. That Luke knew and used still other materials, both oral and written, in composing this Gospel is certain, if not demonstrable. In fact, Luke shares a body of material (probably written in form) with the author of the Gospel of Matthew that accounts for approximately one-fifth of the overall Gospel story. Scholars designate this common material as LUKE
117"Q" (German "Quelle," meaning "source"). Whether Luke had further written sources for his unique recital of Jesus' birth, childhood, certain parables, and the materials peculiar to Luke's account of Jesus' passion and resurrection is debated and at present beyond final determination. Yet, Luke's concern with sources — with acknowledging and using them profitably — is clear from his prologue to the Gospel (1.1-4). The time and place of the writing of this Gospel are uncertain. Tradition identifies Luke's account with both Antioch and Rome (where Acts comes to its end), but no firm tradition or record locates the precise time and place of composition. Almost any major urban center in the Mediterranean would make a suitable location for such a document to be written an read. As for the time of the writing, all one can say with certainty is that Luke wrote this account after Mark composed his Gospel. The typical suggestion of scholars that Luke wrote around
85CE is plausible, though the Gospel could have been completed five to fifteen years earlier or even five to ten years later. The available evidence from antiquity does not make precision possible in either locating or dating the origin of Luke's narrative. In broad strokes, Luke tells the same basic story that one reads in the other canonical Gospels: Jesus appears, ministers in Galilee, and moves to Judea and Jerusalem where he encounters deadly hostility that leads to his suffering, death, and resurrection. Yet, Luke's story of Jesus has logic and content that distinguish it among the four Gospels. The advent of Jesus in Judaism has a continuity and coherence with the history of Israel that presents it as the fulfillment of Israel's hopes. In Luke's remembrance of Jesus one finds the manifestation of divine compassion as Jesus reaches out to live and work among the marginal members of his society. Women, the less-than-pious, tax collectors, the poor, the sick, the oppressed, and even noble Pharisees are present and interact with Jesus more prominently in this account than in any other. As stated in Acts, "Jesus of Nazareth... went about doing good... for God was with him" (Acts 10.38). Both the coming of Jesus and his ministry of compassion are the direct results of God's anointing Jesus with the power of the Holy Spirit. That divine outpouring of the Spirit was neither unprecedented nor singular, however, for the same Spirit of God was active in the history of Israel, clearly present and active in LUKE
118the Gospel account prior to the conception and birth of Jesus, and later present and active in the account in Acts of the Church at work among all the people of the known world. The story told by Luke unfolds in a deliberate and seemingly logical way. The prologue prepares the readers for the significance of the story that follows, 1.1-4. The infancy and childhood of Jesus is told in a series of scenes that alternate with an account of the origins of John the Baptist; the result is that readers meet and understand the role of both these figures in God's bringing salvation to all humanity, though Jesus is clearly presented as the superior person in this arrangement (1.5-2.52). The adult Jesus prepares for his ministry through an encounter with the adult John (then, readers learn Jesus' genealogy) and he undergoes temptations by the devil (3.1-4.13); Jesus ministers in Galilee, provoking controversy, calling disciples, preaching, working miracles, teaching, commissioning the initial ministry of his followers, and dealing compassionately with the masses of people (4.14-9.50). Jesus and his followers journey to Jerusalem and he ministers along the way (9.51-19.27). Jesus enters Jerusalem, working in the Temple area and teaching about the future (19.28-21.38). Jesus directs the Last Supper, suffers, dies, and is buried (22.1-23.56), and Jesus' empty tomb is found before he appears to the disciples and then ascends to heaven (24.1-53). Luke's narrative starts with a clear beginning, but one also containing anticipations of the full story that follows and declarations that make the significance of the whole story explicit. The narrative unfolds naturally. Events occur as results of prior occurrences, and initial incidents are told in such a way that they anticipate later developments in the narrative. Readers who become actively involved in Luke's account will find hints and signals that provoke questions and expectations that are later answered and met in the reading of the whole story. In general, wondering about the nature of salvation, the character of the kingdom of God, the reality of repentance, and the person and work of Jesus as the Lord — God's messiah, Son, and Savior — will lead readers to ask about the depths of the story that Luke is intent upon unveiling. Luke's primary concern is to inform the reader who Jesus of Nazareth was — and now, who he is as the suffering, LUKE
119crucified Savior and the risen, exalted Lord. Furthermore, in the wake of Luke's purposeful presentation of the person and work of Jesus Christ, there is another dimension of the story that preserves and communicates Jesus' teaching about what it means to be his follower. Discipleship is a secondary theme that is closely related to the primary theme of Jesus' identity and significance. Discipleship, however, is sometimes a difficult dimension of the story for contemporary readers to grasp, for discipleship is a way of life as a member of the repentant and saved people of God. For Luke, one is not a disciple alone, but one finds profound personal significance in becoming one of the people of God who live as citizens of God's kingdom in a manner consistent with God's intentions for the life of all humanity as brought and taught, shown and known in Jesus Christ, God's Son, the universal Savior of humankind.