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Texts -- Mark 12:38-44 (NET)

Context
Warnings About Experts in the Law
12:38 In his teaching Jesus also said , “Watch out for the experts in the law . They like walking around in long robes and elaborate greetings in the marketplaces , 12:39 and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets . 12:40 They devour widows ’ property , and as a show make long prayers . These men will receive a more severe punishment .”
The Widow’s Offering
12:41 Then he sat down opposite the offering box , and watched the crowd putting coins into it . Many rich people were throwing in large amounts . 12:42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins , worth less than a penny . 12:43 He called his disciples and said to them , “I tell you the truth , this poor widow has put more into the offering box than all the others . 12:44 For they all gave out of their wealth . But she , out of her poverty , put in what she had to live on, everything she had.”

Pericope

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Bible Dictionary

  • Jesus, The Christ

    [nave] JESUS, THE CHRIST. Index of Sub-topics History of; Miscellaneous Facts Concerning; Unclassified Scriptures Relating to; Ascension of; Atonement by; Attributes of; Compassion of; Confessing; Creator; Death of; Design of His...

  • JESUS CHRIST, 4E1

    [isbe] JESUS CHRIST, 4E1 - E. THE PASSION WEEK--BETRAYAL, TRIAL AND CRUCIFIXION Importance of the Last Events: We reach now the closing week and last solemn events of the earthly life of Jesus. The importance attached to this part ...

  • Temple

    [nave] TEMPLE. Solomon's Called also Temple of the Lord, 2 Kin. 11:10; Holy Temple, Psa. 79:1; Holy House, 1 Chr. 29:3; House of God, 1 Chr. 29:2; 2 Chr. 23:9; House of the Lord, 2 Chr. 23:5, 12; Jer. 28:5; Father's House, John 2...

  • Widow

    [nave] WIDOW Vows of, binding, Num. 30:9. When daughters of priests, to be supported by their fathers, Lev. 22:13. Priests forbidden to marry, Lev. 21:14. Marriage of, authorized, Rom. 7:3; 1 Cor. 7:39. Widows' Inheritance, See...

  • MITE

    [isbe] MITE - mit (lepton): The smallest copper or bronze coin current among the Jews. They were first struck by the Maccabean princes with Hebrew legends, and afterward by the Herods and the Roman procurators with Greek legends. T...
    [smith] a coin current in Palestine in the time of our Lord. (Mark 12:41-44; Luke 21:1-4) It seems in Palestine to have been the smallest piece of money (worth about one-fifth of a cent), being the half of the farthing, which was a c...

  • Women

    [nave] WOMEN Creation of, Gen. 1:27; 2:21, 22. Named, Gen. 2:23. Fall of, and curse upon, Gen. 3:1-16; 2 Cor. 11:3; 1 Tim. 2:14. Promise to, Gen. 3:15. Had separate apartments in dwellings, Gen. 24:67; 31:33; Esth. 2:9, 11. Ve...

  • Satire

    [nave] SATIRE Haah's song of exultation over Peniah, 1 Sam. 2:1-10, with 1 Sam. 1:5-10. Of Jesus against hypocrites, Matt. 23:2-33; Mark 12:13-40; Luke 11:39-54. See: Irony; Sarcasm.

  • Poor

    [isbe] POOR - poor ('ebhyon, dal, `ani, rush; ptochos): I. In the Old Testament. The poor have great prominence in the Bible; it is said, indeed, that there should be no poor among the Hebrews because Yahweh should so greatly bless...
    [nave] POOR Atonement money of, uniform with that of the rich, Ex. 30:15. Inexpensive offerings of the poor, Lev. 5:7; 12:8; 14:21, 22. See: Beneficence; Giving; Liberality; Orphans; Poverty; Widow. Also See: Rich; Riches. Uncl...

  • Hypocrisy

    [nave] HYPOCRISY. Job 8:13-15; Job 13:16; Job 15:31, 33, 34; Job 17:8; Job 20:4, 5 vs. 6-18.; Job 27:8-10 vs. 13-18.; Job 31:33, 34; Job 34:30; Job 36:13, 14; Psa. 5:9; Psa. 50:16, 17; Psa. 52:4; Psa. 55:12-14, 20, 21, 23; Psa. 78...

  • FARTHING

    [ebd] (1.) Matt. 10:29; Luke 12:6. Greek assarion, i.e., a small as, which was a Roman coin equal to a tenth of a denarius or drachma, nearly equal to a halfpenny of our money. (2.) Matt. 5:26; Mark 12:42 (Gr. kodrantes), the quad...
    [isbe] FARTHING - far'-thing: The rendering of two words in the Greek of the New Testament, assarion, and kodrantes, Latin quadrans. The assarion was the tenth part of the denarius, and hence in value about one penny or two centuri...
    [smith] Two names of coins in the New Testament are rendered in the Authorized Version by this word: Quadrans , (Matthew 5:26; Mark 12:42) a coin current in the time of our Lord, equivalent to three-eights of a cent; The assarion , ...

  • Money

    [isbe] MONEY - mun'-i: Various terms are used for money in the Bible, but the most common are the Hebrew keceph, and Greek argurion, both meaning silver. We find also qesiTah, rendered by Septuagint "lambs," probably referring to m...
    [nave] MONEY Silver used as, Gen. 17:12, 13, 23, 27; 20:16; 23:9, 13; 31:15; 37:28; 42:25-35; 43:12-23; 44:1-8; 47:14-18; Ex. 12:44; 21:11, 21, 34, 35; 22:7, 17, 25; 30:16; Lev. 22:11; 25:37, 51; 27:15, 18; Num. 3:48-51; 18:16; Deu...

  • SCRIBES

    [isbe] SCRIBES - skribz: The existence of law leads necessarily to a profession whose business is the study and knowledge of the law; at any rate, if the law is extensive and complicated. At the time of Ezra and probably for some t...

  • TREASURE; TREASURER; TREASURY

    [isbe] TREASURE; TREASURER; TREASURY - trezh'-ur, trezh'-ur-er, trezh'-ur-i (otsar, genaz, genez, ganzakh, chocen matmon, mickenah, mikhman, `athudh, saphan; gaza, thesauros): I. In the Old Testament. 1. Treasure The English word "...

  • Pey

    [nave] PEY In KJV about a day's wage; bearing Caesar's image. See: Denarius Elsewhere, an Assarion worth about 1/16 of a Denarius Matt. 10:29; Luke 12:6. A Kodrantes worth about 1/64 of a Denarius Matt. 5:26; Mark 12:42. A Lepto...

  • Pride

    [nave] PRIDE. Ex. 18:10, 11; Lev. 26:19; Deut. 8:11-14, 17-20; Judg. 9:14, 15; 1 Sam. 2:3-5; 1 Kin. 20:11; 2 Kin. 14:9, 10 2 Chr. 25:18, 19. Job 11:12; Job 12:2, 3; Job 13:2, 5; Job 15:1-13; Job 18:3, 4; Job 21:31, 32; Job 32:9-13...

  • Storehouses

    [nave] STOREHOUSES Of kings, 2 Kin. 20:13; 1 Chr. 27:25; 2 Chr. 32:27, 28; Ezra 1:7, 8; Esth. 3:9. Records preserved in, Ezra 5:17; 6:1. Treasurers in charge of, Ezra 7:20, 21. Heathen temples used for, Dan. 1:2. Tabernacle use...

  • TREASURY

    [ebd] (Matt. 27:6; Mark 12:41; John 8:20). It does not appear that there was a separate building so called. The name was given to the thirteen brazen chests, called "trumpets," from the form of the opening into which the offerings...
    [smith] (Mark 12:41; Luke 21:1) a name given by the rabbins to thirteen chests in the temple, called trumpets from their shape. They stood in the court of the women. It would seem probable that this court was sometimes itself called ...

  • Self-denial

    [nave] SELF-DENIAL. Gen. 22:12 with vs. 1-12.2 Sam. 24:24; Psa. 132:3-5; Prov. 16:32; Prov. 23:2; Dan. 10:3; Matt. 5:29, 30 Mark 9:43. Matt. 8:19, 20 [Luke 9:57, 58.] Matt. 8:21, 22 Luke 9:59, 60. Matt. 10:37-39; Matt. 13:44-46; M...

  • CHEST

    [isbe] CHEST - chest ('aron, genazim; kibotos): (1) The ark of the covenant in Old Testament is invariably denoted by the word 'aron, elsewhere rendered the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American) "chest."...

  • Prayer

    [nave] PRAYER. Index of Sub-topics Miscellany of Minor Sub-Topics; Unclassified Scriptures Relating to; Answer to, Promised; Answered, Instances of Answered; Confession in; Importunity in, Instances of Importunity in; Intercessor...
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Luke 21:1-2

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Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • David proceeded to offer sacrifices in response to Gad's instructions (v. 18). David needed to commit himself again to God (the burnt offering) and to renew his fellowship with God (the peace offering, v. 25). God instructed ...
  • God had a very unusual ministry for Elijah to perform in which he would stand alone against hundreds of opponents (18:16-40). This section reveals how the Lord prepared him for it.The site of Zarephath was between Tyre and Si...
  • References to false prophets open and close this pericope (vv. 6-7, 11). In the middle, Micah again targeted the greedy in Judah for criticism (vv. 8-10). Apparently the false prophets condoned the practices of the greedy and...
  • "But"introduces the transition from the words to the disciples that preceded (vv. 1-12). The scribes and Pharisees had taken the exact opposite position on Jesus' person than the disciples had. Consequently their futures woul...
  • I. Introduction 1:1-13A. The title of the book 1:1B. Jesus' preparation for ministry 1:2-131. The ministry of John the Baptist 1:2-82. The baptism of Jesus 1:9-113. The temptation of Jesus 1:12-13II. The Servant's early Galil...
  • Mark omitted Jesus' year of early Judean ministry (John 1:15-4:42), as did the other Synoptic evangelists. He began his account of Jesus' ministry of service in Galilee, northern Israel (1:14-6:6a). Because of increasing oppo...
  • The following incident demonstrated Jesus' sovereign authority over the Sabbath. This is the last in this series of conflict accounts. It provides the climax in this section of Mark's narrative.3:1-2 This event happened on a ...
  • This pericope introduces Jesus' continuing ministry in Galilee following the religious leaders' decision to kill Him (cf. 1:14-15; 2:13). It provides much more detail than the parallel account in Matthew.3:7-8 The sea to whic...
  • The rest of Jesus' ministry, as Mark recorded it, took place in and around Jerusalem. Chapters 11-13 present Jesus' ministry before His passion. It consisted of Jesus' formal presentation to the nation (11:1-26), His teaching...
  • Mark gave more precise time intervals than Matthew did. Matthew related the cursing of the fig tree (Matt. 21:12-17) and Jesus' lesson to the disciples the following day (Matt. 21:18-22) back to back.11:12-13 The next day was...
  • This was Jesus' second messianic act that constituted part of His formal presentation to Israel. The first was the Triumphal Entry (vv. 1-11).11:15-16 The market atmosphere existed in the court of the Gentiles, the outermost ...
  • This entire section contains Jesus' teaching in the temple courtyard on Wednesday. The religious leaders first questioned Jesus' authority (11:12-12:12) and then His teaching (12:13-37). Finally Jesus condemned their hypocris...
  • "The other major example of the concentric [chiastic] pattern in Mark's story [beside 2:1-3:6] is the series of Jesus' conflicts with the authorities in Jerusalem [ch. 12], comprised of seven episodes: Episodes A and A1 invol...
  • Mark condensed Jesus' comments that Matthew recorded extensively to give the essence of Jesus' criticism. These words signal Jesus' final break with Israel's official leaders.12:38-39 Jesus condemned the religious leaders for...
  • This incident contrasts the spiritual poverty and physical prosperity of the scribes with the physical poverty and spiritual prosperity of the widow. It also contrasts the greed of the scribes with the generosity of the widow...
  • The Olivet Discourse is the longest section of Jesus' teaching that Mark recorded (cf. 4:1-34; 7:1-23). Mark used this discourse as a bridge between Jesus' controversies with Israel's leaders (11:27-12:44) and the account of ...
  • Adams, J. McKee. Biblical Backgrounds. Nashville: Broadman Press, 1965.Alexander, Joseph Addison. The Gospel According to Mark. 1881. Reprint ed. London: Banner of Truth, 1960.Alexander, William M. Demonic Possession in the N...
  • These inflammatory words of criticism and condemnation fanned the embers of Pharisaic hostility into an inferno of hatred and hostility. Luke wrote that these religious leaders now questioned Him closely on many subjects. He ...
  • The connecting link in Luke's narrative is the mention of a widow (cf. 20:47). The contrast is between the false piety of the rich lawyers and the genuine piety of one poor woman. This is another lesson for Luke's readers on ...
  • 8:12 The context of the events in this paragraph continues to be the temple during the feast of Tabernacles (v. 20, cf. 7:14). Jesus was speaking to the Jews who had assembled there some of whom were residents of Jerusalem an...
  • Paul was not only proud of the Corinthians but he also rejoiced over the Christians in Macedonia, the Corinthians' neighbors to the north. This joy connects the present section with the former one.8:1-2 Paul tactfully began h...
  • Paul cited the example of Jesus Christ's gift of Himself for needy humanity to motivate his readers further to finish their work of assembling the collection.8:8 Paul wanted his readers to understand that he did not want them...
  • A. A loyal group of women accompanied Jesus and served Him on His ministry tours (Luke 8:1-3; Matt. 27:55; Mark 15:41).B. In contrast to normal custom and rabbinic standards, Jesus spoke with a Samaritan woman and revealed to...
  • James proceeded to explain in 1:26-2:13 what a doer of works (1:25) does.1:26 "Religious"(Gr. threskos, used here only in the New Testament) describes someone who fears or worships God. In particular, it refers to the outward...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

  • Mark 10-16
  • And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted Him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 26. He said unto him, What is written in the law! how readest thou? 27. And he, answering, said, Thou shalt lov...
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