Mark 1:2

1:2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, ¹ 

“Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,

who will prepare your way, ² 

Mark 3:31

Jesus’ True Family

3:31 Then ³  Jesus’ ⁴  mother and his brothers ⁵  came. Standing ⁶  outside, they sent word to him, to summon him.

Mark 6:7

Sending Out the Twelve Apostles

6:7 Jesus ⁷  called the twelve and began to send them out two by two. He gave them authority over the unclean spirits. ⁸ 

Mark 11:1

The Triumphal Entry

11:1 Now ⁹  as they approached Jerusalem, ¹⁰  near Bethphage ¹¹  and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, ¹²  Jesus ¹³  sent two of his disciples

Mark 11:3

11:3 If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it ¹⁴  and will send it back here soon.’”

Mark 12:2

12:2 At harvest time he sent a slave ¹⁵  to the tenants to collect from them ¹⁶  his portion of the crop. ¹⁷ 

Mark 12:6

12:6 He had one left, his one dear son. ¹⁸  Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

Mark 13:27

13:27 Then he will send angels and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven. ¹⁹ 

¹ tc Instead of “in Isaiah the prophet” the majority of mss read “in the prophets” (A W ˹³ Ï Ir^lat). Except for Irenaeus (2nd century), the earliest evidence for this is thus from the 5th (or possibly late 4th) century (W A). The difficulty of Irenaeus is that he wrote in Greek but has been preserved largely in Latin. His Greek remains have “in Isaiah the prophet.” Only the later Latin translation has “in the prophets.” The KJV reading is thus in harmony with the majority of late mss. On the other hand, the witnesses for “in Isaiah the prophet” (either with the article before Isaiah or not) are early and geographically widespread: א B D L Δ Θ Ë¹ 33 565 700 892 1241 2427 al sy^p co Ir. This evidence runs deep into the 2nd century, is widespread, and is found in the most important Alexandrian, Western, and Caesarean witnesses. The “Isaiah” reading has a better external pedigree in every way. It has the support of the earliest and best witnesses from all the texttypes that matter. Moreover it is the harder reading, since the quotation in the first part of the verse appears to be from Exod 23:20 and Mal 3:1, with the quotation from Isa 40:3 coming in the next verse. The reading of the later mss seems motivated by a desire to resolve this difficulty.

² sn The opening lines of the quotation are from Exod 23:20; Mal 3:1. Here is the forerunner who points the way to the arrival of God’s salvation. His job is to prepare and guide the people, as the cloud did for Israel in the desert.

³ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

⁴ tn Grk “his”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁵ sn The issue of whether Jesus had brothers (siblings) has had a long history in the church. Epiphanius, in the 4th century, argued that Mary was a perpetual virgin and had no offspring other than Jesus. Others argued that these brothers were really cousins. Nothing in the text suggests any of this. See also John 7:3.

⁶ tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

⁵ tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁶ sn The phrase unclean spirits refers to evil spirits.

⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

⁸ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

⁹ sn The exact location of the village of Bethphage is not known. Most put it on the southeast side of the Mount of Olives and northwest of Bethany, about 1.5 miles (3 km) east of Jerusalem.

¹⁰ sn “Mountain” in English generally denotes a higher elevation than it often does in reference to places in Palestine. The Mount of Olives is really a ridge running north to south about 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) long, east of Jerusalem across the Kidron Valley. Its central elevation is about 30 meters (100 ft) higher than Jerusalem. It was named for the large number of olive trees which grew on it.

¹¹ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁹ sn The custom called angaria allowed the impressment of animals for service to a significant figure.

¹¹ tn See the note on the word “slave” in 10:44.

¹² tn Grk “from the tenants,” but this is redundant in English, so the pronoun (“them”) was used in the translation.

¹³ tn Grk “from the fruits of the vineyard.”

¹³ tn Grk “one beloved son.” See comment at Mark 1:11.

¹⁵ tn Or “of the sky”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context.