Mark 15:43

15:43 Joseph of Arimathea, a highly regarded member of the council, ¹  who was himself looking forward to ²  the kingdom of God, ³  went boldly to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. ⁴ 

Mark 1:31

1:31 He came and raised her up by gently taking her hand. Then the fever left her and she began to serve ⁵  them.

Mark 15:36

15:36 Then someone ran, filled a sponge with sour wine, ⁶  put it on a stick, ⁷  and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Leave him alone! Let’s see if Elijah will come to take him down!”

Mark 3:9

3:9 Because of the crowd, he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him so the crowd ⁸  would not press toward him.

Mark 1:13

1:13 He was in the wilderness forty days, ⁹  enduring temptations from Satan. He ¹⁰  was with wild animals, and angels were ministering to his needs. ¹¹ 

Mark 6:34

6:34 As Jesus ¹²  came ashore ¹³  he saw the large crowd and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So ¹⁴  he taught them many things.

¹ tn Grk “a councillor” (as a member of the Sanhedrin, see L&N 11.85). This indicates that some individuals among the leaders did respond to Jesus.

² tn Or “waiting for.”

³ sn Though some dispute that Joseph of Arimathea was a disciple of Jesus, this remark that he was looking forward to the kingdom of God and his actions regarding Jesus’ burial suggest otherwise.

⁴ sn Asking for the body of Jesus was indeed a bold move on the part of Joseph of Arimathea, for it clearly and openly identified him with a man who had just been condemned and executed, namely, Jesus. His faith is exemplary, especially for someone who was a member of the council that handed Jesus over for crucifixion (cf. Luke 23:51). He did this because he sought to give Jesus an honorable burial.

⁵ tn The imperfect verb is taken ingressively here.

⁹ sn Sour wine refers to cheap wine that was called in Latin posca, a cheap vinegar wine diluted heavily with water. It was the drink of slaves and soldiers, and was probably there for the soldiers who had performed the crucifixion.

¹⁰ tn Grk “a reed.”

¹³ tn Grk “they”; the referent (the crowd) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁷ sn The forty days may allude to the experience of Moses (Exod 34:28), Elijah (1 Kgs 19:8, 15), or David and Goliath (1 Sam 17:16).

¹⁸ tn Grk “And he.”

¹⁹ tn Grk “were serving him,” “were ministering to him.”

²¹ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

²² tn Grk “came out [of the boat],” with the reference to the boat understood.

²³ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “So” to indicate this action is the result of Jesus’ compassion on the crowd in the narrative.