Mark 4:1

The Parable of the Sower

4:1 Again he began to teach by the lake. Such a large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat on the lake and sat there while the whole crowd was on the shore by the lake.

Mark 4:15

4:15 These are the ones on the path where the word is sown: Whenever they hear, immediately Satan comes and snatches the word that was sown in them.

Mark 10:46

Healing Blind Bartimaeus

10:46 They came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus the son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the road.

Mark 14:43

Betrayal and Arrest

14:43 Right away, while Jesus was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, arrived. With him came a crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent by the chief priests and experts in the law and elders.


tn Grk “and all the crowd.” The clause in this phrase, although coordinate in terms of grammar, is logically subordinate to the previous clause.

sn Interestingly, the synoptic parallels each use a different word for Satan here: Matt 13:19 has “the evil one,” while Luke 8:12 has “the devil.” This illustrates the fluidity of the gospel tradition in often using synonyms at the same point of the parallel tradition.

sn The word of Jesus has the potential to save if it germinates in a person’s heart, something the devil is very much against.

map For location see Map5-B2; Map6-E1; Map7-E1; Map8-E3; Map10-A2; Map11-A1.

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

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

tn Or “approached.” This is a different verb than the one translated “arrived” in Matt 26:47 and below in v. 45, although in this context the meanings probably overlap.

tn Or “from the chief priests, scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.