9:9 As they were coming down from the mountain, he gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead.
14:12 Now 16 on the first day of the feast of 17 Unleavened Bread, when the Passover lamb is sacrificed, 18 Jesus’ 19 disciples said to him, “Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover?” 20
1 tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
2 tc ‡ Most
3 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
4 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.
5 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.
6 tn The words “to do so” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied for clarity and stylistic reasons.
7 tn Although the Greek subjunctive mood, formally required in a subordinate clause introduced by ἵνα ({ina), is traditionally translated by an English subjunctive (e.g., “may,” so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV), changes in the use of the subjunctive in English now result in most readers understanding such a statement as indicating permission (“may” = “has permission to”) or as indicating uncertainty (“may” = “might” or “may or may not”). Thus a number of more recent translations render such instances by an English future tense (“will,” so TEV, CEV, NLT, NASB 1995 update). That approach has been followed here.
9 tn Grk “Aware of their hypocrisy he said.”
10 tn Here the specific name of the coin was retained in the translation, because not all coins in circulation in Palestine at the time carried the image of Caesar. In other places δηνάριον (dhnarion) has been translated simply as “silver coin” with an explanatory note.
11 tn Grk “his brother”; but this would be redundant in English with the same phrase “his brother” at the end of the verse, so most modern translations render this phrase “the man” (so NIV, NRSV).
12 tn The use of ἵνα (Jina) with imperatival force is unusual (BDF §470.1).
13 tn Grk “raise up seed” (an idiom for fathering children).
14 sn A quotation from Deut 25:5. This practice is called levirate marriage (see also Ruth 4:1-12; Mishnah, m. Yevamot; Josephus, Ant. 4.8.23 [4.254-256]). The levirate law is described in Deut 25:5-10. The brother of a man who died without a son had an obligation to marry his brother’s widow. This served several purposes: It provided for the widow in a society where a widow with no children to care for her would be reduced to begging, and it preserved the name of the deceased, who would be regarded as the legal father of the first son produced from that marriage.
13 tn See the note on the word “slave” in 10:44.
14 tn Grk “giving.”
15 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
16 tn The words “the feast of” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied for clarity.
17 sn Generally the feast of Unleavened Bread would refer to Nisan 15 (Friday), but the following reference to the sacrifice of the Passover lamb indicates that Nisan 14 (Thursday) was what Mark had in mind (Nisan = March 27 to April 25). The celebration of the Feast of Unleavened Bread lasted eight days, beginning with the Passover meal. The celebrations were so close together that at times the names of both were used interchangeably.
18 tn Grk “his”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
19 sn This required getting a suitable lamb and finding lodging in Jerusalem where the meal could be eaten. The population of the city swelled during the feast, so lodging could be difficult to find. The Passover was celebrated each year in commemoration of the Israelites’ deliverance from Egypt; thus it was a feast celebrating redemption (see Exod 12). The Passover lamb was roasted and eaten after sunset in a family group of at least ten people (m. Pesahim 7.13). People ate the meal while reclining (see the note on table in 14:18). It included, besides the lamb, unleavened bread and bitter herbs as a reminder of Israel’s bitter affliction at the hands of the Egyptians. Four cups of wine mixed with water were also used for the meal. For a further description of the meal and the significance of the wine cups, see E. Ferguson, Backgrounds of Early Christianity, 523-24.