Mark 1:10

1:10 And just as Jesus ¹  was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens ²  splitting apart and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. ³ 

Mark 8:11

The Demand for a Sign

8:11 Then the Pharisees ⁴  came and began to argue with Jesus, asking for ⁵  a sign from heaven ⁶  to test him.

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. ⁷ 

Mark 13:32

Be Ready!

13:32 “But as for that day or hour no one knows it – neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son ⁸  – except the Father.

Mark 16:19

16:19 After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.

[1:10]  ¹ tn Grk “and immediately coming up out of the water, he saw.” The present participle has been translated temporally, with the subject (Jesus) specified for clarity.

[1:10]  ² tn Or “sky.” The Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context. The same word is used in v. 11.

[1:10]  ³ sn The phrase like a dove is a descriptive comparison. The Spirit is not a dove, but descended like one in some sort of bodily representation.

[8:11]  ⁴ sn See the note on Pharisees in 2:16.

[8:11]  ⁵ tn Grk “seeking from him.” The participle ζητοῦντες (zhtountes) shows the means by which the Pharisees argued with Jesus.

[8:11]  ⁶ sn What exactly this sign would have been, given what Jesus was already doing, is not clear. But here is where the fence-sitters reside, refusing to commit to him.

[13:27]  ⁷ tn Or “of the sky”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context.

[13:32]  ¹⁰ sn The phrase nor the Son has caused a great deal of theological debate because on the surface it appears to conflict with the concept of Jesus’ deity. The straightforward meaning of the text is that the Son does not know the time of his return. If Jesus were divine, though, wouldn’t he know this information? There are other passages which similarly indicate that Jesus did not know certain things. For example, Luke 2:52 indicates that Jesus grew in wisdom; this has to mean that Jesus did not know everything all the time but learned as he grew. So Mark 13:32 is not alone in implying that Jesus did not know certain things. The best option for understanding Mark 13:32 and similar passages is to hold the two concepts in tension: The Son in his earthly life and ministry had limited knowledge of certain things, yet he was still deity.