Mark 1:45

1:45 But as the man ¹  went out he began to announce it publicly and spread the story widely, so that Jesus ²  was no longer able to enter any town openly but stayed outside in remote places. Still ³  they kept coming ⁴  to him from everywhere.

Mark 2:4

2:4 When they were not able to bring him in because of the crowd, they removed the roof ⁵  above Jesus. ⁶  Then, ⁷  after tearing it out, they lowered the stretcher the paralytic was lying on.

Mark 3:27

3:27 But no one is able to enter a strong man’s ⁸  house and steal his property unless he first ties up the strong man. Then he can thoroughly plunder his house. ⁹ 

Mark 4:32

4:32 when it is sown, it grows up, ¹⁰  becomes the greatest of all garden plants, and grows large branches so that the wild birds ¹¹  can nest in its shade.” ¹² 

Mark 7:15

7:15 There is nothing outside of a person that can defile him by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a person that defiles him.”

Mark 9:39

9:39 But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, because no one who does a miracle in my name will be able soon afterward to say anything bad about me.

Mark 10:38-39

10:38 But Jesus said to them, “You don’t know what you are asking! Are you able to drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I experience?” ¹³  10:39 They said to him, “We are able.” ¹⁴  Then Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink, and you will be baptized with the baptism I experience,

[1:45]  ¹ tn Grk “he”; the referent (the man who was healed) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:45]  ² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:45]  ³ tn Grk “and”; καί (kai) often has a mildly contrastive force, as here.

[1:45]  ⁴ tn The imperfect verb has been translated iteratively.

[2:4]  ⁵ sn A house in 1st century Palestine would have had a flat roof with stairs or a ladder going up. This access was often from the outside of the house.

[2:4]  ⁶ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:4]  ⁷ tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[3:27]  ⁹ sn The strong man here pictures Satan.

[3:27]  ¹⁰ sn Some see the imagery here as similar to Eph 4:7-10, although no opponents are explicitly named in that passage. Jesus has the victory over Satan. Jesus’ acts of healing mean that the war is being won and the kingdom is coming.

[4:32]  ¹³ tn Mark 4:31-32 is fairly awkward in Greek. Literally the sentence reads as follows: “As a mustard seed, which when sown in the earth, being the smallest of all the seeds in the earth, and when it is sown, it grows up…” The structure has been rendered in more idiomatic English, although some of the awkward structure has been retained for rhetorical effect.

[4:32]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “the birds of the sky” or “the birds of the heaven”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated either “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context. The idiomatic expression “birds of the sky” refers to wild birds as opposed to domesticated fowl (cf. BDAG 809 s.v. πετεινόν).

[4:32]  ¹⁵ sn The point of the parable seems to be that while the kingdom of God may appear to have insignificant and unnoticeable beginnings (i.e., in the ministry of Jesus), it will someday (i.e., at the second advent) be great and quite expansive. The kingdom, however, is not to be equated with the church, but rather the church is an expression of the kingdom. Also, there is important OT background in the image of the mustard seed that grew and became a tree: Ezek 17:22-24 pictures the reemergence of the Davidic house where people can find calm and shelter. Like the mustard seed, it would start out small but grow to significant size.

[10:38]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “baptism I am baptized with.” This same change has been made in v. 39.

[10:39]  ²¹ sn No more naïve words have ever been spoken as those found here coming from James and John, “We are able.” They said it with such confidence and ease, yet they had little clue as to what they were affirming. In the next sentence Jesus confirms that they will indeed suffer for his name.