Mark 11:9

11:9 Both those who went ahead and those who followed kept shouting, “Hosanna! ¹  Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! ² 

Mark 12:38

Warnings About Experts in the Law

12:38 In his teaching Jesus ³  also said, “Watch out for the experts in the law. ⁴  They like walking ⁵  around in long robes and elaborate greetings ⁶  in the marketplaces,

Mark 15:21

The Crucifixion

15:21 The soldiers ⁷  forced ⁸  a passerby to carry his cross, ⁹  Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country ¹⁰  (he was the father of Alexander and Rufus).

Mark 15:39

15:39 Now when the centurion, ¹¹  who stood in front of him, saw how he died, ¹²  he said, “Truly this man was God’s Son!”

[11:9]  ¹ tn The expression ῾Ωσαννά (Jwsanna, literally in Hebrew, “O Lord, save”) in the quotation from Ps 118:25-26 was probably by this time a familiar liturgical expression of praise, on the order of “Hail to the king,” although both the underlying Aramaic and Hebrew expressions meant “O Lord, save us.” The introductory ὡσαννά is followed by the words of Ps 118:25, εὐλογημένος ὁ ἐρχόμενος ἐν ὀνόματι κυρίου (euloghmeno" Jo ercomeno" en onomati kuriou), although in the Fourth Gospel the author adds for good measure καὶ ὁ βασιλεὺς τοῦ ᾿Ισραήλ (kai Jo basileu" tou Israhl). In words familiar to every Jew, the author is indicating that at this point every messianic expectation is now at the point of realization. It is clear from the words of the psalm shouted by the crowd that Jesus is being proclaimed as messianic king. See E. Lohse, TDNT 9:682-84.

[11:9]  ² sn A quotation from Ps 118:25-26.

[12:38]  ³ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:38]  ⁴ tn Or “for the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.

[12:38]  ⁵ tn In Greek this is the only infinitive in vv. 38-39. It would be awkward in English to join an infinitive to the following noun clauses, so this has been translated as a gerund.

[12:38]  ⁶ sn There is later Jewish material in the Talmud that spells out such greetings in detail. See H. Windisch, TDNT 1:498.

[15:21]  ⁵ tn Grk “They”; the referent (the soldiers) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[15:21]  ⁶ tn Or “conscripted”; or “pressed into service.”

[15:21]  ⁷ sn Jesus was beaten severely with a whip before this (the prelude to crucifixion, known to the Romans as verberatio, mentioned in Matt 27:26; Mark 15:15; John 19:1), so he would have been weak from trauma and loss of blood. Apparently he was unable to bear the cross himself, so Simon was conscripted to help (in all probability this was only the crossbeam, called in Latin the patibulum, since the upright beam usually remained in the ground at the place of execution). Cyrene was located in North Africa where Tripoli is today. Nothing more is known about this Simon.

[15:21]  ⁸ tn Or perhaps, “was coming in from his field” outside the city (BDAG 15-16 s.v. ἀγρός 1).

[15:39]  ⁷ sn A centurion was a noncommissioned officer in the Roman army or one of the auxiliary territorial armies, commanding a centuria of (nominally) 100 men. The responsibilities of centurions were broadly similar to modern junior officers, but there was a wide gap in social status between them and officers, and relatively few were promoted beyond the rank of senior centurion. The Roman troops stationed in Judea were auxiliaries, who would normally be rewarded with Roman citizenship after 25 years of service. Some of the centurions may have served originally in the Roman legions (regular army) and thus gained their citizenship at enlistment. Others may have inherited it, like Paul.

[15:39]  ⁸ tn Grk “the way he breathed his last”; or “the way he expired”; or “that he thus breathed no more.”