Mark 3:29

3:29 But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, but is guilty of an eternal sin” ¹ 

Mark 4:19

4:19 but ²  worldly cares, the seductiveness of wealth, ³  and the desire for other things come in and choke the word, ⁴  and it produces nothing.

Mark 11:14

11:14 He said to it, ⁵  “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it. ⁶ 

[3:29]  ¹ sn Is guilty of an eternal sin. This passage has troubled many people, who have wondered whether or not they have committed this eternal sin. Three things must be kept in mind: (1) the nature of the sin is to ascribe what is the obvious work of the Holy Spirit (e.g., releasing people from Satan’s power) to Satan himself; (2) it is not simply a momentary doubt or sinful attitude, but is indeed a settled condition which opposes the Spirit’s work, as typified by the religious leaders who opposed Jesus; and (3) a person who is concerned about it has probably never committed this sin, for those who commit it here (i.e., the religious leaders) are not in the least concerned about Jesus’ warning. On this last point see W. W. Wessel, “Mark,” EBC 8:645-46.

[4:19]  ² tn Grk “and.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[4:19]  ³ tn Grk “the deceitfulness of riches.” Cf. BDAG 99 s.v. ἀπάτη 1, “the seduction which comes from wealth.”

[4:19]  ⁴ sn That is, their concern for spiritual things is crowded out by material things.

[11:14]  ³ tn Grk “And answering, he said to it.” The participle ἀποκριθείς (apokriqeis) is redundant and has not been translated.

[11:14]  ⁴ sn Mark 11:12-14. The incident of the cursing of the fig tree occurs before he enters the temple for a third time (11:27ff) and is questioned at length by the religious leaders (11:27-12:40). It appears that Mark records the incident as a portent of what is going to happen to the leadership in Jerusalem who were supposed to have borne spiritual fruit but have been found by Messiah at his coming to be barren. The fact that the nation as a whole is indicted is made explicit in chapter 13:1-37 where Jesus speaks of Jerusalem’s destruction and his second coming.