Psalms 131:1-2

Psalm 131 ¹ 

A song of ascents, ²  by David.

131:1 O Lord, my heart is not proud,

nor do I have a haughty look. ³ 

I do not have great aspirations,

or concern myself with things that are beyond me. ⁴ 

131:2 Indeed ⁵  I am composed and quiet, ⁶ 

like a young child carried by its mother; ⁷ 

I am content like the young child I carry. ⁸ 

Mark 10:15

10:15 I tell you the truth, ⁹  whoever does not receive ¹⁰  the kingdom of God like a child ¹¹  will never ¹²  enter it.”

Mark 10:1

Divorce

10:1 Then ¹³  Jesus ¹⁴  left that place and went to the region of Judea and ¹⁵  beyond the Jordan River. ¹⁶  Again crowds gathered to him, and again, as was his custom, he taught them.

Mark 1:14

Preaching in Galilee and the Call of the Disciples

1:14 Now after John was imprisoned, ¹⁷  Jesus went into Galilee and proclaimed the gospel ¹⁸  of God. ¹⁹ 

[131:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 131. The psalmist affirms his humble dependence on the Lord and urges Israel to place its trust in God.

[131:1]  ² sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.

[131:1]  ³ tn Heb “and my eyes are not lifted up.”

[131:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “I do not walk in great things, and in things too marvelous for me.”

[131:2]  ⁵ tn Or “but.”

[131:2]  ⁶ tn Heb “I make level and make quiet my soul.”

[131:2]  ⁷ tn Heb “like a weaned [one] upon his mother.”

[131:2]  ⁸ tn Heb “like the weaned [one] upon me, my soul.”

[10:15]  ⁹ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[10:15]  ¹⁰ sn On receive see John 1:12.

[10:15]  ¹¹ sn The point of the comparison receive the kingdom of God like a child has more to do with a child’s trusting spirit and willingness to be dependent and receive from others than any inherent humility the child might possess.

[10:15]  ¹² tn The negation in Greek (οὐ μή, ou mh) is very strong here.

[10:1]  ¹³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[10:1]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[10:1]  ¹⁵ tc Alexandrian and other witnesses (א B C* L Ψ 0274 892 2427 pc co) read καὶ πέραν (kai peran, “and beyond”), while Western and Caesarean witnesses (C² D W Δ Θ Ë^1,13 28 565 579 1241 al) read πέραν (simply “beyond”). It is difficult to decide between the Alexandrian and Western readings here, but since the parallel in Matt 19:1 omits καί the weight is slightly in favor of including it here; scribes may have omitted the word here to harmonize this passage to the Matthean passage. Because of the perceived geographical difficulties found in the earlier readings (omission of the word “and” would make it seem as though Judea is beyond the Jordan), the majority of the witnesses (A Ï) read διὰ τοῦ πέραν (dia tou peran, “through the other side”), perhaps trying to indicate the direction of Jesus’ travel.

[10:1]  ¹⁶ tn “River” is not in the Greek text but is supplied for clarity. The region referred to here is sometimes known as Transjordan (i.e., “across the Jordan”).

[1:14]  ¹⁷ tn Or “arrested,” “taken into custody” (see L&N 37.12).

[1:14]  ¹⁸ tc Most witnesses, especially later ones (A D W Ï lat), have τῆς βασιλείας (ths basileias) between τὸ εὐαγγέλιον (to euangelion) and τοῦ θεοῦ (tou qeou): “the gospel of the kingdom of God.” On the one hand, it is perhaps possible that τῆς βασιλείας was omitted to conform the expression to that which is found in the epistles (cf. Rom 1:1; 15:16; 2 Cor 11:7; 1 Thess 2:2, 8, 9; 1 Pet 4:17). On the other hand, this expression, “the gospel of God,” occurs nowhere else in the Gospels, while “the gospel of the kingdom” is a Matthean expression (Matt 4:23; 9:35; 24:14), and “kingdom of God” is pervasive in the synoptic Gospels (occurring over 50 times). Scribes would thus be more prone to add τῆς βασιλείας than to omit it. Further, the external support for the shorter reading (א B L Θ Ë^1,13 28* 33 565 579 892 2427 sa) is significantly stronger than that for the longer reading. There is little doubt, therefore, that the shorter reading is authentic.

[1:14]  ¹⁹ tn The genitive in the phrase τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τοῦ θεοῦ (to euangelion tou qeou, “the gospel of God”) could be translated as either a subjective genitive (“the gospel which God brings”) or an objective genitive (“the gospel about God”). Either is grammatically possible. This is possibly an instance of a plenary genitive (see ExSyn 119-21; M. Zerwick, Biblical Greek, §§36-39). If so, an interplay between the two concepts is intended: The gospel which God brings is in fact the gospel about himself.