Open an explanation beneath verses with notes. Your notes and highlights stay on this device.
He went out from there. He came into his own country, and his disciples followed him.
Verse 1. After the miracles that Christ had performed, though he was not ignorant how much they despised him, yet that there might be no excuse for their disbelief, he condescended to return to them. Theophylactus.
When the Sabbath had come, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many hearing him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things?” and, “What is the wisdom that is given to this man, that such mighty works come about by his hands?
Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James, Joses, Judah, and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” So they were offended at him.
Verse 3. S. Matt. relates that they asked: Is not this the son of the carpenter? [1] It is not improbable that both questions were asked; it was certainly very natural to take him for a carpenter, who was the son of one. Saint Augustine.—They were scandalized at his lowly birth and humble parentage. Hence Jesus Christ takes occasion to expose the malice and envy of the Jews, in refusing him, and to shew that the Gentiles would more esteem him. See Luke 4:25, and John 1.
Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his own country, and among his own relatives, and in his own house.”
He could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them.
He marveled because of their unbelief. He went around the villages teaching.
He called to himself the twelve, and began to send them out two by two; and he gave them authority over the unclean spirits.
He commanded them that they should take nothing for their journey, except a staff only: no bread, no wallet, no money in their purse,
but to wear sandals, and not put on two tunics.
He said to them, “Wherever you enter into a house, stay there until you depart from there.
Whoever will not receive you nor hear you, as you depart from there, shake off the dust that is under your feet for a testimony against them. Assuredly, I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!”
They went out and preached that people should repent.
They cast out many demons, and anointed many with oil who were sick and healed them.
Verse 13. It was usual for the Jews to prescribe oil as a proper thing to anoint the sick; but its virtue in the present instance, when used by the apostles, was not natural but supernatural, and was derived from him who sent them; because this unction always produced a certain and constant cure in those who were anointed. This miraculous gift of healing the sick with oil, which Christ conferred on his apostles, was a prelude or gradual preparation to the dignity to which he raised this unction, when he established it a perpetual rite in his holy Church. Rutter.—With oil, and so forth This anointing the sick, was at least a figure of the sacrament, which Christ was pleased to institute for the spiritual relief of persons in danger of death: and which is fully expressed by Saint James, in his Catholic Epistle. Calmet. 5. The Council of Trent says this sacrament was insinuated in Saint Mark, and published in the Epistle of Saint James. Trid. sess. xiv. chapter 1. Witham.
King Herod heard this, for his name had become known, and he said, “John the Baptizer has risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him.”
Verse 14. The Herod here mentioned was the son of Herod, from whom S. Joseph fled with Jesus and Mary into Egypt. Saint John Chrysostom hom. xlix. in Matt.—How great was the envy of the Jews, is easily to be conceived from this passage. They can believe that John is risen from the dead, and appeared in public again, although no one gave testimony that this was the case: but that Jesus, so much favoured by God, who worked so many and so great miracles, should be risen again is incredible, although attested by angels, by apostles, by men, women, and persons of every denomination. They still assert that the body of Jesus was stolen. V. Bede.
But others said, “He is Elijah.” Others said, “He is a prophet, or like one of the prophets.”
But Herod, when he heard this, said, “This is John, whom I beheaded. He has risen from the dead.”
For Herod himself had sent out and arrested John and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, for he had married her.
For John had said to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”
Herodias set herself against him and desired to kill him, but she couldn’t,
for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and kept him safe. When he heard him, he did many things, and he heard him gladly.
Verse 20. Herod, [2] and so forth The sense both of the Latin and Greek text seems to be, that Herod entertained and shewed a particular respect and value for John the Baptist: yet some expound it, that he had a watchful eye over him, and sought only for an occasion to take him off. Witham.
Then a convenient day came when Herod on his birthday made a supper for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee.
When the daughter of Herodias herself came in and danced, she pleased Herod and those sitting with him. The king said to the young lady, “Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.”
He swore to her, “Whatever you ask of me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.”
She went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask?” She said, “The head of John the Baptizer.”
She came in immediately with haste to the king and requested, “I want you to give me right now the head of John the Baptizer on a platter.”
The king was exceedingly sorry, but for the sake of his oaths and of his dinner guests, he didn’t wish to refuse her.
Verse 26. It is customary, in Scripture, to give the generally prevailing sentiment at the time; thus Joseph is called by the blessed Virgin, the father of Jesus; so now Herod is said to be stricken with sadness, because he appeared to be so to the company at table, though within his own breast, he secretly rejoiced that he had an opportunity of destroying an importuning monitor, with an exterior shew of piety and honour. Ven. Bede.
Immediately the king sent out a soldier of his guard and commanded to bring John’s head; and he went and beheaded him in the prison,
and brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the young lady; and the young lady gave it to her mother.
When his disciples heard this, they came and took up his corpse and laid it in a tomb.
Verse 29. Church history informs us, that the Christians were accustomed to frequent this tomb with great piety and respect, till the reign of Julian the apostate, at which time the pagans, through hatred for Christianity, broke open his tomb, and dispersed his bones; but immediately after, thinking it better to burn them, they endeavoured to collect them again. But some religious of a neighbouring convent, joining themselves to the pagans, under pretence of collecting the bones to burn, secreted the greater part of them, and sent them to Philip, at Jerusalem, who sent them to Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria; and in the reign of Theodosius, the temple of Serapis was converted into a Christian church, and dedicated to the honour of Saint John the Baptist, where his relics were deposited. Gloss. Ordina.
The apostles gathered themselves together to Jesus, and they told him all things, whatever they had done, and whatever they had taught.
He said to them, “Come away into a deserted place, and rest awhile.” For there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.
They went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves.
They saw them going, and many recognized him and ran there on foot from all the cities. They arrived before them and came together to him.
TR reads “The multitudes” instead of “They”
Jesus came out, saw a great multitude, and he had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.
When it was late in the day, his disciples came to him and said, “This place is deserted, and it is late in the day.
Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread, for they have nothing to eat.”
But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” They asked him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?”
Verse 37. For two hundred pence. See Matthew 18:28. The apostles seem to speak these words ironically, to signify that they had not so much money as could procure a mouthful for each of them. Witham.
200 denarii was about 7 or 8 months wages for an agricultural laborer.
He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go see.” When they knew, they said, “Five, and two fish.”
He commanded them that everyone should sit down in groups on the green grass.
They sat down in ranks, by hundreds and by fifties.
He took the five loaves and the two fish; and looking up to heaven, he blessed and broke the loaves, and he gave to his disciples to set before them, and he divided the two fish among them all.
They all ate and were filled.
They took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and also of the fish.
Those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.
TR adds “about”
Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go ahead to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he himself sent the multitude away.
Verse 45. The apostles were in a desert place belonging to Bethsaida, which probably was divided from it by some bay or creek, that ran into the land; and Christ only ordered them to pass over this to the city, where he might afterwards have joined them, when he had sent away the people. But in their passage a great storm arose, and they were driven by an adverse wind to the open sea, towards Capharnaum; or, probably, when they found the wind so violent, afraid of shipwreck if they neared the shore, they rowed out to sea. This reconciles the seeming discrepance of Saint Mark and Saint John, when notwithstanding the directions Christ had given his disciples to go before him to Bethsaida, we find them going to Capharnaum. Rutter.
After he had taken leave of them, he went up the mountain to pray.
When evening had come, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and he was alone on the land.
Seeing them distressed in rowing, for the wind was contrary to them, about the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea; and he would have passed by them,
Verse 48. Thus the divine mercy often seems to desert the faithful in the height of tribulation, but God only acts thus, that he may try their patience, and reward them more abundantly. Nic. de Lyra.
but they, when they saw him walking on the sea, supposed that it was a ghost, and cried out;
for they all saw him and were troubled. But he immediately spoke with them and said to them, “Cheer up! It is I! Don’t be afraid.”
or, “I AM!”
He got into the boat with them; and the wind ceased, and they were very amazed among themselves, and marveled;
for they hadn’t understood about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.
Verse 52. They understood not concerning the loaves; [3] that is they did not reflect how great a miracle that was which Christ had lately wrought, otherwise they would not have been so much surprised at his walking upon the sea. Witham.
When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored to the shore.
When they had come out of the boat, immediately the people recognized him,
and ran around that whole region, and began to bring those who were sick on their mats to where they heard he was.
Wherever he entered—into villages, or into cities, or into the country—they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged him that they might just touch the fringe of his garment; and as many as touched him were made well.
or, tassel