Mark Chapter 6

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Mar 6:1

Then He went out from there and came to His own country, and His disciples followed Him.: He left Capernaum and went to Nazareth. We know that Jesus wasn't born there, so it's kind of like how I was born in San Dimas but raised in San Bernardino, so I called my home San Bernardino.

Mar 6:2

And 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 wisdom is this which is given to Him, that such mighty works are performed by His hands!: I wish I was there to hear what Jesus was preaching. It must have been good. But instead of taking it to heart, the people kind of rolled their eyes, saying, "He's just a man." Even though they saw the miracles of Jesus, they didn't believe them. The strange thing is that they even recognized that they were miracles, and that Jesus spoke with wisdom, yet didn't believe.

Mar 6:3

Is this not the carpenter, the Son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?" So they were offended at Him.: These people knew Jesus, and His family. This is why they didn't believe that Jesus was anything special. In fact, it seems like they took offense that Jesus would behave like this, probably drawing from the fact that they grew up in the same neighborhood with Jesus being a carpenter. He didn't even become a priest or anything like it, yet preached in the synagogues.

Mar 6:4

But Jesus said to them, "A prophet is not without honor except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.": Jesus responds by saying that He is honored everywhere else He goes. It's kind of a contrasting statement. The people who know Him should believe even more. I do wonder that maybe Jesus was so much like us that you just wouldn't know He's God unless He told you. He was so humble that the average person couldn't tell. I'm pretty sure that my expectation would have been that the Messiah would be a spectacle, yet Jesus chose to be a carpenter. I can see how these people would have had difficulty believing Jesus was even a prophet, let alone God Himself, since Jesus had led such a humble life up to this point.

Mar 6:5

Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them.: So, it seems confirmed that Jesus's healing required faith. The people in this town didn't believe, so He wasn't able to do any of the same works that He did elsewhere. You'd think that the works would speak for themselves, but people are weird and believe what they want instead of looking at the facts. This also refutes the idea that everyone will be saved. If Jesus "could not" do mighty works due to their lack of faith, then Jesus cannot save anyone without faith.

Mar 6:6

And He marveled because of their unbelief. Then He went about the villages in a circuit, teaching.: Their unbelief must have been strong. Jesus said that even the faith of a mustard seed would be enough to move mountains, yet Jesus could do nothing. He went around and taught, but wasn't able to work any miracles.

Mar 6:7

And He called the twelve to Himself, and began to send them out two by two, and gave them power over unclean spirits.: Jesus wasn't selecting them here. Mark's account doesn't mention how Jesus chose them all, only a few. Jesus pairs up his disciples and sends them out to the villages, enabling them to back up their preaching with displays of power over unclean spirits. Jesus Himself didn't simpy go around preaching. He accompanied His preaching with displays of power to prove His authority.

Mar 6:8

He commanded them to take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bag, no bread, no copper in their money belts—: Pro 3:5-6, Isa 41:10, Psa 55:22 and many more verses say to lean on the Lord and He will guide you, protect you, and provide for you. This seems to be a lesson for the disciples in how to lean on the Lord for everything.

Mar 6:9

but to wear sandals, and not to put on two tunics.: They were to only wear a tunic, sandals, and carry a staff. They were to rely solely on the Lord.

Mar 6:10

Also He said to them, "In whatever place you enter a house, stay there till you depart from that place.: It seems like the idea was to not search for a nice place or anything, but when someone offered them a place to stay, they were to take it and stay there until they left that village.

Mar 6:11

And whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart from there, shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them. Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!": Chuck Smith said that this is proof that there are going to be different levels of punishment on judgement day. If you read this text plainly, I can't see anything else it could be saying. There's no discussion what that means, but we do know that Jesus is just, and that He will not punish the righteous with the wicked. There will be those who without knowing Jesus tried to live righteous lives, and I'm pretty sure that Jesus will judge them righteously.

Mar 6:12

So they went out and preached that people should repent.: Repent here means to change your mind based on gaining knowledge. And the crux of this verse is the word "that." The wording in this verse makes it seem like the disciples were preaching repentance, but they weren't. They were preaching with the intent of causing people to repent. Here's the Strong's definition of the word translated that:

ἵνα

hina

hin'-ah

Probably from the same as the former part of G1438 (through the demonstrative idea; compare G3588); in order that (denoting the purpose or the result): - albeit, because, to the intent (that), lest, so as, (so) that, (for) to. Compare G3363.

It's not really clear what they were preaching, but they were probably preaching that the kingdom of God was here. John the Baptist preached that the kingdom was near, and now Jesus's disciples preached that it was here.

Mar 6:13

And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.: To give proof that their message was from God, Jesus gave the disciples power over demons. The scripture doesn't mention it, but it appears that Jesus also gave them authority to heal the sick.

Mar 6:14

Now King Herod heard of Him, for His name had become well known. And he said, "John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him.": This was Herod Antipater, son of Herod the Great. I read a book once about the political intrigue during this period, and it's impossible to follow. There were so many people in power that were killed, it's crazy. Because of the danger these rulers were constantly in, they were paranoid. I don't feel bad for them either, as they were all killers, and consequently killed in turn. They all plotted to kill one another and sided with either the Pharisees or the Romans. Reading books on the history of power shows one thing for certain: Power is intoxicating.

Mar 6:15

Others said, "It is Elijah." And others said, "It is the Prophet, or like one of the prophets.": Some people believed Jesus was Elijah, while others said He was the Messiah, and others believed He was just another prophet.

Mar 6:16

But when Herod heard, he said, "This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!": This is what doing wrong will get you. You'll live a life of paranoia.

Mar 6:17

For Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife; for he had married her.: This was another part of that crazy political intrigue back then. Well, I'm sure it's no better today, actually. Gotquestions.org has an article about it. Here's what they say as an overview, "Herodias in the Bible is notorious for being the woman who desired John the Baptist’s head on a platter. She was the unlawful wife of the tetrarch Herod Antipas and had formerly been the wife of Herod’s brother, Philip. As the granddaughter of Herod the Great, Herodias was herself a niece to both of her husbands, Philip and Antipas." These people were crazy.

Mar 6:18

Because John had said to Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife.": You think? Gross.

Mar 6:19

Therefore Herodias held it against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not;: Nobody likes being told they're wrong when they do wrong. Especially the wicked. She wanted John killed, but the people considered John a prophet, so Herod was reluctant to do it.

Mar 6:20

for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him. And when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly.: Not only did Herod know the people considered John a prophet, Herod himself knew that John was a holy man. John was locked up by Herod, but he was under his protection. Strange protection.

Mar 6:21

Then an opportune day came when Herod on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee.: Herod was clearly just looking for any excuse here. When people have no morals, it doesn't take much to convince them to do evil.

Mar 6:22

And when Herodias' daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, "Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you.": Even this is sick. He was pleased by his daughter-in-law/niece's dancing like that? This was Phillip, Herod's brother's daughter!

Mar 6:23

He also swore to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom.": If this were me, I'd ask for half the kingdom. Strange thing to promise someone for a dance.

Mar 6:24

So she went out and said to her mother, "What shall I ask?" And she said, "The head of John the Baptist!": In my mind, this seems pre-arranged by the three. Even if it isn't pre-arranged, it's sick. It's sick to have your niece dance for you like this, sick to be pleased by it, and sick to request the beheading of someone because you don't like them pointing out what you're doing is wrong.

Mar 6:25

Immediately she came in with haste to the king and asked, saying, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.": So taking the advice of her mother, she runs back to Herod and requests John the Baptist's head on a platter. I mean, come on.. We're supposed to think that this was all spontaneous? Give me a break.

Mar 6:26

And the king was exceedingly sorry; yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her.: Sure, sure. He was sorry, and didn't expect this at all. He expected his niece to ask for half the kingdom. Uh-huh. If you believe that, you have a screw loose.

Mar 6:27

Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded his head to be brought. And he went and beheaded him in prison,: Notice how he doesn't even try to convince her to ask for something else? If he were truly sorry, he would have asked her to ask for something else. It's nonsense that this all just happened spontaneously. And he immediately had it done. Yep. Totally believable.

Mar 6:28

brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother.: And then had the nerve to literally fulfill the request by bringing his head on a literal platter. Human depravity is just unbelievable.

Mar 6:29

When his disciples heard of it, they came and took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb.: Apparently, John the Baptist was kept in the castle of Machaerus. His disciples came and took what was left of his body and buried it.

Mar 6:30

Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.: The apostles returned from being sent out by Jesus. It seems that when they were sent out, they were told to come back at a specified time. Jesus wanted to hear about what they did, and what they taught.

Mar 6:31

And He said to them, "Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while." For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.: Like a loving parent, Jesus listened to the report of his disciples, and then wanted them to be able to eat in peace and relax for a bit. There were too many people swarming them, so they couldn't get any peace.

Mar 6:32

So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves.: Jesus and the disciples jump into a boat and head off to a place where they can be by themselves.

Mar 6:33

But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities. They arrived before them and came together to Him.: The people knew where they were heading, and ran there before even Jesus and the disciples could get there in a boat.

Mar 6:34

And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things.: Now, instead of sending the people away, Jesus had compassion on them. Even though He knew His disciples were tired and needed rest, He started teaching the people. He had compassion because these people didn't have spiritual leadership and were hungry for the Word. So hungry that they followed Him on foot to this deserted place.

Mar 6:35

When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, "This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late.: Here we see the concern that Jesus's disciples had for the people. They knew these people didn't have anything to eat, and they wouldn't leave unless Jesus told them to go.

Mar 6:36

Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat.": The disciples didn't want them to be hungry, so they ask Jesus to send them away. These people were so hungry for correct teaching that they would rather go hungry and hear the Word, than eat and not hear.

Mar 6:37

But He answered and said to them, "You give them something to eat." And they said to Him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?": Jesus tells the disciples to give the crowd some food, but the disciples don't have enough to give them. I think this was a legit question, and not sarcastic, but they ask if they should take 200 denarii and buy some bread for everyone. In today's time (2024 in America), that would equate to around $20,000 to $30,000. With that amount, you could buy roughly 5,000 loaves of good quality bread. I'm not sure they'd be able to find somewhere to buy it, so it's possible that the question could be sarcastic. Not sure.

Mar 6:38

But He said to them, "How many loaves do you have? Go and see." And when they found out they said, "Five, and two fish.": That's certainly not much. I also wonder where this food came from. They had just gotten back from their mission that Jesus had sent them out on.

Mar 6:39

Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass.: Jesus had them all sit down to receive a meal.

Mar 6:40

So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties.: And they sat down in an orderly fashion, in rows of hundreds and fifties. It would make it easier for the disciples to pass by them.

Mar 6:41

And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all.: This must have been something to see. I can't picture this in my mind, how the food would multiply. But Jesus kept handing food to His disciples and they gave the food to the multitude.

Mar 6:42

So they all ate and were filled.: And notice that Jesus didn't just give them enough to survive, He gave them enough to be filled. The word filled here means gorged, not just full. The food was supplied in abundance, and they were stuffed.

Mar 6:43

And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish.: There was so much food, that they had 12 baskets left over. And they didn't let the food go to waste either.

Mar 6:44

Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men.: Jesus multipled five loaves of bread and two fish into enough food to stuff five thousand men. Even though the Bible doesn't mention it, it would have been enough to feed these men's women and children as well.

Mar 6:45

Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away.: Doing this miracle likely convinced the people that Jesus was the Messiah. The time for His announcement was in the future, but the people expected the Messiah to set up a kingdom on earth and kick out the Romans. The disciples believed this too, and Jesus probably didn't want this to turn into an attempt to set up His kingdom before the time.

Mar 6:46

And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray.: After sending everyone away, Jesus needed some time alone with the Father.

Mar 6:47

Now when evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea; and He was alone on the land.: The Bible doesn't really say, but we can assume it's probably night by this time.

Mar 6:48

Then He saw them straining at rowing, for the wind was against them. Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea, and would have passed them by.: I think it's hard for us to understand, but the wording seems to indicate that Jesus intended to walk past them to the other shore. Why? The Bible doesn't clarify, but perhaps he wanted some more time alone.

Mar 6:49

And when they saw Him walking on the sea, they supposed it was a ghost, and cried out;: This would have freaked me out too. There's no way I could have thought someone could walk on water. We have the benefit of the scriptures, but I would probably react the same way if I saw Jesus walking on water today. I doubt I'd believe my eyes.

Mar 6:50

for they all saw Him and were troubled. But immediately He talked with them and said to them, "Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.": I like what JD Farag always says about this "do not be afraid." Why would Jesus say that? Because they were afraid! We see that although Jesus's intent was to pass them by, when He saw they were afraid, He came to set them at ease. Perhaps by walking by them, Jesus was testing their faith?

Mar 6:51

Then He went up into the boat to them, and the wind ceased. And they were greatly amazed in themselves beyond measure, and marveled.: The disciples had been with Jesus for a while now, seen Him perform crazy miracles, and were still surprised that Jesus could calm the sea. As Christians, we have the advantage of the scriptures, but I do not believe that if this happened to me today, I would be any different. First, Jesus walking on water, then calming the storm. My mind would have been blown.

Mar 6:52

For they had not understood about the loaves, because their heart was hardened.: These events are recorded, not for us to look down on the disciples, but to show us our behavior. We can use this as a learning tool, for when we witness miracles in our lives, and how we are supposed to apply that knowledge to future events, and act with faith. If the disciples had taken the lesson from the miracle of feeding the 5000, they could have applied that knowledge to their current situation and not feared. 

However, the situation should encourage us in that Jesus wasn't angry with them. He simply changed course, came onto the boat with them and calmed the winds. We're no different from the disciples. We have just as little faith. Us Christians see the work of God in our lives and respond to current events with the same fear and reluctance as the disciples. Just as they didn't learn from the feeding of the 5000, we don't learn from the events we witness. Just keep in mind that even though the disciples didn't learn, and we also don't learn, Jesus wasn't angry with them. We should be encouraged by this, and try to keep in mind our past experiences, recalling to mind the past work of God in our lives when dealing with current events.

Mar 6:53

When they had crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret and anchored there.: They crossed over the Sea of Galilee to Capernaum.

Mar 6:54

And when they came out of the boat, immediately the people recognized Him,: I'm sure people were watching for Him. He had just performed the miracle of feeding the 5000, and many more miracles. His fame had spread, and with it, the knowledge that He would heal the sick and lame. Jesus was so loving.

Mar 6:55

ran through that whole surrounding region, and began to carry about on beds those who were sick to wherever they heard He was.: The people knew that Jesus loved them and would heal them. Jesus didn't turn them away.

Mar 6:56

Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged Him that they might just touch the hem of His garment. And as many as touched Him were made well.: Jesus went all over and healed the sick. He did these works to show that He was given the authority from the Father to say the things He did, and for the people to believe on Him.