Author Archives: Joseph Malekani

Mark 14b Commentary http://www.lovingscripture.com Peter, James, and John; the Transfiguration disciples. The scene is different. There is neither blinding radiance nor heavenly glory. Instead, the Servant of Isaiah 53 must face piercing and crushing.The movie is ending badly! Who wouldn’t be confused by the scenes here when compared with to Transfiguration? Right up to thisContinueContinue reading “Mark 14b Commentary”

Mark 14a Commentary http://www.lovingscripture.com The “Last Passover” would be appropriate here instead of “The Last Supper”. The Lamb of God would be slaughtered – the ultimate sacrifice. Let no one bother with these sacrifices again. The temple, these rituals, and the systems in attendance all come to an end. “When evening came, Jesus arrived withContinueContinue reading “Mark 14a Commentary”

Mark 13 Commentary http://www.lovingscripture.com “As Jesus was leaving the temple …”. Verse 1. Many have commented on Mark as the “gospel on the move”. There are several references to ‘leaving’, ‘entering’, ‘arriving’, ‘going’, ‘following’… It is no subtle reference to the Christian journey of faith with the Master.There are layers of application for today’s chapter.ContinueContinue reading “Mark 13 Commentary”

Mark 12 Commentary http://www.lovingscripture.com The parable of talents here parallels Isaiah’s song about the vineyard. There is no intention to lift and paste Isaiah’s song, yet the parallels exist to highlight an important point. The nation of Israel is the vineyard and the LORD God is the farmer (Farmer). In Isaiah’s song, the vineyard isContinueContinue reading “Mark 12 Commentary”

Mark 11 Commentary http://www.lovingscripture.com If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.’ ” Verse 3.The NIV version gives the impression that the Lord would use the animal and return it to its owner shortly. This understanding is out of context. The correct renderingContinueContinue reading “Mark 11 Commentary”

Mark 10 Commentary http://www.lovingscripture.com We have two difficult lectures in this chapter. First: the lecture on divorce. Second: the lecture on what it takes to enter the kingdom of God. Both are hard for the disciples. They should be impossible for outsiders! But we are glad the Pharisees asked. Our own arguments can be settled.ContinueContinue reading “Mark 10 Commentary”

Mark 9b Commentary http://www.lovingscripture.com “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.” Verse 23. No amount of human intervention has worked. The boy’s father turns to Jesus. Can Jesus do it? Yes, he can but that isn’t the key to the healing here. Jesus puts it on the boy’s father. His faith, notContinueContinue reading “Mark 9b Commentary”

Mark 9 Commentary Verse 1. Which event is the LORD Jesus referring to, the Transfiguration, the Resurrection, or the day of Pentecost? Could the placement of this statement just before the Transfiguration suggest that the human author thinks of the Transfiguration as the coming of the Kingdom? Whichever one, the three events come with sufficientContinueContinue reading “Mark 9a Commentary”

Mark 8b Commentary http://www.lovingscripture.com We want to tell everyone about Jesus. Aren’t we in breach of the instruction here: “Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about him”? Mark 8 verse 30. This is where context becomes everything – the context of this section and also the context of Mark within the setup of theContinueContinue reading “Mark 8b Commentary”

Mark 8a Commentary http://www.lovingscripture.com Another strange miracle. The blind man is taken out of the village and after some rituals begins to see. We have another new item. The first set of rituals works but only partially. The LORD Jesus must repeat the rituals in order to completely heal the blind man.So strange! Isn’t theContinueContinue reading “Mark 8a Commentary”