Jesus couldn’t do miracles when people refused to expect and trust him to do so ¹ Jesus continued from Jairus’s home and entered his hometown; his disciples went with him.

² On the Sabbath day, Jesus started teaching in the synagogue and many people who heard him were surprised and amazed.struck with astonishment

“Where did this man get these ideas? What is this wisdom that is being given to him so that these miracles are being done through his hands? ³ Isn’t this the carpenter, Mary’s son, the brother of James, Joses, Judah, and Simon? Aren’t his sisters living here too?” they said.

So they were offendedor scandalized at him.

⁴ Jesus replied, “A prophet isn’t dishonored–except in his own country, in his hometown, and among his own relatives.”

⁵ Jesus wasn’t able to do miracles there, except to lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them!

⁶ He was amazed because of their lack of expectant trustfaithlessness; or traditionally: unbelief so he traveled around the towns in the area and spent his time teaching.

…but the twelve obeyed Jesus in expectant trust ⁷ Jesus called the twelve, and began sending them out two by two.

He gave them authority over the demons.unclean spirits ⁸ He told them not to take anything for their journey except for a walking stick. He didn’t allow them to take food, a wallet, or money. He allowed them to wear sandals but not to bring extra clothes.

¹⁰ Jesus said to them,

Wherever someone from a city offers their home as a place to stay, stay there until you leave their city.

¹¹ Whenever a city’s people will not receive you into one of their homes or hear your message, leave! And shake off the dust that is under your feet for a legal witness against what they did!

[I say with certainty: it will be more tolerable for Sodom and GomorrahGen 19 on the day everyone’s acts and motives are judgedOr: in the day of judgement than for that city!] The earliest and best copies of Mark’s manuscript do not contain this sentence but it does appear in Matthew’s telling of this story. Mat 10:1-15

…and many people received the message with expectant trust ¹² They went out and warned people to turn away from making selfish pleasure their primary life’s goal. ¹³ They cast out many demons; they anointed many with oil who were sick and healed them.

Herod was blind about Jesus: ¹⁴ King Herod⊕Herod was the corrupt puppet king the Romans had placed over Israel. heard this, for his name had become known, and he said, “John the Baptist has risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him.”

¹⁵ But others said, “He is Elijah.” Others said, “He is a prophet, or like one of the prophets.”

¹⁶ But Herod–when he heard about these events–said, “This is John, whom I beheaded. He has risen from the dead!”

…because his personal pleasure was supreme ¹⁷ This happened because Herod personally had John arrested and tied in prison; Herod did this because of Herodias who was his brother Philip’s wife–but Herod had married her.

¹⁸ (John had said to Herod, “It is against God’s law for you to have your brother’s wife.” ¹⁹ and Herodias had nursed bitter anger toward John and wanted to kill him.)

But she couldn’t kill John ²⁰ because Herod felt reverence toward him; Herod knew that John was an innocent and holy man so he kept John safe.

When Herod heard John speak, he was confused by what John said but he was glad to gave John an audience to speak. ⊕Herod likes to hear about God, but refuses the seed John offers. It’s not enough to enjoy hearing about God; we need to apply and practice what we learn. What kind of soil is Herod like? Mrk 4

…because he placed political power over expectant trust ²¹ Then a convenient day (for Herodias) arrived. On Herod’s birthday he made a supper for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee.

²² When Herodias’s daughter (also named Herodias) came and danced she pleased Herod and the people sitting with him.

The king said to the young lady, “Ask me for whatever you want and I will give it to you.” ²³ And he swore to her, “I will give you whatever you ask–up to half of my kingdom!”

²⁴ She left and asked her mother, “What shall I ask?”

“The head of John the Baptist,” her mother replied.

²⁵ Immediately Herodius hurried back to the king and requested, “I want you to give me the head of John the Baptist on a platter right now!”

²⁶ The king was consumed with grief. But because he had sworn oaths to Herodias and because of his dinner guests he didn’t want to refuse.

…until he killed the messenger sent to help him see ²⁷ Immediately the king sent a soldier from his bodyguard to the prison with the command to bring back John’s head. The soldier went to the prison and beheaded John, ²⁸  brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the young lady; and the young lady gave it to her mother.

²⁹ When John’s students heard the news they came, claimed his body, and buried it in a tomb.

The illustration of plentiful provision from emptiness ³⁰ The twelve ambassadorsTraditionally “apostles” but the word has fallen out of everyday English use.⊕This is the only place Mark uses the word “ambassador” instead of “student” to refer to the twelve. returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught.

³¹ Jesus said, “Come with me; let’s go to an empty wilderness and rest awhile. (There were many people who were coming and going and there wasn’t even enough spare time to eat!)

³² So Jesus and his students left in the boat, heading to an empty wilderness place by themselves.

³³ But the crowd saw them getting farther and farther away! And many people from all the towns (along the way) recognized Jesus, ran to the empty wilderness place on foot, and arrived first!

³⁴ When Jesus landed, he saw a very large crowd.

And Jesus’s heart broke for them because they were like sheep who were wandering without a shepherd–in danger for their lives.“in danger for their lives” would be common knowledge for Mark’s first readers and is supplied here for context though it isn’t in the text. So Jesus began teaching them many things.⊕Or maybe from the students’ perspective: ‘began a very very long sermon’.

³⁵ When the day was nearly over, Jesus’s students came to him and said, “This place is a wilderness and the day is fading!more literally: “the day is spent” ³⁶ Send these people away! Then they can go into the surrounding country–into the tiny villages–and buy themselves bread because they have nothing to eat!”

³⁷ But Jesus answered his students, “You give them something to eat!”

They asked Jesus, “Should we go into the tiny villagesThe place where the disciples would go, “into the tiny villages,” is added here from the context and buy two hundred denarii—two hundred days’ wages—worth of bread and give them something to eat?”

³⁸ Jesus replied, “How many loaves do you have? Go see.”

When they found out they said, “Five loaves, and two fish!”

³⁹ Jesus told everyone to sit down in groups on the green grass ⁴⁰ and they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties.

The Bread is broken first, then the Fish are broken too ⁴¹ Jesus took the five loaves⊕🔑 Peeking ahead in the story, Jesus broke a loaf of bread again during his last supper with his students.Mrk 14:22 and the two fish.⊕🔑 Looking backward, Jesus promised to teach his students to “fish” for people when he invited them to join him.Mrk 1:17⊕A theme Mark begins developing is, “What does it mean that Jesus was broken? For us to be broken too?” These were the conditions that had to be met for the people to be fed.

Looking up to heaven, he blessed and broke the loaves, which he gave to his disciples to set before them. He also divided the two fish among them all.

⁴² Everyone ate until they were full; ⁴³ afterward the students gathered twelve baskets full of bread and fish!

⁴⁴ Approximately five thousand men were in the crowd (in addition to women and children)!

People persistently call to Jesus; he is willing and able to meet each at their point of need ⁴⁵ Immediately Jesus made his disciples enter the boat and go ahead of him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he personally sent the huge crowd away. ⁴⁶ And after he had dismissed everyone, he climbed up the mountain to pray.

⁴⁷ When evening arrived, the boat was in the middle of the sea and Jesus was alone on the land.

⁴⁸ Seeing his students deeply frustrated because they were rowing against the wind, a little before dawnLit: ‘about the fourth watch of the night’ Jesus came to them–walking on the sea. He would have passed by them, ⁴⁹ but when they saw Jesus walking on the sea they thought he was a ghost and cried out! ⁵⁰ They all saw him; all of them were afraid!

But Jesus immediately called out to them, “Cheer up! I’m here! Don’t be afraid.”

⁵¹ He got into the boat with them and the wind suddenly stopped. And the students were very amazed and astonished ⁵² because they hadn’t understood about the loaves; instead their hearts were hard.

⁵³ When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret⊕This is the same region where Jesus cast out the ‘Legion’ of demons earlier. and moored to the shore. Mrk 5

⁵⁴ They exited the boat and immediately the people recognized him! ⁵⁵ They ran all over the region and began to bring those who were sick on their mats to the locations where they heard Jesus was present.

⁵⁶ Wherever Jesus entered—into villages, into cities, or into the country—they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged him to just let them touch the fringe of his garment.

And everyone who touched Jesus was made well.