The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament (54 page)

1:16-20
The first disciples respond to Jesus
immediately
(1:18, 20). His compelling invitation to
follow
as a disciple is Jesus' initial step toward sending missionaries into the world as
fishers of men
(Mt 28:18-20). Christ chooses men of modest education to demonstrate to the world that the wisdom of the gospel stems directly from God and not the ingenuity of man. See chart:
The Twelve Apostles
at Mk 3. 
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1:20 left their father:
Such an abrupt break with family and livelihood was extraordinary then as now. The impulse to abandon everything and follow Jesus highlights the surpassing excellence of Christian discipleship over every worldly pursuit.
hired servants:
Suggests that the fishing enterprise of Zebedee and his sons was prosperous. 
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1:21 Capernaum:
Jesus' new home and headquarters in Galilee (2:1; Mt 4:12-13). It is located on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee.
on the sabbath:
The seventh day of the Jewish week set aside for worship and rest (Gen 2:3; Ex 20:811; CCC 2168-73). Since Jews number the days from sunset to sunset, the Sabbath begins every Friday evening and ends at sundown Saturday.
synagogue:
A small building used as a gathering place for prayer, worship, and instruction in the Scriptures.
See note on Mt 4:23
. 
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1:23 an unclean spirit:
A demon or fallen angel (3:11; 5:2; 6:7; 9:25). He confesses that Jesus is the "Holy One" (1:24) out of fear, not genuine faith (cf. Jas 2:19). 
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1:27 With authority:
Divine power is displayed through Jesus' word. While most exorcists of the day recited lengthy incantations or used odorous roots to expel demons, Jesus simply commands the spirits and they leave (CCC 550). The demons' inability to resist him is shown by their dramatic exhibition of "convulsing" and "crying" (1:26). 
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1:32 That evening:
i.e., after sunset on the Sabbath (Saturday). Bringing the sick and demon-possessed to Jesus was laborious and thus unlawful before the Sabbath day ended.
See note on Mk 1:21
. 
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1:35 in the morning:
Following Mark's chronology, Jesus
prayed
early Sunday morning following the Sabbath. His practice anticipates the liturgical prayer of the Church early on the first day of the week (CCC 2174). Jesus also practices what he preaches on the propriety of solitary prayer (Mt 6:5-6; CCC 2602).
See note on Mk 1:32
. 
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1:40 a leper:
Leprosy was a skin disease that made victims unclean, i.e., unfit to participate in the liturgical life of Israel (Lev 13:1-8). Because ritual uncleanness was considered contagious under the Old Covenant—infecting everyone who came in contact with it—lepers were isolated from society to keep those who were clean separated from those who were unclean (Lev 13:45-46). Jesus reaches across this divide when he touches the leper, and though others would be defiled by such contact, he conquers the uncleanness by the greater power of his holiness (1:41; CCC 1503-5).
See note on Mt 8:1-9:38
. 
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1:44 say nothing to any one:
The "messianic secret" is a leading theme in Mark. Jesus frequently enjoins silence on demons (1:25, 34; 3:12) and men (5:43; 7:36; 8:30; 9:9) to conceal his identity as the Messiah (CCC 439). Several considerations account for this strategy.
(1)
Jesus wanted to avoid a sensationalist reputation of being no more than a wonderworker. Publicizing his deeds by word of mouth comes with the danger that rumors will begin to disconnect his miracles from his saving message.
(2)
He wanted to sidestep popular expectations that the Messiah would be a political and military leader.
(3)
He did not wish to ignite the wrath of his enemies before the appointed time of his Passion. See introduction:
Themes.
show yourself:
The Mosaic Law required Levitical priests to inspect lepers and determine their status as clean or unclean (Lev 14:1-32). With approval, an individual pronounced clean would offer sacrifices at the Temple to be reinstated in the worshiping community of Israel.
See note on Mt 8:4
. 
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2:1-12
The healing of the paralytic reveals Jesus' identity through his actions: he claims to forgive sins as only God can forgive and to channel that forgiveness to the world as only the Jerusalem Temple and priesthood were authorized to do under the Old Covenant. 
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2:5 their faith:
i.e., the faith of the four men who carried kilkJ the paralytic (2:4). • The forgiveness that Jesus confers upon the helpless paralytic in response to the faith of others (the four men) mirrors the effects of Infant Baptism, where he continues to regenerate helpless children through the intercessory faith of their parents (CCC 1250-53). 
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2:6 the scribes:
Scholars of the Mosaic Law and its traditional interpretation. With the exception of one episode (12:2834), they are cast as Jesus' adversaries in Mark. 
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2:7 it is blasphemy!:
The scribes are incensed that Jesus claims for himself a prerogative that belongs only to God: the power to remit sins (Ps 103:3; Is 43:25; CCC 1441). They have misjudged the matter as blasphemy, which was a capital crime in ancient Israel (Lev 24:16). Note that Jesus manifests his divinity both by absolving the man's sins and by exposing the unspoken disapproval of his critics (2:8). 
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2:9 Which is easier:
Forgiveness is easier to claim than to accomplish, since its effects cannot be verified by observation. For this reason, Jesus restores the man's body as a visible demonstration of what he has already done invisibly in his soul.
See note on Mt 9:8
. 
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2:14 Levi:
Also called "Matthew" (Mt 9:9). He abandoned his occupation to follow Jesus and was later named an apostle (3:18).
the tax office:
The Pharisees despised tax collectors as "sinners" (2:15) for several reasons.
(1)
Collecting revenue in Galilee involved frequent contact with Gentiles. By Pharisaic standards, this meant that collectors were exposed to the ritual defilement of the pagans.
(2)
Since taxes were collected for the unwelcome Romans, who ruled Palestine, collectors were branded as traitors to Israel's hope for national independence.
(3)
Collectors were sometimes guilty of extortion, exacting personal commissions above the required tax amount. 
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2:15-28
Three controversies between Jesus and the Pharisees. In each, the Pharisees try to discredit Jesus as a spiritual leader (2:16, 18, 24). They consider his behavior questionable and even dangerous, as though Jesus were leading Israel away from true covenant holiness.
(1)
In 2:15-17, the Pharisees are scandalized by those
with whom
Jesus eats (tax collectors, sinners).
(2)
In 2:18-22, they question
why
he eats with his disciples instead of fasting like John's followers.
(3)
In 2:23-28, the issue concerns
when
his disciples pluck and eat grain (on the Sabbath). These tensions reach the breaking point with the Pharisees' conspiracy to eliminate Jesus (3:6). 
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2:16 eating with sinners:
Table-fellowship was symbolic of personal acceptance and mutual friendship in the ancient Near East. Jesus' open association with outcasts thus violates the standards of the
Pharisees,
who regarded
sinners
and
tax collectors
as inappropriate company for the religious Jew. They clung to Old Covenant standards of holiness that required Israelites to separate themselves from all sources of uncleanness, including fellowship with Gentiles (Acts 10:28). Jesus exemplifies New Covenant holiness, which extends mercy to everyone in imitation of the Father (Mt 5:43-48; Lk 6:36; CCC 545, 574). See essay:
Who Are the Pharisees?
 
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2:17 no need of a physician:
A well-known proverb. Jesus adapts it to imply that table-fellowship is central to his healing mission. Just as doctors do not avoid the sick, so Jesus cannot avoid those wounded by sin.
not to call the righteous:
Jesus did not come to prolong the Old Covenant with the nation of Israel. This was an imperfect, provisional covenant designed to separate Israel from the Gentiles and their sins (Lev 20:26) while Israel was not ready to love God from the heart (Jer 11:8; Mt 19:8). Jesus inaugurates the New Covenant to transform the hearts of his people (Jer 31:31-34; Mt 5:8) and so welcomes all into God's covenant family. Whereas the Old Covenant quarantined Israel from the world, the New Covenant embraces the world within God's mercy (Rom 11:32). 
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2:19 the bridegroom:
Jesus uses marital imagery to kilkJ reveal his divinity. • His words recall several OT passages that depict Yahweh as a groom wedded to Israel (Is 54:5; Jer 3:20; Hos 2:20). The NT transfers this covenant relationship to Christ as the divine spouse of the Church (Mt 25:1-13; Eph 5:25; CCC 796).
they cannot fast:
Since fasting symbolizes mourning and separation, it was inappropriate while Jesus was present among the disciples. • Christians fast before celebrating the liturgy, i.e., before Christ comes among them in Word and Sacrament. The arrival of Christ then makes it a time of feasting, when the divine Bridegroom gives himself in love to his bride, the Church. Communion with Jesus in the Eucharist is a foretaste of the heavenly "marriage supper of the Lamb" (Rev 19:9). 
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Who Are the Pharisees?

T
HE
Pharisees are part of a Jewish renewal movement that appears frequently in the NT. In almost every instance, they stand beneath dark clouds of suspicion and controversy. The Gospels depict them as the critical opponents of Jesus, his teaching, and his mission. The Pharisees seem to lurk behind every corner, waiting to trap Jesus and discredit him before the crowds. What is the source of this conflict? Why were the Pharisees so threatened by Jesus and his proclamation of God's kingdom?

From biblical and extrabiblical information it is evident that the Pharisees advocated a religious program quite at odds with the gospel of the New Covenant. Although not Israel's official teachers or leaders, the Pharisees were popular and held great sway with the masses. They were deeply concerned with the cultural and religious crisis of the day: How does one live as a faithful Jew in a land that is ruled and occupied by pagans (Romans)? The Pharisees' answer: Israel must separate itself from all Gentile impurity and defilement, since only in this way will God rescue his people from the clutches of Rome. Even their name— which means the "separated ones" (Heb.
perushim
)—underscores this national agenda.