Mark 10

¹And he arose from thence, and cometh into the coasts of Judaea by the farther side of Jordan: and the people resort unto him again; and, as he was wont, he taught them again.

²And the Pharisees came to him, and asked him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife? tempting him.

³And he answered and said unto them, What did Moses command you?

⁴And they said, Moses suffered to write a bill of divorcement, and to put her away.

⁵And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept.

⁶But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female.

⁷For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife;

⁸And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh.

⁹What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.

¹⁰And in the house his disciples asked him again of the same matter.

¹¹And he saith unto them, Whosoever shall put away his wife, and marry another, committeth adultery against her.

¹²And if a woman shall put away her husband, and be married to another, she committeth adultery.

See this question about divorce explained in Mt 19:3, and Mt 19:4-12

¹³And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them.

¹⁴But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.

¹⁵Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.

¹⁶And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them.

Mt 19:13 and Mt 19:14-15

Verse 13. Should touch them. That is, should lay his hands on them, and pray for them, and bless them. Compare Mt 19:13. It was common to lay the hands on the head of a person for whom a blessing was asked. See the case of Jacob, Gen 48:14.

¹⁴But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.

Saw it. Saw the conduct of his disciples.

Was much displeased. Because, first, it was a pleasure to him to receive and bless little children; and, secondly, they were doing what they were not commanded to do--interfering in a case where it was evidently improper.

¹⁵Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.

Whosoever shall not receive. Whosoever shall not manifest the spirit of a little child.

The kingdom of God. The gospel. The new dispensation by the Messiah, or the reign of God through a Mediator. Mt 3:2.

As a little child. With the temper and spirit of a child teachable, mild, humble, and free from prejudice and obstinacy.

Shall not enter therein. Shall not be a Christian; shall not be a real member of the family of Christ on earth, though he may be a professor; and shall never enter heaven.

¹⁶And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them.

Took them up in his arms. These were small children.

Blessed them. Prayed for them, sought a blessing on them, or gave them the assurance of his favour as the Messiah.

How happy would it be if all parents thus felt it to be their privilege to present their children to Christ! The question with a parent should be, not whether he ought to present them by prayer, but whether he may do it. And so, too, the question respecting infant baptism is not so much whether a parent OUGHT to devote his children to God in this ordinance, as whether he MAY do it. It is an inestimable privilege to do it; not a matter of mere stern and iron-handed duty; and a parent with right feelings will come to God with his children in every way, and seek his blessing on them in the beginning of their journey of life. Our children are given to us but for a little time. They are in a world of danger, sin, and woe. They are exposed to temptation on every hand. If God be not their Friend, they have no friend that can aid them in the day of adversity, or keep them from the snares of the destroyer. If He is their Friend, they have nothing to fear. The proper expression, then, of parental feeling, is to come and offer them early to God. A parent should ask only the privilege of doing it. He should seek God’s favour as the best inheritance of his children; and if a parent may devote his offspring to God if he may daily seek his blessing on them by prayer--it is all that he should ask. With proper feelings, he will rush to the throne of grace, and daily seek the protection and guidance of God for his children amidst the temptations and snares of an ungodly world, and implore Him to be their guide when the parent shall be laid in the silent grave.

So, children who have been devoted to God; who have been the daily objects of a father’s prayers and a mother’s tears; who have been again and again presented to Jesus in infancy and childhood; are under the most sacred obligations to live to God. They should never forget that a parent sought the favour of God as the chief blessing; and having been offered to Jesus by prayer and baptism in their first days on earth, they should make it their great aim to be prepared to meet him when he shall come in the clouds of heaven.

¹⁷And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?

¹⁸And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God.

¹⁹Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother.

²⁰And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth.

²¹Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.

²²And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions.

²³And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!

²⁴And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!

²⁵It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.

²⁶And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved?

²⁷And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.

²⁸Then Peter began to say unto him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee.

²⁹And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's,

³⁰But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.

³¹But many that are first shall be last; and the last first.

See Barnes Mt 19:16, and Mt 19:17-30.

Verse 17. Gone forth. From the place where he had been teaching.

Into the way. Into the road or path on his journey.

Running. Thus showing the intensity with which he desired to know the way of life. Zeal to know the way to be saved is proper; nor is it possible to be too intense, if well directed. Nothing else is so important, and nothing demands, therefore, so much effort and haste.

¹⁹Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother.

Defraud not. Do not take away your neighbour’s property by fraud or dishonesty. To cheat or defraud supposes a covetous desire of a neighbour’s property, and is usually attended with falsehood or false witness against a neighbour in obtaining it. It is thus a violation of the ninth and tenth commandments; and our Saviour very properly, therefore, condensed the two, and expressed their substance in this--not to defraud. It is, besides, expressly forbidden in Lev 19:13--“Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour.”

²¹Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.

Jesus--loved him. What occurred afterwards showed that the young man did not love the Saviour, or was not a true disciple. So that this expression denotes, simply, natural affection; or means that Jesus was pleased with his amiableness, his morality, and his external regard for the law of God. At the same time, this was entirely consistent with deep sorrow that he would not give his heart to God, and with deep abhorrence of such a love of the world as to blind the mind to the beauty of true religion, and to lead to the rejection of the Messiah, and the destruction of the soul.

One thing thou lackest. When the young man came to Jesus, he asked him, “What lack I yet?” Mt 19:20. This question Mark has omitted, but he has retained the answer. The answer means-- There is one thing yet wanting. Though all that you have said should be true yet to make the system complete, or to show that you really are disposed to keep the commands of God, go and sell your property. See whether you love God more than you do your wealth. By doing that, you will show that your love of God is supreme; that your obedience is not merely external and formal, but sincere and real; the thing, now lacking, will be made up.

²⁴And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God!

Children. An expression of affection, perhaps also implying a reproof that their slowness of understanding was like children. When they should have seen at once the truth of what he said, they were slow to learn it. It became necessary, therefore, to repeat what he had said.

How hard. With how much difficulty.

²⁶And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved?

Out of measure. Very much, or exceedingly. The Greek means no more than this.

³⁰But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.

An hundredfold. A hundred times as much.

In this time. In this life. In the time that he forsakes all.

Houses, etc. This cannot be taken literally, as promising a hundred times as many mothers, sisters, etc. It means, evidently, that the loss shall be a hundred times compensated or made up; or that, in the possession of religion, we have a hundred times the value of all that we forsake. This consists in the pardon of sin, in the favour of God, in peace of conscience, in support in trials and in death, and in raising up friends in the place of those who are left--spiritual brethren, and sisters, and mothers, etc. And this corresponds to the experience of all who ever became Christians. At the same time, it is true that godliness is profitable for all things, having the promise of the life that is, as well as of that which is to come. The favour of God is the security for every blessing. Obedience to his law secures industry, temperance, chastity, economy, prudence, health, and the confidence of the world--all indispensable to success in life, and all connected, commonly, with success. Though the wicked sometimes prosper, yet the surest way of prosperity is to fear God and keep his commandments. Thus will all needed blessings descend on us here, and eternal blessings hereafter.

With persecutions. Persecutions, or the contempt of the world, and bodily sufferings on account of their religion, they must meet. Jesus did not conceal this. But he consoled them. He assured them that amidst these, or perhaps it should be rendered “after” these, they should find friends and comfort. It is well to bear trial if God be our friend. With the promises of the Bible in oar hand, we may hail persecutions, and thank God that, amidst so many sorrows, he has furnished such superabundant consolations.

³²And they were in the way going up to Jerusalem; and Jesus went before them: and they were amazed; and as they followed, they were afraid. And he took again the twelve, and began to tell them what things should happen unto him,

³³Saying, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief priests, and unto the scribes; and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles:

³⁴And they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day he shall rise again.

See Mt 20:17-19

Verse 32. Jesus went before them. In the manner of an intrepid, fearless leader and guide, exposing himself to danger and death rather than his followers.

And they were amazed, etc. They were afraid that evil would befall him in the city; that the scribes and Pharisees, who had so often sought to kill him, would then do it. Their fear and amazement were increased when he told them what would befall him there. They were amazed that, when he knew so well what would happen, he should still persevere in going up to the city.

³⁵And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, come unto him, saying, Master, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall desire.

³⁶And he said unto them, What would ye that I should do for you?

³⁷They said unto him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory.

³⁸But Jesus said unto them, Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?

³⁹And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized:

⁴⁰But to sit on my right hand and on my left hand is not mine to give; but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared.

⁴¹And when the ten heard it, they began to be much displeased with James and John.

⁴²But Jesus called them to him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them.

⁴³But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister:

⁴⁴And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all.

⁴⁵For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

Mt 20:20-28.

Verse 35. And James and John--come unto him. They did this through the instrumentality of their mother. They did not come in person, but they got their mother to make the request for them. Comp. Matthew.

⁴⁶And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging.

⁴⁷And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.

⁴⁸And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.

⁴⁹And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee.

⁵⁰And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.

⁵¹And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.

⁵²And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.

Mt 20:29, Mt 20:30-34.

Verse 46. Blind Bartimaeus. Matthew says there were two. Mark mentions but one, though he does not deny that there was another. He mentions this man because he was well known--Bartimaeus, THE blind man.

⁵⁰And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.

Casting away his garment. That is, his outer garment; the one that was thrown loosely over him. See Mt 5:40. He threw it off, full of joy at the prospect of being healed, and that he might run without impediment to Jesus. This may be used to illustrate-- though it had no such original reference--the manner in which a sinner should come to Jesus. He should throw away the garments of his own righteousness--he should rise speedily--should run with joy--should have full faith in the rower of Jesus, and cast himself entirely upon his mercy.