Mark 1:1-13

1 The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

2 As it is written in Esaias, the prophet, Lo! I send mine angel before thy face, that shall make thy way ready before thee.

3 The voice of a crier in desert, Make ye ready the way of the Lord, make ye his paths right. [The voice of one crying in desert, Make ye ready the way of the Lord, make ye his paths rightful.]

4 John was in desert baptizing, and preaching the baptism of penance, into remission of sins.

5 And all the country of Judaea went out to him, and all men of Jerusalem; and they were baptized of him in the flume Jordan [and were baptized of him in the flood of Jordan], acknowledging their sins.

6 And John was clothed with hairs of camels, and a girdle of skin was about his loins; and he ate honeysuckles, and wild honey, [+And John was clothed with hairs of camel, and a girdle of skin about his loins; and he ate locusts, and wild honey,]

7 and preached, and said [saying], A stronger than I shall come after me, and I am not worthy to kneel down, and unloose [the thong of] his shoes.

8 I have baptized you in water; but he shall baptize you in the Holy Ghost.

9 And it was done in those days, Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan.

10 And at once he went up of the water, and saw heavens opened, and the Holy Ghost coming down as a culver [And anon he ascending up of the water, saw heavens opened, and the Spirit coming down as a culver], and dwelling on him.

11 And a voice was made from heavens, Thou art my loved Son, in thee I am pleased.

12 And at once the Spirit put him forth into desert. [And anon the Spirit putted out him into desert.]

13 And he was in desert forty days and forty nights, and was tempted of Satan, and he was with beasts [and was with beasts], and angels ministered to him.

Mark 1:1-13 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO MARK

This is the title of the book, the subject of which is the Gospel; a joyful account of the ministry, miracles, actions, and sufferings of Christ: the writer of it was not one of the twelve apostles, but an evangelist; the same with John Mark, or John, whose surname was Mark: John was his Hebrew name, and Mark his Gentile name, Ac 12:12,25, and was Barnabas's sister's son, Col 4:10, his mother's name was Mary, Ac 12:12. The Apostle Peter calls him his son, 1Pe 5:13, if he is the same; and he is thought to have wrote his Gospel from him {a}, and by his order, and which was afterwards examined and approved by him {b} it is said to have been wrote originally in Latin, or in the Roman tongue: so say the Arabic and Persic versions at the beginning of it, and the Syriac version says the same at the end: but of this there is no evidence, any more, nor so much, as of Matthew's writing his Gospel in Hebrew. The old Latin copy of this, is a version from the Greek; it is most likely that it was originally written in Greek, as the rest of the New Testament.

{a} Papias apud Euseb. Hist. l. 3. c. 39. Tertull. adv. Marcion. l. 4. c. 5. {b} Hieron. Catalog. Script. Eccles. p. 91. sect. 18.