Mark 1:7-17

7 This is what John preached to the people: "There is one coming after me who is greater than I; I am not good enough even to kneel down and untie his sandals.

8 I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."

9 At that time Jesus came from the town of Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan River.

10 Immediately, as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven open. The Holy Spirit came down on him like a dove,

11 and a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love, and I am very pleased with you."

12 Then the Spirit sent Jesus into the desert.

13 He was in the desert forty days and was tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and the angels came and took care of him.

14 After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, preaching the Good News from God.

15 He said, "The right time has come. The kingdom of God is near. Change your hearts and lives and believe the Good News!"

16 When Jesus was walking by Lake Galilee, he saw Simonn and his brother Andrew throwing a net into the lake because they were fishermen.

17 Jesus said to them, "Come follow me, and I will make you fish for people."

Mark 1:7-17 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.