Mark 10:16

16 And [after] taking [them] into his arms, he blessed them, placing his hands on them.

Mark 10:16 Meaning and Commentary

Mark 10:16

And he took them up in his arms
"Upon his arms", the Syriac version says; "he put them into his bosom", according to the Ethiopic; and the Persic renders it, "he took them into his bosom": all which expresses great tenderness towards them, and affection for them:

put his hands upon them, and blessed them.
The Ethiopic version transposes these clauses, and puts blessing first, contrary to the natural order of the words, and things; for he first put his hands on the children, according to the custom of the Jews, and then prayed over them, and wished all happiness and prosperity to them; (See Gill on Matthew 19:15).

Mark 10:16 In-Context

14 But [when] Jesus saw [it], he was indignant, and said to them, "Let the young children come to me. Do not forbid them, {for to such belongs} the kingdom of God.

15 Truly I say to you, whoever does not welcome the kingdom of God like a young child will never enter into it."

16 And [after] taking [them] into his arms, he blessed them, placing his hands on them.

17 And [as] he was setting out on [his] way, one [individual] ran up and knelt down before him [and] asked him, "Good Teacher, what must I do so that I will inherit eternal life?"

18 So Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one [is] good except God alone.

Footnotes

• [a] *Here "[after]" is supplied as a component of the participle ("taking ... into his arms") which is understood as temporal
• [b] *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
• [c] Literally "the"; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun