Mark 3:9

9 ¹And He told His disciples that a boat should stand ready for Him because of the crowd, so that they would not crowd Him;

Mark 3:9 Meaning and Commentary

Mark 3:9

And he spake unto his disciples
In an authoritative way; he ordered and commanded them,

that a small ship should wait on him:
that a boat should be got ready, be near at hand, and attend him, who was on shore; that he might go into it, should there be any occasion for it; and from thence preach to the people:

because of the multitude;
which came from the above parts, and all together made a very numerous body of people:

lest they should throng him;
crowd, press, afflict, and distress, and make him uneasy, that he could not be able to stand conveniently, and preach to them: so that should this be the case, as it was very likely it would, having a small vessel near the shore, he could go into it, and free himself from such an inconvenience.

Mark 3:9 In-Context

7 Jesus withdrew to the sea with His disciples; and a great multitude from Galilee followed; and also from Judea,

8 and from Jerusalem, and from Idumea, and beyond the Jordan, and the vicinity of Tyre and Sidon, a great number of people heard of all that He was doing and came to Him.

9 And He told His disciples that a boat should stand ready for Him because of the crowd, so that they would not crowd Him;

10 for He had healed many, with the result that all those who had afflictions pressed around Him in order to touch Him.

11 Whenever the unclean spirits saw Him, they would fall down before Him and shout, "You are the Son of God!"

Cross References

• 1. Mark 4:1; Luke 5:1-3