The Fallible Study Bible

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Mark13:9–13

Witnessing to All Nations

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Mark 13:9–13 — Witnessing to All Nations. Each verse below carries the full apparatus: the Berean Standard Bible, the vocalized original (tap any word), and a parsed breakdown of every term transcribed from the interlinear. Synthesized commentary, canonical threads, and the reading of Christ gather at the end, over the whole unit.

9

So be on your guard. You will be delivered over to the councils and beaten in the synagogues. On My account you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

de hymeis Blepete heautous hymas paradōsousin eis synedria kai darēsesthe eis synagōgas kai heneken emou stathēsesthe epi hēgemonōn kai basileōn eis martyrion autois

Word by word23 · parsed
δὲde[So]G1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
ὑμεῖςhymeisG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounNominative 2nd Person Plural
ΒλέπετεBlepetebe on your guardG991
√ βλέπω — to look at (literally or figuratively)VerbPresent Imperative Active2nd Person Plural
blepō: to look at, to see Present Imperative Active, 2nd plural: a standing order, “keep looking to yourselves,” not a single act. Ellicott notes the emphatic repetition of this warning is peculiar to Mark (compare Mark 13:23), which makes Blepete the structural spine of the whole discourse. Gill argues the object is not doctrine but survival, care of their own persons where danger could be avoided; Barnes hears both, “be cautious that no man deceive you; or, take care of your lives.”
ἑαυτούςheautous. . .G1438
√ ἑαυτοῦ — him- (her-, it-, them-, also (in conjunction with the personal pronoun of the other persons) my-, thy-, our-, your-) self (selves), etcReflexive PronounAccusative Masculine 3rd Person Plural
heautou: himself, themselves The reflexive object throws the imperative back on the hearer: the first thing endangered by the coming pressure is the disciple, not the temple.
ὑμᾶςhymasYouG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounAccusative 2nd Person Plural
παραδώσουσινparadōsousinwill be delivered overG3860
√ παραδίδωμι — to surrender, iVerbFuture Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
paradidōmi: to surrender, hand over The unifying verb of this unit: it returns in v. 11 as a participle and in v. 12 of brother against brother. The Verifier records it three times over against Matthew 10:21 and Luke 21:16. In Mark's own Gospel it is the word for what is done to Jesus, so the disciples' future is described with the vocabulary of the passion.
εἰςeistoG1519
√ εἰς — to or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or (figuratively) purpose (result, etcPreposition
συνέδριαsynedria[the] councilsG4892
√ συνέδριον — a joint session, iNounAccusative Neuter Plural
synedrion: a joint session, council A relatively rare noun (22 verses), plural here: not only the Jerusalem Sanhedrin but local courts. Gill specifies “their greater and lesser sanhedrim,” of seventy one, twenty three and three. The same word in Mark 14:55 names the body that sought testimony to put Jesus to death, which is the point of the promise: the disciple is sent to the bench that condemned the Master.
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
δαρήσεσθεdarēsesthebeatenG1194
√ δέρω — properly, to flay, iVerbFuture Indicative Passive2nd Person Plural
derō: to flay, to beat Future passive; the synagogue, the place of the Word, becomes the place of the lash. Cambridge supplies the mechanism from Paul: “five times received I forty stripes save one.”
εἰςeisinG1519
√ εἰς — to or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or (figuratively) purpose (result, etcPreposition
συναγωγὰςsynagōgas[the] synagoguesG4864
√ συναγωγή — an assemblage of personsNounAccusative Feminine Plural
synagōgē: an assemblage of persons Not a neutral building but the congregation of Israel gathered; the sentence puts ecclesiastical discipline first (Barnes, JFB) and civil tribunals second.
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἕνεκενhenekenOn My accountG1752
√ ἕνεκα — on account ofPreposition
heneka: on account of A comparatively rare preposition (23 verses). It fixes the cause of the whole scene: not politics, not crime, but “on account of me.” The same rare word carries Matthew 10:18 and, in Paul, Romans 8:36, “for your sake we are being put to death all the day long.”
ἐμοῦemou. . .G1473
√ ἐγώ — I, mePersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive 1st Person Singular
σταθήσεσθεstathēsestheyou will standG2476
√ ἵστημι — to stand (transitively or intransitively), used in various applications (literally or figuratively)VerbFuture Indicative Passive2nd Person Plural
histēmi: to stand, to be set Future passive. The disciple is made to stand, and the standing itself is the office: Mark does not say “you will speak,” he says “you will be stood there,” and the testimony follows from the position.
ἐπὶepibeforeG1909
√ ἐπί — properly, meaning superimposition (of time, place, order, etcPreposition
ἡγεμόνωνhēgemonōngovernorsG2232
√ ἡγεμών — a leader, iNounGenitive Masculine Plural
hēgemōn: a leader, governor Roman provincial authority (Barnes: “Referring to Roman officers”). Cambridge lists the fulfillments: Paul before Felix, Festus, Agrippa, Nero.
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
βασιλέωνbasileōnkingsG935
√ βασιλεύς — a sovereign (abstractly, relatively, or figuratively)NounGenitive Masculine Plural
basileus: a sovereign, king With hēgemōn it covers the whole ladder of pagan power; the gospel's hearing goes up to the top of the world's court system before it is finished.
εἰςeisasG1519
√ εἰς — to or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or (figuratively) purpose (result, etcPreposition
μαρτύριονmartyrionwitnessesG3142
√ μαρτύριον — something evidential, iNounAccusative Neuter Singular
martyrion: something evidential, a testimony A rare noun (20 verses) and the hinge of the verse. It is the same word in Matthew 24:14, where the gospel is preached in all the world “for a witness,” which ties v. 9 to v. 10: the trials are not a pause in the mission, they are one of its courts. Barnes and JFB read it as testimony borne to the judges; Geneva reads it as evidence that will stand against them if they refuse. Both senses live in a word that simply means “evidence produced.”
αὐτοῖςautoisto themG846
√ αὐτός — the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438 (ἑαυτοῦ)) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other personsPersonal / Possessive PronounDative Masculine 3rd Person Plural
Plain dative of the persons addressed; the judges are the audience.
10

And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all the nations.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

kai to euangelion dei prōton kērychthēnai eis panta ta ethnē

Word by word10 · parsed
καὶkaiAndG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
τὸtotheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Neuter Singular
εὐαγγέλιονeuangeliongospelG2098
√ εὐαγγέλιον — a good message, iNounAccusative Neuter Singular
euangelion: a good message Anarthrous in sense though articular in form, it stands as the subject of the necessity. Gill notes the Syriac reads “my Gospel,” the gospel “which Christ was the author, subject, and preacher of.” The same noun appears in Matthew 24:14 in the Verifier's shared basis for this verse.
δεῖdeimustG1163
√ δεῖ — also deon deh-on'VerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
dei: it is necessary, it is binding The impersonal verb of divine must. It is the grammatical center of the verse: the preaching is not a possibility the church may realize but an obligation laid on history. Note what it does not say: it does not promise that all will believe, only that all will hear.
πρῶτονprōtonfirstG4412
√ πρῶτον — firstly (in time, place, order, or importance)AdverbSuperlative
prōton: firstly, in time or order One adverb sets an order between mission and end, and every commentator in this brief divides on its scope. Poole grants the first fulfillment but insists the fuller one is future; the Pulpit Commentary agrees the prophecy “expands, as the ages roll onwards”; JFB and Cambridge hold the Roman world had heard before the Jewish state fell.
κηρυχθῆναιkērychthēnaibe proclaimedG2784
√ κηρύσσω — to herald (as a public crier), especially divine truth (the gospel)VerbAorist Infinitive Passive
kēryssō: to herald as a public crier Aorist passive infinitive. The image is a herald reading an edict in a public square: the content is not the herald's and the audience's assent is not his business. Mark uses the same root of John the Baptist and of Jesus himself, so the apostolic mission is the continuation of one proclamation.
εἰςeistoG1519
√ εἰς — to or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or (figuratively) purpose (result, etcPreposition
πάνταpantaallG3956
√ πᾶς — all, any, every, the wholeAdjectiveAccusative Neuter Plural
τὰtatheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Neuter Plural
ἔθνηethnēnationsG1484
√ ἔθνος — a race (as of the same habit), iNounAccusative Neuter Plural
ethnos: a race, a nation The plural with panta is the widest object in the discourse, and it is placed between the courtrooms of v. 9 and the households of v. 12. The trials are local; the mission is global. Benson, quoting Macknight, calls the preaching of the gospel “through the whole world, by twelve illiterate fishermen” an event “extremely improbable,” and that improbability is the reason the verse is a sign at all.
11

But when they arrest you and hand you over, do not worry beforehand what to say. Instead, speak whatever you are given at that time, for it will not be you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

kai hotan agōsin hymas paradidontes mē promerimnate ti lalēsēte all’ laleite touto ho ean hymin dothē en ekeinē tē hōra gar este ou hymeis hoi lalountes alla to Hagion to Pneuma

Word by word31 · parsed
καὶkaiButG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ὅτανhotanwhenG3752
√ ὅταν — whenever (implying hypothesis or more or less uncertainty)Conjunction
ἄγωσινagōsinthey arrestG71
√ ἄγω — properly, to leadVerbPresent Subjunctive Active3rd Person Plural
agō: properly, to lead Present Subjunctive with ὅταν: “whenever they may be leading you.” Not a single arrest but a recurring situation. Gill fills in the destinations, “Lead to councils and courts of judicature, and deliver up to kings and rulers.”
ὑμᾶςhymasyouG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounAccusative 2nd Person Plural
παραδιδόντεςparadidontes[and] hand [you] overG3860
√ παραδίδωμι — to surrender, iVerbPresent Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Plural
paradidōmi: to surrender, hand over The unit's governing verb again, now a participle of manner. The march to the court and the surrender are one act.
μὴmē{do} notG3361
√ μή — (adverb) not, (conjunction) lestAdverb
προμεριμνᾶτεpromerimnateworry beforehandG4305
√ προμεριμνάω — to care (anxiously) in advanceVerbPresent Imperative Active2nd Person Plural
promerimnaō: to be anxious in advance The prefix carries the prohibition. What is forbidden is the rehearsal of dread, the mind living in a courtroom it has not yet entered. JFB paraphrases it as being “filled with apprehension, in the prospect of such public appearances.” Geneva distinguishes the forbidden thing precisely: not forethought, but “that pensive carefulness by which men discourage themselves, which proceeds from distrust.”
τίtiwhatG5101
√ τίς — an interrogative pronoun, who, which or what (in direct or indirect questions)Interrogative / Indefinite PronounAccusative Neuter Singular
λαλήσητεlalēsēteto sayG2980
√ λαλέω — to talk, iVerbAorist Subjunctive Active2nd Person Plural
laleō: to talk, to speak Aorist subjunctive in an indirect deliberative question, “what you might say.” The same root appears four times in this verse, twice of the disciple and once of the Spirit: the verse is about a single act of speech and who owns it.
ἀλλ’all’InsteadG235
√ ἀλλά — properly, other things, iConjunction
λαλεῖτεlaleitespeakG2980
√ λαλέω — to talk, iVerbPresent Imperative Active2nd Person Plural
τοῦτοtoutoG3778
√ οὗτος — the he (she or it), iDemonstrative PronounAccusative Neuter Singular
ὃhowhateverG3739
√ ὅς — the relatively (sometimes demonstrative) pronoun, who, which, what, thatPersonal / Relative PronounNominative Neuter Singular
ἐὰνean. . .G1437
√ ἐάν — a conditional particleConjunction
ὑμῖνhyminyouG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounDative 2nd Person Plural
δοθῇdothēare givenG1325
√ δίδωμι — to give (used in a very wide application, properly, or by implication, literally or figurativelyVerbAorist Subjunctive Passive3rd Person Singular
didōmi: to give Aorist passive subjunctive. This is the theological center: the words are a gift, timed to the hour, not a possession held in reserve. Luke's parallel makes the giver explicit, “I will give you a mouth and wisdom,” which Ellicott and the Pulpit Commentary both bring alongside Mark's less personal passive.
ἐνenatG1722
√ ἐν — "in," at, (up-)on, by, etcPreposition
ἐκείνῃekeinēthatG1565
√ ἐκεῖνος — that one (or (neuter) thing)Demonstrative PronounDative Feminine Singular
τῇtēG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleDative Feminine Singular
ὥρᾳhōratimeG5610
√ ὥρα — an "hour" (literally or figuratively)NounDative Feminine Singular
hōra: an hour With the demonstrative ἐκείνῃ, “that hour,” a fixed and coming moment. The provision is dated to the need, which is precisely why anxiety in advance is pointless: the gift is not yet due.
γάρgarforG1063
√ γάρ — properly, assigning a reason (used in argument, explanation or intensificationConjunction
ἐστεesteit will not beG1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbPresent Indicative Active2nd Person Plural
eimi: to be Present indicative, against BSB's future. Mark states a rule, not a forecast.
οὐou. . .G3756
√ οὐ — the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverbAdverb
ὑμεῖςhymeisyouG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounNominative 2nd Person Plural
οἱhoiG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Plural
λαλοῦντεςlalountesspeakingG2980
√ λαλέω — to talk, iVerbPresent Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Plural
laleō: the ones speaking Present participle, articular and plural: “you are not the speaking ones.” The denial is of agency, not of activity. Gill is exact and worth keeping: “not but that they did speak, but they were not the principal authors, either of the matter they spoke, or of the words and language.”
ἀλλὰallabutG235
√ ἀλλά — properly, other things, iConjunction
τὸtotheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Neuter Singular
ἍγιονHagionHolyG40
√ ἅγιος — sacred (physically, pure, morally blameless or religious, ceremonially, consecrated)AdjectiveNominative Neuter Singular
hagios: sacred, set apart Adjective in the predicate construction τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ Ἅγιον, “the Spirit, the Holy one,” with the article repeated for weight.
τὸtoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Neuter Singular
ΠνεῦμαPneumaSpiritG4151
√ πνεῦμα — a current of air, iNounNominative Neuter Singular
pneuma: a current of air, breath, spirit Mark names the Holy Spirit outright where Matthew 10:20 has “the Spirit of your Father” and Luke 21:15 has the risen Lord's own “I will give you a mouth.” Ellicott notes the more definite term here and connects it with Peter's habitual language. The three accounts are not in conflict; they name one act from three sides, and the accused disciple is the place where Father, Son and Spirit are all said to speak.
12

Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rise against their parents and have them put to death.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Kai adelphos paradōsei adelphon eis thanaton kai patēr teknon kai tekna epanastēsontai epi goneis kai autous thanatōsousin

Word by word17 · parsed
ΚαὶKaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἀδελφὸςadelphosBrotherG80
√ ἀδελφός — a brother (literally or figuratively) near or remote (much like G1 (Α))NounNominative Masculine Singular
παραδώσειparadōseiwill betrayG3860
√ παραδίδωμι — to surrender, iVerbFuture Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
paradidōmi: to hand over Third and heaviest use in the unit. The Verifier records this lexeme shared three times over with Matthew 10:21 and with Luke 21:16. Mark has already used it of Judas; the reader who knows the Gospel's end hears the household betrayal in the same key as the garden.
ἀδελφὸνadelphonbrotherG80
√ ἀδελφός — a brother (literally or figuratively) near or remote (much like G1 (Α))NounAccusative Masculine Singular
εἰςeistoG1519
√ εἰς — to or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or (figuratively) purpose (result, etcPreposition
θάνατονthanatondeathG2288
√ θάνατος — (properly, an adjective used as a noun) death (literally or figuratively)NounAccusative Masculine Singular
thanatos: death With εἰς it names the destination of the handing over, not merely its risk. This is denunciation with a known outcome.
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
πατὴρpatēra fatherG3962
√ πατήρ — a "father" (literally or figuratively, near or more remote)NounNominative Masculine Singular
τέκνονteknon[his] childG5043
√ τέκνον — a child (as produced)NounAccusative Neuter Singular
teknon: a child, as produced Strong's root sense is the one born, which sharpens the horror: the tie named is biological, the tie broken is the same.
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
τέκναteknaChildrenG5043
√ τέκνον — a child (as produced)NounNominative Neuter Plural
ἐπαναστήσονταιepanastēsontaiwill riseG1881
√ ἐπανίσταμαι — to stand up on, iVerbFuture Indicative Middle3rd Person Plural
epanistamai: to stand up upon, rise against The vocabulary of revolt used of a family. Gill calls these things “unnatural and shocking,” and Barnes says nothing “could more clearly show the dreadful evil of those times, as well as the natural opposition of the heart to the religion of Christ.”
ἐπὶepiagainstG1909
√ ἐπί — properly, meaning superimposition (of time, place, order, etcPreposition
γονεῖςgoneis[their] parentsG1118
√ γονεύς — a parentNounAccusative Masculine Plural
goneus: a parent The word covers both parents together; with tekna it completes a circle begun at adelphos, so the verse runs through every horizontal and vertical tie in a household.
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
αὐτούςautousvvvG846
√ αὐτός — the reflexive pronoun self, used (alone or in the comparative G1438 (ἑαυτοῦ)) of the third person , and (with the proper personal pronoun) of the other personsPersonal / Possessive PronounAccusative Masculine 3rd Person Plural
θανατώσουσινthanatōsousinhave them put to deathG2289
√ θανατόω — become dead, (cause to be) put to death, kill, mortifyVerbFuture Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
thanatoō: to cause to be put to death A rare causative (11 verses), and its company is worth noting: Mark 14:55 and Matthew 26:59 of the council seeking to put Jesus to death, Matthew 27:1 of the morning decision, Romans 8:36 of the church killed all day long, and Romans 8:13 and 1 Peter 3:18 of a putting to death that leads to life. The word that names the family's crime is the word that names the crucifixion.
13

You will be hated by everyone because of My name, but the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

kai esesthe misoumenoi hypo pantōn dia mou to onoma de ho hypomeinas eis telos houtos sōthēsetai

Word by word16 · parsed
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἔσεσθεesestheYou will beG1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbFuture Indicative Middle2nd Person Plural
μισούμενοιmisoumenoihatedG3404
√ μισέω — to detest (especially to persecute)VerbPresent Participle Middle or PassiveNominative Masculine Plural
miseō: to detest, to persecute Present participle in a periphrastic future: a condition, not an incident. The Pulpit Commentary reads “all men” as popular hyperbole for the great majority, and Benson, quoting Doddridge, gives the historical reason: the gospel alone demanded that every other religion be renounced, which the tolerant pluralism of the empire could not absorb.
ὑπὸhypobyG5259
√ ὑπό — under, iPreposition
πάντωνpantōneveryoneG3956
√ πᾶς — all, any, every, the wholeAdjectiveGenitive Masculine Plural
pas: all, every With ὑπό it names the agents of the hating. Read against v. 10, the two uses of “all” frame the unit: the gospel goes to all the nations, and is hated by all. The same universality is the field of the mission and of the hostility.
διὰdiabecause ofG1223
√ διά — through (in very wide applications, local, causal, or occasional)Preposition
μουmouMyG1473
√ ἐγώ — I, mePersonal / Possessive PronounGenitive 1st Person Singular
τὸtoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Neuter Singular
ὄνομάonomanameG3686
√ ὄνομα — a "name" (literally or figuratively) (authority, character)NounAccusative Neuter Singular
onoma: a name, authority, character A common noun (214 verses) doing uncommon work: it is the cause assigned for universal hatred. Strong's records that the word carries authority and character, so the Name is not a label but the person invoked, and the hatred is aimed past the disciple at him. This is the third time in five verses that the cause is stated as a person: ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ in v. 9, “my Gospel” in Gill's Syriac reading of v. 10, διὰ τὸ ὄνομά μου here. The Verifier records ὄνομα, τέλος and ὑπό as the shared basis with Matthew 10:22.
δὲdebutG1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
ὁhothe [one who]G3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
ὑπομείναςhypomeinasperseveresG5278
√ ὑπομένω — to stay under (behind), iVerbAorist Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Singular
hypomenō: to stay under, to endure A rare verb (16 verses) and the pivot of the unit. Its root picture is remaining under a weight rather than escaping it, which is the exact counterpart to v. 9's “be made to stand.” Cambridge counts its distribution across the New Testament and calls it the “queen of virtues” after Chrysostom. It is not a promise that the enduring will be spared; JFB observes that Luke's “not an hair of your heads shall perish” stands beside Luke's own “they shall put some of you to death,” so the promise is “far above immunity from mere bodily harm.”
εἰςeistoG1519
√ εἰς — to or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or (figuratively) purpose (result, etcPreposition
τέλοςtelos[the] endG5056
√ τέλος — properly, the point aimed at as a limit, iNounAccusative Neuter Singular
telos: the point aimed at, a limit Strong's root is not “stop” but “goal.” Which goal is disputed and the brief's commentators divide: the Pulpit Commentary takes it as the end of the individual's probation, Benson as the end of the persecution and of life, and JFB reads it with Matthew 24:13 of the eschatological end. The word itself will not settle the question, and neither will we.
οὗτοςhoutosG3778
√ οὗτος — the he (she or it), iDemonstrative PronounNominative Masculine Singular
houtos: this one A resumptive demonstrative after the participle: “the one having endured, this one will be saved.” The Greek pauses and points. Salvation is promised to a specified person, not to a class in general.
σωθήσεταιsōthēsetaiwill be savedG4982
√ σώζω — to save, iVerbFuture Indicative Passive3rd Person Singular
sōzō: to save, to rescue Future passive, agent unstated and therefore divine. It closes a unit that opened with three other passives done to the disciple: handed over, flogged, made to stand. The last thing done to him is the saving.

The verse-by-verse work is done. What follows gathers the whole unit. All three layers below are machine-generated (⚙). Weigh them; they have no authority.

⚙

Grand Commentary — the unit, read whole

synthesis · verify

AI synthesis — woven from the public-domain voices above and the original text; generated and fallible.

i. Look to yourselves, and be handed over — 13:9

⚙ The discourse turns from the world's convulsions to the disciples' bodies with one present imperative, Βλέπετε ἑαυτούς. Ellicott notes that this emphatic repetition of the warning is peculiar to Mark, which makes “keep looking to yourselves” the refrain of the chapter rather than an aside. What follows is a chain of things done to the disciple: παραδώσουσιν (they will hand you over, active, subject unnamed), δαρήσεσθε (you will be flayed, passive), σταθήσεσθε (you will be made to stand, passive). Gill reads the imperative as prudence about their own persons; Barnes hears both senses at once, “Be cautious that no man deceive you; or, take care of your lives.” The venues are stacked deliberately: JFB observes that councils and synagogues are ecclesiastical proceedings and that governors and kings are “civil tribunals next,” and Cambridge grounds each in Acts, from the Sanhedrin of Acts 4 to Paul before Felix, Festus, Agrippa and Nero. The verse ends by naming what all this is for: εἰς μαρτύριον αὐτοῖς. Barnes corrects the old English here, “Rather to bear testimony to them,” and JFB agrees, “rather ‘unto them’.” Geneva keeps the darker edge, that when the judges hear them preach they will not be able to “pretend that they do not know.” The dative bears both: evidence given to a court is always also evidence against it if refused.

ii. The necessity that runs ahead of the end — 13:10

⚙ Between the courtroom and the household Mark sets one impersonal verb, δεῖ, and one aorist passive infinitive, κηρυχθῆναι. Gill states the logic plainly: “There was a necessity of the promulgation of it by the will of God, the command and commission of Christ.” The adverb πρῶτον is where the commentators divide, and the brief preserves the disagreement rather than resolving it. JFB and Cambridge hold that the thing was done: the Jews “already dispersed over most known countries, had nearly all heard the Gospel ‘as a witness,’ before the end of the Jewish state,” and Cambridge traces the proclamation “from Arabia to Damascus, from Jerusalem to Illyricum.” Poole, writing in 1685, refuses that as the whole answer, granting the first sense only if “all signifies very many” and insisting a fuller preaching must precede the judgment. The Pulpit Commentary takes the same road and generalizes it: the prophecy “expands, as the ages roll onwards.” Benson, quoting Macknight, adds the note that makes the verse a sign at all: the gospel's spread “by twelve illiterate fishermen” together with the fall of Jerusalem were “events extremely improbable.” ⚙ What the Greek settles is narrower than any of these positions: the obligation is on the proclamation, not on the preachers' success, and the word is herald, not persuade.

iii. Not you speaking — 13:11

⚙ The prohibition is precise: μὴ προμεριμνᾶτε forbids anxiety carried in advance, and nothing else. Geneva draws the line where the Greek draws it, “We are not forbidden to think beforehand, but we are willed to beware of that pensive carefulness by which men discourage themselves, which proceeds from distrust”; the Pulpit Commentary says the same, and Poole compresses it to “take no anxious thoughts to disquiet yourselves.” Cambridge shows why the old English needed defending, assembling Wyclif, Bishop Ridley and Shakespeare to prove that “thought” once simply meant anxiety. The positive command rests on a divine passive, δοθῇ, timed to that hour: the provision is dated to the need. Then Mark's most striking clause, in the present tense, “you are not the ones speaking, but the Holy Spirit.” Gill guards it from misuse: “not but that they did speak, but they were not the principal authors, either of the matter they spoke, or of the words and language in which they spoke.” Ellicott observes that Mark alone uses the definite term here, where Matthew 10:20 has “the Spirit of your Father” and Luke 21:15 has the Lord's own “I will give you a mouth and wisdom,” and he connects Mark's usage with Peter's habitual language. Barnes presses further, to the claim that the recorded defenses in Acts “are the words of the Holy Spirit”; that is his inference, and this edition marks it as such.

iv. The household torn, and the one who stays under — 13:12-13:13

⚙ Verse 12 uses the unit's governing verb a third time. παραδώσει ἀδελφὸς ἀδελφόν: not “betray” in the Greek but “hand over,” the treachery lying wholly in who hands whom to what. Gill sees the point of the bare nouns, that those “in the nearest relation,” of “the same flesh and blood, children of the same parents,” do this; Barnes says nothing could more clearly show “the natural opposition of the heart to the religion of Christ.” The Pulpit Commentary supplies a witness from outside the first century, Woodman of Sussex under Queen Mary, “betrayed and taken by his father and his brother,” who comforted himself that this very text was verified in him, and it records Bede's reason for the prediction: that the disciples, knowing beforehand, “might be the better able to bear them when they came.” Poole classes vv. 12 and 13 as an amplification of the fifth sign already given in v. 9. Then the last clause reverses every passive of the unit into promise. ὁ ὑπομείνας is the rare verb for staying under a weight; Cambridge, following Bishop Ellicott, insists it means not “patientiam” but “perseverantiam,” the “brave patience” of a contender, the “queen of virtues” after Chrysostom. JFB refuses the cheap reading of the promise, setting Luke's “not an hair of your heads shall perish” beside Luke's own warning that some would be killed, and concluding that the promise is “far above immunity from mere bodily harm.” What telos means is openly disputed in the brief: the Pulpit Commentary takes it as the end of the individual's probation, Benson as the end of persecution and of life, JFB as the end with Matthew 24:13. Henry ends where the unit ends: “The salvation promised is more than deliverance from evil, it is everlasting blessedness.”

Read under Sola Scriptura — this tool’s own fallible reading (⚙)

⚙ This is the tool's own fallible reading, offered to be tested against the text. Read the five verses by their verbs and a pattern appears that no single commentator in this brief states outright. Everything the disciple undergoes is expressed as something done to him: he is handed over, he is flayed, he is made to stand, he is led, he is given words, he is hated, and at the last he is saved. The only imperatives given him are two, and they are small: keep looking to yourselves and speak this. Between the two lies the one prohibition, do not be anxious in advance. So the passage is not a call to heroism; it is a description of a person who has been placed, and whose whole activity in the crisis reduces to attention, speech and staying put. ⚙ Notice also where the mission actually happens. Verse 10 does not interrupt the persecution paragraph, as though Mark had lost his thread. It stands in the middle of it because the courts of v. 9 are one of the routes by which the gospel reaches governors, kings and nations who would never have gone to hear a fisherman preach. The testimony is to them, as Barnes and JFB both insist. The hostile summons is the delivery mechanism. ⚙ And the promise at the end is not that the enduring escape. Verse 12 has already said some will be put to death; JFB sees the same tension in Luke and refuses to resolve it downward. The word is ὑπομένω, to stay under, and the verb of salvation is passive. What is promised is not that the weight will be lifted before the end, but that the one still under it at the end will be lifted by another.

The court did not interrupt the mission; the court was where the mission was heard by kings.

⚙

Canonical Threads — out to the whole of Scripture

cross-refs · verify

AI-generated connections. Each carries a verification badge with a recorded basis; contested links are flagged.

The handing over that binds disciple to Master structural / thematic: confirmed

⚙ παραδίδωμι (G3860) is the load-bearing verb of this unit, used of the courts (v. 9), of the arrest (v. 11) and of the brother (v. 12). The Verifier records it shared three times over with Matthew 10:21 and with Luke 21:16, which are the Synoptic parallels to this same saying; Luke 21:12 adds συναγωγή and the rare ἕνεκα to the overlap. The link is real and lexical, but G3860 is a common word (117 verses), so this edition tiers it structural rather than verbal: the three passages report one discourse in shared vocabulary, not one quoting another.

Matthew 10:21 · Luke 21:16 · Luke 21:12

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexemes G3860 παραδίδωμι (freq 117 vv, recorded three times against Matthew 10:21 and Luke 21:16), plus G4864 συναγωγή (56 vv) and G1752 ἕνεκα (23 vv) with Luke 21:12. A common lexeme, so tiered structural, not verbal.

συνέδριον and θανατόω: the disciple is sent to the bench that tried Jesus verbal / quotation: confirmed

⚙ Two uncommon words carry this link. συνέδριον (G4892, 22 verses) names the court the disciples are handed to in v. 9; θανατόω (G2289, 11 verses) names what the children procure for their parents in v. 12. The Verifier finds both together in Mark 14:55 and Matthew 26:59, where the chief priests and the whole council sought testimony against Jesus to put him to death, and θανατόω again in Matthew 27:1. Mark is therefore describing the disciples' future in the exact vocabulary he will use for his Lord's trial two chapters later. Cambridge confirms the historical side, that some of the actual hearers stood before that same Sanhedrin within fifty days (Acts 4:3).

Mark 14:55 · Matthew 26:59 · Matthew 27:1

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexemes G4892 συνέδριον (22 vv) and G2289 θανατόω (11 vv) with Mark 14:55 and Matthew 26:59, G2289 with Matthew 27:1. Rare lexemes, so a genuine verbal link; it is repetition within the Gospels, not a quotation of one text by another.

For a witness to them: the same charge in Matthew's report verbal / quotation: confirmed

⚙ Matthew 10:18 shares three lexemes with v. 9: the rare ἕνεκα (23 verses), βασιλεύς and the rare μαρτύριον (20 verses). Matthew 24:14 shares μαρτύριον with εὐαγγέλιον and κηρύσσω, which are the three key words of v. 10. This is the Verifier's basis for reading Mark 13:9 and 13:10 as one thought: the trials produce a testimony, and the gospel is proclaimed for a testimony. JFB makes the join explicit by quoting Matthew's “for a witness, and then shall the end come.” Ellicott notes that Mark's description of the disciples' sufferings corresponds to Matthew 10:17-22 rather than to Matthew's own version of this discourse.

Matthew 10:18 · Matthew 24:14

basis: Verifier: shared G1752 ἕνεκα (23 vv), G935 βασιλεύς (105 vv), G3142 μαρτύριον (20 vv) with Matthew 10:18; G3142 μαρτύριον (20 vv), G2098 εὐαγγέλιον (73 vv), G2784 κηρύσσω (60 vv) with Matthew 24:14. Two rare lexemes carry the link; Synoptic parallel wording, not citation.

Endure to the end: the promise repeated verbal / quotation: confirmed

⚙ ὑπομένω (G5278) occurs in only 16 verses, and the Verifier finds it with τέλος and σώζω in Matthew 24:13, and finds ὄνομα, τέλος and ὑπό shared with Matthew 10:22. Cambridge counts the word's distribution across the New Testament and notes its concentration in Paul and its two uses by Peter in 1 Peter 2:20. JFB adds Hebrews 10:38-39 as “a manifest allusion to these words of Christ,” and Revelation 2:10; this edition records that as JFB's judgment, since the Verifier supplies no shared-lexeme basis for the Hebrews pair.

Matthew 24:13 · Matthew 10:22

basis: Verifier: shared G5278 ὑπομένω (16 vv, rare), G5056 τέλος (39 vv), G4982 σώζω (99 vv) with Matthew 24:13; G3686 ὄνομα (214 vv), G5056 τέλος (39 vv), G5259 ὑπό (200 vv) with Matthew 10:22. The rare ὑπομένω carries it.

The household turned against itself (Micah's pattern) structural / thematic: confirmed

⚙ Micah 7:5-6 describes exactly what v. 12 predicts: the son dishonouring the father, and a man's enemies being the men of his own house. Jeremiah 12:6 says the prophet's own brothers dealt treacherously with him, and Psalm 41:9 names the familiar friend who lifted up his heel. The brief supplies no formal quotation in Mark, and none is claimed here. Because this is a Greek to Hebrew pair, no shared Strong's number is possible in principle, so the link is tiered structural on the pattern alone. That Jesus elsewhere applies Micah 7:6 to the same situation makes the echo likely rather than proven, and this edition says no more than that.

Micah 7:5-6 · Jeremiah 12:6 · Psalm 41:9

basis: Cross-Testament (Greek to Hebrew), so shared Strong's lexemes are impossible by definition and no verbal tier is available. Basis is the shared pattern of the household divided against itself; no formal quotation is present in Mark 13:12.

Who gives the mouth: Moses, Jeremiah, Balaam typological

⚙ “It is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit” restates a figure older than the discourse: “I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say” (Exodus 4:12); “thou shalt speak whatsoever I command thee,” with the hand that touches the mouth (Jeremiah 1:7-9); and even the hired seer confessing that the word God puts in his mouth is the word he must speak (Numbers 22:38). Joel 2:28-29 extends the prophetic gift to sons, daughters and servants, which is what the promise to unlettered disciples assumes. ⚙ The reading is figural, not lexical: the persecuted disciple stands in the place the commissioned prophet stood. It is an old and widely held reading, but this edition tiers it typological and claims no verbal dependence, since a Greek to Hebrew pair cannot produce a shared Strong's basis.

Exodus 4:12 · Jeremiah 1:7-9 · Numbers 22:38 · Joel 2:28-29

basis: Cross-Testament (Greek to Hebrew): no shared Strong's numbers possible, therefore never verbal. Figural basis: the commissioned prophet whose words are supplied by God, read as the pattern of the accused disciple in Mark 13:11. Ancient and widely held, but marked typological rather than confirmed verbal.

Confessing before kings: Psalm 119 and the Babylonian courts typological

⚙ “I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings, and will not be ashamed” (Psalm 119:46) is the Old Testament sentence nearest to σταθήσεσθε ἐπὶ ἡγεμόνων καὶ βασιλέων εἰς μαρτύριον αὐτοῖς. Daniel 3:8-18 and Daniel 6:10-16 narrate it: men denounced by their neighbours, made to stand before a sovereign, and answering without rehearsal. ⚙ The correspondence is of situation and stance, not of words, and it cannot be otherwise across the Testaments. Tiered typological, and offered as a reading rather than a demonstration.

Psalm 119:46 · Daniel 3:16 · Daniel 6:10

basis: Cross-Testament (Greek to Hebrew): shared Strong's numbers are impossible, so no verbal tier. Figural basis: the faithful denounced and made to stand before pagan sovereigns, giving testimony there. No quotation is claimed.

Killed all the day long: Paul's rare pair of words structural / thematic: confirmed

⚙ The Verifier reports that Romans 8:36 shares two uncommon lexemes with this unit, ἕνεκα (23 verses, Mark's “on account of me”) and θανατόω (11 verses, v. 12's “put to death”). On frequency alone that would license a verbal tier. This edition declines it and under-claims deliberately: Romans 8:36 is Paul quoting Psalm 44:22, not Paul quoting Mark, so the shared vocabulary is best explained by a common subject rather than by dependence. The overlap is recorded as thematic.

Romans 8:36

basis: Verifier: shared G1752 ἕνεκα (23 vv) and G2289 θανατόω (11 vv). Both are rare enough to permit a verbal tier, but Romans 8:36 is itself a quotation of Psalm 44:22, so dependence on Mark is not shown; deliberately downgraded to structural.

Preached everywhere: an appeal resting on a disputed ending flagged: verify source

⚙ Benson's case that v. 10 was fulfilled before AD 70 closes with “when Mark wrote his gospel the apostles had gone forth, and preached everywhere, Mark 16:20,” and Cambridge argues on the same lines. That proof text falls inside the longer ending of Mark (16:9-20), whose place in the text is disputed on manuscript grounds. The Verifier supplies no shared-lexeme basis for this pair. The link is therefore recorded and flagged rather than asserted: the substance of Benson's argument can be carried by Romans 10:18 and Colossians 1:23, which he also cites and which are not textually contested.

Mark 16:20 · Romans 10:18 · Colossians 1:23

basis: No Verifier shared-lexeme basis for this pair. Benson and Cambridge rest part of their fulfillment argument on Mark 16:20, which belongs to the longer ending of Mark, a text-critically disputed passage. Flagged so the reader can check the provenance; the undisputed supports are Romans 10:18 and Colossians 1:23.

⚙Christ in the Unittypology · verify

AI-generated reading; weigh it against the text.

The servant's road is the Master's road, in the Master's words ancient/widely-held

⚙ Mark writes the disciples' future in the vocabulary of his own passion narrative. They will be παραδίδωμι'd, as Jesus is handed over; they will be brought to the συνέδριον, which in Mark 14:55 is the body seeking testimony against Jesus; and the rare causative θανατόω, used of the children who procure their parents' execution, is the verb of what that council sought for him (Mark 14:55, Matthew 26:59, Matthew 27:1). The Verifier supplies both shared lexemes. Barnes and Cambridge document the fulfillment in Acts: Peter and John before the Sanhedrin, Stephen, Paul before Felix, Festus, Agrippa and Nero. The identification is not merely illustrative; it is the reason the trials are called a witness at all, because the accused stands where his Lord stood and says what his Lord is.

Mark 14:55 · Matthew 26:59 · Acts 4:3

The Spirit in the dock is the Spirit of the Son ancient/widely-held

⚙ The same promise is reported three ways: Mark says “the Holy Spirit,” Matthew 10:20 says “the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you,” and Luke 21:15 has Jesus himself say “I will give you a mouth and wisdom.” Ellicott notes Mark's more definite term and connects it with Peter's habitual language, citing Acts 2:33. ⚙ The three reports are not rivals: the mouth the risen Christ gives is the Spirit the Father sends, poured out by the exalted Son (Acts 2:33). The verse therefore does something larger than comfort the accused: it places the trinitarian pattern of the gospel inside a courtroom, where the one on trial is the Son, the one giving the words is the Spirit, and the one whose Name is at stake is the Lord.

Matthew 10:20 · Luke 21:15 · Acts 2:33

The Name that all nations must hear and most will hate ancient/widely-held

⚙ Two universals frame the unit: the gospel must be heralded into all the nations (v. 10), and the disciples will be hated by all because of my name (v. 13). Geneva reduces the whole ground of hatred to two words, “For me.” The mission is not a message about a doctrine that could be softened; the content of the testimony is a Person, which is why the hatred is universal and the necessity absolute. ⚙ Isaiah's servant was given “for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6), and “all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God” (Isaiah 52:10); Acts 13:47 applies the first of these to the apostolic mission. The link is cross-Testament and thematic, not verbal, and this edition claims nothing more. Benson and the Pulpit Commentary both read the worldwide preaching as the fulfilment of that promise, and Henry names its end: “more than deliverance from evil, it is everlasting blessedness.”

Isaiah 49:6 · Isaiah 52:10 · Acts 13:47

Apparatus & Provenance

The biblical text is the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain (CC0). Hebrew/Greek text, transliteration, morphology and Strong’s are transcribed from the Berean interlinear (CC0) + Strong’s lexicons (PD); the literal renderings, divergence notes, word notes and all synthesis are this tool’s own work (⚙) — fallible; verify them.

Named voices, quoted verbatim from public-domain works:

  • Albert Barnes, Notes on the Bible (1834)
  • Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges, — (1880s)
  • Charles Ellicott, Commentary for English Readers (1878)
  • Geneva Study Bible, Marginal Notes (1599)
  • Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory (1871)
  • John Gill, Exposition of the Entire Bible (1746–63)
  • Joseph Benson, Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1810s)
  • Matthew Henry, Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible (1706)
  • Matthew Poole, Annotations upon the Holy Bible (1685)
  • The Pulpit Commentary, Spence & Exell, eds. (1880s)

Text. Verse text is the Berean Standard Bible (CC0); the interlinear, glosses, parses and Strong's numbers are the Berean interlinear as supplied in the brief. The literal renderings above are built from the Greek word order, which differs from the order in which the interlinear rows are numbered; note indices refer to those rows, not to the sequence of the Greek sentence.

Source data. The interlinear gloss for Mark 13:12, word 15 (αὐτούς, G846) is recorded in the brief as “vvv,” which is a data placeholder, not a translation. The word is a plain accusative plural pronoun, “them,” object of θανατώσουσιν, and it is treated so here. Several glosses in the brief are split across rows with “. . .” markers (9:3, 9:14, 11:13, 11:22), an artifact of aligning Greek to English, not of the text.

Commentary. The Pulpit Commentary entry filed under Mark 13:10 runs on into material on v. 11 and is capped in the brief (117 further characters not shown); quotations from it here are taken from the portion supplied. Matthew Henry's note is his Concise comment on the block Mark 13:5-13, so it addresses the whole discourse rather than any single verse. Benson quotes Macknight at length on v. 10 and Doddridge on v. 13, and both are cited as quoted by him.

What is uncertain. The scope of πρῶτον in v. 10 and of τέλος in v. 13 is genuinely disputed within this brief's own sources (JFB and Cambridge against Poole and the Pulpit Commentary on the first; the Pulpit Commentary against Benson and JFB on the second), and no synthesis here resolves it. Barnes's inference that the speeches recorded in Acts are therefore “the words of the Holy Spirit” goes beyond what Mark 13:11 states and is marked in his voice note. Poole's reference to “popish persecutions” is 1685 polemic and is flagged. Benson's and Cambridge's appeal to Mark 16:20 rests on the disputed longer ending of Mark and is carried as a flagged thread. Cross-Testament threads in this unit carry no shared Strong's basis and cannot: they are tiered structural or typological throughout, as readings offered for testing.

✦ = human, public-domain source, quoted and named. ⚙ = machine synthesis, to be verified. Flagged cross-references are left visible on purpose — the verifier working in the open. “Search the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” (Acts 17:11)