The Fallible Study Bible

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Mark14:43–52

The Betrayal of Jesus

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Mark 14:43–52 — The Betrayal of Jesus. 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.

43

While Jesus was still speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, arrived, accompanied by a crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests, scribes, and elders.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Kai euthys autou eti lalountos ho Ioudas heis tōn dōdeka paraginetai kai autou met’ ochlos meta machairōn kai xylōn para tōn archiereōn kai tōn grammateōn kai tōn presbyterōn

Word by word28 · parsed
ΚαὶKaivvvG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
εὐθὺςeuthysWhileG2112
√ εὐθέως — directly, iAdverb
euthys: directly, straightway Mark's relentless adverb, carried over from the opening chapters into the passion. Here it welds Gethsemane's prayer to Gethsemane's arrest with no interval: the word of warning is still in Jesus' mouth when the torches arrive.
αὐτοῦautouvvvG846
√ 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 PronounGenitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
ἔτιetivvvG2089
√ ἔτι — "yet," still (of time or degree)Adverb
λαλοῦντοςlalountos[Jesus] was still speakingG2980
√ λαλέω — to talk, iVerbPresent Participle ActiveGenitive Masculine Singular
ὁhoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
ἸούδαςIoudasJudasG2455
√ Ἰούδας — Judas (iNounNominative Masculine Singular
Ioudas: Judas Maclaren observes that Judas is the only name besides the Lord's in the whole section. Mark does not editorialize; he names the man and states the deed, and lets the bare naming do the condemning.
εἷςheisoneG1520
√ εἷς — oneAdjectiveNominative Masculine Singular
τῶνtōnof theG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Plural
δώδεκαdōdekaTwelveG1427
√ δώδεκα — two and ten, iAdjectiveGenitive Masculine Plural
dōdeka: twelve The appositional "one of the Twelve" is not identification (everyone knew which Judas) but indictment. Pulpit: the designation became welded to his name. The betrayer is produced from inside the chosen circle, not from the crowd outside it.
παραγίνεταιparaginetaiarrivedG3854
√ παραγίνομαι — to become near, iVerbPresent Indicative Middle or Passive3rd Person Singular
paraginomai: to become near, to be present Present indicative, third singular. The verb means arrival into presence. Mark's syntax puts Judas at the head of the sentence and the mob behind him in a trailing prepositional train, which is exactly the order Luke 22:47 describes when it says he went before them.
καὶkaivvvG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
αὐτοῦautouvvvG846
√ 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 PronounGenitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
μετ’met’[accompanied by]G3326
√ μετά — properly, denoting accompanimentPreposition
ὄχλοςochlosa crowdG3793
√ ὄχλος — a throng (as borne along)NounNominative Masculine Singular
μετὰmeta[armed] withG3326
√ μετά — properly, denoting accompanimentPreposition
μαχαιρῶνmachairōnswordsG3162
√ μάχαιρα — a knife, iNounGenitive Feminine Plural
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ξύλωνxylōnclubsG3586
√ ξύλον — timber (as fuel or material)NounGenitive Neuter Plural
xylon: timber, wood A blunt weapon of improvised wood. The same lexeme will reappear in apostolic preaching as the wood on which He was hanged, so that the wood carried against Him in the garden and the wood He is fastened to are one word in Greek. Mark does not make the point; the vocabulary simply holds.
παρὰparasent fromG3844
√ παρά — properly, nearPreposition
τῶνtōntheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Plural
ἀρχιερέωνarchiereōnchief priestsG749
√ ἀρχιερεύς — the high-priest (literally, of the Jews, typically, Christ)NounGenitive Masculine Plural
archiereus: high priest Genitive plural. The three genitives (chief priests, scribes, elders) are the Sanhedrin named by its benches, and Gill says exactly that: the arrest is an official act of the ruling council, not a lynching. Cambridge adds that the force likely mixed Levitical temple guards with a Roman detachment from Antonia, so Gentile and Jew are already joined in the seizure.
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
τῶνtōnG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Plural
γραμματέωνgrammateōnscribesG1122
√ γραμματεύς — scribe, town-clerkNounGenitive Masculine Plural
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
τῶνtōnG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Plural
πρεσβυτέρωνpresbyterōneldersG4245
√ πρεσβύτερος — olderAdjectiveGenitive Masculine Plural
44

Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: “The One I kiss is the man; arrest Him and lead Him away securely.”

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

de ho paradidous auton Dedōkei syssēmon autois legōn Hon an philēsō estin autos kratēsate auton kai apagete asphalōs

Word by word18 · parsed
δὲdeNowG1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
ὁhotheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
παραδιδοὺςparadidousbetrayerG3860
√ παραδίδωμι — to surrender, iVerbPresent Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Singular
paradidōmi: to hand over, deliver up The verb is neutral in itself (to deliver, to transmit) and becomes horrifying only from what is delivered. Mark uses the participle as a name, so that the man is identified by the transaction he is conducting.
αὐτὸνauton. . .G846
√ 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 Singular
ΔεδώκειDedōkeihad arrangedG1325
√ δίδωμι — to give (used in a very wide application, properly, or by implication, literally or figurativelyVerbPluperfect Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
didōmi: to give Pluperfect. The grammar records premeditation: the signal was given and stood given before a word of this scene was spoken. Nothing here is improvised.
σύσσημονsyssēmona signalG4953
√ σύσσημον — a sign in common, iNounAccusative Neuter Singular
syssēmon: a sign held in common A New Testament hapax, as Cambridge notes. A sign works only between people who have agreed on it; this one converts the most intimate gesture available into a military marker. Maclaren observes that in the darkness and confusion a kiss was a surer token than a word or a pointing finger.
αὐτοῖςautoiswith 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
λέγωνlegōnG3004
√ λέγω — properly, to "lay" forth, iVerbPresent Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Singular
ὋνHonThe OneG3739
√ ὅς — the relatively (sometimes demonstrative) pronoun, who, which, what, thatPersonal / Relative PronounAccusative Masculine Singular
ἂνan. . .G302
√ ἄν — (what-, where-, wither-, who-)soeverParticle
φιλήσωphilēsōI kissG5368
√ φιλέω — to be a friend to (fond of (an individual or an object)), iVerbAorist Subjunctive Active1st Person Singular
phileō: to be a friend to, to kiss as a friend Aorist subjunctive with ἄν, an indefinite relative: "whomever I may kiss." The verb chosen for the signal is the verb of affection. The sign and the crime are the same motion.
ἐστινestinisG1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
αὐτόςautos[the man]G846
√ 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 PronounNominative Masculine 3rd Person Singular
κρατήσατεkratēsatearrestG2902
√ κρατέω — to use strength, iVerbAorist Imperative Active2nd Person Plural
krateō: to use strength, to seize Aorist imperative plural, a decisive command: take him, now, with force. Ellicott insists on "seize" over the softer "take him" of the older English. The same root returns in v. 46 when they do it, in v. 49 when Jesus says they did not do it in the temple, and in v. 51 when they do it to the wrong man.
αὐτὸνautonHimG846
√ 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 Singular
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἀπάγετεapagetelead [Him] awayG520
√ ἀπάγω — to take off (in various senses)VerbPresent Imperative Active2nd Person Plural
ἀσφαλῶςasphalōssecurelyG806
√ ἀσφαλῶς — securely (literally or figuratively)Adverb
asphalōs: securely, without stumbling A rare adverb (three verses in the New Testament). Judas asks for a custody that cannot fail. The irony is exact: in Acts the same word is used both for a jailer keeping prisoners safely and for the certainty with which all Israel is to know that God made this Jesus both Lord and Christ.
45

Going directly to Jesus, he said, “Rabbi!” and kissed Him.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

kai elthōn proselthōn euthys autō legei Rhabbi kai katephilēsen auton

Word by word10 · parsed
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἐλθὼνelthōnvvvG2064
√ ἔρχομαι — to come or go (in a great variety of applications, literally and figuratively)VerbAorist Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Singular
προσελθὼνproselthōnGoingG4334
√ προσέρχομαι — to approach, iVerbAorist Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Singular
proserchomai: to approach, come near Aorist participle. The compound is the ordinary word for approaching a superior or approaching God in worship. It is used here for closing the last few feet of a friendship in order to end it.
εὐθὺςeuthysdirectlyG2112
√ εὐθέως — directly, iAdverb
αὐτῷautōto [Jesus]G846
√ 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 Singular
λέγειlegeihe saidG3004
√ λέγω — properly, to "lay" forth, iVerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
ῬαββίRhabbiRabbiG4461
√ ῥαββί — my master, iNounVocative Masculine Singular
rhabbi: my master Vocative. The title a disciple gives his teacher, retained untranslated in Mark's Greek. Cambridge calls what follows "the customary kiss of a disciple to his teacher," which means every element of the signal is borrowed from the vocabulary of discipleship.
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
κατεφίλησενkatephilēsenkissedG2705
√ καταφιλέω — to kiss earnestlyVerbAorist Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
kataphileō: to kiss earnestly Cambridge traces the same intensified verb through three tender scenes: the woman who was a sinner kissing the Lord's feet, the father kissing the returning prodigal, and the Ephesian elders kissing Paul on the shore. Here the identical verb is the mark that hands a man to armed police. Maclaren reads the vehemence as a conscience being shouted down.
αὐτόνautonHimG846
√ 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 Singular
46

Then the men seized Jesus and arrested Him.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

de Hoi epebalan tas cheiras autō kai ekratēsan auton

Word by word9 · parsed
δὲdeThenG1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
ΟἱHoiG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Plural
ἐπέβαλανepebalan[the men] seizedG1911
√ ἐπιβάλλω — to throw upon (literal or figurative, transitive or reflexiveVerbAorist Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
epiballō: to throw upon Aorist indicative plural, with "the hands" as object. It is the standing idiom for a legal or violent apprehension, but the verb itself is one of hurling, and Mark leaves the image undomesticated.
τὰςtas. . .G3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Feminine Plural
χεῖραςcheiras. . .G5495
√ χείρ — the hand (literally or figuratively (power)NounAccusative Feminine Plural
αὐτῷautō[Jesus]G846
√ 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 Singular
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἐκράτησανekratēsanarrestedG2902
√ κρατέω — to use strength, iVerbAorist Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
krateō: to use strength, to hold fast The word of the whole unit. Judas commands it, the mob performs it, Jesus says the temple crowd never did it, and in v. 51 the same hands close on a stranger and come away holding cloth. Benson, following John 18:5-6, notes that this seizure happens only after the party had first gone backward and fallen to the ground.
αὐτόνautonHimG846
√ 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 Singular
47

And one of the bystanders drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

de tis heis tōn parestēkotōn spasamenos tēn machairan epaisen ton doulon tou archiereōs kai apheilen autou to ōtarion

Word by word18 · parsed
δέdeAndG1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
τιςtisvvvG5100
√ τὶς — some or any person or objectInterrogative / Indefinite PronounNominative Masculine Singular
εἷςheisoneG1520
√ εἷς — oneAdjectiveNominative Masculine Singular
τῶνtōnof theG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Plural
παρεστηκότωνparestēkotōnbystandersG3936
√ παρίστημι — to stand beside, iVerbPerfect Participle ActiveGenitive Masculine Plural
paristēmi: to stand beside Perfect participle, the stance of one who has placed himself there and stayed. Mark's anonymity here is not ignorance: he names Judas and will not name the swordsman. Cambridge suggests the Synoptists suppressed the name while Peter was still alive and exposed to reprisal, which is conjecture offered as conjecture.
σπασάμενοςspasamenosdrewG4685
√ σπάω — to drawVerbAorist Participle MiddleNominative Masculine Singular
spaō: to draw Aorist middle participle: he drew for himself. The middle voice is precise; this is a private decision taken inside a scene that has already been surrendered. The verb is rare, occurring in only two New Testament verses.
τὴνtēn[his]G3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Feminine Singular
μάχαιρανmachairanswordG3162
√ μάχαιρα — a knife, iNounAccusative Feminine Singular
ἔπαισενepaisen[and] struckG3817
√ παίω — to hit (as if by a single blow and less violently than G5180 (τύπτω))VerbAorist Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
τὸνtontheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Masculine Singular
δοῦλονdoulonservantG1401
√ δοῦλος — a slave (literal or figurative, involuntary or voluntaryNounAccusative Masculine Singular
doulos: a slave The one man wounded in the garden is a slave. Henry's summary is blunt on the disciple's side of it: it is easier to fight for Christ than to die for him.
τοῦtouof theG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleGenitive Masculine Singular
ἀρχιερέωςarchiereōshigh priestG749
√ ἀρχιερεύς — the high-priest (literally, of the Jews, typically, Christ)NounGenitive Masculine Singular
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ἀφεῖλενapheilencutting offG851
√ ἀφαιρέω — to remove (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
aphaireō: to remove, take away Aorist. Mark records the mutilation and not the cure; Luke alone says the Lord touched and healed it. Reading Mark alone, the only thing the sword accomplishes in this Gospel is the maiming of a slave.
αὐτοῦautouhisG846
√ 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 PronounGenitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
τὸtoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Neuter Singular
ὠτάριονōtarionearG5621
√ ὠτίον — an earlet, iNounAccusative Neuter Singular
ōtarion: earlet, little ear The diminutive is almost pitying. In a scene of swords and clubs, Mark's smallest word marks the only wound actually inflicted, and it is inflicted by a follower of Jesus.
48

Jesus asked the crowd, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me as you would an outlaw?

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Kai ho Iēsous apokritheis eipen autois exēlthate meta machairōn kai xylōn syllabein me Hōs epi lēstēn

Word by word16 · parsed
ΚαὶKaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ὁhoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
ἸησοῦςIēsousJesusG2424
√ Ἰησοῦς — Jesus (iNounNominative Masculine Singular
ἀποκριθεὶςapokritheisvvvG611
√ ἀποκρίνομαι — to conclude for oneself, iVerbAorist Participle PassiveNominative Masculine Singular
apokrinomai: to conclude for oneself, to answer A Septuagintal idiom rather than a report of dialogue. It marks a formal response to a situation, and it is the first word Mark gives Jesus since the arrest began.
εἶπενeipenaskedG2036
√ ἔπω — to speak or say (by word or writing)VerbAorist Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
αὐτοῖςautois[the crowd]G846
√ 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
ἐξήλθατεexēlthateHave you come outG1831
√ ἐξέρχομαι — to issue (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Indicative Active2nd Person Plural
μετὰmetawithG3326
√ μετά — properly, denoting accompanimentPreposition
μαχαιρῶνmachairōnswordsG3162
√ μάχαιρα — a knife, iNounGenitive Feminine Plural
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
ξύλωνxylōnclubsG3586
√ ξύλον — timber (as fuel or material)NounGenitive Neuter Plural
συλλαβεῖνsyllabeinto arrestG4815
√ συλλαμβάνω — to clasp, iVerbAorist Infinitive Active
syllambanō: to seize together, to clasp Aorist infinitive of purpose. The compound carries the sense of many hands closing on one man, which is precisely the picture, and it is the word Jesus chooses for what their weapons were for.
μεmeMeG1473
√ ἐγώ — I, mePersonal / Possessive PronounAccusative 1st Person Singular
ὩςHōsasG5613
√ ὡς — which how, iAdverb
ἐπὶepi[you would]G1909
√ ἐπί — properly, meaning superimposition (of time, place, order, etcPreposition
λῃστὴνlēstēnan outlawG3027
√ λῃστής — a brigandNounAccusative Masculine Singular
lēstēs: a brigand The charge implied by the weaponry. The word will be worth remembering when Mark places him between two λῃσταί at the cross, and Cambridge already links it to the den of robbers he named in the temple. Jesus does not deny the treatment; he exposes the timing of it.
49

Every day I was with you, teaching in the temple courts, and you did not arrest Me. But this has happened that the Scriptures would be fulfilled.”

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

kath’ hēmeran ēmēn pros hymas didaskōn en tō hierō kai ouk ekratēsate me all’ hina hai graphai plērōthōsin

Word by word18 · parsed
καθ’kath’EveryG2596
√ κατά — (prepositionally) down (in place or time), in varied relations (according to the case (genitive, dative or accusative) with which it is joined)Preposition
ἡμέρανhēmerandayG2250
√ ἡμέρα — day, iNounAccusative Feminine Singular
ἤμηνēmēnI wasG1510
√ εἰμί — I exist (used only when emphatic)VerbImperfect Indicative Middle1st Person Singular
πρὸςproswithG4314
√ πρός — a preposition of directionPreposition
ὑμᾶςhymasyouG4771
√ σύ — thouPersonal / Possessive PronounAccusative 2nd Person Plural
διδάσκωνdidaskōnteachingG1321
√ διδάσκω — to teach (in the same broad application)VerbPresent Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Singular
didaskō: to teach Present participle joined to the imperfect "I was": continuous, public instruction. Mark's own narrative has just shown the temple days (the cleansing, the questions, the widow, the Olivet discourse). The defense is documentary: his whereabouts were a matter of public record.
ἐνeninG1722
√ ἐν — "in," at, (up-)on, by, etcPreposition
τῷtōtheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleDative Neuter Singular
ἱερῷhierōtemple [courts]G2411
√ ἱερόν — a sacred place, iNounDative Neuter Singular
hieron: a sacred place, the temple precinct The word for the whole temple complex, the open courts, not the inner sanctuary (ναός). The point is visibility. He was in the one place in Jerusalem where any officer could have laid a hand on him in daylight.
καὶkaiandG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
οὐκoukvvvG3756
√ οὐ — the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverbAdverb
ἐκρατήσατέekratēsateyou did not arrestG2902
√ κρατέω — to use strength, iVerbAorist Indicative Active2nd Person Plural
krateō: to seize Aorist with οὐκ. The third appearance of the unit's dominant verb, now as an accusation of cowardice. Their restraint in the temple was not reverence; it was calculation, and Mark has already told the reader why at 14:1-2.
μεmeMeG1473
√ ἐγώ — I, mePersonal / Possessive PronounAccusative 1st Person Singular
ἀλλ’all’ButG235
√ ἀλλά — properly, other things, iConjunction
ἵναhina[this has happened] thatG2443
√ ἵνα — compare G3588 (ὁ))Conjunction
hina: in order that The purpose particle governing an elliptical clause with no stated subject verb. Whatever is happening, the sentence declines to name its agent. Greek leaves the reader to supply the main clause, and the two candidates, "this is happening" and "let this happen," are not identical in force.
αἱhaitheG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Feminine Plural
γραφαίgraphaiScripturesG1124
√ γραφή — a document, iNounNominative Feminine Plural
graphē: a writing, a Scripture Plural and anarthrous of any particular text: "the Scriptures," not a citation. This is the honest crux of the unit. Mark gives no chapter and verse. Gill fills it out (the betrayal by Judas, the secret seizure, the flight of the disciples), but that is Gill's inference, not Mark's statement, and the reticence should be reported rather than repaired.
πληρωθῶσινplērōthōsinwould be fulfilledG4137
√ πληρόω — to make replete, iVerbAorist Subjunctive Passive3rd Person Plural
plēroō: to make full, to fulfill Aorist subjunctive passive: that they might be filled full. The passive leaves the filler unnamed, which is Mark's way throughout the passion. Pulpit further records a real question among interpreters: whether these words are the Lord's or the evangelist's comment, and decides for the Lord's, without pretending the question is closed.
50

Then everyone deserted Him and fled.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Kai pantes aphentes auton ephygon

Word by word5 · parsed
ΚαὶKaiThenG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
πάντεςpanteseveryoneG3956
√ πᾶς — all, any, every, the wholeAdjectiveNominative Masculine Plural
pas: all, every, the whole The word answers 14:31, where they all said the same thing, that they would not deny him. Cambridge refuses any exemption: even the impetuous Peter who had made so many promises, even the disciple whom he loved.
ἀφέντεςaphentesdesertedG863
√ ἀφίημι — an intensive form of , to go)VerbAorist Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Plural
aphiēmi: to let go, send away, leave The same root the New Testament uses for the forgiveness of sins. Here the direction reverses: the ones who were forgiven let go of him. It is the verb of release used as the verb of abandonment.
αὐτὸνautonHimG846
√ 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 Singular
ἔφυγονephygon[and] fledG5343
√ φεύγω — to run away (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
pheugō: to run away This aorist and the aorist of v. 52 are the same verb, and they frame the unit's close: all flee, then the last one flees too. Mark has already reported the Lord's own citation of Zechariah 13:7 at 14:27, that the sheep would be scattered, so within this Gospel the flight is narrated as something already spoken.
51

One young man who had been following Jesus was wearing a linen cloth around his body. They caught hold of him,

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

Kai tis neaniskos synēkolouthei autō peribeblēmenos sindona epi gymnou kai kratousin auton

Word by word12 · parsed
ΚαὶKaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
τιςtisOneG5100
√ τὶς — some or any person or objectInterrogative / Indefinite PronounNominative Masculine Singular
νεανίσκοςneaniskosyoung manG3495
√ νεανίσκος — a youth (under forty)NounNominative Masculine Singular
neaniskos: a youth The identification is genuinely open. Ellicott builds a six-point case for Lazarus; Cambridge and Pulpit prefer Mark himself; Barnes suggests the owner of the garden; Benson reports Grotius and Macknight for a neighbour roused from sleep; Poole declines to name him and notes that the text does not even call him a disciple. Nothing in Mark decides it.
συνηκολούθειsynēkoloutheiwho had been followingG4870
√ συνακολουθέω — to accompanyVerbImperfect Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
synakoloutheō: to accompany Rare (three verses). The imperfect is the whole point of the verse: πάντες ἔφυγον in v. 50, and then one man was still walking with him. Whatever else this young man was, he was for one moment the last follower of Jesus on earth.
αὐτῷautō[Jesus]G846
√ 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 Singular
περιβεβλημένοςperibeblēmenoswas wearingG4016
√ περιβάλλω — to throw all around, iVerbPerfect Participle Middle or PassiveNominative Masculine Singular
periballō: to throw all around Perfect participle, middle voice. The perfect describes a state resulting from a hasty act, which fits every reconstruction the commentators offer, and none of them can get further than that from the grammar.
σινδόναsindonaa linen clothG4616
√ σινδών — byssos, iNounAccusative Feminine Singular
sindōn: fine linen A rare noun, five New Testament verses. Cambridge notes the Septuagint uses it at Judges 14:12 and Proverbs 31:24 for fine undergarments, and that in Matthew 27:59, Mark 15:46 and Luke 23:53 it is the linen Joseph of Arimathea bought for the body of Jesus. Pulpit adds that the fineness of the cloth suggests a family in good circumstances and that the word is thought to derive from Sidon.
ἐπὶepiaroundG1909
√ ἐπί — properly, meaning superimposition (of time, place, order, etcPreposition
γυμνοῦgymnou[his body]G1131
√ γυμνός — nude (absolute or relative, literal or figurative)AdjectiveGenitive Neuter Singular
καὶkaiG2532
√ καί — and, also, even, so then, too, etcConjunction
κρατοῦσινkratousinThey caught holdG2902
√ κρατέω — to use strength, iVerbPresent Indicative Active3rd Person Plural
krateō: to seize, hold fast Historic present. The hands that took Jesus close a second time, now on the wrong man, and this time they fail. Poole draws the lesson that persecution does not discriminate, and Gill that the escape of the disciples was owing not to the mob's restraint but to the power of Christ.
αὐτόνautonof himG846
√ 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 Singular
52

but he pulled free of the linen cloth and ran away naked.

Berean Standard Bible · CC0

Greek — tap a word ↓

de ho katalipōn tēn sindona ephygen gymnos

Word by word7 · parsed
δὲdebutG1161
√ δέ — but, and, etcConjunction
ὁhoG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleNominative Masculine Singular
καταλιπὼνkatalipōnhe pulled freeG2641
√ καταλείπω — to leave down, iVerbAorist Participle ActiveNominative Masculine Singular
kataleipō: to leave down, leave behind Aorist participle. The verb is deliberate and slightly formal, the word for leaving something behind rather than for tearing free. Gill's comparison is apt: just as Joseph left his garment in the hands of his mistress, so the covering is surrendered in order to get away.
τὴνtēnof theG3588
√ ὁ — the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom)ArticleAccusative Feminine Singular
σινδόναsindonalinen clothG4616
√ σινδών — byssos, iNounAccusative Feminine Singular
ἔφυγενephygenand ran awayG5343
√ φεύγω — to run away (literally or figuratively)VerbAorist Indicative Active3rd Person Singular
pheugō: to run away The last verb of the unit. Mark's account of the arrest ends not with Jesus being led off but with a stranger running, and the reader is left with no companion of Jesus anywhere in the frame.
γυμνὸςgymnosnakedG1131
√ γυμνός — nude (absolute or relative, literal or figurative)AdjectiveNominative Masculine Singular
gymnos: nude, bare The unit ends on this word. A man who had been wrapped is now uncovered and free; the Lord who is fully clothed is now bound and taken. Pulpit reads the ignominious flight as evidence of the sheer panic of that night and of how readily the disciples would have been seized had they stayed.

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. Straightway: the hour arrives from inside the circle — 43-45

Mark's hinge is an adverb. εὐθὺς (G2112) opens the unit and repeats at the kiss, and Ellicott flags the recurrence as "St. Mark's characteristic 'immediately.'" Maclaren hears the same word twice "vividly painting both the sudden inburst of the crowd which Interrupted Christ's words and broke the holy silence of the garden, and Judas's swift kiss." The verb of arrival is a historic present, παραγίνεται (G3854): Judas is not remembered into the scene, he walks into it while the reader watches. Maclaren notes that his is the only name besides the Lord's in the whole passage, and that Mark's method is simply to name the man and state the deed: "To name the sinner, and to state without cloak or periphrasis what his deed really was, is condemnation enough." Benson, quoting Campbell, insists the weapons are correctly named: ξύλων (G3586) is a club, never the traveller's staff, and the Gospels never confuse the two. Cambridge identifies the mob as temple guards plus, on the evidence of John 18:3, a Roman detachment from Antonia; Pulpit draws the conclusion that "Gentiles and Jews were united in the daring act of arresting the Son of God," while also noting that the better manuscripts do not support calling the multitude "great." Then the sign: σύσσημον (G4953), a token held in common, which Cambridge observes "only occurs here." The verb chosen for it is φιλέω, and the act performed is κατεφίλησεν (G2705), which Cambridge glosses "kissed Him tenderly or fervently" and Pulpit renders "kissed him much." Cambridge tracks that same intensified verb to the sinful woman at the Lord's feet, the father running to the prodigal, and the elders weeping on Paul's neck at Miletus. Maclaren's verdict stands: "That traitor's kiss has become a symbol for all treachery cloaked in the garb of affection."

ii. The hands, the sword, and the one wound in the garden — 46-47

Mark writes the arrest twice over: ἐπέβαλαν τὰς χεῖρας, they threw the hands upon him, and then ἐκράτησαν (G2902), they held him fast. Ellicott presses the stronger English throughout this unit, "Better, as before, seized," and κρατέω is the verb that binds the whole passage: Judas commands it (v. 44), the mob executes it (v. 46), Jesus denies they ever did it in daylight (v. 49), and in v. 51 the same hands close on a stranger. Benson, harmonizing with John 18:5-6, places the seizure after the party "had first gone backward, and fallen to the ground," and Gill supplies from Matthew and Luke the words Mark gives Jesus no chance to say to Judas. Both are harmonizations; Mark's own line is bare. Then the sword. Mark will not name the man; Cambridge and Pulpit both supply Peter from John 18:10, and Cambridge suggests the Synoptists withheld it "lest the publication of it in his lifetime should expose him to the revenge of the unbelieving Jews," offered frankly as what "some think." The victim is a δοῦλος (G1401), a slave, and the wound is an ὠτάριον (G5621), a little ear, a diminutive that Cambridge notes only Mark and John use. Gill knows the name Malchus from John; Pulpit notes that Luke alone records the healing. Read in Mark alone, the sword achieves exactly one thing in the garden, and it is the mutilation of the lowest person present. Henry draws the moral without flattering anyone: "Peter wounded one of the band. It is easier to fight for Christ than to die for him."

iii. As against a bandit: the only words He speaks — 48-49

Jesus' single speech is an indictment of method. λῃστὴν (G3027) is not a pilferer: Ellicott, "Better, as against a robber, the word implying the bolder form of theft," and Cambridge sends the reader to Mark 11:17, where the temple was named a den of exactly these. The verb for what they came to do, συλλαβεῖν (G4815), is the clasping grip of many hands at once. Against it he sets an imperfect and a participle: ἤμην … διδάσκων, I was, continuously, teaching, day by day, in the open courts of the ἱερόν (G2411). Cambridge, following Luke 22:52, identifies the hearers as chief priests, elders and temple officers who had come out to watch. Pulpit places this speech after the healing of Malchus and after the falling back recorded in John, though that sequence is a harmony, not Mark's. Then the sentence breaks. ἀλλ’ ἵνα πληρωθῶσιν αἱ γραφαί has no main verb at all: Pulpit says outright that "as it stands in the original" it is "an incomplete sentence," complete only at Matthew 26:56, and Cambridge supplies the ellipsis as "but that the Scriptures may be fulfilled all this has come to pass." Pulpit reports honestly that interpreters have questioned "whether the words are those of our Lord, or whether they are the comment of the evangelist," and only then prefers the former. And Mark names no text. Gill lists what he thinks was meant, the betrayal by Judas, the secret seizure, the flight of the disciples, but that is Gill's reconstruction. The Gospel's silence at this point is data.

iv. All of them, and one of them: two flights — 50-52

Mark's shortest verse in the unit is the heaviest: πάντες (G3956), all, ἀφέντες (G863), having abandoned him, ἔφυγον (G5343), they fled. Cambridge refuses to soften it: "Even the impetuous Peter who had made so many promises; even the disciple whom He loved." Gill notes the subject is supplied by the versions rather than by Mark's Greek. Pulpit, honestly, adds that Peter and John recovered enough to follow to the high priest's house. Then the strangest paragraph in the Gospel. A νεανίσκος (G3495) is συνηκολούθει (G4870), following along with him in the imperfect, that is, still following when all had fled, wearing a σινδών (G4616) over nakedness. The hands close again, present tense: κρατοῦσιν αὐτόν, and he leaves the cloth and runs. Who he was, nobody knows, and the commentators know they do not know. Ellicott: "Who it was that appeared in this strange fashion we are left to conjecture," and then builds a careful six-point case for Lazarus. Cambridge thinks "It is far more probable that it was St Mark himself," and Pulpit agrees. Barnes guesses the owner of the garden. Benson relays Grotius and Macknight and Campbell, and Campbell's literary judgment is the soundest thing said about the verse: "This is such an incident as is very likely to have happened, but most unlikely to have been invented." Poole, refusing all of it, asks why Mark recorded it at all and answers: "to tell us what we must expect from the rage of persecutors, viz. that our own innocency should not defend us." Cambridge adds that the word "the young men" is omitted by Lachmann, Tischendorf and Tregelles, and that γυμνὸς (G1131) "need not imply that he was absolutely naked." Gill's cross-reference is the sharpest: "just as Joseph left his garment in the hands of his mistress."

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. Mark builds this unit out of hands. Judas gives a sign to be executed by hands; hands are thrown on Jesus; a hand draws a sword and takes an ear; hands lay hold of a young man and come away holding only linen. The verb κρατέω, to use strength, runs through the passage four times, and in every instance except one it succeeds. The exception is the one Jesus names: "day by day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize me." So the arrest is not the moment strength finally reaches him. It is the moment he stops withholding himself from it, and the only sentence he speaks is designed to say so. What follows is a progressive stripping. The Twelve go, then the one who stayed goes, then even his covering goes, until Mark's narrative leaves the Lord entirely alone in the hands of men, which is exactly the condition in which the Gospel will keep him until the centurion speaks. And at the seam where a reader most wants a proof text, Mark gives a broken sentence and an unnamed "Scriptures." That reticence is not a gap to be filled; it is the claim. Mark is not arguing that this event matched a verse. He is saying that the whole written testimony of God is being filled full here, in a garden, by a kiss and a rope of hands, and no single citation would be large enough to carry it.

The hands that could not take him for a week of daylight take him in a moment of dark, because in the dark he lets them. (⚙ synthesis, not Scripture)

⚙

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 linen that is left behind, and the linen that is bought verbal / quotation: confirmed

The σινδών (G4616) of Mark 14:51-52 is one of only five verses in the New Testament to use the word, and the other four are these: Mark 15:46, Matthew 27:59 and Luke 23:53, where Joseph of Arimathea buys a σινδών for the body of Jesus. Cambridge makes the observation directly: "The word sindôn in Matthew 27:59 , Mark 15:46 and Luke 23:53 is applied to the fine linen , which Joseph of Arimathæa bought for the Body of Jesus." Pulpit adds that everywhere else in the New Testament the word refers to a shroud. Mark's own Gospel therefore uses this rare noun twice: a young man abandons his linen in order to escape death, and a rich man wraps Jesus in linen because he did not.

Mark 15:46 · Matthew 27:59 · Luke 23:53

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexeme G4616 σινδών, a rare word occurring in only 5 verses of the New Testament, all four of which are listed here alongside Mark 14:51-52. All refs are New Testament, so this is a genuine lexical link within one Gospel and its Synoptic parallels; no quotation is being claimed.

Following along when following has stopped verbal / quotation: confirmed

συνηκολούθει (G4870, to accompany) is an imperfect: the young man kept on following after πάντες, all, had fled. The verb occurs in only three verses. At Mark 5:37 Jesus permits no one to accompany him but Peter, James and John; at Luke 23:49 those who had accompanied him from Galilee stand at a distance from the cross. So the word marks, in each case, the narrow company that is allowed or able to stay close, and Mark 14:51 is the moment that company shrinks to one anonymous man in a bedsheet, who then does not stay either.

Mark 5:37 · Luke 23:49

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexeme G4870 συνακολουθέω, rare, in only 3 verses. Mark 5:37 also shares G863 ἀφίημι (131 vv, common, and therefore not load-bearing). All refs New Testament; the link is lexical, not a quotation.

"Safely": the word Judas wanted and the word Peter preached verbal / quotation: confirmed

Judas' last instruction is ἀσφαλῶς (G806): lead him away securely, so nothing slips. Geneva glosses it "So diligently that he cannot escape out of your hand." The adverb occurs in only three verses. At Acts 16:23 a jailer is charged to keep Paul and Silas ἀσφαλῶς, and the prison opens anyway. At Acts 2:36 Peter tells the house of Israel to know ἀσφαλῶς, assuredly, that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ. The only thing in this vocabulary that ever holds is the last one.

Acts 16:23 · Acts 2:36

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexeme G806 ἀσφαλῶς, rare, in only 3 verses of the New Testament (the third being Mark 14:44 itself). All refs New Testament. The theological contrast drawn above is ⚙ synthesis; only the lexical link is sourced.

Two men who drew a sword in the night structural / thematic: confirmed

σπασάμενος (G4685, to draw) is used in only two New Testament verses. Here a disciple draws to prevent a death, and at Acts 16:27 a jailer draws to end his own, both in the dark, both stopped by the one they thought they were serving or had lost. Both verses also carry μάχαιρα (G3162). The parallel is a coincidence of vocabulary, not a citation, and it is offered as a pattern in Luke's second volume rather than a claim about Mark's intent.

Acts 16:27

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexemes G4685 σπάω (rare, 2 vv) and G3162 μάχαιρα (26 vv). The lexical link is real and rare, but nothing is quoted and no dependence is claimed, so the tier is deliberately downgraded from verbal to structural.

The kiss that kills: Joab, the table companion, the wounds of a friend structural / thematic: confirmed

Mark's Greek cannot share a lexeme with the Hebrew Bible, so no verbal tier is possible here, and the Verifier offers no shared Strong's numbers across the Testaments. What can be said is structural. At 2 Samuel 20:9-10 Joab takes Amasa by the beard to kiss him and drives a sword into his belly; Psalm 41:9 is the lament of one whose own familiar friend, who ate his bread, lifted up his heel; Proverbs 27:6 sets the faithful wounds of a friend against the profuse kisses of an enemy. Maclaren, writing on the kiss, says the thing that ties all of these together: it "has become a symbol for all treachery cloaked in the garb of affection," and that such audacity "presupposes long underground tunnels of insincere discipleship." Geneva's note on v. 43 frames it covenantally: Christ is "betrayed by one of his familiar acquaintances as a thief."

2 Samuel 20:9-10 · Psalm 41:9 · Proverbs 27:6

basis: Cross-Testament (Greek to Hebrew), so shared Strong's numbers are impossible and a verbal tier is excluded on principle. The basis is a shared narrative pattern, the greeting of affection used as the instrument of betrayal, attested in all three Old Testament passages and in Mark 14:44-45. Mark himself makes no citation.

Taught daily in the temple, and no hand laid on him structural / thematic: confirmed

Jesus' defense in v. 49 is that he taught in the ἱερόν day by day and they did not seize him. Jeremiah 26:8-9 is the older shape of that sentence from the other side: as soon as Jeremiah finished speaking all that the LORD commanded him to speak to all the people, the priests and prophets and all the people seized him in the temple, saying "You shall surely die." The pattern is the prophet who speaks publicly in the temple and is taken by the temple's own officers. Mark does not cite Jeremiah, and no commentator in this brief does either; the link is offered as a structural resonance to be tested, not as an allusion Mark intended.

Jeremiah 26:8-9

basis: Cross-Testament (Greek to Hebrew), so no shared Strong's lexeme is available and a verbal tier is excluded. The recorded basis is a shared narrative structure: public prophetic teaching in the temple followed by seizure at the hands of the temple authorities. No quotation is claimed, and none of the sourced voices in this brief proposes the link.

The scattering of the sheep, and the naked flight of the brave flagged: verify source

Mark has already put Zechariah 13:7 in Jesus' mouth at 14:27, "I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered," and v. 50 reports the scattering in three words: πάντες, ἀφέντες, ἔφυγον. That thread is internal to Mark and explicit. The second half of this thread is weaker and is marked so. Amos 2:16 says the stouthearted among the mighty shall flee away naked in that day, and the ⚙ resemblance to the γυμνὸς ἔφυγεν of v. 52 is striking. But no commentator in this brief proposes it, Mark gives no signal, and the young man is not described as mighty. It is recorded here as a link a reader should verify rather than accept.

Zechariah 13:7 · Amos 2:16

basis: Zechariah 13:7 is securely in view because Mark quotes it explicitly at 14:27, three verses before this unit, and v. 50 narrates its fulfillment; that half would stand as structural. The Amos 2:16 pairing is flagged: it is cross-Testament (so never verbal), it rests on a shared image of naked flight rather than any shared lexeme, and it is unattested in every voice sourced for this unit. Provenance is therefore ⚙ synthesis and contested.

Swords and clubs: the Synoptic wording of the same rebuke verbal / quotation: confirmed

Matthew 26:55 and Luke 22:52 record the same question in closely parallel Greek, sharing ξύλων (G3586, clubs) and the address to the chief priests and elders. Maclaren notes at the head of this section that the verbal similarity across the first three Gospels "is best accounted for by supposing that a common {oral?} 'Gospel,' which had become traditionally fixed by frequent and long repetition, underlies them all." Barnes, JFB and Poole simply refer the reader to their notes on Matthew 26, which is itself a witness to how nearly identical the three accounts are.

Matthew 26:55 · Luke 22:52 · Matthew 26:47

basis: Verifier: shared Greek lexemes G3586 ξύλον (18 vv, uncommon), G3162 μάχαιρα (26 vv), G749 ἀρχιερεύς (119 vv) and G4245 πρεσβύτερος (66 vv) across Matthew 26:55, Matthew 26:47 and Luke 22:52. All refs New Testament. The basis is Synoptic parallel wording of the same speech, not a quotation of an earlier text.

⚙Christ in the Unittypology · verify

AI-generated reading; weigh it against the text.

The lamb that is led away and does not open his mouth ancient/widely-held

⚙ Judas' order is ἀπάγετε ἀσφαλῶς, lead him away securely, and Mark obeys the verb: from this point Jesus is led, handed over, and delivered, and he speaks once more in this unit and then falls silent. Isaiah 53:7 is the figure the church has read here from the beginning: oppressed and afflicted, he opened not his mouth, led as a lamb to the slaughter. Mark supplies the setting for that reading, not the citation: the unit ends with everyone gone and no defense mounted. Geneva reaches the same place from the covenant side, saying that "Christ, willingly going about to make satisfaction for this ruin, is forsaken by his own, and betrayed by one of his familiar acquaintances as a thief, so that the punishment might be in agreement with the sin." Pulpit, drawing on John, presses that the yielding was voluntary: "it was an emphatic evidence, both to his own disciples and to this crowd, that it was by his own will that he yielded himself up to them."

Isaiah 53:7 · Mark 14:44 · Mark 14:49

Numbered with the bandits before he is crucified with them ancient/widely-held

⚙ "As against a λῃστής," he says, and Ellicott insists the word means a bold armed robber, not a sneak-thief. Mark has used it once already, at 11:17, for what the temple had become, and he will use it again for the two men crucified on either side. The trajectory is the Gospel's own: the one who called the temple a den of robbers is arrested as a robber and executed between robbers. Isaiah 53:12, that he was numbered with the transgressors, is the standing apostolic reading of that placement, and Geneva's note here reaches for the same logic of exchange, that "we who are ourselves traitors, forsakers and those committing sacrilege, might be delivered out of the devil's snare."

Isaiah 53:12 · Mark 11:17 · Mark 14:48

Two men and one linen cloth novel

⚙ This reading is marked novel and is offered to be tested, not asserted. Mark uses σινδών (G4616) twice, and only twice. In the garden a young man wrapped in linen is laid hold of and escapes by leaving the linen behind; at 15:46 Joseph buys linen and wraps Jesus in it, and he does not escape. The first man saves his life by losing his covering; the second is covered because he did not save his life. Cambridge notes that this noun elsewhere in the New Testament names a shroud, and Pulpit that it is an unusual word. Nothing in the sourced commentary draws the contrast in these terms, so the figure is ⚙ synthesis. What is sourced is the lexical fact, and the fact is suggestive: Mark hangs his one strange anonymous escape and his Lord's burial on the same rare word.

Mark 14:51-52 · Mark 15:46

The Scriptures, plural and unnamed novel

⚙ The redemptive claim of this unit is made in a sentence with no main verb and no citation: ἀλλ’ ἵνα πληρωθῶσιν αἱ γραφαί. Cambridge supplies "all this has come to pass"; Pulpit records that the very speaker is disputed. Mark names no text. Reading him at his word, the claim is not that a verse was matched but that the writings as a whole are being filled up, and that a betrayal, a mob, a maimed slave and the flight of every friend are what that filling looks like. Gill's list of intended texts is his reconstruction, honestly labeled as such here. The Gospel's own silence is what the reader is given.

Mark 14:49 · Mark 14:27

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)
  • Alexander Maclaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (c. 1905)
  • Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges, — (1880s)
  • Charles Ellicott, Commentary for English Readers (1878)
  • Geneva Study Bible, Marginal Notes (1599)
  • 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 and sources for this unit, with what remains uncertain. (1) Variants. Ellicott reports that "Many of the better MSS. add the distinguishing 'Iscariot' to the name of Judas" at v. 43, which BSB does not print. Pulpit notes that "great" multitude rests on πολὺς, which "has not sufficient authority." At v. 45 Gill records that the received doubling "Master, Master" is single in the Ethiopic and in two of Beza's copies, and that the Vulgate reads "hail, Master"; BSB prints one "Rabbi." At v. 51 Cambridge reports that "the young men" is omitted by Lachmann, Tischendorf and Tregelles, which removes the subject Barnes and Gill identify as Roman soldiers. At v. 52 Gill notes that "from them" is absent in the Syriac, Arabic, Persic and Ethiopic. (2) What Mark does not say. He does not name the swordsman (John 18:10 gives Peter), the wounded slave (John gives Malchus), the healing (Luke 22:51 alone), the falling back of the cohort (John 18:4-6 alone), any word of Jesus to Judas (Matthew 26:50, Luke 22:48), or any Scripture at v. 49. Every voice above that supplies one of these is harmonizing, and is marked as doing so. (3) The young man. The identification is open. Ellicott argues at length for Lazarus, Cambridge and Pulpit for Mark himself, Barnes for the owner of the garden, Benson relays Grotius, Macknight and Campbell for an unknown neighbour roused from sleep, and Poole declines to identify him at all. No identification is supported by the text; the ⚙ layer here takes no side. (4) Voices. JFB's entry for this whole section is a cross-reference header with no exposition, and Barnes' entries for vv. 43-50 are either bare cross-references to Matthew or repeated from v. 45, so neither is quoted where it says nothing; Barnes is quoted where he writes substantively, at vv. 51-52. Maclaren's entry is capped in the brief at its first portion, and only that portion is quoted here. (5) Threads. Every cross-Testament link in this unit is tiered structural or flagged, never verbal, because Greek and Hebrew share no Strong's numbers; the reason is stated in each basis. The Amos 2:16 pairing is flagged as unattested in these sources. (6) Synthesis. Everything marked ⚙, including the sola reading, the pullquote and the third and fourth Christ entries, is fallible machine commentary and carries no authority.

✦ = 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)