July 2oth, 2024

This Sunday’s title is the ‘Ninth Sunday after Pentecost’. This Sunday’s Gospel reading of Mark 6:30-44 follows last week’s reading. And with the writings of this website, we are continuing our progression in that same way, within that same Gospel account, but with these writings we are getting much closer to the end.

The translation below is what may be called a ‘somewhat-literal translation’, and it may be helpful to look in other translations and/or a good study bible to increase your comprehension of the text. This translation is designed to give you a somewhat-closer familiarity with the Greek. The text itself is ultimately designed to give you Jesus. The words in bold print are what is typically called ‘historical presents’, and in this case, they all ultimately point to that all-important one, Jesus. What follows is Mark 14:12-21:

And in the first day of the unleavened, when the Passover, they were sacrificing, they say to him, the disciples of him: “Where you want, having come out, we should prepare, that you may eat the Passover?” And he sends out two of the disciples of him, and he says to them, “Go into the city, and he will meet you, a man, a jar of water, carrying; follow him, and wherever he enters, say to the house-despot, ‘The teacher says, “Where is the guest room of me, where the Passover with the disciples of me, I may eat?”’ And he, to you, he will show an upper room, mega, having been spread, ready; and there, prepare for us.” And they came out, the disciples, and they came into the city, and they found just as he said to them, and they prepared the Passover.

And evening, having happened, he comes with the twelve. And reclining, they, and eating, the Jesus said: “Amen, I am saying to you that one from you will betray me, the one eating with me.”

They began to be sad and to say to him, one by one: “Not I?”

Now the one said to them, “One of the twelve, the one dipping with me into the one dish. Because, on the one hand, the Son of the Man goes as it has been written about him; on the other hand, woe to the man, that, through whom the Son of the Man is betrayed; good for him if not he was born, the man, that.”

And eating, they, having taken a loaf, having blessed, he broke, and he gave to them, and he said, “Take; this is the body of me.” And having taken a cup, having given thanks, he gave to them, and they drank of it, all. And he said to them, “This is the blood of me, of the covenant, the being poured out on behalf of many. Amen, I am saying to you that no more, certainly not, will I drink of the fruit of the vine until the day, that, when it, I drink, new, in the Kingdom of the God.”​

It is interesting that the last part of this text, the institution of the Lord’s Supper, has no historical presents. This is different. This is a special gift, and it comes in a very special way.