St Mark Chapter XII : Verses 35-44
[35] And Jesus answering, said, teaching in the temple: How do the scribes say, that Christ is the son of David?
[36] For David himself saith by the Holy Ghost: The Lord said to my Lord, Sit on my right hand, until I make thy enemies thy footstool.
[37] David therefore himself calleth him Lord, and whence is he then his son? And a great multitude heard him gladly.
[38] And he said to them in his doctrine: Beware of the scribes, who love to walk in long robes, and to be saluted in the marketplace,
[39] And to sit in the first chairs, in the synagogues, and to have the highest places at suppers:
[40] Who devour the houses of widows under the pretence of long prayer: these shall receive greater judgment.
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| She of her want cast in all she had, even her whole living. J-J Tissot |
[42] And there came a certain poor widow, and she cast in two mites, which make a farthing.
[43] And calling his disciples together, he saith to them: Amen I say to you, this poor widow hath cast in more than all they who have cast into the treasury.
[44] For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want cast in all she had, even her whole living.
[35] Et respondens Jesus dicebat, docens in templo : Quomodo dicunt scribae Christum filium esse David? [36] Ipse enim David dicit in Spiritu Sancto : Dixit Dominus Domino meo : Sede a dextris meis, donec ponam inimicos tuos scabellum pedum tuorum. [37] Ipse ergo David dicit eum Dominum, et unde est filius ejus? Et multa turba eum libenter audivit. [38] Et dicebat eis in doctrina sua : Cavete a scribis, qui volunt in stolis ambulare, et salutari in foro, [39] et in primis cathedris sedere in synagogis, et primos discubitus in coenis : [40] qui devorant domos viduarum sub obtentu prolixae orationis : hi accipient prolixius judicium. [41] Et sedens Jesus contra gazophylacium, aspiciebat quomodo turba jactaret aes in gazophylacium, et multi divites jactabant multa. [42] Cum venisset autem vidua una pauper, misit duo minuta, quod est quadrans, [43] et convocans discipulos suos, ait illis : Amen dico vobis, quoniam vidua haec pauper plus omnibus misit, qui miserunt in gazophylacium. [44] Omnes enim ex eo, quod abundabat illis, miserunt : haec vero de penuria sua omnia quae habuit misit totum victum suum.
Notes
35. Jesus answering said , etc. St Matthew gives the question in slightly different form. What think you of Christ , whose son is he ? They say to him, David's (xxii. 42.). Jesus had in view by this question to instruct the people in His divinity, and to prove that the Messiah was no mere earthly man, of which truth the spiritual teachers of the people were ignorant.
36. saith by the Holy Ghost. By the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
The Lord said , etc. The Pharisees held, from various texts of Scripture, that the Messiah would be a descendant of David. This text is quoted from Ps. cix. 1. This psalm was rightly held to be Messianic, and is frequently so quoted in the New Testament ( e.g . Heb. i. 13, x. 13 ; 1 St Peter iii. 22).
In the original Hebrew of the Psalm, the two words here translated Lord had different meanings. The one signified Jehovah , the other Adonai , an anointed king.
until I make, etc. These were warning words to those who were plotting to destroy the Messiah. The expression thy footstool refers to the oriental custom of the conqueror putting his foot on the neck of the defeated enemy. Josue acted thus when he called all the men of Israel, and said to the chiefs of the army that were with him : Go, and set your feet on the necks of these kings. And when they had gone and put their feet upon the necks of them lying under them, etc. (x. 24). Tamerlane the Tartar made Bajazet, the Turkish emperor, serve as his footsool when he mounted on horseback.
37. David therefore himself calleth him Lord, etc, Jesus, as regards His humanity, was the Son of David ; as regards His divinity, He was David’s Lord. The question was a difficult one for the Jews who did not believe in the Divinity of the Messiah, but looked on Him as a temporal prince and refused to recognize our Lord as such, on account of His humble origin, and also because His teaching was not acceptable to them.
The denunciation of the Pharisees
Note. — This denunciation is given much more fully by St Matthew (xxiii. 1-39). St Mark, writing for Gentile converts, probably omitted it because they would be unable to grasp its meaning, while by the Jewish convert it would be perfectly understood, since they knew how hypocritical the Pharisees were. Hence the second and third Gospels merely touch on this discourse. St Mark quotes only the words of Jesus which refer to the Pharisees’ —
(а) Ambitious designs.(b) Greed of gold.(c) Hypocritical and ostentatious piety.
38. he said to them. St Luke amplifies this statement, And in the hearing of all the people, he said to his disciples (xx. 45), while St Matthew tells us he spoke to the multitudes and to his disciples (xxiii. 1). His object was to warn them against the scribes and Pharisees, and their doctrine. This is our Lord’s last discourse in the Temple, and He finished His public ministry as He had begun it when, in His sermon on the mount, He warned the people against the hypocrites in the synagogues (St Matt. vi. 2).
in long robes. The rich wore long flowing robes. The poor wore a short tunic reaching only to the knees. Long robes were also worn by certain priests and others in authority.
to be saluted. To receive deferential salutations in public ; not the usual, Peace be with you, but to be acclaimed as Rabbi. This title was not in use till after the time of Hillel.
Thus we find the older scribes mentioned by “their plain names Admon and Hanan, Hillel and Shammai,” etc., .... be sure this custom did not commence before the schism which arose between the schools of Hillel and Shammai. It was customary, and they love to be saluted with this honourable title, notwithstanding the precept of Hillel’s predecessor Shemaiali, “Love the work, but hate the title.” The council even went so far as to excommunicate those who did not pay due honour to the Rabbins. The salutation took some such form as, “Save you, O Rabbi, Rabbi, Master, Master” (Lightfoot, Horae Hebraicæ, passim). \
market-place. Not like our English market-places, established chiefly for wholesale custom, but Eastern bazaars, where the people were accustomed to promenade, and where all kinds of goods could be purchased at the various booths and stalls.
39. the first chairs in the synagogues. The seats of honour which stood in front of the ark, on a raised platform ; those who sat in them faced the people. In the synagogue of Alexandria these seventy-two seats were of gold, as this was the usual number of the Sanhedrin. Some of these places were bestowed on men who had a reputation for holiness and learning ; others, such as the chief priests, held them by right of birth.
40. Who devour the houses of widows. They may have devoured widows' houses in various ways —
(a) By obtaining gifts under a false pretence of devotion and piety.
(b) By embezzling the property when they were the guardians of widows’ estates. The scribes were the lawyers of the nation, and were employed to draw up wills ; hence they had many opportunities of being dishonest.
these shall receive , etc. These words shew our Lord’s strong indignation. The widows were at the mercy of their guardians, and religion is a sacred thing. The hypocritical scribes abused the confidence of their clients by such despicable means.
41. sitting. Jesus was weary after the discussions which had lasted the whole of this day of questions in the Temple, where for the last time he had taught the people.
beheld : literally “ was beholding.” He looked on in silence for some time, but not a gift escaped His eye, and He knew its exact value.
cast money : in Hebrew coin only. Neither the tribute shekel nor the ordinary Roman coins would be used for this purpose.
the treasury. The treasury stood in the outer court of the women, and consisted of thirteen brazen chests, called trumpets, because the openings through which the money passed were broad at the top and narrow at the bottom, and resembled a trumpet in shape.
“ Nine chests were for the appointed temple tribute and for the sacrifice tribute, that is, money gifts instead of the sacrifices ; four chests for freewill offerings for wood, incense, temple decorations, and burnt offerings ” (Lightfoot ).
many that were rich cast in much.
“ The Jews were generous in their gifts, so much so, that a law was passed forbidding the gift to the temple of more than a certain proportion of one’s possessions. The amount of such contributions may be inferred by recalling the circumstance that at the time of Pompey and Crassus, the temple treasury, after having lavishly defrayed every possible expenditure, contained in money nearly half a million, and precious vessels to the value of nearly two millions sterling ” ( Edersheim ).
42. there came a certain poor widow. Perhaps one of those to whom Christ had recently referred ; the woman was poor , but not a beggar.
two mites. The two equalled a quadrans , which was a quarter of an as, which in Cicero’s time was worth about one halfpenny. The widow’s mites therefore amounted to about an eighth of a penny. This amount, however, had a greater purchasing value than half a farthing of our money has now.
43. calling his disciples , etc. : that He might instruct them, and thus hand down this example of generosity to posterity for their admiration and imitation.
more than all they, etc. Christ does not reject the gifts of the rich if given with pure intention. Doubtless many of these rich gifts were worthless, while others were acceptable, because given in the right spirit. Jesus estimated the value by the sacrifice, which the alms had entailed, not by its intrinsic value.
44. they did cast in of their abundance : better, of their superfluity ; they gave what they would not miss.
cast in all. She gave even what was necessary for her sustenance, hence her alms was precious in God’s sight, because accompanied by self-denial.
Lesson. — From this incident we should learn —
1. To be generous in giving alms, remembering that God counts each offering, and will reward us in due time.
2. If our means are limited, we are not thereby excused from almsgiving, but should give according to our ability, and be willing to sacrifice comforts, and even necessaries, for the love of God and of our neighbour.
Note 1. — St Mark’s graphic touches are particularly noticeable in this narration —
1. Jesus was sitting near the treasury.2. He beheld how the people cast money, etc.3. He called His disciples to Him.4. He praised the widow’s deed.
Nos. 1 and 8 are peculiar to St Mark.
Note 2. — It was apparently while Jesus was still sitting near the treasury that the following events took place —
(a) St Andrew and St Philip brought to Jesus some Greeks who desired to speak with Him (St John xii. 20-22).
(b) Jesus prayed aloud to His Father (St John xii. 27).
(c) A heavenly voice was heard saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again (St John xii. 2S).
(d) Jesus once more predicted His crucifixion (St John xii. 32, 33).
(e) Many of the chief men also believed in him : but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, that they might not be cast out of the synagogue (St John xii. 42).
After this last discourse Jesus left His Father's house , never again to enter it. His public ministry was over, and His suffering life was about to begin. His work there was done ; He had taught, warned, and worked miracles. Now He was to finish the work which the Father had given Him, by dying for our Redemption.
Totus tuus ego sum
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum semper tutus sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam.
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