St Mark Chapter XI : Verses 20-33
The withered fig-tree
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| The withered fig-tree. J-J Tissot. |
[21] And Peter remembering, said to him: Rabbi, behold the fig tree, which thou didst curse, is withered away.
[22] And Jesus answering, saith to them: Have the faith of God. [23] Amen I say to you, that whosoever shall say to this mountain, Be thou removed and be cast into the sea, and shall not stagger in his heart, but believe, that whatsoever he saith shall be done; it shall be done unto him.
[24] Therefore I say unto you, all things, whatsoever you ask when ye pray, believe that you shall receive; and they shall come unto you.
[25] And when you shall stand to pray, forgive, if you have aught against any man; that your Father also, who is in heaven, may forgive you your sins.
[26] But if you will not forgive, neither will your Father that is in heaven, forgive you your sins.
[20] Et cum mane transirent, viderunt ficum aridam factam a radicibus. [21] Et recordatus Petrus, dixit ei : Rabbi, ecce ficus, cui maledixisti, aruit. [22] Et respondens Jesus ait illis : Habete fidem Dei. [23] Amen dico vobis, quia quicumque dixerit huic monti : Tollere, et mittere in mare, et non haesitaverit in corde suo, sed crediderit, quia quodcumque dixerit fiat, fiat ei. [24] Propterea dico vobis, omnia quaecumque orantes petitis, credite quia accipietis, et evenient vobis. [25] Et cum stabitis ad orandum, dimittite si quis habetis adversus aliquem : ut et Pater vester, qui in caelis est, dimittat vobis peccata vestra. [26] Quod si vos non dimiseritis : nec Pater vester, qui in caelis est, dimittet vobis peccata vestra.
Notes
20. In the morning : 12th of Nisan. Tuesday in Holy Week.
they saw the fig-tree : which Jesus had cursed the previous morning.
dried up. The withering was the immediate cause of our Lord;s malediction, and consequently a proof of His divine power.
21. And Peter. It would have been from Him that St Mark learned these details.
remembering, — i.e. the curse pronounced, which all his disciples heard. St Matthew remarks that the disciples seeing it wondered saying ; How is it presently withered away ? (xxi. 20). It was the power and wonder of the act, rather than its deeper significance that astonished the disciples.
22. Have the faith of God, — i.e. “ in ” God. The disciples’ astonishment shewed their faith was not yet strong, or they would have expected the tree to wither up after Christ had cursed it.
23. The Apostles were soon to go forth on their mission, and the whole world lay before them. It was only by a firm faith in God that they would be able to triumph over all obstacles. Our Lord now explains the lesson to be drawn from the miracle which they had witnessed. As a parable, it was only later that they understood this incident.
to this mountain. Olivet, on the slopes of which they were walking. Thus Zacharias spoke figuratively of this very mountain, And His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives, which is over against Jerusalem toward the east : and the Mount of Olives shall be divided in the midst thereof to the east, and to the west with a very great opening , and half of the mountain shall be separated to the north, and half thereof to the south (xiv. 4). Liglitfoot, touching this expression, quotes from the Rabbinical writings that “a certain Resh Lachish taught in the school, as if he were plucking up mountains and grinding them one upon another.”
Be thou removed. A metaphorical proverb meaning, “ Accomplish an impossibility.”
and shall not stagger in his heart. St James possibly had these words in his mind when he wrote, But let him ask in faith , nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea , which is moved and carried about by the wind (i. 6). The saints by their faith, work miracles, where ordinary Christians “ stagger ” and doubt. The Church, among other proofs of sanctity, exacts that those who are raised to the honour of canonization shall have performed miracles either in their lifetime or after their death.* These miracles are proofs of extraordinary faith on the part of the one who worked them, and hence they are proofs of extraordinary virtue.
it shall be done : provided it be in accordance with God’s will. Our Lord does not promise that every imprudent petition shall be answered. He alone knows what is for our greater good, and will not grant what is injurious, even though we, in our ignorance, pray earnestly for it. As regards spiritual gifts, we know it is God’s will that we should grow in faith, hope, and charity, that we should resist temptation, etc.
25. when you shall stand to pray. This was a common custom among the Jews. Thus the Pharisee “ stood and prayed .” This was always the position when the Israelites rendered thanks to God, whereas prayer of petition, and especially of humiliation, was offered kneeling or prostrate. We read of our Lord kneeling and prostrating Himself in prayer, but we may be certain He conformed to the ordinary standing posture generally, at least in public devotions.
forgive. It is one of the conditions upon which God has promised to grant us the grace of remission of our sins. In the “Our Father” we pray, Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them , etc. The Apostles would need to remember this lesson when their Master was crucified by His cruel enemies. How difficult it must have been for them to forgive in this case, and yet the pardon of their own sins of cowardice depended on their so doing.
if you will not forgive, etc. Jesus reiterates the same truth in a negative form, that the disciples might clearly understand His meaning. In like manner He repeated a truth, both in the positive and negative aspect, when He said, Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them: and whose sins you shall retain , they are retained (St John xx. 23).
your Father that is in heaven. Jesus reminds His disciples that all mankind are brethren.
Details peculiar to St Mark —
(a) It was in the morning that the disciples noticed that the fig-tree had withered up.
(b) St Peter was the spokesman for the others.
(c) Our Lord’s words (in this particular conjunction) on forgiveness of injuries as a condition of prayer being answered.
* “ Between the beatification and the canonization of a saint, it must be proved that at least two miracles have been wrought through the intercession of the “ Blessed ” person since the beatification” ( Cath . Diet., p. 125).
The Sanhedrin question Jesus
[27] And they come again to Jerusalem. And when he was walking in the temple, there come to him the chief priests and the scribes and the ancients,
[28] And they say to him: By what authority dost thou these things? and who hath given thee this authority that thou shouldst do these things?
[29] And Jesus answering, said to them: I will also ask you one word, and answer you me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.
[30] The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or from men? Answer me.
[31] But they thought with themselves, saying: If we say, From heaven; he will say, Why then did you not believe him?
[32] If we say, From men, we fear the people. For all men counted John that he was a prophet indeed.[33] And they answering, say to Jesus: We know not. And Jesus answering, saith to them: Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things.
[27] Et veniunt rursus Jerosolymam. Et cum ambularet in templo, accedunt ad eum summi sacerdotes, et scribae, et seniores : [28] et dicunt ei : In qua potestate haec facis? et quis dedit tibi hanc potestatem ut ista facias? [29] Jesus autem respondens, ait illis : Interrogabo vos et ego unum verbum, et respondete mihi : et dicam vobis in qua potestate haec faciam. [30] Baptismus Joannis, de caelo erat, an ex hominibus? Respondete mihi. [31] At illi cogitabant secum, dicentes : Si dixerimus : De caelo, dicet : Quare non credidistis ei? [32] Si dixerimus : Ex hominibus, timemus populum : omnes enim habebant Joannem quia vere propheta esset. [33] Et respondentes dicunt Jesu : Nescimus. Et respondens Jesus ait illis : Neque ego dico vobis in qua potestate haec faciam.
Notes
27. when he was walking: a detail peculiar to St Mark. Jesus would be walking either in one of the porches or courts.
there come to him : — As he was teaching the people in the Temple and preaching the Gospel (St Luke xx. 1).
chief priests .... scribes .... ancients : hence a deputation from the various bodies forming the Sanhedrin. The chief priests and scribes represented the religious constituent, and the ancients the political and executive.
28. By what authority, etc. They propose a double question — (a) Did Christ claim a human or divine authority ? ( b ) Who had sanctioned or authorised Him to teach? There is here, perhaps, a suggestion that they considered Him as inspired by Beelzebub, as they had previously affirmed. The Jews had a law that no man could teach without having rabbinical authorisation. Those who aspired to the office of teacher studied under some famous Rabbi, who, when they were sufficiently qualified, gave them a diploma to that effect. The degrees were (1) Rabbi, (2) Elder, (3) Judge. It was the duty of the Sanhedrin to examine the credentials of those who taught, in order to preserve the law in all its purity. They were exercising a legal right in questioning our Lord, -but they were not exercising it in a proper spirit. As on previous occasions, they came tempting him. They knew the despised “ Prophet of Galilee ” had no diploma from their Rabbis, so practically they were repeating their demand for a sign, as they had done after the first cleansing of the Temple (see St John ii. 13-22).
dost thou these things ? They evidently referred to our Lord’s recent acts, particularly the triumphal procession into Jerusalem, His acceptation of the “ Hosannas ” of the multitude, and the cleansing of the Temple. Possibly this last action was the one which made them most bitter, since it was a reproach to them and a silent condemnation for tolerating an abuse which they should have prevented.
things. They avoid using the word “miracle,” though they must have known of the resurrection of Lazarus, of the cure of Bartimeus, and of the blind and lame whom He cured after casting the vendors forth from the Temple.
29. one word , — i.e. one thing ; and that question was one which, if they had answered honestly, contained the information they required. For if they accepted St John as a prophet, as they professed to do, they were bound to accept his testimony that Christ was the Messiah.
answer you me. Jesus speaks as a Master in Israel: — as one having power and not as the scribes (St Mark i. 22).
30. The baptism of John. Here the word baptism stands for the mission of St John the Baptist, baptism being one of its distinctive features. Another was his testimony to Christ as the Messiah. Jesus inquires of them by a counter question from whom St John the Baptist derived his authority, and whether he had a human or divine sanction, for the Baptist held no diploma from the Rabbis.
31. they thought with themselves : and also spoke saying : If we say , etc. We may conclude that, since they had to agree upon a common answer, they withdrew a little and consulted each other. Either this conversation was overheard at the time, or it was made known by some of those who took part in it, and who became converts to Christianity later on, or it was revealed to the Evangelists by the Holy Ghost,
31. If we say, etc. The deputation find themselves in a double dilemma. There were four possible answers : 1. “ From heaven ” ; 2. “From men” ; 3. “We know not” ; 4. “We decline to answer.” Any one of these answers involved them in a false position. If they replied “ from heaven,” they foresaw clearly what answer our Lord would make ; and to reply “ from men ” would arouse the anger of the people and expose their own lives. By pleading ignorance they would lose their prestige as spiritual leaders of the people. If they declined to reply they shewed their insincerity and hypocrisy, and revealed that their question was dictated, not by zeal for the purity of their Mosaic faith, but by unworthy motives, such as jealousy, hypocrisy, and hatred.
33. We know not. They express thus their unwillingness to say what they think of St John the Baptist’s mission. The Sanhedrin had hated and feared St John,* and had they dared, would have denied him to be a prophet, but they were forced into recognising him as such, through fear of the people. In reality they had rejected St John, as they were now rejecting Christ.
Neither do I tell you. Jesus had utterly confounded His enemies and they can make no reply, nor do they dare reiterate their question.
*Cf. [6] And were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins. [7] And seeing many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them: Ye brood of vipers, who hath shewed you to flee from the wrath to come? [8] Bring forth therefore fruit worthy of penance. [9] And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham for our father. For I tell you that God is able of these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Matth. iii.
Additional Notes
The arrival of the deputation from the Sanhedrin. Jesus and His little band of disciples were surrounded in the cloisters of the Temple by a “ formidable deputation, imposing alike in its numbers and its stateliness. The chief priests, heads of the twenty-four courses, the learned scribes, the leading Rabbis, representatives of all the constituent classes of the Sanhedrin were there to overawe Him — whom they despised as the poor, ignorant Prophet of despicable Galilee, by the presence of all that was venerable in age, eminent in wisdom or imposing in authority in the great council of the nation. The people, whom He was engaged in teaching, made reverent way for them, lest they should pollute those floating robes and ample fringes with a touch ; and when they had arranged themselves around Jesus, they sternly and abruptly asked Him, “ By what authority dost thou these things ? ” (Farrar). These words give us a vivid verbal picture of the scene that took place, when the Sanhedrin questioned our Lord.
The signs of the true prophet. The chief priests and scribes, as the spiritual guides of Israel, were bound to exercise a supervision over those who taught the people, or took to themselves the office of prophets. In Deut. xviii. 20-22 we read, “ But the prophet, who being corrupted with pride shall speak in my name, things that I did not command him to say, or in the name of strange gods, he shall be slain. And if in silent thought thou answer : How shall I know the word that the Lord hath not spoken ? thou shalt have this sign : Whatsoever that same prophet foretelleth in the name of the Lord, and it cometh not to pass : that thing the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath forged it by the pride of his mind : and therefore thou shalt not fear him.” St John the Baptist came as a prophet of God and announced the coming of “ one mightier. ” Had the Sanhedrin searched to know the truth respecting St John the Baptist, they would have learnt the extraordinary circumstances relating to his birth. Some of the Pharisees had gone out to St John in the wilderness and had heard his doctrine. Many had seen him point out Jesus as the Lamb of God and had seen his prophecy realized. “ He upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending and remaining upon him, he it is that baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.” Therefore, according to the test imposed by the Law, St John was a true prophet, since his predictions were fulfilled, and consequently Christ was the Messias. On this occasion Jesus “had recourse to a method familiar to both Jews and Greeks, of answering by interrogation, and solving one question by proposing another, which if candidly answered, would solve the former ” (MacEvilly, Com., p. 387).
Totus tuus ego sum
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum semper tutus sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam.
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