Mark

About the book of Mark

The Gospel of Mark is the shortest of the four Gospels and moves at a quick pace. The book does not name its author, but early church tradition holds that John Mark wrote it, drawing on the preaching of the apostle Peter. It was written first for Gentile readers, especially believers in Rome, so it explains Jewish customs along the way. Mark skips the birth of Jesus and starts with the adult ministry, as Jesus steps into the Jordan to be baptized. The book has 16 chapters.

Main themes

Mark shows Jesus as the Son of God who comes as a servant. He heals the sick, drives out demons and teaches with an authority that amazes the crowds, yet he spends much of his time with ordinary people and tired disciples. He also shows compassion: Jesus touches a man with leprosy, calls a little child close and stops for a blind man calling from the roadside. Mark moves from one scene to the next with a Greek word often translated straightway or immediately, which gives the book its sense of urgency.

The second theme is the cost of following him. Jesus tells his disciples more than once that he must suffer and die, and that anyone who follows him must be ready to take up a cross of his own (Mark 8:34). The whole book leans toward Jerusalem, where Jesus gives his life for others (Mark 10:45) and rises from the dead. Mark’s first readers, many of them under pressure for their faith, needed to see that the road of Jesus runs through the cross.

Verses from Mark on our apparel

Mark 12:31 comes during the last week before the crucifixion. In the temple courts a scribe asks Jesus which commandment is the greatest. Jesus answers with the command to love God completely, which comes from Deuteronomy 6:5, then adds: “And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.”

The second half of that answer reaches back to Leviticus 19:18, and it turns love into something practical: the care we already give ourselves, offered to whoever God places in our path. Jesus calls these two commands the greatest, so the rest of the Christian life hangs on them. That is the verse on our Love Thy Neighbor design, printed on a T-shirt, a hoodie and a crewneck. It is a quiet way to carry Jesus’ words with you and then try to live them at work, at church and next door.

Frequently asked

Who wrote the Gospel of Mark? The text itself does not name the author. Early church tradition says John Mark wrote it, using what he heard from Peter, and that is the view this page follows.

Where else does the command to love your neighbor appear? Jesus repeats it in Matthew 22:39 and Luke 10:27. It comes originally from Leviticus 19:18, and Paul and James return to it in Romans 13:9, Galatians 5:14 and James 2:8.

Verses from Mark