Which details does Mark give about opposition, twelve appointments and family?

Atlas of Saints · Chapter summary

The chapter records the restored hand, consultation against Jesus, gathering crowds, twelve named appointments, the Beelzebub reply and kinship through God’s will.

Chapter breakdown

# Mark 3

Jesus enters the synagogue where a man has a withered hand. Observers watch for sabbath healing to accuse him. He places the man in the midst and asks whether sabbath good or evil, saving or destroying life, is lawful. They remain silent. Looking with anger and grieved at their blindness of heart, he commands stretching the hand; it is restored. The Pharisees immediately consult the Herodians about destroying him. No paralysis diagnosis, unprecedented alliance or additional outrage is stated.

Jesus retires with disciples to the sea. Great crowds come from Galilee, Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, beyond Jordan and the vicinity of Tyre and Sidon, having heard his deeds. He asks for a small ship to wait lest the multitude throng him. He heals many, and those with afflictions press to touch him. Unclean spirits fall before him and call him God’s Son, but he strictly orders them not to make him known. No offshore location or danger of suffocation is supplied.

On a mountain he calls those he wishes and they come. He appoints twelve to be with him and be sent to preach, giving power to heal sickness and cast out devils. The list names Simon, given Peter; James son of Zebedee and John his brother, named Boanerges or sons of thunder; Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James of Alpheus, Thaddeus, Simon the Cananean and Judas Iscariot, identified retrospectively as betrayer. It does not describe an ordination ceremony, governing college or succession here.

At a house the gathering leaves them unable even to eat bread. His friends hear and go to lay hold of him, saying he has become mad. This remains their statement, not a mental-health diagnosis, and friends are not silently replaced with relatives. Scribes from Jerusalem claim he has Beelzebub and casts out devils by their prince. Calling them together, Jesus asks in parables how Satan can cast out Satan. A divided kingdom or house cannot stand; if Satan rises against himself, he is divided, cannot stand and has an end. Plundering a strong man’s house requires binding him first. The condition is not rewritten as an absolute impossibility of self-destruction.

Jesus says all sins and blasphemies will be forgiven the sons of men, but the one blaspheming against the Holy Ghost shall never have forgiveness and is guilty of everlasting sin. The account links this warning to their saying he has an unclean spirit. This span has no annotation defining the warning as a final refusal of repentance or explaining its exceptions; none is imported.

His mother and brethren arrive and send from outside for him. The seated multitude relays the request. He asks who his mother and brethren are, looks at those seated around and identifies them as such, saying whoever does God’s will is his brother, sister and mother. No named Mary, concentric arrangement or rejection of biological family is added.

The story inside

Sabbath healing precedes the sea and mountain; the crowded house precedes the scribal reply and family request.

Lessons worth keeping

1
Friends’ allegation of madness is not a diagnosis.
2
The twelve’s stated tasks are presence, preaching, healing and expelling devils.
3
The everlasting-sin warning is linked to the unclean-spirit accusation without imported commentary.

Test your recall

Withered hand; small ship; Boanerges; twelve names; divided house; strong man; will of God.

Source edition and notes

Douay–Rheims, revised by Richard Challoner (1749–1752). Project Gutenberg no. 1581. Locators refer to lines in the admitted pg1581.txt edition. Source notes may include Challoner commentary.

Lines 114562–114617
3:1. And he entered again into the synagogue: and there was a man there who had a withered hand. 3:2. And they watched him whether he would heal on the sabbath days, that they might accuse him. 3:3. And he said to the man who had the withered hand: Stand up in the midst. 3:4. And he saith to them: Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? To save life, or to destroy? But they held their peace. 3:5. And looking round about on them with anger, being grieved for the blindness of their hearts, he saith to the man: Stretch forth thy hand. And he stretched it forth: and his hand was restored unto him. 3:6. And the Pharisees going out, immediately made a consultation with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him. 3:7. But Jesus retired with his disciples to the sea; and a great multitude followed him from Galilee and Judea, 3:8. And from Jerusalem, and from Idumea and from beyond the Jordan. And they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, hearing the things which he did, came to him. 3:9. And he spoke to his disciples that a small ship should wait on him, because of the multitude, lest they should throng him. 3:10. For he healed many, so that they pressed upon him for to touch him, as many as had evils. 3:11. And the unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him: and they cried, saying: 3:12. Thou art the Son of God. And he strictly charged them that they should not make him known. 3:13. And going up into a mountain, he called unto him whom he would himself: and they came to him. 3:14. And he made that twelve should be with him, and that he might send them to preach. 3:15. And he gave them power to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils. 3:16. And to Simon he gave the name Peter: 3:17. And James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he named them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder. 3:18. And Andrew and Philip, and Bartholomew and Matthew, and Thomas and James of Alpheus, and Thaddeus and Simon the Cananean: 3:19. And Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
Lines 114619–114664
3:20. And they come to a house, and the multitude cometh together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread. 3:21. And when his friends had heard of it, they went out to lay hold on him. For they said: He is become mad. 3:22. And the scribes who were come down from Jerusalem, said: He hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of devils he casteth out devils. 3:23. And after he had called them together, he said to them in parables: How can Satan cast out Satan? 3:24. And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 3:25. And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 3:26. And if Satan be risen up against himself, he is divided, and cannot stand, but hath an end. 3:27. No man can enter into the house of a strong man and rob him of his goods, unless he first bind the strong man, and then shall he plunder his house. 3:28. Amen I say to you that all sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and the blasphemies wherewith they shall blaspheme: 3:29. But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost, shall never have forgiveness, but shall be guilty of an everlasting sin. 3:30. Because they said: He hath an unclean spirit. 3:31. And his mother and his brethren came; and standing without, sent unto him, calling him. 3:32. And the multitude sat about him; and they say to him: Behold thy mother and thy brethren without seek for thee. 3:33. And answering them, he said: Who is my mother and my brethren? 3:34. And looking round about on them who sat about him, he saith: Behold my mother and my brethren. 3:35. For whosoever shall do the will of God, he is my brother, and my sister, and mother.