Mark 1:9-13 NIV

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Mark 1:13

With the wild beasts - This is a curious circumstance, which is mentioned by none of the other evangelists; and seems to intimate that he was in the most remote, unfrequented, and savage part of the desert; which, together with the diabolic influence, tended to render the whole scene the more horrid. Perhaps this very circumstance is mentioned, as emblematical of that savage and brutal cruelty with which he was persecuted to death by the Jews and Gentiles, instigated thereto by the malice of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:9-11

The baptism of Christ. As this evangelist commences his treatise with what he terms "the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ," it is natural that our Lord should first be introduced by him as devoted to his ministry of benevolence in the rite of baptism; for this incident in our Saviour's life is justly held to have inaugurated his public work. What a hold the event has taken upon the Christian mind may be seen from the vast number of pictures in which the religious artists of all... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:9-11

The baptism of Jesus. One of many proofs of the wide influence of the Baptist's ministry. He came from Nazareth of Galilee. The multitudinous baptism of John was a fit occasion and background for the special and peculiar baptism of Jesus. The awakened national conscience represented for the nonce the general confession of sin by the individuals of mankind saved through the gospel. Christ's baptism was— I. A FULFILMENT OF LEGAL RIGHTEOUSNESS . It was one ceremony of the Law... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:9-11

Parallel passages: Matthew 3:13-17 ; Luke 3:21-23 . The baptism of our Lord. I. DIFFICULTY . There is something singular, to say the least, in the baptism of our Lord. In that solemn inauguration of the Saviour, as he entered on his public ministry, a difficulty is encountered. That difficulty respects the significance of the rite in relation to the spotless Son of God. Water, when applied to the person or used in the way of ablution, is employed as an element of cleansing. But... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:9-13

The consecration of Jesus. I. THE GOOD OF CUSTOM . Honoured by his submission to baptism. This is an example. Custom is the sacred link between past and present. Old customs, sacred rites, should be kept up; only abandoned when. they no longer teach truth, but more falsehood than truth. Rebellion against custom for rebellion's sake is vicious individualism. Compliance with the beauty of order is the mark of a loyal and loving spirit. II. THE SYMBOL IS PRECIOUS , NOT ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:9-13

The official preparation. "The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ" embraces yet another element. The preparation of "the way" of the Lord is followed by the preparation of the Lord himself. This we must name—The preparation of the Messiah , the Christ. I. The first step in this preparation is THE ASSUMPTION OF THE HUMAN NATURE . "The Word became flesh." "It behoved him," who" took hold of the seed of Abraham," with a view to raise it up, "to be made like unto"... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:10

Straightway ( εὐθέως ) coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened ( σχιζομένους ); literally, rent asunder. The word εὐθέως occurs more than forty times in this Gospel, and is so characteristic of St. Mark that, in the Revised Version, it is uniformly rendered by the same English synonym, "straightway." He saw. Elsewhere we are told ( John 1:32 ) that St. John the Baptist saw this descent. The earliest heretics took advantage of this statement to represent... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:12

Driveth him ( ἐκβάλλει ); literally, driveth him forth. That Holy Spirit, which not long before he had received at his baptism, impelled him with great energy; so that of his own accord he went forth, armed with Divine power, into the desert, that there, as in a wrestling-place, he might contend alone with Satan. There Christ and antichrist met, and entered upon the conflict upon the issue of which our salvation depended. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:12-13

The temptation of Christ. The portal by which our Lord entered upon his earthly ministry has two pillars—the baptism and the temptation. In his baptism the Saviour was visibly and audibly approved by God the Father. In his temptation he was manifestly put to the test by the power of evil. Consecration and probation were thus the two elements in the Redeemer's inauguration, by which he was dedicated to the earthly ministry of humiliation, obedience, and benevolence. Mark's narrative of the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:12-13

The temptation. Great moral problems are suggested by the temptation. Mark does not describe the nature of it, but leaves the imagination and cognate experience of his readers to fill up the spaces, or, having a different object from the other evangelists, he, supposing the details furnished by them well known, contents himself with an epitome. But it is an epitome of a very vivid and pregnant kind. The salient points alluded to by him are— I. THE PREDISPOSING CAUSE OF IT .... read more

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Mark 1:13

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:9-11

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:9-11

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:9-11

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:9-13

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:9-13

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:10

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:12

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:12-13

The Pulpit Commentary - Mark 1:12-13

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