by Gary L. Evans
(revised 7/31/2023)
Mark — Part 14
Mark 12:1-3 And he began to speak unto them by parables. A certain man planted a vineyard, and set an hedge about it, and digged a place for the winefat, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country. And at the season he sent to the husbandmen a servant, that he might receive from the husbandmen of the fruit of the vineyard. And they caught him, and beat him, and sent him away empty.
Jesus taught them another Parable. A man planted a vineyard, prepared everything that was needed to tend to it, rented it out to some husbandmen, and went to another country to live. And after the harvest season, he sent a servant to get his rent from the husbandmen. But they arrested his servant, beat him, and drove him away.
Mark 12:4 And again he sent unto them another servant; and at him they cast stones, and wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully handled.
So he sent another servant, and those husbandmen stoned him and nearly killed him.
Mark 12:5 And again he sent another; and him they killed, and many others; beating some, and killing some.
So a third time, he sent another servant, and they just killed him outright. And other servants he sent, and they did the same to them.
Mark 12:6-8 Having yet therefore one son, his wellbeloved, he sent him also last unto them, saying, They will reverence my son. But those husbandmen said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and the inheritance shall be ours. And they took him, and killed him, and cast him out of the vineyard.
Now the owner of the vineyard had one son, his only begotten son, so he sent him to them thinking that those husbandmen would respect his only son. But they arrested him and killed him and threw his body out of the vineyard.
Mark 12:9-12 What shall therefore the lord of the vineyard do? he will come and destroy the husbandmen, and will give the vineyard unto others. And have ye not read this scripture; The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner: This was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes? And they sought to lay hold on him, but feared the people: for they knew that he had spoken the parable against them: and they left him, and went their way.
Jesus taught a Parable, but oh so quickly those scribes, Pharisees, and priests understood exactly what He was saying, and they became enraged because they knew that He was talking about them and their ancestors, and how they had murdered all of the Prophets of old time, and were now being implicated in the conspiracy of getting ready to murder Jesus, The Son of God. So they immediately worked on a plan to arrest Jesus, but could not do it at this time with all of the people standing around.
Psa 118:22-23 The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner. This is the LORD’S doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.
Isa 28:16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
After teaching the Parable, Jesus referenced these Scriptures to make a point. That He was The Foundation Stone that God was laying in Zion, and those Hypocrites were The Builders who had rejected Him.
Mark 12:13 And they send unto him certain of the Pharisees and of the Herodians, to catch him in his words.
So here comes the Pharisees and the partisans of King Herod to try to find fault in what Jesus might answer them. These demon possessed hypocrites are clearly obsessed with the goal to find any excuse to accuse Jesus of sin.
Mark 12:14 And when they were come, they say unto him, Master, we know that thou art true, and carest for no man: for thou regardest not the person of men, but teachest the way of God in truth: Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar, or not?
And they ask Jesus, is it Lawful according to God for us to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?
Mark 12:15-17 Shall we give, or shall we not give? But he, knowing their hypocrisy, said unto them, Why tempt ye me? bring me a penny, that I may see it. And they brought it. And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription? And they said unto him, Caesar’s. And Jesus answering said unto them, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s. And they marvelled at him.
Well, answering their question was quite simple for Jesus. He just asked them, whose image is inscribed in these Roman coins? And they said, Caesar’s image. So Jesus said, then give Caesar what belongs to him, but give God what belongs to Him.
Mark 12:18 Then come unto him the Sadducees, which say there is no resurrection; and they asked him, saying,
Now come those hypocritical Sadducees to test Jesus also. Note that the Pharisees believed in a resurrection but the Sadducees did not, but believed that when our flesh body dies, we no longer exist. So in modern day language, we might say that the Sadducees believed that we should “get all the gusto we can get while we can get it.” And somehow, they believed they were still religious.
Mark 12:19-23 Master, Moses wrote unto us, If a man’s brother die, and leave his wife behind him, and leave no children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother. Now there were seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and dying left no seed. And the second took her, and died, neither left he any seed: and the third likewise. And the seven had her, and left no seed: last of all the woman died also. In the resurrection therefore, when they shall rise, whose wife shall she be of them? for the seven had her to wife.
So the Sadducees pose their question to Jesus. If a man’s brother die and leave his widow with no children, and he take her, but then he die also not leaving her any children, and then the third, and so on, so finally seven have her, then in the resurrection, whose wife will she be, because she had seven husbands?
Mark 12:24-25 And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God? For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven.
Jesus answered, “You are grossly in error and lack understanding of The Scriptures and the power of God. Because when we rise from the dead, we do not marry or give in marriage, but are as the angels in Heaven.” Simply stated, WE ARE THE ANGELS.
Mark 12:26-27 And as touching the dead, that they rise: have ye not read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto him, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? He is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living: ye therefore do greatly err.
Then Jesus admonished them for not even understanding plain English, well more correctly, they did not even understand plain Hebrew. Since God said, I AM The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (present tense) therefore He is The God of The Living.
Mark 12:28-34 And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all? And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he: And to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. And when Jesus saw that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any question.
A scribe came to Jesus and asked Him what was the greatest Commandment. So Jesus answered him, Love The Lord with all of your heart and mind, and the second greatest Commandment is, Love one another as yourself. And the scribe agreed and said that Jesus had answered well. So there is no doubt but that this scribe who questioned Jesus was a sincere and true scribe of God’s Word, because he understood its meaning.
Deu 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:
Deu 10:12 And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,
Lev 19:18 Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD.
Jesus had quoted from The Law to answer his question, and the scribe knew these verses and honestly agreed that they were the most important Commandments.
Mark 12:35-37 And Jesus answered and said, while he taught in the temple, How say the scribes that Christ is the Son of David? For David himself said by the Holy Ghost, The LORD said to my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool. David therefore himself calleth him Lord; and whence is he then his son? And the common people heard him gladly.
Jesus quoted from the Psalms.
Psa 110:1-2 A Psalm of David. The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.
Jesus clarified what The Scriptures were teaching, and that His Father was not any flesh man, but God Most High. However His mother Mary was of the lineage of King David.
Mark 12:38-40 And he said unto them in his doctrine, Beware of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the marketplaces, And the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost rooms at feasts: Which devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.
I think if Jesus had spoken in modern day street language, He would have said something like, “Beware of Self-important Hypocritical Religious Muckadeeducks who wear religious garb to look official and who esteem themselves the Elite in the assemblies who deserve to sit in the very front row and of course love to be the most respected people in public and make many flowery prayers in public to appear oh so religious but who actually rob all of the members of the congregation of their money including the very poor and needy. Those people ARE GOING TO HELL!”
Mark 12:41-44 And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much. And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing. And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury: For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.
It is so easy for people with lots of money to appear generous, because they have much more than they need. But when someone who has next to nothing offers The Lord what little they do have to show how thankful they are for His Loving Kindness to them, then their offering is far greater than all the rest of the people.
Whosoever has eyes to see and ears to hear, let him hear.
Mark — Part 15
Mark 13:1-2 And as he went out of the temple, one of his disciples saith unto him, Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here! And Jesus answering said unto him, Seest thou these great buildings? there shall not be left one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down.
They were leaving The Temple and one Disciple was impressed by all of the great stones and buildings that were on The Temple Mount. Then Jesus answered that one day none of those great buildings or any of the walls and structures would remain and that not even one stone would be left standing upon another.
Even though The Temple was destroyed, there still remains all of the underground tunnels and structures and also sections of the wall around the temple mount, called the “wailing wall.” So this Prophesy has not yet been fulfilled.
Zec 14:1 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.
This Prophesy is about The Day of The Lord, when Jesus, The Christ, will return.
2Pe 3:8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
Peter explained that a “day” with The Lord is one thousand years, so The Day of The Lord is The Millennial Reign of Jesus Christ on earth that will begin when He returns.
Zec 14:2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
Before that day, except for The Very Elect, The Antichrist will cause all people on earth to bow in worship of him, and their souls will be destroyed as in a day of slaughter. There will be a New Temple in Jerusalem, and The Antichrist will go into it where he will declare himself to be God.
Zec 14:3-5 Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.
The word “cleave” is from the Hebrew, “baw-kah’,” which means, “to cleave; generally to rend, break, rip or open.”
So the earthquake will cause the earth to rip open from the east to the west. Note that The Mount of Olives is less than a mile to the east of Jerusalem.
The word “valley” is from the Hebrew word “gah’ee” which means “a gorge (from its lofty sides; hence narrow, but not a gully or winter torrent).” So in the context, this word means “deep chasm” or “deep gorge,” as when the earth splits during an earthquake.
When Christ returns, His feet will stand on The Mount of Olives, and there will be a great earthquake, and the earth will open a chasm toward the east and the west forming a great gorge, and half of the mountain will move to the north and the other half toward the south. This is when The Lord will completely destroy Jerusalem and The Temple of Abomination will go down into the chasm and all of the surrounding structures such that NO STONE WILL REMAIN ATOP ANOTHER, because they will all go down into the earth.
The Lord will return and His feet stand on The Mount of Olives at The Seventh Trumpet. But for now, our focus should be on our Lord’s teaching of The Seven Seals. We cannot know the exact day and hour of our Lord’s return, but in The Seals He teaches us of the Signs and Seasons to watch for as The Day of The Lord approaches, so that we are not caught off guard.
Mark 13:3-4 And as he sat upon the mount of Olives over against the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign when all these things shall be fulfilled?
Peter and his brother Andrew and James and his brother John ask Jesus privately, when will the end come? And what will be the Signs of Your Return?
Mark 13:5-6 And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any man deceive you: For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
Jesus began answering their question about the Signs of The End with this warning: Many will come claiming to be Christ men or women, that is, Word of God men or women, but will in fact be deceiving many. And in the Greek text it is implied that one will come claiming to be That I AM.
1Jn 2:18-19 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.
John taught about those deceivers Jesus warned us about that would come in The Last Days, and calls them, antichrists, and he also mentions that at the very end would come The Antichrist.
The words “antichrist” and “antichrists” are both from the Greek “an-tee’-khris-tos” which means “an opponent of the Messiah.” This is a compound word, and the word “an-tee’” means “opposite, that is, instead or because of (rarely in addition to).” So “anti” literally means “opposite, instead of.”
And this is an important point, because The Antichrist will come “Instead of Christ” at the end of the world while claiming to be Christ. And similarly, those many antichrists come “instead of Christians” while claiming to be Christians.
THE FIRST SEAL: Many antichrists will come deceiving many, and at the end The Antichrist will come claiming to be Jesus Christ returned.
Whosoever has eyes to see and ears to hear, let him hear.