Mark 11

Mr 11:1-11.

CHRIST'S

TRIUMPHAL

ENTRY INTO

JERUSALEM, ON THE

FIRST

DAY OF THE

WEEK.

Mt 21:1-9;

Lu 19:29-40;

Joh 12:12, 19).

See on

Lu 19:29-40.

Mr 11:11-26.

THE

BARREN

FIG

TREE

CURSED WITH

LESSONS FROM

IT--SECOND

CLEANSING OF THE

TEMPLE, ON THE

SECOND AND

THIRD

DAYS OF THE

WEEK.

Mt 21:12-22;

Lu 19:45-48).

11. And Jesus entered into Jerusalem, and into the temple: and when he

had looked round about upon--surveyed.

all things, and now the eventide was come, he went out into Bethany

with the twelve--Thus briefly does our Evangelist dispose of this His

first day in Jerusalem, after the triumphal entry. Nor do the Third and

Fourth Gospels give us more light. But from Matthew

(Mt 21:10, 11, 14-16)

we learn some additional and precious particulars, for which see on

Lu 19:45-48.

It was not now safe for the Lord to sleep in the city, nor, from the

day of His Triumphal Entry, did He pass one night in it, save the last

fatal one.

The Barren Fig Tree Cursed

(Mr 11:12-14).

12. And on the morrow--The Triumphal Entry being on the first day of

the week, this following day was Monday.

when they were come from Bethany--"in the morning"

(Mt 21:18).

he was hungry--How was that? Had he stolen forth from that dear roof

at Bethany to the "mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer

to God?"

(Lu 6:12);

or, "in the morning," as on a former occasion, "risen up a great while

before day, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed"

(Mr 1:35);

not breaking His fast thereafter, but bending His steps straight for

the city, that He might "work the works of Him that sent Him while it

was day?"

(Joh 9:4).

We know not, though one lingers upon and loves to trace out the every

movement of that life of wonders. One thing, however we are sure of--it

was real bodily hunger which He now sought to allay by the fruit

of this fig tree, "if haply He might find any thing thereon"; not a

mere scene for the purpose of teaching a lesson, as some early

heretics maintained, and some still seem virtually to hold.

13. And seeing a fig tree--(In

Mt 21:19,

it is "one fig tree," but the sense is the same as here, "a certain fig

tree," as in

Mt 8:19,

&c.). Bethphage, which adjoined Bethany, derives its name from its

being a fig region--"House of figs."

afar off having leaves--and therefore promising fruit, which in the

case of figs come before the leaves.

he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon: and when he came to

it, he found nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet--What

the precise import of this explanation is, interpreters are not agreed.

Perhaps all that is meant is, that as the proper fig season had not

arrived, no fruit would have been expected even of this tree but for the

leaves which it had, which were in this case prematurely and unnaturally

developed.

14. And Jesus answered and said unto it, No man eat fruit of thee

hereafter for ever--That word did not make the tree barren,

but sealed it up in its own barrenness. See on

Mt 13:13-15.

And his disciples heard it--and marked the saying. This is introduced

as a connecting link, to explain what was afterwards to be said on the

subject, as the narrative has to proceed to the other transactions of

this day.

Second Cleansing of the Temple

(Mr 11:15-18).

For the exposition of this portion, see on

Lu 19:45-48.

Lessons from the Cursing of the Fig Tree

(Mr 11:20-26).

20. And in the morning--of Tuesday, the third day of the week: He

had slept, as during all this week, at Bethany.

as they passed by--going into Jerusalem again.

they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots--no partial blight,

leaving life in the root; but it was now dead, root and branch. In

Mt 21:19

it is said it withered away as soon as it was cursed. But the full

blight had not appeared probably at once; and in the dusk perhaps, as

they returned to Bethany, they had not observed it. The precision with

which Mark distinguishes the days is not observed by Matthew, intent

only on holding up the truths which the incident was designed to teach.

In Matthew the whole is represented as taking place at once, just as

the two stages of Jairus' daughter--dying and dead--are represented by

him as one. The only difference is between a more summary and a more

detailed narrative, each of which only confirms the other.

21. And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him--satisfied that

a miracle so very peculiar--a miracle, not of blessing, as all His

other miracles, but of cursing--could not have been wrought but with

some higher reference, and fully expecting to hear something weighty on

the subject.

Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away--so

connecting the two things as to show that he traced the death of the

tree entirely to the curse of his Lord. Matthew

(Mt 21:20)

gives this simply as a general exclamation of surprise by the disciples

"how soon" the blight had taken effect.

22. And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God.

23. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this

mountain, Be thou removed . . . he shall have whatsoever he saith--Here

is the lesson now. From the nature of the case supposed--that they might

wish a mountain removed and cast into the sea, a thing far removed from

anything which they could be thought actually to desire--it is plain

that not physical but moral obstacles to the progress of His kingdom

were in the Redeemer's view, and that what He designed to teach was the

great lesson, that

no obstacle should be able to stand before a confiding faith in God.

24. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye

pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them--This verse

only generalizes the assurance of

Mr 11:23;

which seems to show that it was designed for the special encouragement

of evangelistic and missionary efforts, while this is a

directory for prevailing prayer in general.

25. And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have aught against

any; that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your

trespasses, &c.--This is repeated from the Sermon on the Mount (see

on

Mt 6:12);

to remind them that if this was necessary to the acceptableness of

all prayer, much more when great things were to be asked and

confidently expected.

Mr 11:27-33.

THE

AUTHORITY OF

JESUS

QUESTIONED--HIS

REPLY.

Mt 21:23-27;

Lu 20:1-8).

See on

Mt 21:23-27.