Mark 10
10
1 And rising up, he went from there into the area of Judea beyond the Jordan. And again, the crowd came together before him. And just as he was accustomed to do, again he taught them.
2 And approaching, the Pharisees questioned him, testing him: "Is it lawful for a man to dismiss his wife?"
3 But in response, he said to them, "What did Moses instruct you?"
4 And they said, "Moses gave permission to write a bill of divorce and to dismiss her."
5 But Jesus responded by saying: "It was due to the hardness of your heart that he wrote that precept for you.
6 But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.
7 Because of this, a man shall leave behind his father and mother, and he shall cling to his wife.
8 And these two shall be one in flesh. And so, they are now, not two, but one flesh.
9 Therefore, what God has joined together, let no man separate."
10 And again, in the house, his disciples questioned him about the same thing.
11 And he said to them: "Whoever dismisses his wife, and marries another, commits adultery against her.
12 And if a wife dismisses her husband, and is married to another, she commits adultery."
13 And they brought to him the little children, so that he might touch them. But the disciples admonished those who brought them.
14 But when Jesus saw this, he took offense, and he said to them: "Allow the little ones to come to me, and do not prohibit them. For of such as these is the kingdom of God.
15 Amen I say to you, whoever will not accept the kingdom of God like a little child, will not enter into it."
16 And embracing them, and laying his hands upon them, he blessed them.
17 And when he had departed on the way, a certain one, running up and kneeling before him, asked him, "Good Teacher, what shall I do, so that I may secure eternal life?"
18 But Jesus said to him, "Why call me good? No one is good except the one God.
19 You know the precepts: "Do not commit adultery. Do not kill. Do not steal. Do not speak false testimony. Do not deceive. Honor your father and mother."
20 But in response, he said to him, "Teacher, all these I have observed from my youth."
21 Then Jesus, gazing at him, loved him, and he said to him: "One thing is lacking to you. Go, sell whatever you have, and give to the poor, and then you will have treasure in heaven. And come, follow me."
22 But he went away grieving, having been greatly saddened by the word. For he had many possessions.
23 And Jesus, looking around, said to his disciples, "How difficult it is for those who have riches to enter into the kingdom of God!"
24 And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus, answering again, said to them: "Little sons, how difficult it is for those who trust in money to enter into the kingdom of God!
25 It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for the rich to enter into the kingdom of God."
26 And they wondered even more, saying among themselves, "Who, then, can be saved?"
27 And Jesus, gazing at them, said: "With men it is impossible; but not with God. For with God all things are possible."
28 And Peter began to say to him, "Behold, we have left all things and have followed you."
29 In response, Jesus said: "Amen I say to you, There is no one who has left behind house, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or children, or land, for my sake and for the Gospel,
30 who will not receive one hundred times as much, now in this time: houses, and brothers, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and land, with persecutions, and in the future age eternal life.
31 But many of the first shall be last, and the last shall be first."
32 Now they were on the way ascending to Jerusalem. And Jesus went ahead of them, and they were astonished. And those following him were afraid. And again, taking aside the twelve, he began to tell them what was about to happen to him.
33 "For behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of man will be handed over to the leaders of the priests, and to the scribes, and the elders. And they will condemn him to death, and they will hand him over to the Gentiles.
34 And they will mock him, and spit on him, and scourge him, and put him to death. And on the third day, he will rise again."
35 And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, drew near to him, saying, "Teacher, we wish that whatever we will ask, you would do for us."
36 But he said to them, "What do you want me to do for you?"
37 And they said, "Grant to us that we may sit, one at your right and the other at your left, in your glory."
38 But Jesus said to them: "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink from the chalice from which I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am to be baptized?"
39 But they said to him, "We can." Then Jesus said to them: "Indeed, you shall drink from the chalice, from which I drink; and you shall be baptized with the baptism, with which I am to be baptized.
40 But to sit at my right, or at my left, is not mine to give to you, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared."
41 And the ten, upon hearing this, began to be indignant toward James and John.
42 But Jesus, calling them, said to them: "You know that those who seem to be leaders among the Gentiles dominate them, and their leaders exercise authority over them.
43 But it is not to be this way among you. Instead, whoever would become greater shall be your minister;
44 and whoever will be first among you shall be the servant of all.
45 So, too, the Son of man has not come so that they would minister to him, but so that he would minister and would give his life as a redemption for many."
46 And they went to Jericho. And as he was setting out from Jericho with his disciples and a very numerous multitude, Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, a blind man, sat begging beside the way.
47 And when he had heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and to say, "Jesus, Son of David, take pity on me."
48 And many admonished him to be quiet. But he cried out all the more, "Son of David, take pity on me."
49 And Jesus, standing still, instructed him to be called. And they called the blind man, saying to him: "Be at peace. Arise. He is calling you."
50 And casting aside his garment, he leapt up and went to him.
51 And in response, Jesus said to him, "What do you want, that I should do for you?" And the blind man said to him, "Master, that I may see."
52 Then Jesus said to him, "Go, your faith has made you whole." And immediately he saw, and he followed him on the way.
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Mark 10
10
Divorce
1-2From there he went to the area of Judea across the Jordan. A crowd of people, as was so often the case, went along, and he, as he so often did, taught them. Pharisees came up, intending to give him a hard time. They asked, “Is it legal for a man to divorce his wife?”
3Jesus said, “What did Moses command?”
4They answered, “Moses gave permission to fill out a certificate of dismissal and divorce her.”
5-9Jesus said, “Moses wrote this command only as a concession to your hardhearted ways. In the original creation, God made male and female to be together. Because of this, a man leaves father and mother, and in marriage he becomes one flesh with a woman—no longer two individuals, but forming a new unity. Because God created this organic union of the two sexes, no one should desecrate his art by cutting them apart.”
10-12When they were back home, the disciples brought it up again. Jesus gave it to them straight: “A man who divorces his wife so he can marry someone else commits adultery against her. And a woman who divorces her husband so she can marry someone else commits adultery.”
* * *
13-16The people brought children to Jesus, hoping he might touch them. The disciples shooed them off. But Jesus was irate and let them know it: “Don’t push these children away. Don’t ever get between them and me. These children are at the very center of life in the kingdom. Mark this: Unless you accept God’s kingdom in the simplicity of a child, you’ll never get in.” Then, gathering the children up in his arms, he laid his hands of blessing on them.
To Enter God’s Kingdom
17As he went out into the street, a man came running up, greeted him with great reverence, and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to get eternal life?”
18-19Jesus said, “Why are you calling me good? No one is good, only God. You know the commandments: Don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t lie, don’t cheat, honor your father and mother.”
20He said, “Teacher, I have—from my youth—kept them all!”
21Jesus looked him hard in the eye—and loved him! He said, “There’s one thing left: Go sell whatever you own and give it to the poor. All your wealth will then be heavenly wealth. And come follow me.”
22The man’s face clouded over. This was the last thing he expected to hear, and he walked off with a heavy heart. He was holding on tight to a lot of things, and not about to let go.
23-25Looking at his disciples, Jesus said, “Do you have any idea how difficult it is for people who ‘have it all’ to enter God’s kingdom?” The disciples couldn’t believe what they were hearing, but Jesus kept on: “You can’t imagine how difficult. I’d say it’s easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye than for the rich to get into God’s kingdom.”
26 That got their attention. “Then who has any chance at all?” they asked.
27Jesus was blunt: “No chance at all if you think you can pull it off by yourself. Every chance in the world if you let God do it.”
28Peter tried another angle: “We left everything and followed you.”
29-31Jesus said, “Mark my words, no one who sacrifices house, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, land—whatever—because of me and the Message will lose out. They’ll get it all back, but multiplied many times in homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and land—but also in troubles. And then the bonus of eternal life! This is once again the Great Reversal: Many who are first will end up last, and the last first.”
32-34Back on the road, they set out for Jerusalem. Jesus had a head start on them, and they were following, puzzled and not just a little afraid. He took the Twelve and began again to go over what to expect next. “Listen to me carefully. We’re on our way up to Jerusalem. When we get there, the Son of Man will be betrayed to the religious leaders and scholars. They will sentence him to death. Then they will hand him over to the Romans, who will mock and spit on him, give him the third degree, and kill him. After three days he will rise alive.”
The Highest Places of Honor
35James and John, Zebedee’s sons, came up to him. “Teacher, we have something we want you to do for us.”
36“What is it? I’ll see what I can do.”
37“Arrange it,” they said, “so that we will be awarded the highest places of honor in your glory—one of us at your right, the other at your left.”
38Jesus said, “You have no idea what you’re asking. Are you capable of drinking the cup I drink, of being baptized in the baptism I’m about to be plunged into?”
39-40“Sure,” they said. “Why not?”
Jesus said, “Come to think of it, you will drink the cup I drink, and be baptized in my baptism. But as to awarding places of honor, that’s not my business. There are other arrangements for that.”
41-45When the other ten heard of this conversation, they lost their tempers with James and John. Jesus got them together to settle things down. “You’ve observed how godless rulers throw their weight around,” he said, “and when people get a little power how quickly it goes to their heads. It’s not going to be that way with you. Whoever wants to be great must become a servant. Whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave. That is what the Son of Man has done: He came to serve, not to be served—and then to give away his life in exchange for many who are held hostage.”
* * *
46-48They spent some time in Jericho. As Jesus was leaving town, trailed by his disciples and a parade of people, a blind beggar by the name of Bartimaeus, son of Timaeus, was sitting alongside the road. When he heard that Jesus the Nazarene was passing by, he began to cry out, “Son of David, Jesus! Mercy, have mercy on me!” Many tried to hush him up, but he yelled all the louder, “Son of David! Mercy, have mercy on me!”
49-50Jesus stopped in his tracks. “Call him over.”
They called him. “It’s your lucky day! Get up! He’s calling you to come!” Throwing off his coat, he was on his feet at once and came to Jesus.
51Jesus said, “What can I do for you?”
The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.”
52“On your way,” said Jesus. “Your faith has saved and healed you.”
In that very instant he recovered his sight and followed Jesus down the road.
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.