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BOOK 41 OF 66 · GOSPELS · KING JAMES BIBLE

Mark 3

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REVIEWED OVERVIEW

Mark 3 Overview

Jesus heals a man with a withered hand on the sabbath, provoking a plot against Him. Crowds gather from many regions, unclean spirits identify Him, and Jesus appoints twelve to be with Him and be sent to preach. Scribes accuse Him of having Beelzebub, and He answers that a divided kingdom cannot stand. He warns about blasphemy against the Holy Ghost and identifies those who do God’s will as His true family.

MarkBook
3Chapter
35Verses
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Before you read Mark 3

Coming from

Mark 2 established the immediate context: Jesus heals a paralytic after first forgiving his sins, calls Levi from the tax office, eats with publicans and sinners, answers questions about fasting, and defends His disciples for plucking grain on the sabbath.

In this chapter

Mark 3 intensifies both popularity and opposition while showing Jesus forming the Twelve and exposing the seriousness of attributing God’s work to Satan.

Leads into

Mark 4 continues the account: Jesus teaches by the sea in parables: the sower, the lamp, the measure, the secretly growing seed, and the mustard seed.

Key understandingExplore deeper

The sabbath healing exposes hardened hearts willing to preserve a rule-system while refusing obvious mercy. Jesus is grieved at their hardness.

The blasphemy warning belongs to the context of knowledgeable religious opponents attributing the Holy Ghost’s work through Jesus to an unclean spirit.

Major truths in this chapterExplore deeper

Hardness can coexist with religious seriousness

The opponents watch for grounds of accusation rather than rejoice at restoration.

Jesus deliberately forms a missionary community

The Twelve are appointed first to be with Him and then to be sent.

Satan cannot plausibly explain Jesus’ victory over Satan

Jesus’ exorcisms point to a stronger One binding the strong man.

Spiritual kinship centers on response to God through Jesus

Natural family does not define the boundaries of His disciple community.

Connections to the rest of ScriptureExplore deeper

Matthew 12:22–50

Matthew preserves a fuller parallel of the Beelzebub controversy and family saying.

Isaiah 42:1–4

Jesus’ restorative ministry amid opposition fits the Servant pattern.

Acts 4:13

The apostles’ later boldness is connected with having been with Jesus, echoing their first calling here.

Hebrews 3:12–13

The New Testament repeatedly warns against hardening the heart in the face of God’s word.

What is clear, and where care is neededExplore deeper

Do not use the unpardonable-sin warning to terrorize people who fear they may have accidentally committed it

The context is persistent, hostile attribution of clear Spirit-empowered works to Satan.

Do not assume appointment of the Twelve means every later church leader shares apostolic authority in the same sense

The Twelve have a foundational historical role.

Do not use Jesus’ family statement to justify neglect of natural family responsibilities

He is defining spiritual kinship, not abolishing ordinary duties.

Read Mark 3 watching for…

The opponents’ reaction to the withered-hand healing.

The geographic reach of the crowds.

Why Jesus appoints the Twelve.

The logic of the divided-kingdom answer.

The exact context of the blasphemy warning.

The final family definition.

TWBC REVIEW STANDARD

Plain language. Scripture first. Fact distinguished from inference. No filler. No fake certainty. Designed to help you read the Bible itself.

Chapter outline4 sections
1-12Jesus heals a man on the Sabbath and great multitudes follow him13-21Jesus appoints twelve apostles, and his friends fear he is beside himself22-30Jesus answers the charge that he casts out devils by Beelzebub31-35Jesus identifies those who do God’s will as his family
1

And he entered again into the synagogue; and there was a man there which had a withered hand.

2

And they watched him, whether he would heal him on the sabbath day; that they might accuse him.

3

And he saith unto the man which had the withered hand, Stand forth.

4

And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace.

5

And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other.

6

And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodians against him, how they might destroy him.

7

But Jesus withdrew himself with his disciples to the sea: and a great multitude from Galilee followed him, and from Judaea,

8

And from Jerusalem, and from Idumaea, and from beyond Jordan; and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they had heard what great things he did, came unto him.

9

And he spake to his disciples, that a small ship should wait on him because of the multitude, lest they should throng him.

10

For he had healed many; insomuch that they pressed upon him for to touch him, as many as had plagues.

11

And unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God.

12

And he straitly charged them that they should not make him known.

13

And he goeth up into a mountain, and calleth unto him whom he would: and they came unto him.

14

And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach,

15

And to have power to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils:

16

And Simon he surnamed Peter;

17

And James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he surnamed them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder:

18

And Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Canaanite,

19

And Judas Iscariot, which also betrayed him: and they went into an house.

20

And the multitude cometh together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread.

21

And when his friends heard of it, they went out to lay hold on him: for they said, He is beside himself.

22

And the scribes which came down from Jerusalem said, He hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils casteth he out devils.

23

And he called them unto him, and said unto them in parables, How can Satan cast out Satan?

24

And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.

25

And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand.

26

And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end.

27

No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house.

28

Verily I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme:

29

But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation:

30

Because they said, He hath an unclean spirit.

31

There came then his brethren and his mother, and, standing without, sent unto him, calling him.

32

And the multitude sat about him, and they said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren without seek for thee.

33

And he answered them, saying, Who is my mother, or my brethren?

34

And he looked round about on them which sat about him, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren!

35

For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother.

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Mark 3:17

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