Mark 16:9-20 — The longer ending of Mark
23/4/23
Preach»
Scripture
Questions
Most modern scholarship rejects 16:9-20 as Markian1. That does not necessarily mean that any later additions are not God-breathed [2 Timothy 3:16-17].
What do you understand by the trustworthiness of scripture? Does trustworthiness mean no editing? How about Deuteronomy 34?
9 Now early on the first day of the week, after he rose, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had expelled seven demons. 10 She went out and announced it to those who were with him while they were mourning and weeping.
This is a summary of John 20:11-18.
Who did Jesus appear to according to v1? Can different accounts give different details? Does this suggest that vv9-10 are Markian or a short account written by someone else?
11 And those, when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, refused to believe it. 12 And after these things, he appeared in a different form [μορφῇ] to two of them as they were walking, while they were going out into the countryside. 13 And these went and reported it to the others, and they did not believe them.
This is a summary of the Emmaus road appearance [Luke 24:13-52].
Compare Luke 24:16,31 with v12. Why might the resurrected Jesus have looked different? How do you imagine you will look in your resurrected body?
14 And later, while they were reclining at table, he appeared to the eleven. And he reprimanded their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen him after he had been raised.
This is a summary of Luke 24:36-42 and John 20:19-23.
Does this portrayal of the disciples unbelief fit with the rest of Mark?
15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16 The one who believes and is baptized will be saved, but the one who refuses to believe will be condemned.
This is a summary of Matthew 28:16-20.
What extra details does Matthew give us?
17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will expel demons, they will speak in new tongues, 18 they will pick up snakes [with their hands. And if they drink any deadly poison it will never hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick and they will get well.” 19 Then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. 20 And they went out and proclaimed everywhere, while the Lord was working together with them and confirming the message through the accompanying signs.
This is supported by Luke 24:50-53 and Acts 1:9-11. This is the Spirit-filled growth of the church beginning at Pentecost.
Furthermore, the writer is interpreting the Lucan “sky” and “clouds” as being with God. This symbolism has rich support from the apocalyptic writing of the OT especially…
13 “I continued watching in the visions of the night, and look, with the clouds of heaven one like a son of man was coming, and he came to the Ancient of Days, and was presented before him. 14 And to him was given dominion and glory and kingship that all the peoples, the nations, and languages would serve him; his dominion is a dominion without end that will not cease, and his kingdom is one that will not be destroyed.
See also Psalm 110:1. This really does address, yet again, Jewish theological thinking of the Second Temple period.
“W. R. Farmer, The Last Twelve Verses of Mark, stands out as the one serious attempt in recent times to argue for the authenticity of 16:9–20. It has not escaped readers of Farmer’s work that a conclusion of Mark which consists largely of what I have called below ‘a pastiche of elements drawn from the other gospels and Acts’ would fit more comfortably with the Griesbach theory of gospel origins which Farmer champions than with the more common view that Mark was the earliest gospel. For a detailed text-critical review of Farmer’s argument see J. N. Birdsall, JTS 26 (1975) 151–60.” R. T. France, The Gospel of Mark: A Commentary on the Greek Text, New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI; Carlisle: W.B. Eerdmans; Paternoster Press, 2002).