Mark 4

Mark 4 brings together Jesus' teaching in parables during his Galilean ministry. After Jesus declares in chapter 3 that whoever does the will of God is his true family, the narrative returns to a scene of Jesus teaching the crowds by the sea.

Outline

• Verses 1–9 When a great multitude gathers, Jesus sits in a boat and teaches the Parable of the Sower. The seed falls by the wayside, on stony ground, among thorns, and on good ground. The seed that falls on good ground bears fruit thirtyfold, sixtyfold, and a hundredfold.
• Verses 10–12 The disciples ask the meaning of the parable. Jesus answers that the mystery of the kingdom of God has been given to them, but that to those outside he speaks in parables.
• Verses 13–20 Jesus explains the parable. The seed is the word, and the four kinds of ground represent four kinds of people who hear the word.
• Verses 21–25 Two sayings follow: that a lamp is set on a candlestick, and that "with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you."
• Verses 26–29 In this parable, seed grows by itself, without the sower knowing how, until the harvest. Of the four Gospels, only Mark contains it.
• Verses 30–32 The Parable of the Mustard Seed is told.
• Verses 33–34 A summary states that Jesus spoke to the people only in parables but privately explained all things to his disciples.
• Verses 35–41 At evening, while crossing to the other side, they encounter a great storm of wind. Jesus, asleep in the hinder part of the ship, rebukes the wind and the sea and calms them (Calming the Storm). The disciples, greatly afraid, ask, "What manner of man is this?"

Key Verses

• Mark 4:20 "Such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred." — The conclusion of the parable's explanation.
• Mark 4:39 "Peace, be still." — Demonstrates Jesus' authority over nature.
• Mark 4:41 "What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?" — Raises the question that runs through the entire Gospel of Mark: Who is Jesus?

People and Places

• Jesus Christ
• The Twelve Disciples: According to verse 10, "they that were about him," in addition to the Twelve, also asked the meaning of the parable.
• Satan (verse 15): Mentioned as the one who takes away the word sown by the wayside. See Satan.
• The sea: Understood to be the same place as the seashore of Galilee in chapter 1, that is, the Sea of Galilee. See Galilee.

Interpretive Considerations

• Verse 12 quotes Isaiah 6:9–10 in the form of a purpose clause ("That seeing they may see, and not perceive"). Reformed interpreters, with their emphasis on the sovereignty of God, read this as God's judicial decree. Other interpreters regard it as an expression of result or as a paradoxical idiom characteristic of the prophetic books. The parallel passage in Matthew 13:13 presents the same content as a statement of reason.
• Interpretations differ on the description of the mustard seed in verse 31 as "less than all the seeds." Some read it as a botanical statement; others take it as an idiomatic expression in which the mustard seed stands for the smallest seed known to the original audience.
• The parable section has parallels in Matthew 13 and Luke 8, and the storm narrative has parallels in Matthew 8 and Luke 8.

In the Korean Church

• The Parable of the Sower is commonly explained in terms of the "heart-field" (maeumbat) and is frequently used in sermons and Sunday school lessons.
• The storm narrative is widely used as a sermon text on faith in the midst of hardship.