Mary, Mother of Mark

Biblical Account

Mary is named in Scripture only once, in Acts 12. King Herod (generally identified as Herod Agrippa I) put James to death and imprisoned Peter. Meanwhile, the church prayed earnestly for Peter (Acts 12:5). After an angel led him out of prison, Peter "came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together praying" (Acts 12:12).

When he knocked at the door, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer. Recognizing Peter's voice, she was so overjoyed that she ran inside to announce it without opening the door. At first those gathered did not believe her and said, "It is his angel" (Acts 12:13–16).

The text says nothing about Mary's husband or other family members. Her son Mark (John Mark) later accompanied Barnabas and Paul on their missionary journey (Acts 12:25; 13:5).

Significance in Scripture

This account depicts the Jerusalem early church gathering in a believer's home for prayer and fellowship. Because the house is called by Mary's name rather than her husband's, because it had a gate and a servant girl, and because it could accommodate many people, interpreters generally infer the following:

• Mary possessed some measure of wealth.
• Mary was the head of the household; many hold that she was a widow.

These, however, are inferences drawn from the text.

Colossians 4:10 describes Mark as a relative of Barnabas. Translations differ on the precise term: among Korean Bible versions, the New Korean Revised Version renders it as "nephew" (a sister's son), while the New Korean Standard Version renders it as "cousin." Mary's exact relationship to Barnabas therefore remains unclear.

Interpretation and Debated Points

Several traditions commonly associated with Mary are not found in the text. According to one tradition, her house was the upper room where the Last Supper took place (Mark 14:14–15) and the place where the disciples gathered at the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 1:13; 2:1). The interpretation that identifies Mark with the young man who left the linen cloth and fled (Mark 14:51–52) is often mentioned alongside this tradition. All of these are conjectures or church traditions that Scripture does not directly state. Certain churches in Jerusalem are also known to claim that they stand on the site of this house.

Several women named Mary appear in the New Testament. This Mary is distinct from the following:

• Mary, the mother of Jesus
• Mary Magdalene
• Mary the sister of Martha

In the Korean Church

In the preaching of Korean churches, Mary is treated mainly in two ways. First, in sermons on the prayer meeting of Acts 12 and its answer, she is presented as one who opened her home to the gatherings of the church. Second, she is cited as a model for house church or small group gatherings. Through association with the upper room tradition mentioned above, the expression "Mark's upper room" is sometimes used in Korean churches as a name for prayer meetings or meeting spaces, although the expression does not appear in the biblical text itself.