Teaching About Divorce

10 (A)And he left there and went (B)to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan, and crowds gathered to him again. And again, as was his custom, he taught them.

And Pharisees came up and in order (C)to test him asked, (D)“Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” He answered them, “What did Moses command you?” They said, (E)“Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce and to send her away.” And Jesus said to them, “Because of your (F)hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment. But (G)from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them (H)male and female.’ (I)‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife,[a] and (J)the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. (K)What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

10 And in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. 11 And he said to them, (L)“Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her, 12 and (M)if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”

Let the Children Come to Me

13 (N)And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples (O)rebuked them. 14 But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, (P)“Let the children come to me; (Q)do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. 15 (R)Truly, I say to you, whoever does not (S)receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” 16 And (T)he took them in his arms and blessed them, (U)laying his hands on them.

The Rich Young Man

17 (V)And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and (W)knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to (X)inherit eternal life?” 18 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: (Y)‘Do not murder, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” 20 And he said to him, “Teacher, (Z)all these I have kept from my youth.” 21 And Jesus, (AA)looking at him, (AB)loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, (AC)sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have (AD)treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 22 (AE)Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

23 And Jesus (AF)looked around and said to his disciples, (AG)“How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter (AH)the kingdom of God!” 24 And the disciples (AI)were amazed at his words. But Jesus said to them again, (AJ)“Children, (AK)how difficult it is[b] to enter (AL)the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter (AM)the kingdom of God.” 26 And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him,[c] “Then who can be saved?” 27 Jesus (AN)looked at them and said, (AO)“With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.” 28 Peter began to say to him, “See, (AP)we have left everything and followed you.” 29 Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, (AQ)there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and (AR)for the gospel, 30 who will not receive a hundredfold (AS)now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, (AT)with persecutions, and in (AU)the age to come eternal life. 31 But (AV)many who are first will be last, and the last first.”

Jesus Foretells His Death a Third Time

32 (AW)And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and (AX)Jesus was walking ahead of them. And (AY)they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, 33 saying, “See, (AZ)we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will (BA)condemn him to death and (BB)deliver him over to the Gentiles. 34 And they will (BC)mock him and (BD)spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And (BE)after three days he will rise.”

The Request of James and John

35 (BF)And James and John, (BG)the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us (BH)whatever we ask of you.” 36 And he said to them, (BI)“What do you want me to do for you?” 37 And they said to him, “Grant us (BJ)to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, (BK)in your glory.” 38 Jesus said to them, (BL)“You do not know what you are asking. Are you able (BM)to drink the cup that I drink, or (BN)to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” 39 And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, (BO)“The cup that I drink (BP)you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, (BQ)you will be baptized, 40 but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, (BR)but it is for those for whom it has been (BS)prepared.” 41 And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John. 42 (BT)And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles (BU)lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 43 But (BV)it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,[d] 44 and whoever would be first among you must be (BW)slave[e] of all. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but (BX)to serve, and (BY)to give his life as a ransom for (BZ)many.”

Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus

46 (CA)And they came to Jericho. And (CB)as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, (CC)a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. 47 And when he heard that it was (CD)Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 And many (CE)rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, (CF)“Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” 50 And throwing off his (CG)cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51 And Jesus said to him, (CH)“What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, (CI)“Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” 52 And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; (CJ)your faith has (CK)made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.

Footnotes

  1. Mark 10:7 Some manuscripts omit and hold fast to his wife
  2. Mark 10:24 Some manuscripts add for those who trust in riches
  3. Mark 10:26 Some manuscripts to one another
  4. Mark 10:43 Greek diakonos
  5. Mark 10:44 Or bondservant, or servant (for the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface)

The Question of Divorce

10 He(A) set out from there and went to the region of Judea(B) and across the Jordan.(C) Then crowds converged on him again, and as was his custom he taught(D) them again.

Some Pharisees(E) came to test(F) him, asking, “Is it lawful(G) for a man to divorce(H) his wife?” (I)

He replied to them, “What did Moses(J) command you?”

They said, “Moses permitted us to write divorce papers(K) and send her away.”(L)

But Jesus told them, “He wrote this command for you because of the hardness of your hearts. (M) But from the beginning(N) of creation(O) God[a] made them male and female.[b](P) For this reason a man will leave (Q) his father and mother [c] and the two will become one flesh.[d](R) So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”(S)

10 When they were in the house again, the disciples questioned him about this matter. 11 He said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife(T) and marries(U) another commits adultery(V) against her. 12 Also, if she divorces her husband(W) and marries another, she commits adultery.”

Blessing the Children

13 People(X) were bringing little children(Y) to him in order that he might touch them, but the disciples rebuked(Z) them. 14 When Jesus saw it, he was indignant(AA) and said to them, “Let the little children come to me.(AB) Don’t stop(AC) them, because the kingdom of God(AD) belongs to such as these. 15 Truly I tell you,(AE) whoever does not receive[e](AF) the kingdom of God like a little child(AG) will never enter it.” 16 After taking them in his arms, he laid his hands on(AH) them and blessed(AI) them.

The Rich Young Ruler

17 As(AJ) he was setting out on a journey,(AK) a man ran up, knelt down(AL) before him, and asked him, “Good(AM) teacher,(AN) what must I do to inherit(AO) eternal life?” (AP)

18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked him. “No one is good except God alone.(AQ) 19 You know the commandments: Do not murder;(AR) do not commit adultery;(AS) do not steal;(AT) do not bear false witness;(AU) do not defraud;(AV) honor(AW) your father and mother.[f](AX)

20 He said to him, “Teacher,(AY) I have kept all these from my youth.”

21 Looking at him, Jesus loved him(AZ) and said to him, “You lack one thing: Go, sell all you have and give to the poor,(BA) and you will have treasure(BB) in heaven.(BC) Then come,[g] follow me.”(BD) 22 But he was dismayed by this demand, and he went away grieving,(BE) because he had many possessions.(BF)

Possessions and the Kingdom

23 Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for those who have wealth(BG) to enter the kingdom of God!”(BH)

24 The disciples were astonished at his words. Again Jesus said to them, “Children,(BI) how hard it is[h] to enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich(BJ) person to enter the kingdom of God.”

26 They were even more astonished, saying to one another, “Then who can be saved?” (BK)

27 Looking at them, Jesus said, “With man it is impossible,(BL) but not with God, because all things are possible with God.”

28 Peter(BM) began to tell him, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.”

29 “Truly I tell you,”(BN) Jesus said, “there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father[i] or children or fields for my sake and for the sake of the gospel,(BO) 30 who will not receive a hundred times(BP) more, now at this time(BQ) —houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions(BR) —and eternal life(BS) in the age to come.(BT) 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”(BU)

The Third Prediction of His Death

32 They(BV) were on the road, going up to Jerusalem,(BW) and Jesus was walking ahead of them. The disciples were astonished, but those who followed him were afraid.(BX) Taking the Twelve aside again, he began to tell them the things that would happen to him.(BY) 33 “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. The Son of Man(BZ) will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes,(CA) and they will condemn him to death. Then they will hand him over to the Gentiles,(CB) 34 and they will mock him, spit on him, flog[j] him, and kill him, and he will rise(CC) after three days.”(CD)

Suffering and Service

35 James(CE) and John,(CF) the sons of Zebedee,(CG) approached him and said, “Teacher,(CH) we want you to do whatever we ask you.”

36 “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked them.

37 They answered him, “Allow us to sit at your right and at your left in your glory.”(CI)

38 Jesus said to them, “You don’t know what you’re asking.(CJ) Are you able to drink the cup(CK) I drink or to be baptized with the baptism(CL) I am baptized with?”(CM)

39 “We are able,” they told him.

Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink, and you will be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with.(CN) 40 But to sit at my right or left is not mine to give; instead, it is for those for whom it has been prepared.”

41 When the ten disciples heard this, they began to be indignant with James and John.(CO) 42 Jesus called them over and said to them, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over(CP) them, and those in high positions act as tyrants over them. 43 But it is not so among you.(CQ) On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you will be your servant,(CR) 44 and whoever wants to be first among you will be a slave to all.(CS) 45 For even the Son of Man(CT) did not come to be served, but to serve,(CU) and to give his life(CV) as a ransom(CW) for many.”[k](CX)

A Blind Man Healed

46 They(CY) came to Jericho.(CZ) And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a large crowd, Bartimaeus (the son of Timaeus), a blind(DA) beggar,(DB) was sitting by the road.(DC) 47 When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth,(DD) he began to cry out, “Jesus, Son of David,(DE) have mercy(DF) on me!” (DG) 48 Many warned him to keep quiet, but he was crying out all the more, “Have mercy on me,(DH) Son of David!”

49 Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”

So they called the blind man and said to him, “Have courage!(DI) Get up; he’s calling for you.” 50 He threw off his coat,(DJ) jumped up, and came to Jesus.

51 Then Jesus answered him, “What do you want(DK) me to do for you?”

“Rabboni,”[l](DL) the blind man said to him, “I want to see.”

52 Jesus said to him, “Go, your faith has saved you.”(DM) Immediately he could see and began to follow Jesus on the road.

Footnotes

  1. 10:6 Other mss omit God
  2. 10:6 Gn 1:27; 5:2
  3. 10:7 Some mss add and be joined to his wife
  4. 10:7–8 Gn 2:24
  5. 10:15 Or not welcome
  6. 10:19 Ex 20:12–16; Dt 5:16–20
  7. 10:21 Other mss add taking up the cross, and
  8. 10:24 Other mss add for those trusting in wealth
  9. 10:29 Other mss add or wife
  10. 10:34 Or scourge
  11. 10:45 Or in the place of many; Is 53:10–12
  12. 10:51 Hb word for my lord