Mark 9
The full text of Mark 9 in the Trinity Bible Version — clear modern English, translated from the original Greek. Free to read.
1 And he said to them, "Truly I tell you, some of those standing here will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God already come in power."
2 After six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John with him and brought them up a high mountain, where they were alone. And he was transfigured before them.
3 His clothes became dazzling white, whiter than anyone on earth could bleach them.
4 And Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus.
5 Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it's good for us to be here. Let's put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."
6 He didn't know what to say, for they were terrified.
7 And a cloud came and covered them, and a voice came from the cloud: "This is my Son, the Beloved. Listen to him!"
8 Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone with them—only Jesus.
9 As they were coming down the mountain, he gave them strict orders to tell no one what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead.
10 They held on to what he said, asking one another what "rising from the dead" could mean.
11 And they asked him, "Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?"
12 He answered them, "Elijah indeed comes first and restores all things. Then how is it written that the Son of Man should suffer many things and be rejected?
13 But I tell you, Elijah has come, and they did to him whatever they pleased, just as it is written about him.
14 When they came back to the disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and some scribes debating with them.
15 As soon as the crowd saw him, they were all overcome with awe, and they ran to greet him.
16 He asked them, "What are you arguing about with them?"
17 A man in the crowd answered him, "Teacher, I brought you my son. He has a mute spirit—
18 Wherever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground, and he foams, grinds his teeth, and goes stiff. I asked your disciples to drive it out, but they couldn't.
19 He answered them, "O faithless generation, how long must I be with you? How long must I bear with you? Bring him to me."
20 They brought the boy to him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it convulsed him violently; he fell to the ground and kept rolling around, foaming at the mouth.
21 Jesus asked the boy's father, "How long has this been happening to him?" "Since childhood," he answered.
22 It has often thrown him into fire and water to kill him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.
23 Jesus said to him, "'If you can'? Everything is possible for the one who believes."
24 Immediately the father of the child cried out, "I do believe! Help my unbelief!"
25 When Jesus saw that a crowd was rapidly gathering, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, "You mute and deaf spirit, I myself command you: come out of him, and never enter him again!"
26 The spirit cried out, threw him into violent convulsions, and came out. The boy looked like a corpse, so that many were saying, "He is dead."
27 But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he stood.
28 After he had gone into the house, his disciples asked him privately, "Why couldn't we drive it out?"
29 He told them, "This kind can come out only by prayer."
30 They left that place and passed through Galilee, and he did not want anyone to know,
31 For he was teaching his disciples, telling them, "The Son of Man is being handed over into human hands, and they will kill him, and after three days he will rise."
32 But they did not understand what he meant, and they were afraid to ask him.
33 They came to Capernaum, and when he was in the house, he asked them, "What were you discussing on the way?"
34 But they kept silent, because on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest.
35 He sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them, "If anyone wants to be first, he will be last of all and servant of all."
36 He took a little child and set him among them. Taking the child in his arms, he said to them,
37 "Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me is welcoming not just me but the one who sent me."
38 John said to him, "Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we were stopping him, because he wasn't following us."
39 But Jesus said, "Don't stop him. No one who does a miracle in my name will be able to turn around and curse me."
40 For whoever is not against us is for us.
41 Truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to Christ will certainly not lose their reward.
42 Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to fall — it would be better for him to have a donkey-millstone hung around his neck and be thrown into the sea.
43 If your hand makes you fall, cut it off. It is better to enter life maimed than to have both hands and go into Gehenna, into the fire that never goes out.
45 And if your foot trips you into sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have both feet and be thrown into Gehenna.
47 And if your eye causes you to fall away, throw it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into Gehenna,
48 where the worms that eat them never die, and the fire is never put out.
49 For everyone will be salted with fire.
50 Salt is good, but if salt becomes saltless, how can you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.
Translation notes (55)
- Mark 9:1a The phrase "already come" translates the Greek verb form elēlythyian, which depicts the kingdom as having arrived with a lasting effect. Interpreters have identified what this refers to in various ways, including the Transfiguration (which immediately follows), the resurrection, Pentecost, or the Parousia (the second coming of Christ).
- Mark 9:1b The phrase "taste death" preserves the Greek idiom geusōntai thanatou. This image is vivid and also idiomatic in English.
- Mark 9:2a Greek metemorphōthē, aorist passive ('was transfigured'); the agent is unstated. The verb is the source of English 'metamorphosis'; Paul uses it of believers' transformation in 2 Cor 3:18.
- Mark 9:2b Mark and Matthew state 'after six days,' while Luke 9:28 reads 'about eight days.' Mark's mention of 'six days' may recall Exodus 24:16, where Moses waited six days before God spoke from the cloud on Mount Sinai.
- Mark 9:3a The Greek word gnapheus refers to a fuller or launderer, someone who cleans and whitens cloth. This word is translated as 'anyone' because the trade is unfamiliar to modern readers.
- Mark 9:5a The Greek word skēnas means 'tents,' 'booths,' or 'shelters,' and likely refers to the Feast of Booths (Sukkot).
- Mark 9:7a Or "my only Son" or "my chosen Son." Greek ἀγαπητός often carries the sense of "only" or "unique" (cf. Gen 22:2 LXX of Isaac); Luke's parallel reads "the Chosen One" (Luke 9:35).
- Mark 9:7b "Listen to him" echoes Deut 18:15, where Moses promises a future prophet whom Israel must heed.
- Mark 9:9a This can also be translated as 'except after the Son of Man has risen from the dead.' The Greek phrase ei mē hotan means 'except when,' and the verb form used with it indicates an action that will happen in the future from the speaker's perspective.
- Mark 9:9b The title 'Son of Man' is Jesus' usual way of referring to himself in Mark, drawing on Daniel 7:13.
- Mark 9:10a The Greek phrase ton logon ekratēsan means 'held fast to the word/saying.' Here, it refers to the command Jesus had just given in verse 9 to tell no one about the transfiguration.
- Mark 9:12a The Greek word pōs, meaning 'how,' is used here to raise a problem or express a strong feeling, rather than simply asking about the manner of something.
- Mark 9:12b The Greek word exoudenēthē means 'be despised,' 'be treated as nothing,' or 'be rejected.' This echoes Isaiah 53:3, which describes the suffering servant as 'despised and rejected.'
- Mark 9:13a This can also be translated as 'against him.' The Greek preposition epi, when used with the accusative case, can mean 'against,' which fits the context of violent treatment.
- Mark 9:14a The Greek plural verb form elthontes, meaning 'when they came,' is found in early manuscripts such as ℵ, B, D, L, W, and Θ, and is adopted by the critical Greek text. A few later manuscripts read the singular elthōn, meaning 'when he came,' which is reflected in the King James Version.
- Mark 9:17a The Greek phrase pneuma alalon literally means 'a mute spirit.' The word 'mute' directly describes the spirit, and verse 25 shows that this spirit also makes the boy unable to speak.
- Mark 9:18a The Greek word xērainetai literally means 'withers' or 'dries up.' Mark uses this same verb to describe a withered hand (3:1) and a withered fig tree (11:20–21). Here, it describes the body becoming stiff or rigid after a seizure.
- Mark 9:19a Or 'unbelieving generation.' Greek ἄπιστος covers both cognitive unbelief and covenantal disloyalty; the phrase echoes Deut 32:20 LXX (γενεὰ... οἷς οὐκ ἔστιν πίστις) and Num 14:11.
- Mark 9:20a This can also be translated as 'when he [the boy] saw him.' The Greek masculine verb form idōn, meaning 'when he saw,' could refer to the boy. However, the Greek neuter word to pneuma, meaning 'the spirit,' is understood as the subject, which makes sense in context given the violent reaction.
- Mark 9:22a The Greek text reads 'if you can do anything.' Jesus then picks up on the father's conditional phrase, 'if you can,' in verse 23.
- Mark 9:22b The Greek word splanchnistheis, a verb form, means 'help us, moved with compassion for us.' This shows that compassion is the feeling behind the requested help.
- Mark 9:23a The earliest manuscripts (א, B, A, C*) read 'If you can' (Greek: ei dynē). Later Byzantine manuscripts expand this to 'If you can believe' (Greek: ei dynē pisteusai), which is the basis for the traditional King James Version rendering.
- Mark 9:23b The Greek word to before ei dynē indicates that Jesus is echoing the father's words from verse 22. Some translations punctuate this as an exclamation ('If you can!') rather than a question; the original Greek text leaves the tone open.
- Mark 9:24a The Majority text and later Byzantine manuscripts (including A, C³, and most later manuscripts) add the Greek phrase meta dakryōn, meaning 'with tears,' after 'cried out.' This phrase is omitted by other early manuscripts (ℵ, B, C*, D, L, W, Δ, Θ) and the critical Greek text.
- Mark 9:25a The Greek phrase alalon kai kōphon means 'mute and deaf.' The word alalon echoes the father's description of the spirit in Mark 9:17.
- Mark 9:25b The Greek word egō, meaning 'I myself,' is grammatically unnecessary here; its presence stresses Jesus' own authority, unlike Acts 16:18 where authority is invoked in another's name.
- Mark 9:26a Some manuscripts, reflecting the later Byzantine tradition, add 'from him' after 'came out'; this reading is reflected in the King James Version.
- Mark 9:29a Most later manuscripts (including ℵ², A, C, D, L, W, Θ, f¹, f¹³, 𝔐, latt, sy, and co) add the Greek phrase kai nēsteia, meaning 'and fasting.' However, the earliest witnesses (𝔓45vid, ℵ*, and B) read 'by prayer' alone, and the critical Greek text follows this shorter reading.
- Mark 9:31a The Greek literally reads 'into the hands of men.' This has been rendered 'human hands' to preserve the wordplay between 'Son of Man' and 'hands of men' (using the Greek words anthrōpou and anthrōpōn) while still reading naturally in English.
- Mark 9:31b The Greek word paradidotai is in the present tense and is often understood as a 'divine passive,' meaning that God is the implied agent of the action. Translating it as 'is being handed over' preserves the sense that this event is imminent and unfolding.
- Mark 9:31c The Greek reads 'after three days.' Matthew 17:23 and Luke 9:22 read 'on the third day.' Both phrases reflect Jewish inclusive day-counting and refer to the same event.
- Mark 9:35a The Greek word diakonos here means a household servant or a table-waiter, not the later church office of deacon.
- Mark 9:37a The Greek literally reads 'welcomes not me but the one who sent me.' This is a Semitic way of speaking, where 'not X but Y' means 'not merely X but also Y,' rather than a complete denial of X.
- Mark 9:37b The Greek word dechomai means to receive, welcome, or accept hospitably. The word toioutōn here is qualitative, meaning 'of such kind,' rather than deictic, which would mean 'these' specific ones.
- Mark 9:38a This can also be translated as 'because he wasn't one of us.' The Greek word akoloutheō in Mark often refers to a discipleship attachment, not just simple physical accompaniment.
- Mark 9:38b Some manuscripts (including A, family 13, and later Byzantine manuscripts) add the phrase 'who does not follow us' earlier in the sentence. However, the critical Greek text omits this phrase, following manuscripts such as א, B, C, L, W, Δ, and Ψ.
- Mark 9:39a The Greek word dynamis refers to a miracle or a 'mighty work,' signifying an act of power.
- Mark 9:39b The Greek word tachy can mean either 'soon afterward' (referring to time) or 'readily/easily' (referring to manner). The translation 'Turn around and' aims to capture both of these senses.
- Mark 9:39c Greek kakologeō: speak evil of, revile, curse (cf. Mark 7:10, Exod 21:17 LXX).
- Mark 9:41a Some manuscripts read 'in my name because you are Christ's,' while others read simply 'in name that you are Christ's.' The earliest reading is grammatically awkward in Greek, which is likely why later scribes made changes to make it smoother.
- Mark 9:41b The Greek phrase 'in name that you are Christ's' is an idiom, a common expression, meaning 'on the ground that' or 'because you bear Christ's name.'
- Mark 9:42a The Greek phrase mylos onikos means 'donkey-millstone,' referring to the large upper stone of a commercial mill that was turned by a donkey, making it far heavier than a household hand-mill. The significant size of this millstone is the main point of the image.
- Mark 9:42b This can also be translated as "causes to stumble" or "trips up the faith of." The Greek word skandalizō evokes a trap that springs and brings someone down, not a minor offense.
- Mark 9:43a Gehenna refers to the Valley of Hinnom outside Jerusalem, which was used in Jewish tradition as an image of fiery final judgment. It is distinct from Hades, which is the realm of the dead.
- Mark 9:43b Some later manuscripts, which are reflected in the King James Version, add verses 44 and 46, repeating the refrain of verse 48 ("where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched"). The earliest manuscripts, including Sinaiticus and Vaticanus, omit these verses.
- Mark 9:45a Some manuscripts add the phrase: "into the fire that will never be quenched" (compare verse 43).
- Mark 9:45b The Greek word Gehenna refers to the valley outside Jerusalem, which was used as an image of the place of judgment.
- Mark 9:47a The Greek word Gehenna refers to the Valley of Hinnom outside Jerusalem, which Jesus used as an image of final judgment.
- Mark 9:47b Some later manuscripts (A C D Θ 𝔐), which are reflected in the King James Version, add the phrase "into the unquenchable fire," echoing verses 43 and 48. The earliest witnesses (ℵ B L W Δ Ψ) read simply "into Gehenna."
- Mark 9:48a Some later manuscripts repeat this line as verses 44 and 46. However, the earliest witnesses, such as Sinaiticus and Vaticanus, have it only here at verse 48.
- Mark 9:48b This verse quotes Isaiah 66:24. The imagery is drawn from corpses in the Valley of Hinnom, also called Gehenna, as mentioned in verse 47.
- Mark 9:49a Some later manuscripts add the phrase: "and every sacrifice will be salted with salt." The earliest and best Greek copies do not contain these words; scribes likely added them to echo Leviticus 2:13.
- Mark 9:49b 'Salted with fire' is a deliberately strange image. Salt in the Old Testament marks covenant, purification, and sacrifice (Lev 2:13); fire in the prior verses marks judgment. Jesus fuses the two, and the saying is meant to stay difficult.
- Mark 9:50a The Greek word analon means "saltless, tasteless." This word is a hapax legomenon, meaning it appears only once in the New Testament.
- Mark 9:50b The meaning of "salt in yourselves" is debated; it evokes ideas of covenant loyalty, purity, and the seasoning quality that disciples should have toward one another.
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