Daily Lesson for Tuesday 2nd of July 2024
Read Mark 1:1-8. Who are the characters in these verses, and what do they say and do?
These verses have three main characters: Jesus Christ, referred to in Mark 1:1; God the Father, implied in the words of Mark 1:2; and John the Baptist, the messenger and preacher who is the main subject of the last section of this passage.
Mark 1:2-3 contains a quotation from the Old Testament that Mark presents to describe what will happen in the story. What Mark quotes is a blending of phrases from three passages: Exodus 23:20, Isaiah 40:3, and Malachi 3:1.
Read Exodus 23:20, Isaiah 40:3, and Malachi 3:1. What do these three passages have in common?
Image © Kim Justinen at Goodsalt.com
Exodus 23:20 refers to an angel that God will send before Israel to bring them to Canaan. Isaiah 40:3 speaks of God appearing in the wilderness with a highway prepared before Him. Malachi 3:1 speaks of a messenger going before the Lord to prepare His way. All three of these passages speak of a journey.
The text in Isaiah has many ties with the ministry of John the Baptist and also focuses on the Way of the Lord. In the Gospel of Mark, the Lord Jesus is on a journey. The fast-moving narrative enhances the sense of this journey, a journey that will lead to the cross and to His sacrificial death for us.
But much must happen before He reaches the cross. The journey is just beginning, and Mark will tell us all about it.
In keeping with the quotation from the Old Testament in Mark 1:2-3, John the Baptist calls for repentance, a turning away from sin, and a turning back to God (Mark 1:4). Clothed like the ancient prophet Elijah (compare with 2 Kings 1:8), he speaks in Mark 1:7-8 about the One coming after him who is mightier than he. His statement that he is not worthy to loosen a strap of the Coming One’s sandals shows the exalted view he has of Jesus.
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