Chapter # 2 Paragraph # 4 Study # 1
August 20, 2019
Moss Bluff, Louisiana
(098)
1901 ASV
23 And it came to pass, that he was going on the sabbath day through the grainfields; and his disciples
began, as they went, to pluck the ears.
24 And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful?
25 And he said unto them,
Did ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was hungry, he, and they that were with him?
26 How he entered into the house of God
when Abiathar was high priest, and ate the showbread, which it is not lawful to eat save for the priests, and gave also to them that were with him?
27 And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:
28 so that the Son of man is lord even of the sabbath.
- I. "It Came to Pass...".
- A. The verb is used by Mark in 51 texts, clearly indicating a kind of "favorite" way of presenting a record of some event.
- B. In this text, it is used to present a "major" conflict issue: Sabbath Behavior.
- II. "...In The Sabbath...".
- A. Up to this point, there has been only one previous reference, by the use of the word, to the issue of "sabbath" (1:21).
- 1. This prior use actually begins Mark's post-introductory presentation of Jesus.
- a. This core of this presentation is Jesus' "authority".
- 1) Over spiritual forces of wickedness (exorcisms).
- 2) Over physical forces of destruction (illnesses).
- 3) Now, in this present context, the issue is Jesus' "lordship" over the Sabbath and one of the outcomes of His "lordship": freedom from the "legalisms" of asceticism as a "method" of "godliness".
- a) The immediately preceding paragraph focused upon the absence of "fasting" in the lives of His disciples (because He did not teach them that "fasting" was a "method" of godliness).
- b) Now, again, it is the behavior of His disciples in regard to "eating" that brings out the opposition of the Pharisees. When a person's "god" is his "belly" (Philippians 3:19), he/she is very likely to hide the fact behind ostentatious "fasting" and meticulous adherence to "rules" that are focused upon "covenant loyalty" issues.
- i. In the prior paragraph regarding the summons of Levi, it was a "feast" in his home to which the "scribes and Pharisees" objected.
- ii. Then, the next paragraph focused upon "fasting".
- iii. And now this paragraph is focused upon "eating".
- iv. In Luke 7:34 (and in the parallel passage of Matthew 11:19), Jesus addressed what must have been a rather oft-repeated accusation, thus indicating how fixated were His opponents on His "obvious ungodliness". It was particularly galling to the Pharisees to have "the One" pretty much ignore them in favor of "the deplorables".
- v. The "direction" of the accusations began with His "associations", move from there to His "lack of fasting", and now to address His "disrespect" for the "Sabbath".
- b. This "authority" extends to the most critical issues for mankind.
- 1) The "forgiveness of sins" (2:10).
- 2) The "dominion over "the Sabbath" (2:28).
- 2. At issue in this prior use is Jesus' "doctrine" (He taught with "authority"; not as the scribes).
- a. It is "new" (not as in "new cloth" or "new wine", but as in the "new patch" and the "new wineskins").
- 1) This "newness" is identified by the audience in 2:12 where they said "We never saw it on this fashion".
- 2) But it is also identified by Mark's other references to "newness".
- a) "This is the blood of the New Covenant..." (14:24).
- b) "I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine until that day that I drink it new in the Kingdom of God" (14:25).
- c) And in 16:17 (which Mark did not write so that it is not an expression of his own use of the term, but which reveals how the word was used in those days) where it is used to describe the speaking "with new tongues" (a reference to the gift of tongues as the ability to speak in languages never learned).
- d) These references indicate something akin to "replacement".
- i. The "new patch" (2:21) "replaces" the "old cloth".
- ii. The "new wineskins" (2:22) "replace" the old ones.
- iii. The "new covenant" (14:24) "replaces" the old covenant.
- iv. The "new setting for drinking wine" (14:25) "replaces" the old setting.
- v. The "new languages" (16:17) "replace" the old ones on the tongues of the messengers.
- b. It is backed by "authority" in the realm of "spirit" (exorcism).
- 3. This prior use "lays down the gauntlet" as Jesus invades the "synagogues" on the "sabbaths" to declare a "new" doctrine which will determine who obtains the forgiveness of sins and who does not: The Essence of Mark's Message.
- a. The larger goal is transformed people who are qualified to enter into Messiah's eternal Kingdom.
- b. The "methodological" goal is the "forgiveness of sins" that initiates that transformation.
- B. At this point, we are "into" the "responses" of the religious establishment as "antagonistic" attacks upon Jesus' "practices".
- 1. First, "promising forgiveness by His authority".
- 2. Second, various "gluttony" issues beginning with "eating with sinners" and ending with eating on the Sabbath in a way not "permitted".
- 3. Third, "refusing to insist upon 'fasting' " as evidence of "godliness".
- 4. And now, fourth, "violating" the sabbath by example and doctrine and then claiming to be "Lord of the Sabbath".
- C. The backdrop: Exodus 31:13 and 17.
- 1. Observance of the sabbath was the divine "sign" of the covenant under which Israel was to relate to God.
- 2. Observance of the sabbath restrictions was a declaration of "covenant loyalty" and violations were a declaration of "rejection of the covenant".
- 3. This was a "capital" crime issue (31:13), even, perhaps, the "capital crime" issue.
- 4. This was the sole "commandment" in the Ten that was not rooted in essential morality.
- III. "...Going Along Through the Sown Fields and His Disciples Plucking the Grain...".
- A. This was a "forbidden" action by the determinations of those who were determined to establish every detail of what "Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy" meant.
- B. This was an affront to the "Pharisees" (the "Enforcers" of Law).