MARK 11:25-26

 

                           Downcast (collage, 2009)

The above collage combines images from the episodes in Mark 11:12-24. While it contains seemingly diverse items in it, there is actually a sense of logic connecting the text itself. These verses begin with Jesus cursing a fig tree on the way to Jerusalem followed by his overturning the money-changer's booths in the temple. The next morning, they return by the same road and see that the fig tree has died. So far, these verses constitute what has been known as a “Markan sandwich.” This particular sandwich juxtaposes these two separate incidents in such a way that we see that what happened to the tree is just a foretaste of what will happen to the temple in the not too distant future.

From that point the text moves on to give us an account of Jesus' reply to Peter's amazement upon seeing the tree. Jesus uses the occasion to tell the disciples that they can similarly do great things, such as directing a mountain to be thrown into the sea if they only pray to God without doubting.

That brings us logically to verse 25 where Jesus gives another teaching on prayer, namely, that in prayers concerning one's forgiveness, a person must first forgive anyone with whom he has a problem. Verse 26 concludes the thought by stating the reverse corollary: if you don't forgive them, then God will not forgive you.

I would like to concentrate mainly on those last two verses, which bring up several difficulties. In the first place, similar wording appears between Mark 11:25-26 and Matthew 6:14-15. But whereas Matthew's verses appear just following the Lord's Prayer in the Sermon on the Mount, Mark has placed these words in a completely different setting. In addition, whereas Matthew 6:15 has excellent attestation in the early manuscripts, the same cannot be said for Mark 11:26.

Mark 11:26

Let us deal with the textual problem regarding v. 26 first since it is a little simpler to explain. Almost all modern translations of Mark are in agreement in omitting it entirely. Textual expert Bruce Metzger explains the reason: “Although it might be thought that the sentence was accidentally omitted because of homoeoteleuton, its absence from early witnesses [i.e. manuscripts] that represent all text-types makes it highly probable that the words were inserted by copyists in imitation of Mt 6:15.”

At this point I should explain that homoeoteleuton describes such occasions when a scribe would be writing out a new copy of a popular book and his eyes would skip from one word to the same word on a later line, leaving out a line or two in the transcription. From that point on, other scribes would naturally perpetuate the same accidental error.

In this particular case, such a mistake might easily have occurred since there are a number of similar words and phrases between verses 25 and 26.

There is little controversy as to which textual stance to take. For example, Horsley says in regard to the dubious v. 26, “If original to Mark, it establishes mutual forgiveness (as in the Lord's Prayer, Lk 11:2-4) as the focus of prayer, now that the Temple, the official site for prayer and for obtaining divine forgiveness (see Lev 6.7), stands under God's condemnation.”

In agreement with Metzger are the comments of Marcus, who points out the possibility that “The verse might have dropped out by haplography, since its concluding words are the same as the final words of 11:25.” (Just to make it a little more complicated, it turns out that haplography is just one specific type of the larger category of homeoteleuton.)

And if you compare practically any English translation more recent than the King Jame Version, you will see that they omit verse 26, usually appending a note containing the contents of the dubious verse. In any case, the presence of v. 26 is not needed in order to make sense of Mark's version since it is implied in v. 25, and the thought is also present in both Matthew 6:15 and 18:35.

Mark 11:25

The more controversial issue concerns the source of this verse, whether it is original to Mark in his context or whether Mark has borrowed it from Matthew's account of the Sermon on the Mount. Lane summarizes four reasons against 11:25 being original with Mark:

1. The vocabulary and phraseology are foreign to Mark and “decidedly Matthean in character. (cf. Mt. 5:23; 6:9,14f).”

2. Matthew's seeming reliance on Mark in this section ceases with 11:25, “which may suggest that his copy of Mark actually concluded this section with verse 24.”

3. There is an abrupt transition in thought between verses 24 and 25.

4. Verse 26 is an obvious transfer from Matthew 6:15, which “shows how easily a passage from one Gospel could become attached to the context through catchword association.”

But despite these arguments, Lane counters: “Yet none of these arguments is decisive in itself, and verse 25 actually differs in formulation from Mt. 6:14 to a greater degree than is usual in cases of Synoptic transfer. Verse 25 must be considered as a logion [i.e. saying] in its own right. Its formulation has been influenced by the liturgical language of the Lord's Prayer.”

Spencer elaborates on Lane's comment regarding the differences in wording between Mark 11:25 and Matthew 6:14: “Mark 11:25 reverses the order, placing priority on forgiving others...Forgiveness by God motivates forgiveness of others; and in turn, forgiveness of others authenticates alliance with God. Three different terms denote sinful objects of forgiveness in these texts: opheilema (Mt 6:12), hamartia (Lk 11:4), paraptoma (Mt 6:14-15; Mk 11:25)...forgiveness should not be reduced to a mechanical accounting operation, wiping the record clean. It retains a personal dimension, a reconciling not only of the books but also, more importantly, of the bond between us and everyone indebted [opheilo] to us (Lk 11:4 [cf. Mt 6:13]).”

Other comments regarding the relationship between Matthew and Mark's versions are given below so that you can get some idea of the complexity of the issue:

“The sayings of verses 22-25 were originally independent but were no doubt brought together in the tradition before Mark for catechetical reasons around the catchwords faith (22) and believes or 'has faith' (23), prayer (24), and praying (25). The last clause of verse 25 does not necessarily reflect a knowledge of the Lord's Prayer, but it does reveal the influence of Mt. 6:14, just as verse 26, omitted in most MSS and rightly excluded by RSV, appears to be a slightly revised form of Mt. 6:15.” (H. Anderson)

“The corollary to this saying on prayer [i.e. v. 24] is the saying on forgiveness in v. 25. The clause 'forgive whatever you have against anyone' is certainly an echo of the similar petition in the Lord's Prayer (Matt. 6:12, Luke 11:3-4) and is wholly in line not only with Matt 5:23-24 but also with the teaching on forgiveness in Paul and the rest of the New Testament. The Greek of 'your Father...may forgive the wrongs you have done' in this verse is verbally identical with Matt 6:14. This is significant, for only here does Mark use your Father (Greek pater humon), and only here too does he use paraptoma for wrongs. There would seem to be a clear case of Markan dependence on his source in Matthew.” (Mann)

At this point it is probably wisest to admit that the relationship between the various Gospel accounts is a complicated one. And we must also keep in mind that it is probable that Jesus taught the same sayings numerous times during his teaching ministry, so it is often a futile exercise to attempt to pin down the direction of borrowing, if any, between the Synoptics. The best course is to look at how verse 25 functions within the context of Mark's account, and this is what many commentators have done in order to come up with the following valuable insights:

“If the connection between verses 20f. and verse 22 is historical, it implies that the source of Jesus' authority is his unbroken relationship with the Father. These sayings on faith and prayer, however, occur in quite scattered contexts in the Synoptic Gospels and may have been uttered on different occasions. In Mark they constitute a summons to faith and to action consistent with that faith.” (Lane)

Lane's words apply to the whole of Mark 11:20-25 as well, as shown in his following comments: “The effect of verses 23-24 and 25 is to suggest that not only faith but also the willingness of the Christian to forgive conditions the efficacy of prayer. The conjunction of these two thoughts in Mark affirms that the right to pray the prayer envisioned in verses 23-24 belongs only to brothers who are mutually reconciled and united in a community of faith.” Matthew 18:35 at the end of the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant says basically the same thing.

“In 11:12-25 Jesus has implicitly challenged priestly authority by symbolically enacting the destruction of the Temple, and he has concluded by proclaiming that forgiveness is available without the Temple on the basis of his own word ('Amen I say to you'). It is no wonder then that in the next passage the offended representatives of that system challenged him to specify the authority by which he presumes to act.” (Marcus)

“Divine fatherhood certainly was a matter of relational intimacy, but it also concerned divine lordship.” (Crump) Among the many NT passages he cites are Matthew 6:12-13 and Mark 11:25 with its parallels in Luke 23:34,46; 24:49.

Crump states that “Mark 11:17,24-25 further expands upon the disciples' role in the kingdom. Jesus accuses the temple leaders of subverting God's intentions that the sanctuary be a house of prayer for all (Mk 11:17). In contrast, Jesus appoints his followers as the new house of prayer, replacing the apostate leadership (Mk 11:18) soon to be destroyed by God (Mk 11:12-17,20-25). The mountain being removed through the disciples' prayers (Mk 11:23) is Mount Zion, now representative of any obstacle that would stand in the way of God's coming kingdom. The community of Jesus' praying followers becomes the new location of the Father's holy presence on earth, as well as the new hub for his kingdom expansion.”

“In Mark's Gospel faith is understood as unconditional reliance on God's absolute and creative power (see Mk 11:23-25; 10:27; also Mk 9:23), especially in his power to intervene actively in his creation to save from peril (particularly in answer to prayer: Mk 9:29, 11:23-25).” (van der Watt and du Toit)

“The new temple, not made with hands (Mk 14:58), takes shape in the community of believers, Jews and Gentiles, who gather for prayer in this house of the Lord (Mk 11:17,24-25).” (Adna)

The group of disciples is “a group of equals modeled on Jesus as servant of all (Mk 10:42-45), and it is a group that forgives (Mk 11:25).” (Reeder)