| (a) [βαπτίζων, βάπτισμα (i. 4)—καὶ ἐβαπτίζοντο (i. 5)—ἐβάπτισα, βαπτίσει (i. 8)]—καὶ ἐβαπτίσθη (i. 9) | (a) βαπτισθείς (xvi. 16) |
| (b) [κηρύσσων, ἐκήρυσσδ (i. 7)] | (b) ἐκήρυξαν (xvi. 20) |
| (b and c) κηρύσσων τὸ εὐαγγέλιον (i. 14)—[ἀρχὴ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου (i. 1)] | (c) κηρύξατε τὸ εὐαγγέλιον (xvi. 15) |
| (c and d) πιστεύετε ἐν τῷ εὐαγγελίῳ (i. 15) | (d) ἠπίστησαν (xvi. 11)—οὐδὲ ἐπίστευσαν (xvi. 13)—τὴν ἀπιστίαν, οὐκ ἐπίστευσαν (xvi. 14)—ὁ πιστεύσας, ὁ ἀπιστήσας (xvi. 16)—τοῖς πιστεύσασι (xvi. 17.) |
Now this, to say the least, shews that there exists an unmistakable relation of sympathy between the first page of [pg 183] S. Mark's Gospel and the last. The same doctrinal phraseology,[316]—the same indications of Divine purpose,—the same prevailing cast of thought is observed to occur in both. (i.) A Gospel to be everywhere preached;—(ii.) Faith, to be of all required;—(iii.) Baptism to be universally administered; “one Lord, one Faith, one Baptism:”—Is not this the theme of the beginning of S. Mark's Gospel as well as of the end of it? Surely it is as if on comparing the two extremities of a chain, with a view to ascertaining whether the fabric be identical or not, it were discovered that those extremities are even meant to clasp!
(2.) But the essential parallelism between S. Mark xvi. 9-20 and S. Mark i. 9-20 is a profounder phenomenon and deserves even more attention. I proceed to set down side by side, as before, what ought to require neither comment nor explanation of mine. Thus we find,—
| (A) in ch. i. 9 to 11:—Our Lord's Manifestation to the World (ἐπιφανεία) on His “coming up (ἀναβαίνων) out of the water” of Jordan: (having been “buried by Baptism,” as the Apostle speaks:) when the Voice from Heaven proclaimed,—“Thou art My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” | (A) in ch. xvi. 9 to 11:—Our Lord's appearance to Mary Magdalene (ἐφάνη) after His Resurrection (ἀναστάς) from death: “Thou art My Son, this day have I begotten Thee.” |
| —12 to 14:—Two other Manifestations (ἐφανερώθη) to Disciples. | |
| (B) —12, 13:—Christ's victory over Satan; (whereby is fulfilled the promise “Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt Thou trample under feet.”) | (B) —17, 18:—Christ's promise that “they that believe” “shall cast out devils” and “shall take up serpents:” (as [in S. Luke x. 19] He had given the Seventy “power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the Enemy.”) |
| (C) —8:—The Pentecostal Gift foretold: “He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost.” | (C) —17:—The chief Pentecostal Gift specified: “They shall speak with new tongues.” |
| (D) in ch. i. 14, 15:—Christ “comes into Galilee, preaching the Gospel ... and saying ... Repent ye, and believe the Gospel.” | (D) in ch. xvi. 15, 16:—He commands His Apostles to “go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.” |
| (E) —15: His announcement, that “The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God is at hand.” | (E) —19:—S. Mark's record concerning Him, that “He was received up into Heaven, and sat on the right hand of God” (where He must reign till He hath put all enemies under His feet.) |
| (F) —16 to 20:—The four Apostles' Call to the Ministry: (which [S. Luke v. 8, 9] is miraculously attested.) | (F) —20:—The Apostles' Ministry, which is everywhere miraculously attested,—“The Lord working with them, and confirming the word by the signs that followed.” |
It is surely not an unmeaning circumstance, a mere accident, that the Evangelist should at the very outset and at the very conclusion of his Gospel, so express himself! If, however, it should seem to the Reader a mere matter of course, a phenomenon without interest or significancy,—nothing which I could add would probably bring him to a different mind.
(3.) Then, further: when I scrutinize attentively the two portions of Scripture thus proposed for critical survey, I am not a little struck by the discovery that the VIth Article of the ancient Creed of Jerusalem (A.D. 348) is found in the one: the Xth Article, in the other.[317] If it be a purely fortuitous [pg 185] circumstance, that two cardinal verities like these,—(viz. “He ascended into Heaven, and sat down at the Right Hand of God”—and “One Baptism for the Remission of sins,”) should be found at either extremity of one short Gospel,—I will but point out that it is certainly one of a very remarkable series of fortuitous circumstances.—But in the thing to be mentioned next, there neither is, nor can be, any talk of fortuitousness at all.
(4.) Allusion is made to the diversity of Name whereby the Son of Man is indicated in these two several places of the Gospel; which constitutes a most Divine circumstance, and is profoundly significant. He who in the first verse (S. Mark i. 1) was designated by the joint title “Ἰησοῦς” and “Χριστός,”—here, in the last two verses (S. Mark xvi. 19, 20) is styled for the first and for the last time, “Ὁ ΚΥΡΙΟΣ”—the Lord.[318]
And why? Because He who at His Circumcision was named “Jesus,” (a Name which was given Him from His Birth, yea, and before His Birth); He who at His Baptism became “the Christ,” (a Title which belonged to His Office, and which betokens His sacred Unction);—the same, on the occasion of His Ascension into Heaven and Session at the Right Hand of God,—when (as we know) “all power had been given unto Him in Heaven and in Earth” (S. Matth. xxviii. 18),—is designated by His Name of Dominion; “the Lord” Jehovah ... “Magnifica et opportuna appellatio!”—as Bengel well remarks.
But I take leave to point out that all this is what never either would or could have entered into the mind of a fabricator of a conclusion to S. Mark's unfinished Gospel. No inventor of a supplement, I say, could have planted his foot in this way in exactly the right place. The proof of my assertion is twofold:—