translation_id: net-engnet

book_id: MRK

label: NET translator note

text: Grk “And.” Here καί ( kai ) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.


text: Grk “it was heard.”


text: Some translations (e.g., NIV, NLT) take the preposition πρός ( pro" ), which indicates proximity, to mean “outside the door.” Others render it as “in front of the door” (TEV, CEV), and still others, “around the door” (NAB). There is some ambiguity inherent in the description here.


text: Grk “they”; the referent (some unnamed people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


text: The redundancy in this verse is characteristic of the author’s rougher style.


text: Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


text: Grk “And.” Here καί ( kai ) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.


text: Or “some of the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22 .


text: Grk “Reasoning within their hearts.”


text: Grk “And.” Here καί ( kai ) has been translated as “now” to indicate the shift from the thoughts of the experts in the law to Jesus’ response.


text: Grk “they were thus reasoning within themselves.”


text: Grk “Why are you reasoning these things in your hearts?”


text: Grk “to your house.”


text: Grk “he”; the referent (the man who was healed) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


text: Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


text: While “tax office” is sometimes given as a translation for τελώνιον ( telwnion , so L&N 57.183), this could give the modern reader a false impression of an indoor office with all its associated furnishings. sn The tax booth was a booth located on the edge of a city or town to collect taxes for trade. There was a tax booth in Capernaum, which was on the trade route from Damascus to Galilee and the Mediterranean. The “taxes” were collected on produce and goods brought into the area for sale, and were a sort of “sales tax” paid by the seller but obviously passed on to the purchaser in the form of increased prices (L&N 57.183). It was here that Jesus met Levi (also named Matthew [see Matt 9:9 ]) who was ultimately employed by the Romans, though perhaps more directly responsible to Herod Antipas. It was his job to collect taxes for Rome and he was thus despised by Jews who undoubtedly regarded him as a traitor.


text: Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.


text: Grk “As he reclined at table.” sn As Jesus was having a meal. 1st century middle eastern meals were not eaten while sitting at a table, but while reclining on one’s side on the floor with the head closest to the low table and the feet farthest away.


text: Grk “his.”


text: Or “the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22 .


text: Grk “And.” Here καί ( kai ) has been translated as “So” to indicate that in the narrative this question happened as a result of the fasting of John’s disciples and the Pharisees.


text: Grk “And Jesus.”


text: Grk “sons of the wedding hall,” an idiom referring to wedding guests, or more specifically, friends of the bridegroom present at the wedding celebration (L&N 11.7).


text: Questions prefaced with μή ( mh ) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “can they?”).


text: Grk “then on that day.”


text: Or “heads of grain.” While the generic term στάχυς ( stacus ) can refer to the cluster of seeds at the top of grain such as barley or wheat, in the NT the term is restricted to wheat (L&N 3.40; BDAG 941 s.v. 1 ).


text: Grk “And.” Here καί ( kai ) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of previous action(s) in the narrative.


text: and many others} add τοῦ before ἀρχιερέως , giving the meaning “in the days of Abiathar the high priest,” suggesting a more general time frame. Neither reading has significant external support and both most likely are motivated by the difficulty of the original reading. (2) Many scholars have hypothesized that one of the three individuals who would have been involved in the transmission of the statement (Jesus who uttered it originally, Mark who wrote it down in the Gospel, or Peter who served as Mark’s source) was either wrong about Abiathar or intentionally loose with the biblical data in order to make a point. (3) It is possible that what is currently understood to be the most natural reading of the text is in fact not correct. (a) There are very few biblical parallels to this grammatical construction ( ἐπί + genitive proper noun, followed by an anarthrous common noun), so it is possible that an extensive search for this construction in nonbiblical literature would prove that the meaning does involve a wide time frame. If this is so, “in the days of Abiathar the high priest” would be a viable option. (b) It is also possible that this phrasing serves as a loose way to cite a scripture passage. There is a parallel to this construction in Mark 12:26 : “Have you not read in the book of Moses, in the passage about the bush?” Here the final phrase is simply ἐπὶ τοῦ βάτου ( ejpi tou batou ), but the obvious function of the phrase is to point to a specific passage within the larger section of scripture. Deciding upon a translation here is difficult. The translation above has followed the current consensus on the most natural and probable meaning of the phrase ἐπὶ ᾿Αβιαθὰρ ἀρχιερέως : “when Abiathar was high priest.” It should be recognized, however, that this translation is tentative because the current state of knowledge about the meaning of this grammatical construction is incomplete, and any decision about the meaning of this text is open to future revision.


text: Grk “the bread of presentation.” sn The sacred bread refers to the “bread of presentation,” “showbread,” or “bread of the Presence,” twelve loaves prepared weekly for the tabernacle and later, the temple. See Exod 25:30; 35:13; 39:36 ; Lev 24:5-9 . Each loaf was made from 3 quarts (3.5 liters; Heb “two tenths of an ephah”) of fine flour. The loaves were placed on a table in the holy place of the tabernacle, on the north side opposite the lampstand ( Exod 26:35 ). It was the duty of the priest each Sabbath to place fresh bread on the table; the loaves from the previous week were then given to Aaron and his descendants, who ate them in the holy place, because they were considered sacred ( Lev 24:9 ). See also Matt 12:1-8 , Luke 6:1-5 .


text: Here καί ( kai ) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.


text: The Greek term ἄνθρωπος ( anqrwpos ) is used twice in this verse in a generic sense, referring to both men and women, thus “people.”


text: The term “lord” is in emphatic position in the Greek text. sn A second point in Jesus’ defense of his disciples’ actions was that his authority as Son of Man also allowed it, since as Son of Man he was lord of the Sabbath .