The Book of Mark

Mike Johnson

The writer of the book of Mark is probably “John Mark,” who is mentioned several times in God’s Word.  He was a cousin of Barnabas, and his mother was named Mary.  Mary was a faithful Christian in Jerusalem who owned the house where the Christians met for prayer while Peter was in jail (Acts 12).

Mark went with Paul and Barnabas on the first missionary journey.  While on this journey, Mark turned back to Jerusalem.  Paul refused to take him on the second journey, which caused a disagreement between Paul and Barnabas.  After this, they parted ways, and Barnabas took Mark with him to Cyprus.  Later, it was clear that no animosity existed between Paul and Mark as Paul asked that Mark be sent to Rome to help him.  Also, in Philemon 24, he speaks of him as a “fellow laborer.”  Mark may have associated with Peter during the time that he was not with Paul.

Mark makes no effort in his book to leave out facts about Jesus, which, to some, might seem to be negative.  For example, Mark tells us that Jesus was a carpenter, that his relatives thought he was “beside himself,” and he had to leave Capernaum quickly.

Mark writes his book with a lot of swift movement as he quickly goes from one event to another.  Also, the book has a lot of detail compared to the other accounts, but it does not emphasize the teaching of Jesus as much.  It does tell us a lot about Jesus’ teaching, but mostly, it speaks about Jesus.