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NT 4282 50 (Interpreting the Passion Narratives) Prof. Skinner Week One (February 3–8, 2014) Luther Seminary

ELEMENTS OF MARK’S PASSION NARRATIVE

Significant Aspects of Mark’s Passion Narrative

1. dies as a consequence of evil, manifested in injustice and resistance. A. The injustice of the trial is about more than jealousy or simple corruption. It is indicative of the conflict that has characterized the whole . It is a manifestation of the kind of abusiveness Jesus describes in :42. B. Jesus appears powerless in the face of the opposition. The constellations of power to which Jesus is handed over finally overwhelm him, treating him almost as an object. He is virtually depersonalized. C. His resurrection holds out hope for the possibility that evil and human resistance will not have the final word.

2. Jesus dies an agonizing death as an executed criminal. Because Jesus dies on a cross: A. He has been rejected and judged to be dangerous to others—dangerous to all of us. B. He identifies with the depths of human misery. The ignominy of crucifixion means that he dies among the most contemptible members of human society. C. His resurrection, therefore, is not the glorification of a Christ of power. It is a vindication of the kind of Christ he shows himself to be: apparently powerless and despised Christ. vindicates the One that the political powers crush.

3. Jesus dies as “King of the Jews.” The cross is his ironic enthronement. A. Royal imagery and language saturate Mark’s passion narrative. B. The resurrection sanctions the work Jesus performed during his ministry, just as it also authenticates his identity, as it is revealed on the cross. Who is it that God raises from the dead? No one less than the “King” himself. C. Despite the contrast between Jesus and most messianic expectations, still the Christ on the cross bears great similarity to characteristics of the God revealed in the OT.

4. Jesus dies abandoned by all—including God. A. He is abandoned by his disciples (:50–52; 14:66–72); by the crowds (Mark 15:11–14; 15:29–30); by the Romans (Mark 15:15–20); by the Jewish leaders (Mark 15:31–32); and by his fellow outcasts (Mark 15:32). B. He is even abandoned by God (Mark 15:34). His death forces the question: Have God’s promises and power failed? Even on ? C. God is the one who has handed Jesus over to the power of evil, manifested in human Society (see :31). D. Mark’s scene of the cross is an unmitigated tragedy, as viewed on Good Friday.

5. Yet, in an apparent paradox, Jesus dies according to expectations. A. In his predictions of the passion, Jesus speaks of his death as certain and inevitable. B. Jesus’ prayer in Gethsemane: “For you all things are possible; remove this cup from me; yet, not what I want, but what you want” (Mark 14:36). C. Scriptural echoes resound throughout Mark’s narrative of the passion. D. Mark appears to be uninterested in resolving what we might experience as paradoxical, in terms of how the passion is orchestrated by human beings yet according to some kind of divinely known expectation.

What Does It Mean?

“All Christian theology and all Christian life is basically an answer to the question which Jesus asked as he died. . . . Either Jesus who was abandoned by God is the end of all theology or he is the beginning of a specifically Christian, and therefore critical and liberating, theology and life.”1

So much Christian theology from the last 2000 years has trained us to ask the question: What does Jesus’ death do or accomplish for us? While this is a good question to consider, it may not be Mark’s question. Maybe Mark is more interested in having us ask: What does the cross say about us (humanity)? What does it say about God?

1. Jesus’ death in Mark makes statements about humanity and the world we inhabit. A. Everyone is responsible. Everyone fails Jesus. B. The cross was no accident; nor was it Jesus’ self-destruction. The world opposed him, and he provoked the world. Jesus’ execution exposes the lengths of humanity’s efforts at self-preservation and resistance to God. Compare the “Parable of the Wicked Tenants” in :1–12.

2. Jesus’ death in Mark makes statements about God and God’s encounter with the world. A. God does not take on power with power. B. In light of God’s abandonment of the Son and the Son’s stark demise, we are provoked to ask: Can we trust God? If even the Son has become a victim, is there any hope for the rest of us? Furthermore, if we have made even the Son a victim of our schemes, is there any hope for us? C. In light of this, what questions does the resurrection answer?

1 Jürgen Moltmann, The Crucified God: The Cross of Christ a the Foundation and Criticism of Christian Theology (trans. R. A. Wilson and John Bowden; New York: Harper & Row, 1974), 4. NT 4282 50 (Interpreting the Passion Narratives) Prof. Skinner Week One (February 3–8, 2014) Luther Seminary

ROYAL IMAGES AND LANGUAGE IN MARK’S STORY OF JESUS’ EXECUTION

Imagery of a coronation ceremony and procession: 15:17 The Roman soldiers clothe Jesus with a cloak. 15:17 The Roman soldiers make Jesus wear a crown made of thorns. 15:18 The Roman soldiers salute him sarcastically, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 15:18 The Roman soldiers kneel down in mock homage. 15:20–22 The Roman soldiers process with Jesus to the place of crucifixion. 15:23 The Roman soldiers offer Jesus mixed with , a mocking gesture.

Royal language applied to Jesus: 15:2 Pilate asks Jesus if he is “the King of the Jews.” 15:9 Pilate sarcastically refers to Jesus as “the King of the Jews.” 15:12 Again, Pilate sarcastically refers to Jesus as “the King of the Jews.” 15:26 The charges against Jesus inscribed on the cross read “The King of the Jews.” 15:32 The chief priests and scribes sarcastically say, “Let the , the King of Israel, come down from the cross now, so that we may see and believe!” 15:29–31 Passersby and Jewish religious officials deride Jesus on the cross, saying, “You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself, and come down from the cross!” and, “He saved others; he cannot save himself.” (Note that the references to save may play upon (1) the term savior, a title that was commonly applied to the Roman emperor, and (2) Jesus’ name, which means God saves.)

NT 4282 50 (Interpreting the Passion Narratives) Prof. Skinner Week One (February 3–8, 2014) Luther Seminary

ECHOES OF SCRIPTURE IN MARK’S STORY OF JESUS’ EXECUTION

Mark 15:24 :18 And they crucified him, and divided his They divide my clothes among themselves, clothes among them, casting lots to decide and for my clothing they cast lots. what each should take.

Mark 15:29a Psalm 22:7 Those who passed by derided him, shaking All who see me mock at me; they make their heads. mouths at me, they shake their heads.

Mark 15:34 Psalm 22:1 At three o’clock Jesus cried out with a loud My God, my God, why have you forsaken voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which me? means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

Mark 15:33 Amos 8:9 When it was noon, darkness came over the On that day, says the Lord GOD, I will whole land until three in the afternoon. make the sun go down at noon, and darken the earth in broad daylight. (Compare Isaiah 13:9–10)

Mark 15:36a :21 And someone ran, filled a sponge with sour They gave me poison for food, and for my wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to thirst they gave me vinegar to drink. drink.