Tuesday Night Bible Study LESSON 5 Tuesday Night Bible Study Gospel of Mark Gospel of Mark – Mark 14:53-72 LESSON 5 Smite the Shepherd By Ray Stedman We return to our studies in Mark, stepping again program is, anticipates it, even makes into the infinite mystery that always gathers arrangements for it. We have seen how, around the events in the closing days of our sometimes weeks ahead of time, he has made Lord's earthly life, the scenes that lead to the preparation for a certain person to be in a certain cross. I am sure that the twenty-third Psalm, the place doing a certain thing, in anticipation of Shepherd's Psalm, is the best-loved psalm of all. fulfilling a Scripture in the Old Testament. Our I know thousands of people who have been Lord knew what was going to happen because helped and strengthened by those opening he pored over the Scriptures. He knew the Old words, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not Testament thoroughly. He understood what the want." The thought of the Lord as shepherd of divinely-appointed program was, as revealed his people -- watching over his flock, guarding through the prophets. I am sure that as he them, protecting them, leading them into green thought and meditated on these events and pastures, making them to lie down beside the prayed about them before the Father, the Spirit still water -- has comforted many of us, I know. made known to him details not recorded in I am sure that fulfilling this psalm was much in Scripture, so that it was clear to him what was our Lord's thoughts as he gathered with his going to happen. disciples in the upper room. For example, the very hymn that Jesus and the Mark indicates this by the words with which he disciples sang as they left the upper room was a describes the close of the supper and the part of the Old Testament. Unquestionably, it progress of the Lord and his disciples on their was the Scripture we now know as Psalms 113- way to Gethsemane, in Verse 26: 118. This was the traditional hymn called the great Hallel that was sung at the close of the And when they had song a hymn, they went out Passover Feast. Hallel is the Hebrew for "Praise to the Mount of Olives. And Jesus said to them, to God" and these psalms focus on one theme: "You will all fall away; for it is written, 'I will Hallelujah. It is significant that the closing verse strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be of the great Hallel includes these words, "Bind scattered.' But after I am raised up, I will go the festal sacrifice with cords to the horns of the before you to Galilee." Peter said to him, "Even altar," (Psalms 118:27b NASB) though they all fall away, I will not." And Jesus said to him, "Truly, I say to you, this very night, As they sang those words, they left the upper before the cock crows twice, you will deny me room and made their way down across the three times." But he said vehemently, "If I must darkness of the Kidron Valley, into the shadows die with you, I will not deny you." And they all of Gethsemane's garden. And, as they went, said the same. (Mark 14:26-31 RSV) Jesus quoted from the prophecy of Zechariah. He said to them, "You will all fall away; for it is There are two things to note in this brief written, 'I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep paragraph: First, the passage reveals very will be scattered.'" In my earlier study in the clearly how Jesus knew what was going to book of Hebrews entitled, What More Can God happen to him. It has been suggested before Say?, I say that in my understanding Jesus did this, through various incidents, that the Lord not expect what would happen in the Garden of seems to understand fully what the divine Gethsemane. But in studying through this 37 Tuesday Night Bible Study Gospel of Mark SMITE THE SHEPHERD 2 MARK YR2 – LESSON 15 passage anew, I must repudiate that statement. Before, I had not seen clearly how this passage It is interesting to think that never once did in Zechariah was intended to be a prediction of Jesus speak of his cross to these disciples Jesus' struggle in the Garden of Gethsemane, as without setting it against the dawning light of it clearly is. Zechariah had predicted that the resurrection. And yet they never seemed to Jehovah would say, grasp it. Not one of them believed Jesus would be raised from the dead. I think that because "Strike the Shepherd that the sheep may be they did not want to hear about his death, they scattered," (Zechariah 13:7b RSV). would not believe in his resurrection. And so, though he tried to comfort them, his words were Now when Jesus quoted this he changed it from of no avail at that moment. the imperative mode, "Strike the Shepherd," to the indicative, "I will strike the Shepherd." The The second thing to note about this passage is words come from the lips of God himself. The the confident bravado of Peter and the disciples. full verse says, Peter said to Jesus, "Even though they all fall away, I will not." Notice the contrast between "Awake, O sword, against my Shepherd, "they" and "I." "They will all deny you," Peter against the man who stands next to me," said. "I know these fellows, Lord, and you can't says the Lord of hosts. (Zechariah 13:7a RSV) trust a one of them! They'll all deny you, you're right about that! But, Lord, you're wrong about The result of that smiting would be the me. I will not!" Peter is confident that he will scattering of the sheep. Now in Matthew's not do what the rest will do. He is not at all account of this, Jesus adds "this night you will hesitant to point out that he expects the others to all fall away because of me this night; for it is fall, but it is going to be different with him. written, 'I will strike the Shepherd,'" (Matthew 26:31). Therefore it is very clear that Zechariah But Jesus saw far more clearly than Peter. He was predicting the Garden of Gethsemane. saw that Peter's confidence was resting upon his Gethsemane's struggle was the smiting of the own human determination, his own will, and Shepherd, and the result would be the scattering Jesus knew the weakness of it. So he said to of the sheep. You can see how true that is if you him, "Truly, I say to you, this very night, before look forward a bit to Verse 50, where it says of the cock crows twice, you will deny me three the disciples, "And they all forsook him, and times." It is interesting to see how Jesus narrows fled," (Mark 14:50 RSV). This is the scattering down the time. Literally, in the Greek, he says of the sheep. Jesus did understand what was to three things. He says, "Truly, I say to you, happen that night in the Garden of Gethsemane. today..." Then he narrows it further, "this very night", and still further, "before the cock crows He is still thinking of himself as the shepherd twice." In just a few hours, Peter, all that firm when he says these words to the disciples, "But resolve, all that confident arrogance, all that after I am raised up, I will go before you to clenched-fist determination you have Galilee." Remember in John 10, where Jesus manifested in saying you will not deny me, is says, "I am the good shepherd. The good going to melt away, leaving you with no ability shepherd lays down his life for the sheep," to stand. And it will happen before these few (John 10:11 RSV). He says of this shepherd, hours have passed. "When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them," (John 10:4a RSV). He is I am always amazed by the symbols that Jesus reassuring his disciples that after the dark event employs. They are so apt, so characteristic. And of Calvary, there will come the glory of the here is the symbol that he employs to depict this resurrection. He will go before them as the arrogance and confidence of Peter and the other shepherd, still guarding his flock, still watching disciples: that of a cock, a rooster. It stands over them, and he will meet them again in forever as a symbol of an attitude like Peter's. Galilee. We speak of somebody who is cocksure. We 38 Tuesday Night Bible Study Gospel of Mark SMITE THE SHEPHERD 3 MARK YR2 – LESSON 15 call somebody who is almost arrogantly Lord, we have the sense of division between confident "cocky." These terms come from this Jesus and the Father. This separation is story about Peter and the symbol Jesus manifested when Jesus says, "Not my will, but employed. He does not say this, but I am sure he thine be done." Up to this point in our Lord's intended for Peter to think about the fate of ministry he knew clearly that he was going to most cocks. They lose their heads. the cross. But this is the first sign that he was not willing and ready to go to the cross.