The Synoptic Gospel of Mark

 The language of Mark--its explanations of Jewish customs and translations of Aramaic expressions--suggests strongly that the Gospel was written for a Gentile audience (Cranfield 268). In referring to his depiction of the Gospel as one of "action," Earle points out (1026), "This emphasis on action is appropriate in a Gospel written probably at Rome and primarily for Romans. Mark uses ten Latinisms . . . . He explains Jewish customs for his Roman readers. He does not even use the word 'law'. . . ."

The Roman connection is important because it gives weight to the widely held belief that the apostle Peter is the primary source of the oral history Mark has recorded (Cranfield 267). Early church tradition holds or implies that the Gospel was written "in the parts of Italy"

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ed, Jesus warns them "to tell no one about Him" (v. 30), as if to say, "You do not yet understand what it is you are saying about me, how can others be expected to understand you?" In verse 31 we see the revelation of the coming death and resurrection, which Peter apparently cannot comprehend because he "took Him aside and began to rebuke Him." But Jesus responds with an even harsher rebuke, in the presence of all the apostles, in verse 33: "Get behind Me, Satan, for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's." For a clearer understanding of this incident, it is necessary to turn to the author of Matthew (since Luke does not include this portion of the event), who chose to reveal Peter's rebuke of Jesus: "God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You" (Matthew 16:22). This sheds much light on Mark 8:31, where the text is quite clear: Jesus tells his disciples that the Son of Man must suffer many things. Peter's rebuke, unstated in Mark (although it is possible that the text might have been "lost" over time), is an unwitting temptation of Jesus. As Nineham observes, the word "must" as it was used here in Mark is entirely consistent with "contemporary apocalyptic literature, as showing that cert
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Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)

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