Smoodock's Blog

Mark began recording Jesus’ ministry in Capernaum (Mark 1:21), while Luke begins recording his ministry at Nazareth (Luke 4:16, 23, 31), which is slightly before where Mark began his own narrative. Mark begins by saying on the Sabbath, Jesus entered the local synagogue and taught the people, and they were astonished at his doctrine (Mark 1:21-22). One reason why the people were so impressed with Jesus was that he taught with authority, but what does Mark mean by teaching with authority?

He means that Jesus stated the facts and took full responsibility for what he was saying. This manner of teaching was quite unlike how the scribes and Pharisees taught. Their manner of teaching can be understood from reading the Jews’ Talmud. There, they took their authority from one another by quoting those they considered experts (Mark 1:22; cp. 2Corinthians 10:12). In other words, the Jewish authorities taught that one scholarly rabbi said this and another said that, and to this these other rabbis agreed. Therefore, what is stated (by the scholars) must be true.

We do the same today when we quote scholars who are experts in their fields. I do it, myself from time to time in my studies, quoting from one well known commentary or another. The problem is, if the scholar my study is dependent upon is wrong, so is my own study, because it is without a credible foundation. This is not how Jesus taught. He presented his argument from the scriptures, showing how his teaching was dependent upon the word of God.

As we continue on in Mark’s introductory chapter, we need to keep in mind that Jesus, according to all four Gospel narratives, was at this time in the wilderness of people, where the Spirit led him to be tested (Mark 1:12-13). So, look for Jesus being tested by those around him. In our present study, as Jesus was concluding his teaching session, a man, a heckler if you will, began to raise his voice (Matthew 1:23). Moreover,  we are told that he was possessed with unclean spirit. But, what does that mean?

We get the Greek word akathartos (G169) from two other Greek words “a” (G1), which is a negative particle, meaning no or not, and the other is a presumed derivative of kathairo (G2508), which means to cleanse. So, taken together akathartos means not cleansed or unclean. However, the Greek word, kathairo (G2508) can also mean to prune. In fact, the word is used in the New Covenant text only twice and means cleansed in Hebrews 10:2 and prune in John 15:2. In the Septuagint it is also found only twice, once for cleansing or winnowing the wheat (2Samuel 4:6), which is not done with water. Rather, the cleansing process took place by removing the chaff from the wheat, while using a winnowing fork. The second time the Greek word is used in the Septuagint is at Isaiah 28:7. There the thing desired is removed from the greater part of the plant, which is afterward cast away. So, in both examples in the Old Covenant text the thing of value wasn’t washed with water in order to be cleansed. Instead, something was removed from it, like chaff with a winnowing fork, or the undesired commodity was removed from something larger by shaking the plant or beating it with rods.

On the other hand, each time the word, akathartos (G169)[1] is used, whether in the Old or the New Covenant texts, it is always translated unclean. The unclean thing could be an animal the Israelites were forbidden to eat, or it could be a blemished animal, unfit for sacrifice, but was otherwise clean and permissible to eat. Some people were considered unclean temporarily. For example, a woman was unclean during the time she was menstruating, and for a period of time immediately after giving birth. A leper was unclean all the while his leprosy was contagious. A man was unclean for a period of time after returning from war, or after he was working with animal hides. The point being, the unclean thing was either not consumed (brought into the body) or it was removed from society (the larger body) until it was pronounce clean.

One could say he was then grafted into society once more (Romans 11:23 ). However, people were never considered “permanently” unclean. There was always a method whereby they could be cleansed. So, one could say, Jesus was winnowing the people (cp. Matthew 3:12) in that he was ridding them of the unwanted chaff (false teaching), or in the case of the man with the unclean spirit, he pruned him of what was unclean or not desirable, and was, thus, made clean—but more about this man in our next study.

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[1] Akathartos is used only of an unclean spirit in the Gospel narratives. It is used of unclean food in Acts 10:14, 11:8. It is used of unclean people in Acts 10:28; 1Corinthians 7:14; 2Corinthians 6:17 and Ephesians 5:5 (cp. Psalm 1:1; Ezra 6:21; 10:11; Acts 2:40).