Let us see whether we can get anything more out of Mark, whose gospel,
by the way, is supposed to be older than Matthew's. Mark is brief; and
it does not take long to discover that he adds nothing to Matthew except
the ending of the story by Christ's ascension into heaven, and the
news that many women had come with Jesus to Jerusalem, including Mary
Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils. On the other hand Mark
says nothing about the birth of Jesus, and does not touch his career
until his adult baptism by John. He apparently regards Jesus as a native
of Nazareth, as John does, and not of Bethlehem, as Matthew and Luke do,
Bethlehem being the city of David, from whom Jesus is said by Matthew
and Luke to be descended. He describes John's doctrine as "Baptism of
repentance unto remission of sins": that is, a form of Salvationism.
He tells us that Jesus went into the synagogues and taught, not as the
Scribes but as one having authority: that is, we infer, he preaches his
own doctrine as an original moralist is instead of repeating what
the books say. He describes the miracle of Jesus reaching the boat by
walking across the sea, but says nothing about Peter trying to do the
same. Mark sees what he relates more vividly than Matthew, and gives
touches of detail that bring the event more clearly before the reader.
He says, for instance, that when Jesus walked on the waves to the boat,
he was passing it by when the disciples called out to him. He seems
to feel that Jesus's treatment of the woman of Canaan requires some
apology, and therefore says that she was a Greek of Syrophenician
race, which probably excused any incivility to her in Mark's eyes. He
represents the father of the boy whom Jesus cured of epilepsy after the
transfiguration as a sceptic who says "Lord, I believe: help thou mine
unbelief." He tells the story of the widow's mite, omitted by Matthew.
He explains that Barabbas was "lying bound with them that made
insurrection, men who in the insurrection had committed murder." Joseph
of Arimathea, who buried Jesus in his own tomb, and who is described by
Matthew as a disciple, is described by Mark as "one who also himself
was looking for the kingdom of God," which suggests that he was an
independent seeker. Mark earns our gratitude by making no mention of the
old prophecies, and thereby not only saves time, but avoids the absurd
implication that Christ was merely going through a predetermined ritual,
like the works of a clock, instead of living. Finally Mark reports
Christ as saying, after his resurrection, that those who believe in
him will be saved and those who do not, damned; but it is impossible
to discover whether he means anything by a state of damnation beyond a
state of error. The paleographers regard this passage as tacked on by a
later scribe. On the whole Mark leaves the modern reader where Matthew
left him.