Mark 10:41

Mar 10:41-45. When the ten heard it — See on Mat 20:24-28. A ransom for many — Even for as many souls as needed such a ransom, 2Co 5:15.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

CHAPTER 10:41-45 (Mar_10:41-45)

THE LAW OF GREATNESS

"And when the ten heard it, they began to be moved with indignation concerning James and John. And Jesus called them to Him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles lord it over them; and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it is not so among you: but whosoever would become great among you, shall be your minister: and whosoever would be first among you, shall be servant of all. For verily the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for many." Mar_10:41-45 (R.V.)

WHEN the ten heard that James and John had asked for the chief places in the kingdom, they proved, by their indignation, that they also nourished the same ambitious desires which they condemned. But Jesus called them to Him, for it was not there that angry passions had broken out. And happy are they who hear and obey His summons to approach, when, removed from His purifying gaze by carelessness or willfulness, ambition and anger begin to excite their hearts.

Now Jesus addressed them as being aware of their hidden emulation. And His treatment of it is remarkable. He neither condemns, nor praises it, but simply teaches them what Christian greatness means, and the conditions on which it may be won.

The greatness of the world is measured by authority and lordliness. Even there it is an uncertain test; for the most real power is often wielded by some anonymous thinker, or by some crafty intriguer, content with the substance of authority while his puppet enjoys the trappings. Something of this may perhaps be detected in the words, "They which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles lord it over them." And it is certain that "their great ones exercise authority over them." But the Divine greatness is a meek and gentle influence. To minister to the Church is better than to command it, and whoever desires to be the chief must become the servant of all. Thus shall whatever is vainglorious and egoistic in our ambition defeat itself; the more one struggles to be great the more he is disqualified: even benefits rendered to others with this object will not really be service done for them but for self; nor will any calculated assumption of humility help one to become indeed the least, being but a subtle assertion that he is great, and like the last place in an ecclesiastical procession, when occupied in a self-conscious spirit. And thus it comes to pass that the Church knows very indistinctly who are its greatest sons. As the gift of two mites by the widow was greater than that of large sums by the rich, so a small service done in the spirit of perfect self-effacement, -- a service which thought neither of its merit nor of its reward, but only of a brother's need, shall be more in the day of reckoning than sacrifices which are celebrated by the historians and sung by the poets of the Church. For it may avail nothing to give all my goods to feed the poor, and my body to be burned; while a cup of cold water, rendered by a loyal hand, shall in no wise lose its reward.

Thus Jesus throws open to all men a competition which has no charms for flesh and blood. And as He spoke of the entry upon His service, bearing a cross, as being the following of Himself, so He teaches us, that the greatness of lowliness, to which we are called, is His own greatness. "For verily the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto but to minister." Not here, not in this tarnished and faded world, would He Who was from everlasting with the Father have sought His own ease or honor. But the physician came to them that were sick, and the good Shepherd followed His lost sheep until He found it. Now this comparison proves that we also are to carry forward the same restoring work, or else we might infer that, because He came to minister to us, we may accept ministration with a good heart. It is not so. We are the light and the salt of the earth, and must suffer with Him that we may also be glorified together.

But He added another memorable phrase. He came "to give His life a ransom in exchange for many." It is not a question, therefore, of the inspiring example of His life. Something has been forfeited which must be redeemed, and Christ has paid the price. Nor is this done only on behalf of many, but in exchange for them.

So then the crucifixion is not a sad incident in a great career; it is the mark towards which Jesus moved, the power by which He redeemed the world.

Surely, we recognize here the echo of the prophet's words, "Thou shalt make His soul an offering for sin . . . by His knowledge shall My righteous servant justify many, and He shall bear their iniquities" (Isa_53:10-11).

The elaborated doctrine of the atonement may not perhaps be here, much less the subtleties of theologians who have, to their own satisfaction, known the mind of the Almighty to perfection. But it is beyond reasonable controversy that in this verse Jesus declared that His sufferings were vicarious, and endured in the sinners' stead.

William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.

10:41 the ten other disciples . . . were indignant: Perhaps they wanted the special places requested by James and John for themselves. All of Jesus’ disciples needed a new understanding of what leadership in God’s Kingdom means (10:42-45).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 41. When the ten heard it] See Mt 20:24-28.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

41. began to be much displeased] “hadden endignacioun,” Wyclif. The sons of Zebedee had been in a better social position than most of their brethren, and this attempt to secure a pre-eminence of honour kindled a storm of jealousy.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And whosoever of you will be the chiefest,.... Is desirous of the highest place and the greatest honour

shall be servant of all: for the ministers of the Gospel are not only the servants of Christ Jesus, but also of the churches for his sake; and in serving them, they serve Christ: not that they are to be the servants of men and to take their instructions from them and act according to rules prescribed by them; or seek to please men for then they would not be the servants of Christ: but they become servants to all that they may win souls to Christ, and increase his churches, and enlarge his interest; and such as are most useful this way are the chiefest in the Gospel church state; they are honoured by Christ and esteemed by his people; See Gill on Mat 20:27.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

And when the ten heard it, they began to be moved with indignation concerning James and John. How did they hear it? It is most likely that Salome and her two sons sought this favor secretly from Christ, lest they should excite the envy of the ethers. But they, the ten, must have noticed the approach of James and John with their mother to our Lord. They came in a formal manner, worshipping him first, and then making their request. (see Mat_20:20) The ten would naturally be desirous to know the nature of this interview; and when it was explained to them, they began to show indignation. Our Lord perceived that they were disputing; and he then called them and addressed the whole body. For he saw that they were all laboring under this disease of ambition; and he wished to apply the remedy at once to all, as we see in the words which follow.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Another lesson in humility:

v. 41. And when the ten heard it, they began to be much displeased with James and John.

v. 42. But Jesus called them to Him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them.

v. 43. But so shall it not be among you; but whosoever will be great among you shall be your minister;

v. 44. and whosoever of you will be the chiefest shall be servant of all.

v. 45. For even the Son of Man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for many.

The other ten apostles had witnessed the entire incident with jealous apprehension and growing indignation. Not that they did not have the. same aspirations, but that others had voiced them first and probably been near accomplishing their design. Jesus believed the time appropriate to repeat the lesson of a short time ago. He called the Twelve to Him, apart from the rest of the disciples that. were with them. He then placed a contrast before them. Those who pass for, and are esteemed as, rulers by the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great ones of the world exercise dominion, use their power as they see fit, chiefly to enlarge their power. That is the case in earthly matters. But within the kingdom of Christ things are, or at least ought to be, far different. There greatness is measured, not by the amount of authority exercised, but by the amount of service rendered. The greater the service that is rendered, in unselfish humility, the higher will be the standing of a person in God’s kingdom. The more thorough the self-abasement in the interest of one’s neighbor and for love of Christ, the greater it will be accounted on God’s credit slip. And in this the apostles and all Christians have the most glorious example before their eyes always: He, the great Lord of heaven, who came to earth as the Son of Man, who might have demanded and enforced the service of all creation, did not demand and accept this service, but Himself became the lowest servant of all. That was one object of His coming. And the other is closely connected with this. He freely gave His life as a ransom, as the price of redemption. His life, His blood, was given to pay the guilt of the whole world, and though there is a large number that reject His redemption, there are also, by His grace, many that believe on Him and are saved by such faith. "Mark especially the verse where Christ says: The Son of Man is come to give His life as a ransom for many. For this verse teaches.... of the forgiveness of sins, and how we may obtain it. With our works and merit we are lost; for we owe God such a great sum that it is impossible for us to pay it. How may we then become rid of the guilt? In no other way but that our dear Lord Jesus Christ accepts our guilt and takes our sins from us and lays them on His back and suffers death, which we had earned by our sins, in order that we might be free and liberated from death."

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

heard about this

The word "this" refers to James and John asking to sit at Jesus' right and left hands.

Jesus called them

"Jesus called his disciples"

those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles

This can be stated in active form. Possible meanings are 1) people in general consider these people the rulers of the Gentiles. AT: "those whom people consider to be the rulers of the Gentiles" or 2) the Gentiles consider these people their rulers. AT: "those whom the Gentiles think of as their rulers" (See: Active or Passive)

dominate

have control or power over

exercise authority

"flaunt their authority." This means that they show or use their authority in an overbearing way.

translationWords

disciple

James (son of Zebedee)

John (the apostle)

rule

Gentile

authority

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

[41. Οἱ δέκα, the ten) When one of two persons seeks some special privilege, the other takes it ill, who would have been contented of himself.—V. g.]

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

41. ἀγανακτεῖν. Cf. Mar 10:14. Christ had already rebuked the spirit of ambition and jealousy in the Twelve (Mar 9:35), but it was not extinguished; and the other ten are indignant with the two brothers for trying to get special promotion for themselves. We do not, however, read of the nine being indignant when Christ gave special honour to Peter, James, and John. It was the brothers’ asking for special favour which gave offence.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

41. οἱ δέκα ἤρξαντο ἀγανακτεῖν2—the ten began to be indignant. There was reason for this strong feeling on the part of the other disciples. The condition seems to have been, that Peter, James, and John were singled out by Jesus himself for such eminence among the twelve, as the twelve had among the other disciples. If there was any jealousy caused by this, it would be allayed by the fact that the Master selected those manifestly fit, and that it was unaccompanied by any outward advantage. But, now, there was an attempt to secure places in the coming kingdom and its glory, and Peter, the real leader of the twelve, was left out of the scheme. It was the introduction of political methods, such as invariably go with the materializing of ideas, the use of principles to secure power, and of power to advance principles in the world.

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.