Mark 11:14

Mar 11:14. Ἀποκριθεὶς, answering) To the tree which refused food.—μηδεὶς, no man) Whatever does not serve Jesus Christ, is unworthy to serve any one of mortals. [Therefore the tree was doomed to the curse for the honour of the Son of GOD.—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.

Mar 11:14 . φάγοι : the optative of wishing with μὴ ( μηκέτι ), as in classic Greek (Burton, M. T., § 476). The optative is comparatively rare in the N. T. ἤκουον : the disciples heard (what He said); they were not inobservant. His manner would arrest attention. The remark prepares for what is reported in Mar 11:20 ; hence the imperfect.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

14. answered and said unto it] “arbori fructum neganti.” Bengel.

No man eat fruit] “And presently,” i. e. immediately, writes St Matthew (Mat_21:19), “the fig tree withered away,” though the disciples did not notice it till the following morning. Thus our blessed Lord exhibited at once a Parable and a Prophecy in action.

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 Jesus answered and said unto it,.... The fig tree; a Jewish way of speaking, often used when nothing before is said; the Syriac, Arabic, and Persic versions, leave out the word "answered", as they do also the word "Jesus"; and which is likewise omitted by the Vulgate Latin, though the other is retained:

no man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever; which is all one, as if he had said, as the other evangelist does, let no fruit grow on thee; for where no fruit is, none can be had, or eaten of. This tree may not only be an emblem of the Jewish people, who made a great show of religion, and enjoyed a great many privileges; and from whom, speaking after the manner of men, the fruits of good works, righteousness, and holiness, might have been hoped and looked for; when instead thereof, there was nothing but talk about them, and an observance of some insignificant rites and traditions of the "elders"; on which account, utter ruin and destruction ensued; but also of any outward professor of religion, who enjoying the means of grace, and making great pretensions to devotion and piety, it might be expected that he should do good works, well pleasing to God, and bring forth fruit to the glory of his name: whereas he only talks of good works, but does none; at least, no fruits of grace and righteousness are to be found on him; and at the last day, he will be cast as dry wood, as a withered branch, into everlasting burnings, being fit fuel for them.

And his disciples heard it; "this saying", as the Persic version adds, and took notice of it, being in company with him.

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

14 And Jesus answered and said unto it, No man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever. And his disciples heard it.

Ver. 14. {See Trapp on "Mat 21:19"}

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

14. No man eat… forever — As the tree had neglected to bring forth fruit, it is forever deprived of the power to bring forth fruit. Powers disused are powers forfeited. From him that hath not fruit shall be taken away that which he hath, namely, the capability of fruit.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

No man eat fruit from thee henceforward for ever (eiv to). These words, in their application to the Jewish nation, have a merciful limitation a limitation which lies in the original words rendered "for ever," which literally mean for the age. "No man eat fruit of thee henceforward, for the age;" until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. A day will doubtless come when Israel, which now says, "I am a dry tree," shall accept the words of its true Lord, "From me is thy fruit found," and shall be clothed with the richest fruits of all trees. (See Trench on the Miracles). St. Matthew (Mat_21:19) tells us that "immediately the fig tree withered away." "Straightway a shivering fear and trembling passed through its leaves, as though it was at once struck to the heart by the malediction of its Creator." Our Lord"s disciples heard his words; but they appear not to have noticed the immediate effect of them upon the tree. It was not until the next day that they observed what had happened. This miracle would show his disciples how soon he could have withered his enemies, who were about to crucify him; but he waited with long-suffering for their salvation, by repentance and faith in him.

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

14. ἀποκριθείς. He “answered” the deceptive profession of the fig-tree. Cf. Mar 9:5, Mar 10:51, Mar 14:49.

Μηκέτι … μηδείς. The opt. of wishing (φάγοι) occurs 35 times in N.T. But only here and Act 8:20 is the wish for something evil. Burton § 176. Neither here nor at Mar 1:44 (see note) is there a double neg. in Mt., whose wording here is different. It is possible that neither Evangelist gives the exact words. Christ may simply have predicted that such a tree would never bear fruit for anyone, a prediction which Peter regarded as a curse. Even if Mk gives the words correctly, they hardly amount to a curse; there is no ἐπικατάρατος or κατηραμένος (Gal 3:10; Mat 25:41). Cf. μὴ γένοιτο (Luk 20:16). If we are right in regarding the words as a judgment on the tree for its deceitful professions, it is to be noted that it is the only miracle of judgment wrought by Christ, and it is wrought on an insensate object; εἰς τὸ ἀναίσθητον δένδρον ἐπιδείκνυται τὴν δύναμιν (Theoph.). The solemn lesson is given without causing pain. But the symbolical judgment is not pointed out by Christ, still less its application to Jerusalem, which had just exhibited such enthusiasm for Him as the Messiah, and was about to show how deceptive that enthusiasm was by putting Him to death for not being the kind of Messiah that they desired. Time would show this application, when the braggart and barren city, quae verba sine operibus sonabat (Bede), was destroyed. The lesson which Christ pointed out was less obvious and of more pressing need (Mar 11:22-25).

It is sometimes suggested that this narrative is only the parable of Luk 13:6-9 in another form. Not only the story, but the moral in each case is different. The parable is a warning against spiritual unproductiveness, and we are not told that the unproductiveness continued, and that the threatened destruction took place. Here there is no warning, and the tree is destroyed, not for producing nothing, but for making a deceptive show of exceptional producing power. Still less satisfactory is the suggestion that this is a case of folklore; there was a withered fig-tree near Jerusalem, and this story was invented to account for it. Withered fig-trees must have been common enough. It is extraordinary objects that excite folklore.

ἤκουον. The disciples were listening; they were near enough to hear these unusual words, which were spoken for the sake of the lesson to which they led (Mar 11:21-25). Christ sees in His own disappointment an opportunity for giving instruction that was much needed. The incident could be made a parable, not told, but acted before the disciples’ eyes; and segnius irritant animos etc. (Hor. A. P. 180). The ἤκουον intimates that there is something more to be told.

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.

14. Καὶ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν αὐτῇ—And answering, he said to it.

Omit ὁ Ἰησοῦς before εἶπεν Tisch. Treg. WH. RV. אBCDL Δ 1, 33, 91, 124, 238, 346 mss. Lat. Vet. Vulg.

Μηκέτι εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα ἐκ σοῦ μηδεὶς καρπὸν φάγοι—The position of the words and the double negative make this curse weighty. The reason of it is to be found in the false pretence of leaves without fruit on a tree in which leaves are a sign of fruit. The apparent unreason is in cursing a fig tree for anything. The principle that you must not only judge a person by his acts, but sometimes judge his acts by the person, applies here. The act appears wanton and petulant, but what we know of Jesus warrants us in setting aside this appearance. Jesus was on the eve of spiritual conflict with a nation whose prime and patent fault was hypocrisy or false pretence, and here he finds a tree guilty of the same thing. It gives him his opportunity, without hurting anybody, to sit in judgment on the fault. He does not complete the parable by pointing out the application, but leaves this, as he does his spoken parables, to suggest its own meaning, and so to force men to think. Such acted parables were not without precedent among the Jews. See Hos 1:1-3, Joh 4:6-11, Mat 13:10-15. And in Jesus’ own teaching, the recourse to enigmatical methods that should force men to think, was not uncommon.

CLEANSING OF THE TEMPLE

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

His disciples heard it. Peculiar to Mark.

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.