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Mark 1:1. The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Mark 1:2. as it is written in the prophets: Behold, I send My angel before Thy face, who will prepare Thy way before Thee. Mark 1:3. The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight. The evangelist presents John, the last of the prophets, as the beginning of the Gospel of the Son of God, because the end of the Old Testament is the beginning of the New Testament. As for the testimony about the Forerunner, it is taken from two prophets - from Malachi: “Behold, I send My angel, and he will prepare the way before Me” (Mal.3:1) and from Isaiah: “The voice of one crying in the wilderness” (Is.40:3) and so on. These are the words of God the Father to the Son. He calls the Forerunner an Angel for his angelic and almost ethereal life and for the announcement and indication of the coming Christ. John prepared the way of the Lord, preparing the souls of the Jews through baptism to accept Christ: “before Your face” means Your Angel is close to You. This signifies the closeness of the Forerunner to Christ, since even before kings, primarily related persons are honored. “The voice of one crying in the wilderness,” that is, in the Jordanian desert, and even more so in the Jewish synagogue, which was empty in relation to good. “Way” means the New Testament, “paths” means the Old, as repeatedly violated by the Jews. They had to prepare for the path, that is, for the New Testament, and correct the paths of the Old, for although they had accepted them in ancient times, they later turned away from their paths and got lost. Mark 1:4. John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Mark 1:5. And the whole country of Judea and the people of Jerusalem came out to him, and they were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins. John's baptism did not have remission of sins, but introduced only repentance for people. But how does Mark say here: “for the forgiveness of sins”? To this we answer that John preached a baptism of repentance. What was the point of this sermon? To the remission of sins, that is, to the baptism of Christ, which already included the remission of sins. When we say, for example, that such and such came before the king, commanding that food be prepared for the king, we mean that those who fulfill this command are favored by the king. So it is here. The Forerunner preached the baptism of repentance so that people, having repented and accepted Christ, would receive remission of sins. Mark 1:6. John wore clothes made of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist, and ate locusts and wild honey. We already talked about this in the Gospel of Matthew; now we will only say about what is omitted there, namely: that John’s clothing was a sign of lamentation, and the prophet showed in this way that the repentant should cry, since sackcloth usually serves as a sign of crying; the leather belt meant the deadness of the Jewish people. And that this clothing meant crying, the Lord himself says about this: “We sang sad songs to you (Slavic “lamentation”), and you did not cry,” calling here the life of the Forerunner weeping, because he further says: “John came, neither eating nor drinking; and they say, “He has a demon” (Matthew 11:17–18). Likewise, the food of John, pointing here, of course, to abstinence, was at the same time an image of the spiritual food of the Jews of that time, who did not eat clean birds of the air, that is, did not think about anything lofty, but fed only on the word exalted and aimed at grief, but again falling to the ground. For locusts (“locusts”) are an insect that jumps up and then falls to the ground again. In the same way, the people ate honey produced by bees, that is, prophets; but it remained with him without care and was not increased by deepening and correct understanding, although the Jews thought that they understood and comprehended the Scripture. They had the Scriptures, like some honey, but they did not labor over them and did not study them. Mark 1:7. And he preached, saying: He who is mightier than I is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down to untie; Mark 1:8. I baptized you with water, and He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. “I,” he says, “are not worthy to be even His lowest servant, who would untie the belt, that is, the knot on the strap of his boots. They understand, however, this: everyone who came and was baptized by John was released through repentance from the bonds of their sins when they believed in Christ. Thus, John loosed the belts and bonds of sin in everyone, but in Jesus he could not loose such a belt, because this belt, that is, sin, was not found with Him. Mark 1:9. And it came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. Mark 1:10. And when he came out of the water, John immediately saw the heavens opening and the Spirit like a dove descending on Him. Mark 1:11. And a voice came from heaven: You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Jesus does not come to baptism for the remission of sins, for He did not create sin, nor to receive the Holy Spirit, for how could John’s baptism bestow the Spirit when it did not cleanse sins, as I said? But He did not go to be baptized for repentance, since He was “greater than the Baptist himself” (Matthew 11:11). So, what does it come for? No doubt, so that John would announce Him to the people. Since many flocked there, He deigned to come in order to be testified before many who He is, and at the same time in order to fulfill “all righteousness,” that is, all the commandments of the Law. Since obedience to the baptizing prophet, as sent from God, was also a commandment, then Christ fulfills this commandment. The Spirit descends not because Christ has a need for it (for in essence He abides in Him), but so that you know that the Holy Spirit also descends on you at baptism. When the Holy Spirit descended, the testimony was immediately spoken. Since the Father spoke from above: “You are My Son,” so that those who heard would not think that He was speaking about John, the Spirit descended on Jesus, showing that this was said about Him. The heavens are opened so that we know that they are also opened to us when we are baptized. Mark 1:12. Immediately after this, the Spirit leads Him into the wilderness. Mark 1:13. And He was there in the wilderness for forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the beasts; and Angels served Him. Teaching us not to lose heart when, after baptism, we fall into temptation, the Lord goes up into the mountain to face temptation, or, better yet, does not go away, but is led away by the Holy Spirit, showing through this that we ourselves should not fall into temptation, but accept them when they befall us. And he goes up the mountain so that, due to the desolation of the place, the devil will have boldness and can approach Him; for he usually attacks when he sees that we are alone. The place of temptation was so wild that there were many animals there. The angels began to serve Him after He defeated the tempter. All this is stated in more detail in the Gospel of Matthew. Mark 1:14. After John was betrayed, Jesus came to Galilee preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom of God Mark 1:15. and saying that the time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent and believe in the Gospel. Having heard that John had been handed over to prison, Jesus retired to Galilee in order to show us that we ourselves should not fall into temptations, but avoid them, and when we fall, endure them. Christ preaches, apparently, the same thing as John, something like: “repent” and “the Kingdom of God is at hand.” But in fact, it is not the same thing: John says “repent” in order to turn away from sins, and Christ says “repent” in order to lag behind the letter of the Law, which is why he added: “believe in the Gospel,” for the one who wants to believe according to the Gospel has already abolished the Law. The Lord says that “the time is fulfilled” for the Law. Hitherto, he says, the Law was in effect, but from now on the Kingdom of God comes, life according to the Gospel. This life is rightly presented as the “Kingdom” of Heaven, for when you see that someone who lives according to the Gospel behaves almost as if disembodied, how can you not say that he already has the Kingdom of Heaven (where there is no food or drink), although it seems to be still far away. Mark 1:16. As he passed near the Sea of ​​Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting nets into the sea, for they were fishermen. Mark 1:17. And Jesus said to them, Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men. Mark 1:18. And they immediately left their nets and followed Him. Mark 1:19. And having gone a little way from there, He saw James Zebedee and John his brother also in a boat mending nets; Mark 1:20. and immediately called them. And they, leaving their father Zebedee in the boat with the workers, followed Him. Peter and Andrew were at first disciples of the Forerunner, and when they saw Jesus testified by John, they joined Him. Then, when John was betrayed, they sadly returned to their previous occupation. So, Christ now calls them a second time, for the real calling is already the second. Notice that they were nourished by their righteous works, and not by their unrighteous activities. Such people were worth being the first disciples of Christ. Immediately leaving what was in their hands, they followed Him; for one must not delay, but must follow immediately. After these he catches James and John. And these, although they themselves were poor, nevertheless supported their elderly father. But they left their father not because leaving parents is a good deed, but because he wanted to prevent them from following the Lord. So you, when your parents hinder you, leave them and follow the Good. Apparently, Zebedee did not believe, but the mother of these apostles believed and, when Zebedee died, she also followed the Lord. Take this also that action is called first, and then contemplation, for Peter is the image of action, because he was of a fiery character and always warned others what is characteristic of action; John, on the contrary, represents contemplation in himself, for he was a theologian par excellence. Mark 1:21. And they come to Capernaum; and soon on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught. Mark 1:22. And they marveled at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. Where did you come to Capernaum from? From Nazareth, and on the Sabbath day. When they usually gathered to read the law, then Christ came to teach. For the Law also commanded to celebrate the Sabbath, so that people would read, gathering together for this purpose. The Lord taught accusatoryly, and not flatteringly, like the Pharisees: he persuaded them to do good, and threatened those who disobeyed with torment. Mark 1:23. In their synagogue there was a man possessed by an unclean spirit, and he cried out: Mark 1:24. leave it! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? You have come to destroy us! I know You, who You are, the Holy One of God. Mark 1:25. But Jesus rebuked him, saying: Be silent and come out of him. Mark 1:26. Then the unclean spirit, shaking him and crying out with a loud voice, came out of him. Mark 1:27. And everyone was horrified, so they asked each other: what is this? What is this new teaching that He commands even the unclean spirits with authority, and they obey Him? Mark 1:28. And soon rumors about Him spread throughout the entire region in Galilee. Evil spirits are called “unclean” because they love all kinds of unclean things. The demon considers leaving a person to be “destruction” for himself. Evil demons generally blame themselves for suffering when they are not allowed to do evil to people. Moreover, being carnal and accustomed to enjoying substances, they seem to suffer great hunger when they do not live in bodies. That is why the Lord says that the demonic race is driven out by fasting. The unclean one did not say to Christ: You are holy, since many of the prophets were holy, but he said “Holy One,” that is, the Only One, Holy in His essence. But Christ forces him to remain silent, so that we know that demons must stop their mouths, even if they speak the truth. The demon rushes and violently shakes the one possessed by it, so that eyewitnesses, seeing the calamity the person is being delivered from, will believe for the sake of the miracle. Mark 1:29. Soon leaving the synagogue, they came to the house of Simon and Andrew with James and John. Mark 1:30. Simonov's mother-in-law was in a fever; and immediately they tell Him about her. Mark 1:31. Approaching, He lifted her up, taking her hand; and the fever immediately left her, and she began to serve them. By Saturday evening, as usual, the Lord went to the disciples’ house to eat. Meanwhile, the one who was supposed to serve in this regard was overcome with fever. But the Lord heals her, and she begins to serve them. These words make it clear that you, when God heals you from an illness, must use your health to serve the saints and to please God[...]. Mark 1:32. When evening came, when the sun set, they brought to Him all the sick and demon-possessed. Mark 1:33. And the whole city gathered at the door. Mark 1:34. And He healed many who were suffering from various diseases; He cast out many demons, and did not allow the demons to say that they knew that He was the Christ. It is not without reason that it was added: “when the sun set.” Since they thought that it was impermissible to heal on the Sabbath, they waited until sunset and then began to bring the sick for healing. “He healed many”, it is said instead of “all”, because all make up a multitude; or: he did not heal everyone because some turned out to be unbelievers, who were not healed for their unbelief, but he healed “many” of those brought, that is, those who had faith. He did not allow demons to speak in order, as I said, to teach us not to believe them, even if they spoke the truth. Otherwise, if they find someone who completely trusts them, then what the damned ones won’t do, mixing lies with the truth! So Paul forbade the inquisitive spirit to say: “These people are servants of the Most High God”; The Holy Man did not want to hear feedback and testimony from unclean lips. Mark 1:35. And in the morning, getting up very early, he went out and retired to a deserted place, and there he prayed. Mark 1:36. Simon and those with him followed him Mark 1:37. and having found Him, they say to Him: everyone is looking for You. Mark 1:38. He says to them: let us go to the neighboring villages and cities so that I can preach there too, for this is why I came. Mark 1:39. And He preached in their synagogues throughout all Galilee and cast out demons. After healing the sick, the Lord goes to a secluded place, teaching us not to do anything for show, but if we do any good, we should hasten to hide it. And He also prays in order to show us that whatever good we do must be attributed to God and said to Him: “Every good gift and every perfect gift comes down from above, from the Father of lights” (James 1:17). Christ Himself did not even need to pray. Further, when the people sought and greatly desired Him, He does not give itself to Him, although it accepts it with favor, but also goes to others in need of healing and instruction. For the work of teaching should not be limited to one place, but the rays of the word must be scattered everywhere. But look how He combines action with teaching: He preaches, and then casts out demons. So teach and do things together, so that your word is not in vain. Otherwise, if Christ had not shown miracles at the same time, then His word would not have been believed. Mark 1:40. A leper comes to Him and, begging Him and falling on his knees before Him, says to Him: if you want, you can cleanse me. Mark 1:41. Jesus, having compassion on him, stretched out his hand, touched him and said to him: I want you to be clean. Mark 1:42. After this word, the leprosy immediately left him, and he became clean. The leper was prudent and believed; therefore he did not say: if you ask God; but believing in Him as God, he said: “if you want.” Christ touches him as a sign that nothing is unclean. The law forbade touching a leper as unclean; but the Savior, wanting to show that there is nothing by nature unclean, that the requirements of the Law must be abolished and that they have power only over people, touches the leper - while Elisha was so afraid of the Law that he did not even want to see Naaman, the leper who asked for healing. Mark 1:43. And, looking at him sternly, he immediately sent him away Mark 1:44. and he said to him, See that you do not say anything to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them. Mark 1:45. And he, going out, began to proclaim and tell about what had happened, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside, in deserted places. And they came to Him from everywhere. And from this we also learn not to show off ourselves when we show kindness to someone, for Jesus Himself commands the one who has purified himself not to talk about Him. Although He knew that he would not listen and would divulge it, however, as I said, teaching us not to love vanity, he orders us not to tell anyone. But on the other hand, anyone who has benefited should be grateful and grateful, even if his benefactor does not need it. So the leper divulges the good deed he has received, despite the fact that the Lord did not tell him to. Christ sends him to the priest, because according to the command of the Law, a leper could only enter the city by a priestly announcement about his cleansing from leprosy, otherwise he had to be expelled from the city. At the same time, the Lord commands him to bring a gift, as those who were purified as usual brought: this is evidence that He is not an opponent of the Law, on the contrary, He values ​​it so much that He commands to fulfill what is commanded in the Law.