The Gospel of Mark

In this commentary, the Gospel of Mark is presented as a dramatic narrative, which means not simply that the content is dramatic, but that Mark has constructed a Gospel which is in essence a play, divine and cosmic in its implications. Mark functions as a natural dramatist in how he presents material and how he structures the events in Jesus' life. As the first written Gospel, and with the oral tradition more apparent on the surface, Mark is sometimes seen as simplistic and even shapeless, but the Gospel of Mark is formed with great care. Martens argues that the Gospel can be divided into six Acts, each with many scenes. Each Act is at the service of Mark's overall purpose, to explain and unfold not only the identity of the Messiah, but the destiny of the Messiah and his followers. In addition, Mark draws the reader into his narrative, so that the reader becomes one of the disciples following along the journey with Jesus, a point that will become more apparent as read this commentary on the Gospel of Mark.

The Gospel of Mark Commentary is the first of the Bible Junkies Commentaries which will ultimately cover the entire New Testament. The commentaries will emerge, like the Gospel of Mark Commentary, on the Bible Junkies website in a series of weekly installments which will then be revised and crafted for book form. The goal is to bring solid biblical scholarship to as broad a readership as possible and to make this scholarship accessible to anyone who is interested in exploring the Bible. The goal of Bible Junkies is not to create controversy and rancor, but to create meaning and to provide readers with comprehensive insights into each book of the New Testament. The ultimate goal is to addict you to the truth, to make you a Bible Junkie.