The Resurrection - Mark 16
There are at least four possible endings for the Gospel according to Mark. The Abrupt Ending, that seems to be preferred by the translators of most modern Bibles, where the gospel ends at 16.8. The Longer (traditional) Ending which contains 16.9-20 that is still in our modern Bibles but is often bracketed or footnoted as a later addition. There is also the Shorter Ending, which is an additional sentence added after verse 8, that is often given in a footnote. (This sentence is also sometimes included as part of the traditional ending.) And then there is the addition to the longer ending that is found only in the Freer Logion, a manuscript in the collections of the Smithsonian Institution's Freer Gallery of Art, that generally is often not noted by modern translators. The text that comes down to us in the Freer Logion was known to Jerome, who considered it an interpolation. That must have been common thinking as it has not come down to us in the bulk of manuscripts. The New Catholic Bible calls the Shorter Ending and the Freer Logion non-canonical endings, as opposed to the other two. I Used that translation here because it was the first translation I found on Biblehub.com that contained all three endings in a form that made this page easy to prepare.
The Orthodox Study Bible, which does not set verses 16-20 off in any way, has the NKJV note on verse 20 that says: "Verses 16-20 are bracketed in the NU-Text as not original. They are lacking in Codex Sinaticus and Codex Vaticanus although nearly all other manuscripts contain them." The NU-Text is the modern critical text which is a combination of the older texts that are often not complete in themselves. Sinaticus and Vaticanus are text types preferred by modern scholars because they are older. (They depart from the received text in other places as well.) The general thinking that older is better is not without controversy. The older I get the more I think that older is at least not so bad, but I am not certain how that should apply to Biblical tradition. The Orthodox are the ones who preserved what is called the Textus Recptus or received text of the Greek New Testament. This text stands in the long tradition of the Church. The Roman Church, the foundation of Christian west lost its facility in Greek and relied instead on the Latin translations, notably the Vulgate (c. 328) which contains the Longer Ending because they are based on the Textus Receptus. Irenaeus, Justin, Tatian and Hippolytus are counted among the Church Fathers from the 100's knew and quoted from the longer ending so it is indeed old. The majority of the texts that we have do contain the longer ending. The minority, by a lot, but older texts have the abrupt ending. Fewer still have the shorter ending only or both endings some with critical notes. The issue is clearly old with many saying that the last page of Mark was lost at some point and that various people tried to reconstruct it leaving something of a puzzle for us.
The "controversy" for us is, however, recent. In the late 1800's what became known as the Wellhausen School Of Higher Criticism or just Higher Criticism began in Germany with Julius Wellhausen. Although he was the originator of Higher Criticism, he focused on the Old Testament. The scholars who followed after him applied his thinking to the New Testament and departed from the tradition of using the received text that the Church had preserved and tried to piece things together from the older texts. They also gave us the notion of the "Q SOURCE," a theory that states the Gospels; Matthew, Mark and Luke were absolutely not written by those men. " Because the authors had never even known Jesus and those Gospels were all written after 70 AD. Matthew, Mark and Luke's Gospels are all taken from "Q Source," which they describe as a previous gathering of sayings (logia) by Jesus or simply just "oral tradition." There is no manuscript evidence for this and no even fragments of these Q sources have been found. This is an explanation of the so called Synoptic Problem: "How to explain the similarities and differences among the Synoptic Gospels." Many in the Higher Criticism school do no like miraculous thing generally and so they do not like the snakes and poison in verse 18. Much of this is a distraction as the puzzle becomes how to divide the word, whether or not it is rightly dividing the word of truth (II Timothy 2.15). What follows are the various renderings of Mark 16.
Mark 16 From the New Catholic Bible - The various ending completed from the footnotes.
Mark 16 The Abrupt Ending
Jesus Is Raised from the Dead.
1 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome purchased aromatic spices so that they might go and anoint Jesus. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they went to the tomb.
3 They had been asking each other, "Who will roll back the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?" 4 But when they looked up, they observed that the stone, which was extremely large, had already been rolled back. 5 On entering the tomb, they saw a young man arrayed in a white robe sitting on the right hand side, and they were stunned.
6 He said to them, "Do not be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised. He is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go forth and tell his disciples and Peter: 'He is going ahead of you to Galilee. There you will see him just as he told you.' " 8 Then the women emerged from the tomb and fled, overcome with trembling and amazement. They said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.
Mark 16 - The Longer (Traditional) Ending
Jesus Is Raised from the Dead.
1 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome purchased aromatic spices so that they might go and anoint Jesus. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they went to the tomb.
3 They had been asking each other, "Who will roll back the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?" 4 But when they looked up, they observed that the stone, which was extremely large, had already been rolled back. 5 On entering the tomb, they saw a young man arrayed in a white robe sitting on the right hand side, and they were stunned.
6 He said to them, "Do not be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised. He is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go forth and tell his disciples and Peter: 'He is going ahead of you to Galilee. There you will see him just as he told you.' " 8 Then the women emerged from the tomb and fled, overcome with trembling and amazement. They said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.
Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene.
9 After he had risen from the dead early on the first day of the week, Jesus appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had driven out seven demons. 10 She then went forth and related the story of his appearance to his mourning and weeping companions. 11 However, when they heard that he was alive and that she had seen him, they refused to believe it.
12 Jesus Appears to Two Disciples. After this, Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them as they were on their way into the country. 13 They then returned and reported the news to the others, but they did not believe them either.
Jesus Appears to and Commissions the Eleven.
14 Still later, he appeared to the eleven while they were at table. He reproached them for their lack of faith and their hardness of heart because they refused to believe the witness of those who had seen him after he had risen.
15 Then he said to them, "Go forth into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 These are the signs that will mark those who believe: In my name they will cast out demons. They will be granted the gift of speaking in new languages. 18 If they pick up serpents in their hands or drink any deadly poison, they will remain unharmed. The sick on whom they lay their hands will recover."
19 Jesus Ascends to Heaven. Then, after he had spoken to them, the Lord Jesus was taken up into heaven, and there he took his place at the right hand of God. 20 And they went forth to proclaim the gospel everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word by means of the signs that accompanied their preaching.
Mark 16 - The Shorter Ending.
Jesus Is Raised from the Dead.
1 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome purchased aromatic spices so that they might go and anoint 2 And very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they went to the tomb.
3 They had been asking each other, "Who will roll back the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?" 4 But when they looked up, they observed that the stone, which was extremely large, had already been rolled 5 On entering the tomb, they saw a young man arrayed in a white robe sitting on the right hand side, and they were stunned.
6 He said to them, "Do not be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised. He is not here. See the place where they laid 7 But go forth and tell his disciples and Peter: 'He is going ahead of you to Galilee. There you will see him just as he told you.' " 8 Then the women emerged from the tomb and fled, overcome with trembling and amazement. They said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. [And they reported all the instructions briefly to Peter and his companions. Afterward, through them Jesus sent forth from east to west the sacred and perpetual proclamation of eternal salvation.]
Mark 16 - The Freer Logion.
Jesus Is Raised from the Dead.
1 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome purchased aromatic spices so that they might go and anoint Jesus. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they went to the tomb.
3 They had been asking each other, "Who will roll back the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?" 4 But when they looked up, they observed that the stone, which was extremely large, had already been rolled back. 5 On entering the tomb, they saw a young man arrayed in a white robe sitting on the right hand side, and they were stunned.
6 He said to them, "Do not be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised. He is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go forth and tell his disciples and Peter: 'He is going ahead of you to Galilee. There you will see him just as he told you.' " 8 Then the women emerged from the tomb and fled, overcome with trembling and amazement. They said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.
Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene.
9 After he had risen from the dead early on the first day of the week, Jesus appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had driven out seven demons. 10 She then went forth and related the story of his appearance to his mourning and weeping companions. 11 However, when they heard that he was alive and that she had seen him, they refused to believe it.
12 Jesus Appears to Two Disciples. After this, Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them as they were on their way into the country. 13 They then returned and reported the news to the others, but they did not believe them either.
Jesus Appears to and Commissions the Eleven.
14 Still later, he appeared to the eleven while they were at table. He reproached them for their lack of faith and their hardness of heart because they refused to believe the witness of those who had seen him after he had risen.
[And they excused themselves, saying, "This age of lawlessness and unbelief is under Satan, who does not allow the truth and power of God to prevail over the unclean things of the spirit. Therefore, reveal your righteousness now"—thus they spoke to Christ.
And Christ replied to them, "The limit of the years of Satan's power has been reached, but other terrible things draw near. And for those who sinned I was handed over to death, that they might return to the truth and no longer sin, in order that they might inherit the spiritual and incorruptible glory of righteousness, which is in heaven."]
15 Then he said to them, "Go forth into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 These are the signs that will mark those who believe: In my name they will cast out demons. They will be granted the gift of speaking in new languages. 18 If they pick up serpents in their hands or drink any deadly poison, they will remain unharmed. The sick on whom they lay their hands will recover."
19 Jesus Ascends to Heaven. Then, after he had spoken to them, the Lord Jesus was taken up into heaven, and there he took his place at the right hand of God. 20 And they went forth to proclaim the gospel everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word by means of the signs that accompanied their preaching.
New Catholic Bible: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=mark+16&version=NCB 1/31/23
Which Ending of Marks Gospel is Correct: https://nelson.ink/which-ending-of-marks-gospel-is-correct/ 1/31/23
https://earlychurchhistory.org/beliefs-2/long-or-short-ending-in-mark/ 1/31/23
http://tinychapel.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-freer-logion-and-longer-ending-of.html 1/31/23
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- Last Updated: 31 March 2023