Ryle on Mark 14:43-52

Imported boundary: J. C. Ryle's Expository Thoughts on Mark from the Internet Archive DjVu OCR for the 1858 Robert Carter St. Mark volume. Title pages, preface, contents, running heads, page numbers, OCR boilerplate, and indexes are not mirrored. The source includes Ryle's printed Scripture text and exposition; this scan-derived text remains needs-verification.

Primary passage: Mark 14:43-52.

Source Text

43 And immediately, while he yet of the High Priest, and cut off his spake, cometh Judas, one of the ear. twelve, and with him a great multi- 48 And Jesus answered and said tude with swords and staves, from the unto them, Are ye come out, as against Chief Priests and the Scribes and the a thief, with swords and with staves elders. ' to take me ? 44 And he that betrayed him had ! 49 I was daily with you in the given them a token, saying, Whom- temple teaching, and ye took me not : soever I shall kiss, that same is he ; but the Scriptures must be fulfilled, take him, and lead 7dm away safely. 50 And they all forsook him, and 45 And as soon as he was come, he fled. £oeth straightway to him, and saith, 51 And there followed him a cer- Master, master ; and kissed him. ; tain young man, having a linen cloth 46 And they laid their hands on cast about his naked body ; and the him, and took him. young men laid hold on him : 47 And one of them that stood by 52 And he left the linen cloth, and drew a sword, and smote a servant fled from them naked.

Let us notice in these verses, how little our Lord's enemies understood the nature of His kingdom.

We read that Judas came to take Him " with a great multitude, with swords and staves." It was evidently expected that our Lord would be vigorously defended by His disciples, and that He would not be taken prisoner without fighting. The chief priests and scribes clung obstinately to the idea, that our Lord's kingdom was a worldly kingdom, and therefore supposed that it would be upheld by worldly means. They had yet to learn the solemn lesson contained in our Lord's words to Pilate, " My kingdom is not of this world : - now is my kingdom not from hence." (John xviii. 36.) We shall do well to remember this in all our endea- vors to extend the kingdom of true religion. It is not to be propagated by violence, or by an arm of flesh. " The weapons of our warfare are not carnal/' " Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts." (2 Cor. x. 4. Zech. iv. 6.) The cause of truth does not need force to maintain it. False religions, like Mohammedanism, have often been spread by the sword. False Christianity, like that of the Roman Church, has often been enforced on men by bloody persecutions. But the real Gospel of Christ requires no such aids as these. It stands by the power of the Holy Ghost. It grows by the hidden influence of the Holy Ghost on men's hearts and consciences. There is no clearer sign of a bad cause in religion than a readiness to appeal to the sword.

Let us notice, secondly, in these verses, how all tilings in our Lord's pass iori happened according to God's word. His own address to those who took Him, exhibits this in a striking manner : " the Scripture must be fulfilled." There was no accident or chance in any part of the close of our Lord's earthly ministry. The steps in which He walked from Gethsemane to Calvary were all marked out hundreds of years before. The twenty-second Psalm, and the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah, were literally fulfilled. The wrath of His enemies - His rejection by His own people - His being dealt with as a malefactor - His being condemned by the assembly of the wicked - all had been foreknown, and all foretold. All that took place was only the working out of God's great design to pro- vide an atonement for a world's sin. The armed men whom Judas brought to lay hands on Jesus, were, like 323 Nebuchadnezzar and Sennacherib, unconscious instru- ments in carrying God's purposes into effect. Let us rest our souls on the thought, that all around us is ordered and overruled by God's almighty wisdom. The course of this world may often be contrary to our wishes. The position of the Church may often be very unlike what we desire. The wickedness of worldly men, and the inconsistencies of believers, may often afflict our souls. But there is a hand above us, moving the vast machine of this universe, and making all things work together for His glory. The Scriptures are being yearly fulfilled. Not one jot or tittle in them shall ever fail to be accomplished. The kings of the earth may take counsel together, and the rulers of the nations may set themselves against Christ (Psal. ii. 2), but the resurrec- tion morning shall prove that, even at the darkest time, all things were being done according to the will of God.

Let us notice, lastly, in these verses, how much the faith of true believers may give way. We are told that when Judas and his company laid hands on our Lord, and He quietly submitted to be taken prisoner, the eleven disciples " all forsook Him and fled." Perhaps up to that moment they were buoyed up by the hope that our Lord would work a miracle, and set Himself free. But when they saw no miracle worked, their courage failed them entirely. Their former protestations were all forgotten. Their promises to die with their Master, rather than deny Him, were all cast to the winds. The fear of present danger got the better of faith. The sense of immediate peril drove every other feeling out of their minds. They u all forsook Him and fled." There is something deeply instructive in this incident. It deserves the attentive study of all professing Chris- tians. Happy is he who marks the conduct of our Lord's disciples, and gathers from it wisdom !

Let us learn from the flight of these eleven disciples not to be over-confident in our own strength. The fear of man does indeed bring a snare. We never know what we may do, if we are tempted, or to what extent our faith may give way. Let us be clothed with hu- mility.

Let us learn to be charitable in our judgment of other Christians. Let us not expect too much from them, or set them down as having no grace at all, if we see them overtaken in a fault. Let us not forget that even our Lord's chosen apostles forsook Him in His time of need. Yet they rose again by repentance, and became pillars of the Church of Christ.

Finally, let us leave the passage with a deep sense of our Lord's ability to sympathize with His believing people. If there is one trial greater than another, it is the trial of being disappointed in those we love. It is a bitter cup, which all true Christians have frequently to drink. Ministers fail them. Kelations fail them. Friends fail them. One cistern after another proves to be broken, and to hold no water. But let them take comfort in the thought, that there is one unfailing Friend, even Jesus, who can be touched with the feeling of their infirmities, and has tasted of all their sorrows. Jesus knows what it is to see friends and disciples failing Him in the hour of need. Yet He bore it patiently, and loved them not- withstanding all. He is never weary of forgiving. Let 325 us strive to do likewise. Jesus, at any rate, will never fail us. It is written, " His compassions fail not." (Lam. iii. 22*

* The question has often been asked, " Who was the ' certain young man/ mentioned at the end of this passage, on whom the young men laid hold, and who fled away naked " St, Mark is the only evangelist who relates this circumstance : and he has given us no clue to further knowledge as to who it was, or why the event is mentioned. No satisfactory answer to these questions has yet been given. The utmost that can be said of any of the explanations attempted, is, that they are conjectures and speculations. " Some," says Petter in his commentary on Mark, " have thought that it was one of the twelve disciples, viz., James the son of Alpheus, the Lord's brother, or kinsman of our Saviour (whose appearance was perhaps like our Lord's)." This is the view of Epiphanius and Jerome. Others have thought that it was John, the beloved disciple. This is the view of Ambrose, Chrysostom, and Gregory. But it could be neither of them, nor any other of the twelve, because it is said immediately before, that they " all fled" upon the taking of our Sa- viour, whereas this young man followed our Saviour at this time. It is more likely that it was some good young man, who dwelt near the garden of Gethsemane, who hearing the noise and stir that was made about the taking and binding of our Saviour, did arise suddenly out of his bed to see what was the matter, and perceiving that they had cruelly taken and bound our Saviour, and were leading Him away, did follow after Him to see what would be done with Him, whereby it appears that he was a well-wisher to our Saviour." Theophylact and Euthymius think it probable that it was some young man who followed our Lord from the house where He ate the passover with His disciples. Some think that it was the Evan- gelist Mark himself. Some have thought that St. Mark's purpose in relating the event, is to show the cruelty, rage, and ferocity of those who took our Lord. They were ready to lay hands on any one who was any where near Him, and to make prisoners indiscriminately of all who even appeared to be connected with him. Some have thought that the whole transaction exhibits the utter de- sertion of our Lord. " This young man," says Clarius, " would rather escape naked than be taken as one of the followers of Christ." Some have thought that it is related to show the real peril in