Gospel of Mark Resources

This is basically the Gospel According to Legos. Lego does everything else; why not the story of Jesus? Be careful, though. The Brick Testament conflates the gospel accounts into one "Life of Jesus," ignoring important differences between the gospels. Still, of interest for you lovers of Mark are the episodes "The Head of John the Baptist," "Jesus Curses a Tree," and the "Temple Tantrum."

There are believers who take to heart Mark 16:18, which promises followers that they will lift up snakes and not be harmed. To those people we say, bring a first-aid kit!

How do you imagine Mark at work composing his gospel? Here's one artist's take.

So-called "Archaic Mark" is actually not so archaic. This codex was created sometime between 1874 and the first decades of the twentieth century in order to look like a medieval manuscript. Okay, so it's a forgery, but that doesn't mean we can't appreciate the artistry.

In the early 1600s, artist Gortzius Geldorp portrayed Mark lost in thought. What do you think: was Mark really this brand of pensive philosopher?

There are a bunch of Greek manuscripts that underlie the Greek editions on which our translations of Mark are based. On this site, you can explore in detail one of the most important manuscripts and get a flavor for what we're dealing with here. Check out 1:1, for example, where this manuscript originally lacks the words "Son of God," until a later scribe came along and added them. Curious.

Here we have the story of Jesus in—drum roll, please—Claymation. Most movies depicting the life of Jesus take their cue not from one gospel, but from them all. The Miracle Maker is no exception. The trick is to test your knowledge as you watch and try to suss out what comes from Mark and what comes from Matthew, Luke, and John. Make it happen, Cap'n.

Mark loved him some exotic dancing. His account of Salome's dance and the death of John the Baptist is the most detailed of all of the gospels. Mark relishes this story, while Matthew minimizes it and Luke deletes it entirely. But even Mark can't compete with Rita in love for bloody and erotic details….

Life wasn't easy back in Mark's day. The Roman historian Tacitus reports that the emperor Nero executed Christians for starting a fire that destroyed much of Rome in the year 64. This event occurred about five years before Mark wrote his gospel: read it for yourself in book 15, section 44.

This incredible site places at your fingertips thirty English translations and paraphrases of the Gospel of Mark as well numerous translations in languages ranging from German and Spanish to Chinese and Arabic—for those of you polylinguists out there. For non-Greek readers, comparing translations is one of the best ways to unlock questions of interpretation and provoke new insights into the meanings of the story. Get to it, Shmoopers.

Rikki Watts, Professor of New Testament at Regent College, addresses the issue of Mark's historical accuracy. What do you think of his claim that "modern science and Christianity have a lot in common"? Sounds juicy to us.

Listen as Bart Ehrman, Professor of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, points out the differences between Mark's account of the passion and Luke's. We told you Mark was unique.

Tired of reading? Then listen. Here you'll find the whole of the second gospel in audio.

Nourish your historical imaginations by listening to the Gospel of Mark read in Greek. Even if you don't know Greek, you'll be able to get at least a taste of the original flavor of Mark's language.