03.06.2017 – New Testament: Mark 11.19

To read the Bible in a year, read Mark 11.1–19 on March 6, In the year of our Lord 2017

By Don Ruhl

After Jesus drove out those who sold and bought in the temple, and after noting that the Jewish authorities thought of how they could destroy Jesus for what He had done, Mark notes this,

When evening had come, He went out of the city (Mark 11.19). 

Why did the Holy Spirit have Mark insert that comment? There may have been many reasons why Jesus wanted to spend the night outside the city, but remember that in verse 18, Mark revealed that the scribes and chief priests started conspiring to destroy Jesus. However, the Father wanted Jesus to die at a specific time, and if Jesus stayed in the city all the time, His enemies would have succeeded in killing Him sooner than God’s plan.

The Father had Jesus dying at a precise time, and the Father would not let man tamper, knowingly or unknowingly, with that plan.

Questions:

• What does the death of Jesus mean to you?
• Do you ever get out of your city and go into the country?