The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible New Testament (65 page)

14:2 the people:
Jerusalem's normal population of approximately 50,000 swelled to several hundred thousand with the influx of Passover pilgrims. This made the Jerusalem leaders think twice about arresting a popular figure like Jesus, since provoking such unmanageable numbers could easily incite a violent reaction from the Jews and ultimately bring Rome's reprisal upon the city. 
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14:3 Bethany:
See note on Mk 11:1
.
a woman came:
According to Jn 12:3, she was Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus (Jn 11:1-2).
pure nard:
An aromatic perfume probably imported from India. It is mentioned also in the OT (Song 1:12; 4:13-14). 
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14:5 three hundred denarii:
Equivalent to 300 days' wages.
See note on Mk 6:37
. 
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14:7 you always have the poor:
Jesus is neither insensitive nor unsympathetic toward the poor. His ministry is marked, rather, by a deep concern for them (Mt 19:21; Lk 4:18; 14:714). His words are only meant to underscore the inestimable worth of his presence among the disciples. 
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14:8 beforehand for burying:
It was customary to withhold burial ointments from the bodies of executed criminals. The woman's gesture remedies this deficiency in anticipation of Jesus' impending death as a falsely accused enemy of Rome.
See note on Mt 26:12
. 
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14:11 give him money:
Judas was given "thirty pieces of silver" (Mt 26:15). His betrayal of Jesus for personal profit contrasts sharply with the woman's generous gift in the preceding episode (14:3-9). Greed blinded Judas from seeing Jesus' true identity and worth. 
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14:13 a man . . . jar of water:
An unusual sight in the context of Jewish culture, since women customarily assumed the task of drawing and carrying water (Gen 24:11; Ex 2:16; Jn 4:7). 
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14:18 one who is eating with me:
According to Matthew and John, Jesus discreetly identifies Judas Iscariot as the traitor (Mt 26:25; Jn 13:26). • His words allude to Ps 41:9, which foretells the Messiah's betrayal by a close and trusted friend (Jn 13:18). 
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14:22 took . . . blessed . . . broke . . . gave:
Mark uses this same language to recount Jesus' multiplication of the loaves (6:41).
See note on Mk 6:35-44
.
this is my body:
Jesus identifies the unleavened bread of the Passover feast with his own flesh (Jn 6:51). This gift of his humanity in the sacrament is inseparable from his self-offering on the Cross (14:24; Heb 10:10), since together they constitute a single sacrifice in which Jesus is both the priest and sacrificial victim of the New Covenant (CCC 1363-65). •
Allegorically
(St. Bede,
In Marcum):
Jesus' actions signify the mystery of his Passion. In breaking the bread, Christ pre-enacts the breaking of his body on the Cross. Likewise as Jesus gives himself
voluntarily
in the Last Supper, so his Crucifixion will be a death he
freely
accepts, not the end result of hostile forces beyond his control.
See note on Mt 26:26-29
. 
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14:24 blood of the covenant:
An allusion to Ex 24:8. • As the Old Covenant between Yahweh and Israel was sealed through sacrificial blood at Mt. Sinai, the New Covenant between Christ and the Church is sealed through his own blood
poured out
in the upper room on Mt. Zion. This new and perfect sacrifice enables us to enter a covenant of communion with the Father through the forgiveness of our sins (Jer 31:3134; Rom 5:9; Heb 9:22). The blood of Jesus is forever a sacrament of his divine life for those who receive him in the Eucharist (Jn 6:53; CCC 610, 1392-93). 
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14:26 sung a hymn:
Probably Ps 115-118. This was the completion of the Hallel Psalms (113-118) that were sung during the course of the Passover liturgy. 
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14:27 strike the shepherd:
A reference to Zech 13:7. • Zechariah foresaw the messianic shepherd of Israel struck down, leaving his sheep temporarily without leadership. The prophet sees this as a deliberately planned scenario to identify and purify the faithful of the Lord's flock (Zech 13:8-9). Jesus' arrest sets this time of trial in motion, causing his disciples to scatter in fear (14:49-50). 
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14:30 before the cock crows:
This may refer to the "cockcrow", or third watch of the night, between 12 and 3
A.M.
(13:35). Others interpret it more generally to mean "before morning".
See note on Mk 6:48
.
you will deny me:
Mark often notes Jesus' foreknowledge of significant events (2:20; 8:31; 10:33-34; 11:1-2; 13:6-9; 14:9). 
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14:32 Gethsemane:
A Hebrew name meaning "oil press". It is a garden area facing Jerusalem on the western slope of the Mount of Olives (Jn 18:1). 
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14:36 Abba:
An Aramaic word meaning "Father". Jesus uses it to address God the Father and underscore their intimate relationship (Mt 11:27). Paul preserves this title for God in Rom 8:15 and Gal 4:6. • The divine Fatherhood of God is a familiar teaching from the OT, where Yahweh is called the Father of Israel (Deut 32:6; Ps 103:13; Jer 31:9) and the Father of David and his royal successors (2 Sam 7:14; Ps 89:26-27).
remove this chalice:
Jesus fears his impending Passion and Crucifixion (Heb 5:7). See notes on Mt 26:39 and Mk 10:38.
what you will:
Jesus fully embraced the plan of salvation and so surrendered his human will perfectly and continuously to the Father's divine will (Jn 6:38; 8:29; Phil 2:8). 
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14:38 into temptation:
Prayer and watchfulness are necessary to withstand the attacks of Satan (Col 4:2; 1 Pet 5:8-10). Jesus here refers to man's inner struggle, where the
flesh,
wounded by sin, is constantly at war with the
spirit
(Rom 8:1214; Gal 5:19-24). The graces we need to overcome our weaknesses must be sought through persistent prayer (1 Thess 5:17; Heb 4:16). Although the power of the Holy Spirit enables us to live victoriously, the struggle is not minimized or made easy. God's ready assistance during temptation is also the subject of the final petition of the Lord's Prayer (Mt 6:13; Lk 11:4; CCC 2849). 
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14:45 he kissed him:
Normally a gesture of affection in the Bible (Lk 7:45; Rom 16:16; 1 Pet 5:14). Judas Iscariot contorts this kiss into one of betrayal (Prov 27:6). 
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14:47
Mark leaves both the bearer of the
sword
and the injured
slave
unidentified. It is John who specifies that "Peter" reacted violently with the weapon and identifies the victim as "Malchus" (Jn 18:10). Luke further notes that Jesus healed the man's ear (Lk 22:51). 
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14:51 a young man:
An unnamed witness that many scholars identify as Mark. If this is the case, the evangelist chose to remain anonymous in light of the episode's embarrassing details. Ultimately, how we identify this individual has little bearing on the tradition that Mark wrote the second Gospel as a summary of Peter's preaching, since he could have witnessed the arrest of Jesus without being an eyewitness to his three-year ministry. 
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14:53 the high priest:
Caiaphas, who officiated in Jerusalem from
A.D.
18 to 36. While in office, he also presided over the Jewish court, the Sanhedrin.
See note on Mk 14:55
. 
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14:55 the whole council:
The Sanhedrin, the supreme court of the Jews, which convened in Jerusalem (15:1; Acts 5:27; 23:1). Its origin is traced to the second century
B.C.
, and its primary role was to enforce Jewish law and custom. Fully assembled, the Sanhedrin probably consisted of 71 members:
(1)
the reigning "high priest", who headed the court,
(2)
the "elders" of Jerusalem's leading families,
(3)
"chief priests" who had held the office of high priest, and
(4)
"scribes", or professional lawyers who were experts in the Law of Moses. Several members were also aligned with the Pharisees or Sadducees (Acts 23:6-10). Under Roman rule, the Sanhedrin retained considerable freedom to regulate the civil and religious affairs of Jewish life. Only the right to administer capital punishment was denied them (Jn 18:31). 
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14:58 destroy this temple:
False witnesses misconstrue the cryptic statements recorded in Jn 2:19 and the Olivet Discourse (Mt 24:2; Mk 13:2; Lk 21:6). In the former passage Jesus foretold his Resurrection in terms of rebuilding his crucified body, and in the latter context he was predicting the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple. Only shades of his intended meaning filter through this accusation, since Jesus never claimed he would reconstruct the Jerusalem sanctuary after its downfall (13:2). The scandal of the false indictment is twofold:
(1)
Jesus claims he will erect a new sanctuary in the course of a weekend when the Jerusalem Temple has been at that time 46 years in the making (Jn 2:20), and
(2)
he claims he will build it without hands, while an army of manual laborers are still at work erecting the existing Temple. See essay:
Not Made with Hands
at 2 Cor 5. 
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