Mark 11:17
| Mark 11 | |
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Image of page from the 7th century Book of Durrow, from The Gospel of Mark. Trinity College Dublin
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| Book | Gospel of Mark |
| Bible part | New Testament |
| Order in the Bible part | 2 |
| Category | Gospel |
Mark 11 is the eleventh chapter of the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament of the Christian Bible, beginning Jesus' final week before his death as he arrives in Jerusalem for the coming Passover. It contains the stories of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem, his cursing of the fig tree, his conflict with the Temple money changers, and his argument with the chief priests and elders about his authority.
Jesus and his disciples approach Bethphage and Bethany, towns on the edge of Jerusalem. Bethany was about two miles (3.2 km) east of the city on the Mount of Olives. Zechariah 14:4 has the final messianic battle occurring on the Mount of Olives. Bethphage is Aramaic for house of unripe figs, perhaps Mark's foreshadowing of the story of the fig tree.
Jesus instructs two unnamed disciples to go ahead to the town and get a colt, by which he almost assuredly means a young donkey, which he says will be tied up and has never been ridden, for him to ride. This is to fulfill Messianic prophecies, such as Zechariah 9:9, which is quoted in every Gospel except Mark. He instructs them that if anyone questions them to say "The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly." (3), where Mark uses a double entendre as the "Lord" is meant as the owner of the colt and Jesus. The two go and find the colt as Jesus had predicted and start to untie it and people standing nearby ask what they are up to and they tell them what Jesus told them to say and amazingly they leave them alone. Mark leaves the event seemingly showing Jesus' power of prediction, but it could be argued that the people already knew Jesus as this town is his base of operations over the next several days. He also, according to Mark and the other Gospels, had friends there including Lazarus, his sisters, and Simon the Leper, and so could have arranged for the colt to be there.
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