15 and these are they by the wayside where the word is sown, and when they hear, immediately Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them.
And the devil who deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where [are] both the beast and the false prophet; and they shall be tormented day and night for the ages of ages.
And when the thousand years have been completed, Satan shall be loosed from his prison,
And he laid hold of the dragon, the ancient serpent who is [the] devil and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the abyss, and shut [it] and sealed [it] over him, that he should not any more deceive the nations until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be loosed for a little time.
Be vigilant, watch. Your adversary [the] devil as a roaring lion walks about seeking whom he may devour.
But as Paul was going to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, If indeed it was some wrong or wicked criminality, O Jews, of reason I should have borne with you; but if it be questions about words, and names, and the law that ye have, see to it yourselves; [for] *I* do not intend to be judge of these things. And he drove them from the judgment-seat. And having all laid hold on Sosthenes the ruler of the synagogue, they beat him before the judgment-seat. And Gallio troubled himself about none of these things.
lest [there be] any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one meal sold his birthright;
For this reason we should give heed more abundantly to the things [we have] heard, lest in any way we should slip away.
But if also our gospel is veiled, it is veiled in those that are lost; in whom the god of this world has blinded the thoughts of the unbelieving, so that the radiancy of the glad tidings of the glory of the Christ, who is [the] image of God, should not shine forth [for them].
that we might not have Satan get an advantage against us, for we are not ignorant of *his* thoughts.
but had against him certain questions of their own system of worship, and concerning a certain Jesus who is dead, whom Paul affirmed to be living. And as I myself was at a loss as to an inquiry into these things, I said, Was he willing to go to Jerusalem and there to be judged concerning these things?
And Lot went out, and spoke to his sons-in-law, who had married his daughters, and said, Up, go out of this place, for Jehovah will destroy the city. But he was as if he jested, in the sight of his sons-in-law.
But some also of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers attacked him. And some said, What would this chatterer say? and some, He seems to be an announcer of foreign demons, because he announced the glad tidings of Jesus and the resurrection [to them]. And having taken hold on him they brought [him] to Areopagus, saying, Might we know what this new doctrine which is spoken by thee [is]? For thou bringest certain strange things to our ears. We wish therefore to know what these things may mean.
But Peter said, Ananias, why has Satan filled thy heart that thou shouldest lie to the Holy Spirit, and put aside for thyself a part of the price of the estate?
And all began, without exception, to excuse themselves. The first said to him, I have bought land, and I must go out and see it; I pray thee hold me for excused. And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them; I pray thee hold me for excused.
But those by the wayside are those who hear; then comes the devil and takes away the word from their heart that they may not believe and be saved.
And it came to pass as he sowed, one fell by the wayside, and the birds came and devoured it.
From every one who hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand [it], the wicked one comes and catches away what was sown in his heart: this is he that is sown by the wayside.
Then says Jesus to him, Get thee away, Satan, for it is written, Thou shalt do homage to [the] Lord thy God, and him alone shalt thou serve.
Who hath believed our report? and to whom hath the arm of Jehovah been revealed?
And there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before Jehovah; and Satan came also among them. And Jehovah said to Satan, Whence comest thou? And Satan answered Jehovah and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And Jehovah said to Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God and abstaineth from evil? And Satan answered Jehovah and said, Doth Job fear God for nought? Hast not thou made a hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? Thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is spread abroad in the land. But put forth thy hand now and touch all that he hath, [and see] if he will not curse thee to thy face! And Jehovah said to Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy hand; only upon himself put not forth thy hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of Jehovah.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Mark 4
Commentary on Mark 4 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 4
In this chapter, we have,
Mar 4:1-20
The foregoing chapter began with Christ's entering into the synagogue (v. 1); this chapter begins with Christ's teaching again by the sea side. Thus he changed his method, that if possible all might be reached and wrought upon. To gratify the nice and more genteel sort of people that had seats, chief seats, in the synagogue, and did not care for hearing a sermon any where else, he did not preach always by the sea side, but, having liberty, went often into the synagogue, and taught there; yet, to gratify the poor, the mob, that could not get room in the synagogue, he did not always preach there, but began again to teach by the sea side, where they could come within hearing. Thus are we debtors both to the wise and to the unwise, Rom. 1:14.
Here seems to be a new convenience found out, which had not been used before, though he had before preached by the sea side (ch. 2:13), and that was-his standing in a ship, while his hearers stood upon the land; and that inland sea of Tiberias having no tide, there was no ebbing and flowing of the waters to disturb them. Methinks Christ's carrying his doctrine into a ship, and preaching it thence, was a presage of his sending the gospel to the isles of the Gentiles, and the shipping off of the kingdom of God (that rich cargo) from the Jewish nation, to be sent to a people that would bring forth more of the fruits of it. Now observe here,
In particular, we have here,
Having thus prepared them for it, he gives them the interpretation of the parable of the sower, as we had it before in Matthew. Let us only observe here,
Mar 4:21-34
The lessons which our Saviour designs to teach us here by parables and figurative expressions are these:-
After the parables thus specified the historian concludes with this general account of Christ's preaching-that with many such parables he spoke the word unto them (v. 33); probably designing to refer us to the larger account of the parables of this kind, which we had before, Mt. 13. He spoke in parables, as they were able to hear them; he fetched his comparisons from those things that were familiar to them, and level to their capacity, and delivered them in plain expressions, in condescension to their capacity; though he did not let them into the mystery of the parables, yet his manner of expression was easy, and such as they might hereafter recollect to their edification. But, for the present, without a parable spoke he not unto them, v. 34. The glory of the Lord was covered with a cloud, and God speaks to us in the language of the sons of men, that, though not at first, yet by degrees, we may understand his meaning; the disciples themselves understood those sayings of Christ afterward, which at first they did not rightly take the sense of. But these parables he expounded to them, when they were alone. We cannot but wish we had had that exposition, as we had of the parable of the sower; but it was not so needful; because, when the church should be enlarged, that would expound these parables to us, without any more ado.
Mar 4:35-41
This miracle which Christ wrought for the relief of his disciples, in stilling the storm, we had before (Mt. 8:23, etc.); but it is here more fully related. Observe,