The Bible Says Commentary on Mark 3

Mark narrates a confrontation between Jesus and the Pharisees on the issue of authority over the Sabbath. The Pharisees set a trap for Jesus relating to the healing of a man’s withered hand on the Sabbath.

Jesus empowers His group of twelve disciples to perform miracles before He sends them throughout the land. Mark lists the twelve apostles by name.

Jesus returns to Capernaum where a crowd quickly gathers around Him. The crowd is so thick and invasive that Jesus and His disciples are unable to even eat their homecoming meal. Jesus’s family is worried about Him and thinks He is foolishly putting Himself in danger. They seek to take Him away from all this attention before His enemies find Him.

The scribes slander and accuse Jesus of casting out demons by the power of Beelzebul, the ruler of demons. Jesus exposes the hollowness of their slander with parables, explaining that a kingdom or house divided against itself cannot stand. Satan cannot cast out Satan. He warns the scribes about the unforgivable sin of blaspheming against the Holy Spirit.

Jesus's mother and brothers come looking for Him while He is responding to the scribes’ slander, but are unable to get into the house where He is because of the crowd. When He is told they are outside, Jesus responds by stating that whoever does the will of God is His true family-His brother, sister, and mother. This redefines family as those who share a spiritual bond through obedience to God, emphasizing the priority of spiritual relationships over biological ties.