DYNAMIS!
A publication of St. George Orthodox Christian Cathedral
Wichita, KS
Saint Mark 2:23-3:5 (12/15-12/28) Hieromartyr Eleutherios, Bishop of
Illyria: DOWAMA
Voices In The Silence: Saint
Mark 2:23-3:5, especially vs. 4: “Then
[Jesus] said to them, ‘Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do
good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?’ But they kept silent.” The Pharisees became silent after they
chided the Lord Jesus concerning His disciples’ grazing from grain in the
fields on a Sabbath (vss. 23-28). Notice,
further, that the Pharisees made no reply following the Lord Jesus’
defense of the disciples, although they “...watched Him closely...”(vs. 2).
See how their silence continued without interruption in the synagogue
even when “He said to the man who had the withered hand, ‘Step
forward’” (vs. 3). Then
the Pharisees watched “...so that they might accuse Him” (vs.
2). Note,
they did not actually speak. The
Lord broke the silence, however.
“He said to the man, ‘Stretch out your hand.’ And he
stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other” (vs.
5).
The verses appointed for this Gospel reading
end this point (vs. 5). However,
the verse that immediately follows this passage speaks volumes about the
silence of the Pharisees: “Then the Pharisees went out and immediately
plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they
might destroy Him” (Mk. 3: 6).
The voices of the Pharisees were silent once they challenged Jesus; but
they spoke volumes when they parlayed with others hostile to the Lord about
destroying Him.
Examine closely all the voices in the
silence. The audible one is the
clarion word of the Lord Jesus Christ raised in
defense of essential human need.
Tangible human need trumped the Godly rules of the Law of Moses
concerning Sabbath observance; or, in Jesus' exact words, “The Sabbath
was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath” (Mk. 2:27), something He
illustrated from the experience of King David. No one who reads the four Gospels can
miss Jesus’ deep, primary care-from-the-heart for those facing basic
needs: hunger, healing, fear, poverty, sadness, death, madness, grief,
etc. Palpably, Christ our God is
the Friend of man.
The Lord Jesus’ defended His concern for
the primacy of genuine human need by asserting His authority: “...the Son
of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath” (vs. 28). His words, at this point, stilled
retorts from the Pharisees, but they deepened in their animosity to Him:
“So they watched Him closely” (vs. 2). Their voice was heard plainly enough by
Jesus, even though they did not utter a word. The Evangelist provides us with this
insight into their silent intent with this very phrase of watching Christ
‘closely’ in verse two.
The controversy continued inside the synagogue
(vss. 1-5). The Pharisees tried to
hide in silence, saying nothing, but they were determined to ‘get’
Jesus. So He uttered a challenge,
“Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do
evil, to save life or to kill?” (vs. 4). He spoke of God’s Law given
through Moses, an unstated voice in the silence: “You shall keep the
Sabbaths, because this is holy for you to the Lord. Everyone who profanes it shall be put to
death; for whoever works on it, that soul shall be cut off from among His
people” (Ex. 31:14).
Saint Athanasios
comments on what actually transpired here among the Pharisees, noting that
Jesus “...told them what was intended by the Law; for He spoke as the One
Who established the laws concerning the Sabbath, adding, ‘except this:
that which will be done for the sake of a life.’ Again, if a person falls into a hole on
a Sabbath, Jews are permitted to pull the person out” (Mt. 12:11). Our Lord extended the Law by Personal,
Divine authority: “He said to the man, ‘Stretch out your
hand.’ And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the
other” (Mk. 3:5). The
controversy was not resolved. While
Christ was grieved at the “...hardness of...hearts;’ the truculent
Pharisees determined to put Jesus to death as a blasphemer.
O Compassionate Lord, in every trial of
life do not disregard our cries sent up to Thee.
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