1
Καὶ ⸀εὐθὺς πρωῒ συμβούλιον ποιήσαντες οἱ ἀρχιερεῖς μετὰ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων καὶ γραμματέων καὶ ὅλον τὸ συνέδριον δήσαντες τὸν Ἰησοῦν ἀπήνεγκαν καὶ ⸀παρέδωκαν Πιλάτῳ.
And at once, early in the morning, the chief priests, having held a council with the elders and scribes and the whole Sanhedrin, bound Jesus and led him away and handed him over to Pilate.
Sanhedrin is kept as sound here beside council, which renders the same Greek word — the writer uses it both as a body and as a session.
first here Jesus Ἰησοῦς Iēsous
first here Pilate Πιλᾶτος Pilatos
pronoun him = Jesus — both times
2
καὶ ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτὸν ὁ Πιλᾶτος· Σὺ εἶ ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν Ἰουδαίων; ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς ⸂αὐτῷ λέγει⸃· Σὺ λέγεις.
And Pilate questioned him: “Are you the king of the Jews?” And answering him he says, “You say so.”
You say so — the Greek neither grants nor denies; it hands the words back.
first here Jews Ἰουδαῖος Ioudaios
pronoun him = Jesus — both times
pronoun you = Jesus
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun You = Pilate
3
καὶ κατηγόρουν αὐτοῦ οἱ ἀρχιερεῖς πολλά.
And the chief priests were accusing him of many things.
Of many things — the charges are not listed.
pronoun him = Jesus
4
ὁ δὲ Πιλᾶτος πάλιν ⸀ἐπηρώτα αὐτὸν λέγων· Οὐκ ἀποκρίνῃ οὐδέν; ἴδε πόσα σου ⸀κατηγοροῦσιν.
And Pilate questioned him again, saying, “Do you answer nothing? See how many things they accuse you of.”
Do you answer nothing? — the same question the high priest asked at 14:60.
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun you = Jesus — both times
pronoun they = the chief priests
5
ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς οὐκέτι οὐδὲν ἀπεκρίθη, ὥστε θαυμάζειν τὸν Πιλᾶτον.
But Jesus answered nothing further, so that Pilate marvelled.
Pilate marvelled — the amazement of this book, here in a Roman.
6
Κατὰ δὲ ἑορτὴν ἀπέλυεν αὐτοῖς ἕνα δέσμιον ⸂ὃν παρῃτοῦντο⸃.
Now at the feast he used to release to them one prisoner, whomever they requested.
He used to release — the writer gives it as a custom, and no other record of it survives.
pronoun he = Pilate
pronoun them = the crowd
pronoun they = the crowd
7
ἦν δὲ ὁ λεγόμενος Βαραββᾶς μετὰ τῶν ⸀στασιαστῶν δεδεμένος οἵτινες ἐν τῇ στάσει φόνον πεποιήκεισαν.
And there was a man called Barabbas, imprisoned with the insurrectionists, men who had committed murder in the uprising.
Barabbas is a name meaning “son of the father”, and this book does not say so.
first here Barabbas Βαραββᾶς Barabbas
8
καὶ ⸀ἀναβὰς ὁ ὄχλος ἤρξατο αἰτεῖσθαι ⸀καθὼς ἐποίει αὐτοῖς.
And the crowd came up and began to ask him to do as he always did for them.
As he always did — the crowd asks for the custom, not for a man.
pronoun him = Pilate
pronoun he = Pilate
pronoun them = the crowd
9
ὁ δὲ Πιλᾶτος ἀπεκρίθη αὐτοῖς λέγων· Θέλετε ἀπολύσω ὑμῖν τὸν βασιλέα τῶν Ἰουδαίων;
And Pilate answered them, saying, “Do you want me to release to you the king of the Jews?”
The king of the Jews — Pilate uses the title he heard in verse 2.
pronoun them = the crowd
pronoun you = the crowd — both times
pronoun me = Pilate
10
ἐγίνωσκεν γὰρ ὅτι διὰ φθόνον παραδεδώκεισαν αὐτὸν οἱ ἀρχιερεῖς.
For he knew that the chief priests had handed him over out of envy.
Out of envy — the writer names the motive that no one in the scene names.
pronoun he = Pilate
pronoun him = Jesus
11
οἱ δὲ ἀρχιερεῖς ἀνέσεισαν τὸν ὄχλον ἵνα μᾶλλον τὸν Βαραββᾶν ἀπολύσῃ αὐτοῖς.
But the chief priests stirred up the crowd, that he should rather release Barabbas to them.
Stirred up (ἀνασείω, anaseiō) is a shaking word.
pronoun he = Pilate
pronoun them = the crowd
12
ὁ δὲ Πιλᾶτος ⸂πάλιν ἀποκριθεὶς ἔλεγεν⸃ αὐτοῖς· Τί οὖν ⸀θέλετε ποιήσω ⸂ὃν λέγετε⸃ ⸀τὸν βασιλέα τῶν Ἰουδαίων;
And Pilate answered them again, saying, “What then do you want me to do with the one you call the king of the Jews?”
The one you call the king of the Jews — Pilate hands the title back to them.
pronoun them = the crowd
pronoun you = the crowd — both times
pronoun me = Pilate
13
οἱ δὲ πάλιν ἔκραξαν· Σταύρωσον αὐτόν.
And they cried out again, “Crucify him.”
Again — the writer counts the shouts.
pronoun they = the crowd
pronoun him = Jesus
14
ὁ δὲ Πιλᾶτος ἔλεγεν αὐτοῖς· Τί γὰρ ⸂ἐποίησεν κακόν⸃; οἱ δὲ ⸀περισσῶς ἔκραξαν· Σταύρωσον αὐτόν.
And Pilate was saying to them, “Why, what evil has he done?” But they cried out all the more, “Crucify him.”
What evil has he done? — the question is not answered.
pronoun them = the crowd
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun they = the crowd
pronoun him = Jesus
15
ὁ δὲ Πιλᾶτος βουλόμενος τῷ ὄχλῳ τὸ ἱκανὸν ποιῆσαι ἀπέλυσεν αὐτοῖς τὸν Βαραββᾶν, καὶ παρέδωκεν τὸν Ἰησοῦν φραγελλώσας ἵνα σταυρωθῇ.
So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released Barabbas to them; and having scourged Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified.
Satisfy renders a Greek idiom, “to do the sufficient thing for”. Scourged (φραγελλόω, phragelloō) is built on a Latin word the text has borrowed.
pronoun them = the crowd
pronoun he = Pilate
pronoun him = Jesus
16
Οἱ δὲ στρατιῶται ἀπήγαγον αὐτὸν ἔσω τῆς αὐλῆς, ὅ ἐστιν πραιτώριον, καὶ συγκαλοῦσιν ὅλην τὴν σπεῖραν.
And the soldiers led him away inside the courtyard, that is, the praetorium, and they call together the whole cohort.
Praetorium and cohort are Roman words; the first is kept as sound, so the borrowing stays visible.
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun they = the soldiers
17
καὶ ⸀ἐνδιδύσκουσιν αὐτὸν πορφύραν καὶ περιτιθέασιν αὐτῷ πλέξαντες ἀκάνθινον στέφανον·
And they clothe him in purple, and twisting together a crown of thorns they put it on him.
Purple (πορφύρα, porphyra) — John 19:2 has the same word; Matthew 27:28 has scarlet.
pronoun they = the soldiers
pronoun him = Jesus — both times
pronoun it = the crown of thorns
18
καὶ ἤρξαντο ἀσπάζεσθαι αὐτόν· Χαῖρε, ⸀βασιλεῦ τῶν Ἰουδαίων·
And they began to greet him: “Hail, king of the Jews!”
Hail renders χαῖρε (chaire), the everyday greeting whose plain sense is “rejoice”. English cannot keep the rejoicing in it — recorded as a loss.
pronoun they = the soldiers
pronoun him = Jesus
19
καὶ ἔτυπτον αὐτοῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν καλάμῳ καὶ ἐνέπτυον αὐτῷ, καὶ τιθέντες τὰ γόνατα προσεκύνουν αὐτῷ.
And they were striking his head with a reed and spitting on him, and bending their knees they were bowing to him.
Bowing renders προσκυνέω (proskyneō), the worship-verb — used here in mockery.
pronoun they = the soldiers — both times
pronoun his = Jesus
pronoun him = Jesus — both times
pronoun their = the soldiers
20
καὶ ὅτε ἐνέπαιξαν αὐτῷ, ἐξέδυσαν αὐτὸν τὴν πορφύραν καὶ ἐνέδυσαν αὐτὸν τὰ ἱμάτια ⸂τὰ ἴδια⸃. καὶ ἐξάγουσιν αὐτὸν ἵνα ⸀σταυρώσωσιν αὐτόν.
And when they had mocked him, they stripped the purple off him and put his own garments on him. And they lead him out to crucify him.
His own garments — the mockery is undone before the killing.
pronoun they = the soldiers — every “they” here is the soldiers
pronoun him = Jesus — every “him” here is Jesus
pronoun his = Jesus
21
Καὶ ἀγγαρεύουσιν παράγοντά τινα Σίμωνα Κυρηναῖον ἐρχόμενον ἀπ’ ἀγροῦ, τὸν πατέρα Ἀλεξάνδρου καὶ Ῥούφου, ἵνα ἄρῃ τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ.
And they press into service a passer-by, Simon of Cyrene, coming from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross.
Press into service (ἀγγαρεύω, angareuō) is a Persian loan-word for compulsory carrying. Alexander and Rufus are named only in this book — the writer expects the reader to know them.
first here Simon Σίμων Simōn
first here Alexander Ἀλέξανδρος Alexandros
first here Rufus Ῥοῦφος Rhouphos
pronoun they = the soldiers
pronoun his = Jesus
22
καὶ φέρουσιν αὐτὸν ἐπὶ ⸀τὸν ⸀Γολγοθᾶν τόπον, ὅ ἐστιν ⸀μεθερμηνευόμενον Κρανίου Τόπος.
And they bring him to the place Golgotha — which translated is Place of a Skull.
Golgotha is Aramaic, kept as sound and translated in the same line — this book's habit, as at 5:41 and 7:34.
first here Golgotha Γολγοθᾶ Golgotha
pronoun they = the soldiers
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun which = the name Golgotha
23
καὶ ἐδίδουν ⸀αὐτῷ ἐσμυρνισμένον οἶνον, ⸀ὃς δὲ οὐκ ἔλαβεν.
And they were giving him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it.
He did not take it — this book says he refused it; Matthew 27:34 says he tasted it.
pronoun they = the soldiers
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun it = the wine mixed with myrrh
24
καὶ ⸂σταυροῦσιν αὐτὸν καὶ⸃ διαμερίζονται τὰ ἱμάτια αὐτοῦ, βάλλοντες κλῆρον ἐπ’ αὐτὰ τίς τί ἄρῃ.
And they crucify him, and divide his garments among them, casting lots for them, who should take what.
Casting lots takes up Psalm 22:18, the psalm quoted again at verse 34.
pronoun they = the soldiers
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun his = Jesus
pronoun them = the soldiers — “casting lots for them” is the garments
25
Ἦν δὲ ὥρα τρίτη καὶ ἐσταύρωσαν αὐτόν.
It was the third hour, and they crucified him.
The third hour is about nine in the morning; John 19:14 puts the sentencing at the sixth hour. The two are left as they stand.
pronoun It = the hour
pronoun they = the soldiers
pronoun him = Jesus
Why this rendering
Mark.15.25 Observation
Syntactic observation
Mark builds this chapter on a clock: crucified at the third hour (25), darkness from the sixth to the ninth (33), the cry at the ninth (34), burial at evening (42) — four regular time-marks. And inside the four Gospels that produces a collision: John 19:14 places the moment before Pilate has even given sentence at ὥρα ἦν ὡς ἕκτη, about the sixth hour. In Mark he is already nailed up at the third; in John the trial is still running at the sixth. Since we are translating both books we cannot hide the discrepancy, and the text gives no ground for deciding between them. This is not a variant but a difference between two authors. If a translation converts the hours to a modern clock (nine in the morning) the collision becomes sharper; if it keeps the third hour, the reader does the arithmetic.
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “It was the third hour, and they crucified him.”
Basis Keeps the text's own reckoning. Since John is likewise printed with the sixth hour, both books use one reckoning and the reader can see the discrepancy directly.
“It was nine in the morning when they crucified him.”
Basis Converts to a modern clock.
Rejected The conversion is helpful but does the arithmetic for the reader, and it must fix a reckoning — from sunrise or from midnight — that the text does not supply.
26
καὶ ἦν ἡ ἐπιγραφὴ τῆς αἰτίας αὐτοῦ ἐπιγεγραμμένη· Ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν Ἰουδαίων.
And the inscription of the charge against him was written up: The King of the Jews.
The charge renders αἰτία (aitia), the legal ground.
pronoun him = Jesus
27
καὶ σὺν αὐτῷ σταυροῦσιν δύο λῃστάς, ἕνα ἐκ δεξιῶν καὶ ἕνα ἐξ εὐωνύμων ⸀αὐτοῦ.
And with him they crucify two robbers, one at his right and one at his left.
Robbers is the word of 11:17 and 14:48. Verse 28 is not in the base text this edition follows.
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun they = the soldiers
pronoun his = Jesus — both times
Why this rendering
Mark.15.27 Observation
Syntactic observation
λῃστής arrives for the third and last time. At 11:17 Jesus called the temple a den of λῃσταί; at 14:48 he asked whether they came out as against a λῃστής; at 15:27 he hangs between two λῃσταί. One word crosses three scenes and comes back to him. The placement echoes too — ἕνα ἐκ δεξιῶν καὶ ἕνα ἐξ εὐωνύμων, one at his right and one at his left, is word for word the place James and John asked for at 10:37. And SBLGNT has no verse 28 — 27 is followed by 29. The Textus Receptus prints here: and the scripture was fulfilled which says, he was numbered with the lawless. It is the same kind of verse as Mark 7:16, 9:44, 46 and 11:26, and 개역한글 too prints no verse 28 here. SBLGNT marks a variant in this verse (⸀αὐτοῦ.).
Rendering options · 2
Adopted From 27 to 29 — no verse 28
Basis Follows the base text and lets the numbering skip.
Print verse 28
Basis Follows the Textus Receptus.
Rejected By our base-text decision we follow SBLGNT. Adding a fulfilment-citation is a common direction in the copying tradition.
29
Καὶ οἱ παραπορευόμενοι ἐβλασφήμουν αὐτὸν κινοῦντες τὰς κεφαλὰς αὐτῶν καὶ λέγοντες· Οὐὰ ὁ καταλύων τὸν ναὸν καὶ ⸂οἰκοδομῶν ἐν τρισὶν ἡμέραις⸃,
And those passing by were blaspheming him, shaking their heads and saying, “Aha — you who destroy the sanctuary and build it in three days,
Aha renders οὐά (oua), a cry kept as sound. The charge of 14:58 comes back on the road.
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun their = those passing by
pronoun you = Jesus
pronoun it = the temple
30
σῶσον σεαυτὸν ⸀καταβὰς ἀπὸ τοῦ σταυροῦ.
save yourself, coming down from the cross.”
Save yourself — the word of 8:35, turned into a taunt.
pronoun yourself = Jesus
31
ὁμοίως καὶ οἱ ἀρχιερεῖς ἐμπαίζοντες πρὸς ἀλλήλους μετὰ τῶν γραμματέων ἔλεγον· Ἄλλους ἔσωσεν, ἑαυτὸν οὐ δύναται σῶσαι·
Likewise the chief priests too, mocking among themselves with the scribes, were saying, “He saved others; himself he cannot save.
He saved others — the mockers say more than they know.
pronoun themselves = the chief priests and scribes
pronoun He = Jesus
pronoun himself = Jesus
32
ὁ χριστὸς ὁ ⸀βασιλεὺς Ἰσραὴλ καταβάτω νῦν ἀπὸ τοῦ σταυροῦ, ἵνα ἴδωμεν καὶ ⸀πιστεύσωμεν. καὶ οἱ συνεσταυρωμένοι ⸀σὺν αὐτῷ ὠνείδιζον αὐτόν.
Let the Christ, the king of Israel, come down now from the cross, so that we may see and believe.” And those crucified with him were reviling him.
So that we may see and believe — the demand for a sign, as at 8:11.
first here Christ Χριστός Christos
first here Israel Ἰσραήλ Israēl
pronoun we = the chief priests and scribes
pronoun him = Jesus — both times
33
⸂Καὶ γενομένης⸃ ὥρας ἕκτης σκότος ἐγένετο ἐφ’ ὅλην τὴν γῆν ἕως ὥρας ἐνάτης.
And when the sixth hour came, dark fell over the whole land until the ninth hour.
Dark fell — the Greek says darkness came over the land, and gives no cause.
34
καὶ τῇ ⸂ἐνάτῃ ὥρᾳ⸃ ἐβόησεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς φωνῇ ⸀μεγάλῃ· Ἐλωῒ ἐλωῒ ⸀λεμὰ σαβαχθάνι; ὅ ἐστιν μεθερμηνευόμενον Ὁ θεός μου ὁ θεός μου, εἰς τί ⸂ἐγκατέλιπές με⸃;
And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Eloi, eloi, lema sabachthani?” — which translated is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Eloi, eloi, lema sabachthani is Aramaic, kept as sound and translated in the same line. Matthew 27:46 has the first word in a Hebrew form. The words are Psalm 22:1.
pronoun which = the cry Eloi, eloi, lema sabachthani
pronoun My = the one speaking in the quotation — both times
pronoun you = God
pronoun me = the one speaking in the quotation
Why this rendering
Mark.15.34 Observation
Syntactic observation
The last words Jesus speaks in Mark, in a Semitic tongue, with the author's translation attached. μεθερμηνεύω, which translated means, comes three times in Mark — 5:41 (Talitha koum), 15:22 (Golgotha), 15:34: the words that raised a dead girl, the name of the place of execution, and this cry. SBLGNT prints Ἐλωῒ ἐλωῒ λεμὰ σαβαχθάνι; 개역한글 uses a different form, 엘리 엘리 라마 사박다니. ἐγκαταλείπω, to forsake, is unique in Mark. And in the next verse the bystanders mishear it — Ἠλίαν φωνεῖ, he is calling Elijah. That the sounds are close the text does not say; it records only that the misunderstanding happened. At v.37 he gives a φωνὴν μεγάλην again and ἐξέπνευσεν, breathed out — ἐκπνέω occurs only at 15:37 and 39, and that breath is what the centurion sees. SBLGNT marks a variant in this verse (⸂ἐνάτῃ ὥρᾳ⸃ ⸀μεγάλῃ· ⸀λεμὰ ⸂ἐγκατέλιπές με⸃;).
Rendering options · 2
Adopted “Eloi, eloi, lema sabachthani” — which translated is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Basis Transliterates the form the base text prints and sets the gloss as running text.
“Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani.”
Basis Uses the more familiar form.
Rejected What the base text prints is Ἐλωΐ, not Ἠλί. Change the form and the distance between the cry and the mishearing of v.35 changes with it, since what was misheard hangs on the sounds.
Lost in translation
the nearness of the sounds For the mishearing of v.35 to work, the cry and Elijah must be close to the ear; transliteration keeps the letters but an English reader does not hear the nearness.
Survives in · Peshitta / this edition — 8 of the nine carry it (this language among them)
35
καί τινες τῶν παρεστηκότων ἀκούσαντες ἔλεγον· ⸀Ἴδε Ἠλίαν φωνεῖ.
And some of those standing by, hearing it, were saying, “Look, he is calling Elijah.”
He is calling Elijah — the mishearing turns on the sound, which is why the sound was kept.
first here Elijah Ἠλίας Ēlias
pronoun it = the cry
pronoun he = Jesus
36
δραμὼν δέ ⸂τις καὶ⸃ γεμίσας σπόγγον ὄξους ⸀περιθεὶς καλάμῳ ἐπότιζεν αὐτόν, λέγων· Ἄφετε ἴδωμεν εἰ ἔρχεται Ἠλίας καθελεῖν αὐτόν.
And someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed and gave him to drink, saying, “Let be — let us see whether Elijah comes to take him down.”
Let be renders ἄφετε (aphete) — the same verb this edition renders “forgive” elsewhere.
pronoun him = Jesus — “to take him down” is Jesus as well
pronoun it = the sponge
pronoun us = those standing by
37
ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς ἀφεὶς φωνὴν μεγάλην ἐξέπνευσεν.
But Jesus, letting out a loud cry, breathed out his last.
Breathed out his last renders ἐκπνέω (ekpneō), used in the four Gospels only here and at verse 39.
pronoun his = Jesus
38
καὶ τὸ καταπέτασμα τοῦ ναοῦ ἐσχίσθη εἰς δύο ἀπ’ ἄνωθεν ἕως κάτω.
And the curtain of the sanctuary was torn in two, from top to bottom.
Torn is the verb of 1:10, where the heavens were torn at the baptism. The book opens and closes with the same tearing.
39
ἰδὼν δὲ ὁ κεντυρίων ὁ παρεστηκὼς ἐξ ἐναντίας αὐτοῦ ὅτι ⸀οὕτως ἐξέπνευσεν εἶπεν· Ἀληθῶς ⸂οὗτος ὁ ἄνθρωπος⸃ υἱὸς ⸂θεοῦ ἦν⸃.
And the centurion, standing facing him, seeing that he breathed out his last like this, said, “Truly this man was God's Son.”
Centurion renders κεντυρίων (kentyriōn), a Latin word — Matthew and Luke use the Greek word instead, and this edition keeps them apart. God's Son has no article in Greek, and may be read “a son of God”.
pronoun him = Jesus
pronoun he = Jesus
pronoun this man = Jesus
Why this rendering
Mark.15.39 Observation
Syntactic observation
υἱὸς θεοῦ has no article. In Greek a predicate noun can be definite without one, so both the Son of God and a son of a god stand open grammatically — and that the speaker is a Roman centurion widens the opening. κεντυρίων is itself the Latin centurio in Greek letters, occurring three times in Mark, all in this scene (39, 44, 45) — the same handling as praetorium (15:16) and Legion (5:9). Greek has ἑκατόνταρχος for the same rank, and Mark never uses it — he took the Latin. With the four Gospels widened to Matthew the choice stands out further: Matthew uses only the ἑκατόνταρχος family, four times (8:5, 8, 13, 27:54), and never κεντυρίων. The two lists are exactly complementary. What he saw was not a miracle but a manner of dying: ὅτι οὕτως ἐξέπνευσεν, that he breathed out like this. And this is the first place in the book where a human being calls Jesus son of God — before it, only the voice from heaven (1:11, 9:7) and the unclean spirits (3:11, 5:7) had done so. Since SBLGNT does not print Son of God in the opening line of 1:1, the first time the title is heard from a human mouth in this book is at the foot of the cross. SBLGNT marks a variant in this verse (⸀οὕτως ⸂οὗτος ἄνθρωπος⸃ ⸂θεοῦ ἦν⸃.).
Rendering options · 4
Adopted “Truly this man was God's Son.”
Basis Reads the anarthrous predicate as definite, in line with the book's other places for son of God.
“Truly this man was a son of a god.”
Basis Reads the absence of the article as indefinite and keeps the speaker Roman.
Rejected Grammar does not forbid it; the ground for rejecting it is context — the book has used the phrase at 1:11, 3:11, 5:7, 9:7, and the arrangement that puts it last in a human mouth is where this sentence sits. That the article is absent is nonetheless erased in translation, so it is recorded here.
Adopted “centurion” — the Latin kept
Basis Keeps the Latin word. English centurion already is the Latin; only Korean 백부장 renders the sense.
“captain of a hundred”
Basis Renders the sense of the rank.
Rejected Having transliterated praetorium, Legion and kodrantes in the four Gospels, there is no ground for rendering this Latin word alone by sense — and that Mark chose the Latin over the Greek disappears from the rendering.
Lost in translation
the absent article English dodged the article — God’s Son, not a Son or the Son — but the capital S still leans the phrase toward the title. What the Greek leaves open, the capitalization half-closes.
Survives in · this edition — 4 of the nine carry it (not this language)
40
Ἦσαν δὲ καὶ γυναῖκες ἀπὸ μακρόθεν θεωροῦσαι, ἐν ⸀αἷς καὶ ⸀Μαρία ἡ Μαγδαληνὴ καὶ Μαρία ⸀ἡ Ἰακώβου τοῦ μικροῦ καὶ ⸀Ἰωσῆτος μήτηρ καὶ Σαλώμη,
And there were also women watching from a distance, among them Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome —
James the younger renders “the little one”, and the writer names the women only now.
first here Mary Μαρία Maria
first here Magdalene Μαγδαληνή Magdalēnē
first here James Ἰάκωβος Iakōbos
first here Joses Ἰωσῆς Iōsēs
first here Salome Σαλώμη Salōmē
pronoun them = the women
41
⸀αἳ ὅτε ἦν ἐν τῇ Γαλιλαίᾳ ἠκολούθουν αὐτῷ καὶ διηκόνουν αὐτῷ, καὶ ἄλλαι πολλαὶ αἱ συναναβᾶσαι αὐτῷ εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα.
who used to follow him and serve him when he was in Galilee — and many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem.
Serve is the table-verb of 1:31 and 10:45.
first here Galileans Γαλιλαία Galilaia
pronoun who = the women
pronoun him = Jesus — every “him” here is Jesus
pronoun he = Jesus
42
Καὶ ἤδη ὀψίας γενομένης, ἐπεὶ ἦν παρασκευή, ὅ ἐστιν ⸀προσάββατον,
And when evening had already come, since it was the day of Preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath,
The day before the Sabbath — the writer explains the Jewish term for readers who do not know it.
pronoun it = the day
43
⸀ἐλθὼν Ἰωσὴφ ⸀ὁ ἀπὸ Ἁριμαθαίας εὐσχήμων βουλευτής, ὃς καὶ αὐτὸς ἦν προσδεχόμενος τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ, τολμήσας εἰσῆλθεν πρὸς ⸀τὸν Πιλᾶτον καὶ ᾐτήσατο τὸ σῶμα τοῦ Ἰησοῦ.
Joseph of Arimathea came, a respected member of the council, who was himself also waiting for the kingdom of God; and taking courage he went in to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.
Taking courage renders one verb (τολμάω, tolmaō) — he dared.
first here Joseph Ἰωσήφ Iōsēph
first here Arimathea Ἁριμαθαία Harimathaia
pronoun who = Joseph
pronoun himself = Joseph
pronoun he = Joseph
44
ὁ δὲ Πιλᾶτος ἐθαύμασεν εἰ ἤδη τέθνηκεν, καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος τὸν κεντυρίωνα ἐπηρώτησεν αὐτὸν εἰ ⸀πάλαι ἀπέθανεν·
And Pilate marvelled that he was already dead, and calling to himself the centurion he asked him whether he had died some time ago.
Pilate marvelled — the second marvelling in this chapter, and only this book records the check with the centurion.
pronoun he = Jesus — “summoning the centurion he asked” is Pilate
pronoun him = the centurion
45
καὶ γνοὺς ἀπὸ τοῦ κεντυρίωνος ἐδωρήσατο τὸ ⸀πτῶμα τῷ Ἰωσήφ.
And learning it from the centurion, he granted the corpse to Joseph.
Corpse (πτῶμα, ptōma) — Pilate grants a fallen thing, where Joseph asked for a body.
pronoun it = that he had died
pronoun he = Pilate
Why this rendering
Mark.15.45 Observation
Syntactic observation
What Pilate grants Joseph is not σῶμα, a body, but πτῶμα — a fallen thing, a corpse. At v.43 what Joseph asked for was τὸ σῶμα τοῦ Ἰησοῦ, the body of Jesus; at v.45 what is handed over has become a πτῶμα. The word asked for and the word given are not the same. πτῶμα occurs twice in Mark, the other at 6:29, where John the Baptist's disciples came and took his πτῶμα and laid it in a tomb. Two executions, two corpses, one word. And the σινδών of v.46 is the word of 14:51-52, the cloth the young man abandoned. This paragraph gathers the vocabulary of the two scenes before it. ἐδωρήσατο, made a gift of, is unique in Mark, laying over the transfer a grain of giving without payment. SBLGNT marks a variant in this verse (⸀πτῶμα).
Rendering options · 2
Adopted body in v.43, corpse in v.45 — the two words kept apart
Basis The change of word is the content of the sentence. The same word is used at 6:29 so the two corpses stay joined.
Render both as body
Basis Smooths the scene and keeps a respectful register.
Rejected It gains smoothness by erasing a fact: Mark wrote one word for what Joseph asked and another for what Pilate released, and the difference shows how the transaction looks from the Roman side. The link to 6:29 is cut as well.
Lost in translation
the root of πτῶμα From πίπτω, to fall, so the picture of a fallen thing sits inside it. Corpse carries the death but not the falling.
this edition — none of the nine carries it (measured)
46
καὶ ἀγοράσας ⸀σινδόνα καθελὼν αὐτὸν ἐνείλησεν τῇ σινδόνι καὶ ⸀ἔθηκεν αὐτὸν ἐν ⸀μνημείῳ ὃ ἦν λελατομημένον ἐκ πέτρας, καὶ προσεκύλισεν λίθον ἐπὶ τὴν θύραν τοῦ μνημείου.
And Joseph bought a linen cloth, and taking him down he wrapped him in the linen cloth and laid him in a tomb that had been cut out of rock, and he rolled a stone against the door of the tomb.
Linen cloth (σινδών, sindōn) is one sheet — the same word as the young man's cloth at 14:51. John 19:40 has a plural word instead.
pronoun him = Jesus — every “him” here is Jesus
pronoun he = Joseph
47
ἡ δὲ Μαρία ἡ Μαγδαληνὴ καὶ Μαρία ⸂ἡ Ἰωσῆτος⸃ ἐθεώρουν ποῦ ⸀τέθειται.
And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses were watching where he was laid.
Were watching — the women see the place, and so the chapter ends where chapter 16 begins.
pronoun he = Jesus