Temptations of Jesus in Mark's Gospel, The

The Temptations of Jesus in Mark's Gospel. By Susan R. Garrett. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998; x + 212 pp., $20:00 paper.

According to Garrett, the Gospel of Mark presents Jesus as tested or tempted throughout his ministry-by Satan, by his earthly adversaries and even by his own disciples. These agents of temptation and testing seek to divert Jesus from the straight and narrow path that leads to his most severe test, the cross, where he will hang alone, forsaken by God. Because of Jesus' perfect obedience, God regards his death as an acceptable sacrifice, a ransom that saves many from their sin. Jesus' faithful obedience in testing empowers his followers to persevere during their own times of trial, without being led astray.

Garrett's method is primarily to view Mark's Gospel in the context of certain "interpretive conventions" or "cultural models." Garrett examines ancient Jewish and Christian writings to discover patterns of thought that were part of the cultural heritage or worldview of the interpretive community which produced and originally read the Gospel of Mark. According to Garrett, three interpretive conventions are particularly important guides for understanding the subject of testing in the Gospel of Mark. ( 2 ) The sufferings of righteous individuals were viewed as satanic testing. God permits Satan to put his righteous servants to the text. (2) The testing of the righteous may take place through the persecutions of the wicked, who are blinded by Satan and by their own iniquity. (3) It was believed that if a righteous sufferer endured testing unto death, God would accept that death as a sacrifice, as a substitutionary atonement for others. According to Garrett, Mark's Gospel fits this pattern of thought, since it presents Jesus as tested by Satan and sinners and regards Jesus' death as a ransom for sin.

Just as Jesus faced temptations and trials, so his followers must expect to undergo testing. So Garrett examines Mark's vision of discipleship, which Mark expressed through his negative presentation of the disciples. The disciples repeatedly failed because they did not comprehend the necessity of Jesus' suffering. According to Garrett, Mark expected his readers to know that after the death and resurrection of Jesus the disciples were restored and became revered leaders in the church. Therefore, Mark's portrayal of the disciples had an encouraging purpose, to show that the death and resurrection of Jesus heals disciples of blindness and empowers them to faithful obedience. The time after Jesus' resurrection is fundamentally different than the time before. Believers can no longer be deceived into regarding life and personal comfort as necessities to be preserved at all costs.

I would agree that Mark's presentation of the disciples was intended to be encouraging-Jesus can restore and use those who have failed. Nevertheless, Mark's narrative was probably also meant to be a warning. Mark emphasized the failures of the disciples and only hinted at their restoration. When the disciples misunderstood, Jesus corrected them with instructions concerning the importance of sacrifice and service, instructions that were addressed not only to the disciples but to "anyone" and "whoever (Mark 8:34-35, 38; 9:35, 37, 10:43-44?. Jesus' corrections of the disciples before the resurrection do not seem irrelevant for those who live after the resurrection.

In light of her comments at the end of the bank, Garrett apparently recognizes that readers will be resistant to same of her interpretations. I must admit that at times I thought Garrett was unnecessarily forcing an outside interpretive model on Mark's Gospel as the key for unlocking all of its teaching. Yet even those who disagree will recognize that Garrett presents her viewpoints clearly and argues for them with skill. Her work serves to highlight an important but neglected theme in Mark's Gospel.

Joel F. Williams

Columbia International University, Columbia; SC

Copyright Evangelical Theological Society Mar 2000
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