Originally published in the March 1973 issue of The Testimony magazine
The Gospel of the Son of God
THIS WORK by Brother L. G. Sargent deals with the gospel record of Mark and is characterised by the deep thought and scholarship that we have learnt to expect from the author. While it is probable that all readers will not agree with all his suggestions, he gives both sides of the argument, and while giving his own views leaves us to draw our own conclusions.
Of particular importance are his frequent references to the use of Greek words in the New Testament narrative, not in a classical Greek or colloquial Greek sense but in a Hebrew sense. Only by reference to the Hebrew source can the fullness of many expressions be deduced. For example, when expounding the word “gospel” he writes, “When the Hebrew Scriptures were translated, many Greek words had to be extended in meaning before they could carry the weight of Biblical ideas. One of these words was a word that originally meant the reward for bringing good news, and which came in its verb form to be used for the act of bringing the news. Thus, because of the use made of the verb in the Septuagint, the related noun comes in the New Testament with a meaning it would not otherwise have borne, and it can there comprehend the whole Christian message.” Again, speaking of the use of the word “ransom”, he says, “For its source we must look, not to contemporary custom in recovering captives in war or those held by brigands, but to the Old Testament … Jesus was providing a covering for sins in the eyes of God, and so a covering for men’s lives, an atonement for the many. Seen in this large context, the figure of ransom takes on a fullness and appropriateness of meaning which is lost when it is narrowly construed as a purchase price to be paid to God or Devil to let the sinners go free, and the idea of substitution which is read into the saying of Jesus fades away.”
Later on the author refers to Psalm 110:1: “The first verse of the psalm is quoted according to the Septuagint version; The Lord said to my Lord, sit at My right hand till I put thy enemies under thy feet”; but, while Lord is represented each time by the same Greek word, in Hebrew it is in the first case the Divine Name, but the second occurrence reads “la’doni” (to my lord). While therefore the son is superior to David, he is not in these words identified with Yahweh. The solution is provided by the second Psalm, where the future King says, “The Lord said unto me, thou art My son, this day have I begotten thee”; the Son of David is also Son of God.
There are numerous occasions where Brother Sargent brings in background information which gives added meaning to the narrative. In dealing with the fasting practised by the Pharisees and the disciples of John, he brings out two important facts. The first is that the Pharisees fasted to hasten the coming of the Messiah, but the Messiah was with them so there was no need to fast; and the second is that it was the rule that the bridegroom and his companions, according to Rabbinic Law, were exempt from religious austerities during the seven days of the feast. As Jesus was the bridegroom it was not appropriate that his disciples should fast. To quote the author’s words, “The Pharisees fasted to hasten the coming of Messiah; now the Bridegroom, the King Messiah, was in their midst, and with his advent their whole system had lost its meaning. In that advent John’s work as Forerunner had reached fulfilment, and to incorporate the new Gospel into the old scheme of external restraints was merely to patch a worn-out garment with unfulled cloth which would tear away the weaker fabric and make a fresh rent.”
On a later page he refers to the healing of the woman with the issue of blood and brings out the background fact that, because of her infirmity, she would have been excluded from home, temple, and synagogue, and also divorced from her husband. It is only when we are reminded that she was an outcast that we understand the deeper significance of the work of Jesus in healing her.
From time to time the writer brings out the interpretation of Scripture in a particularly refreshing way. For example, in his concluding thoughts on the young man who came running to Jesus, but who trusted in his riches, he writes, “The young man with his boy-like warmth might seem to show the spirit of a child, but in fact he trusted in riches and he trusted in himself: he was anxious to do something to earn an inheritance of life. Yet the Kingdom of God is only for those humble, confiding spirits who will receive it as a gift from Him who makes the impossible possible. If the man’s thought is so coloured by the idea of possession that he thinks he can purchase on merit or place God in his debt, then he is disqualified from receiving it as a gift and can by no means enter the Kingdom.”
Another interesting point that he brings out is the change in attitude of the disciples to the message of the resurrection of Jesus, a change not evident in the Authorised Version: “When Mary told those who had been with him as they mourned and wept, they disbelieved; the Revised Version accurately represents the strong form of the negative which is used. When the two who had been walking in the country recounted their experience they did not believe them; a less emphatic form of the negative shows that disbelief had weakened into unbelief.”
An outstanding feature of this work is the way in which the parallels between Old and New Testament narratives are expounded. For example, there is a detailed examination of the prophecy of Micah 7:1-10 and a comparison with the experiences of Jesus. To quote from his concluding paragraph on this theme, “And on the morning of the third day the darkness of the tomb was riven by the light of life; then the words were fulfilled – He will bring forth to the light, and I shall behold his righteousness. In saying as they would, Let Christ the King of Israel, descend now from the cross that we may see and believe, they would in effect be saying, Where is the Lord thy God?”
The writer deals with the crucifixion in a delicate and thoughtful manner and his concluding paragraph summarises the spirit of Mark’s record and that in which this book has been written; “It is in the spirit of Christ himself that out of all the events of those last days and the hours of crucifixion the Gospel writer chooses those in which Scripture was fulfilled. We know nothing of the sufferings on the cross except for those things which men did to him which fulfilled prophecy or in which Jesus identified himself with the written Word. We have seen all through how conscious Mark is as a gospel writer of the underlying allusions to Scripture, the interweaving of the prophetic word in all the life of the Master, the prevailing reflection of one part of Scripture or another at particular periods of his ministry. Mark does not quote, but the Word is always present in the story, and we cannot doubt in his mind; and it is evident that this continual consciousness of Scripture being fulfilled can only come originally from Jesus himself.”
In this awareness of the ever-present Word, we travel on with Mark through the sacrifice to the joy of the third day and the message of the angel; “He is risen; he is not here; behold the place where they laid him”. The Lord is risen indeed.
This review originally appeared in the March 1973 edition of The Testimony Magazine (pages 90-91), and is reproduced by kind permission.
