Mark 14:27-72 From Boast to Betrayal

Mark 14:27-72 From Boast to Betrayal

Mark 14:27   And Jesus *said to them, “You will all fall away, because it is written, ‘I WILL STRIKE DOWN THE SHEPHERD, AND THE SHEEP SHALL BE SCATTERED.’ 

The quote from Zechariah speaks of a stricken shepherd, and scattered sheep. So many things happen in this passage, but we will note just the second of these. Sheep, both then and now, without care, will scatter.

First of all, as Jesus quotes Scripture, Peter argues with it. He is arguing with Jesus, and He is arguing with the Old Testament Scriptures. Not a good look. And Jesus reminds him that he is a sheep not unlike other sheep - he too will scatter: “Truly I say to you, that this very night, before a rooster crows twice, you yourself will deny Me three times.” 

Jesus guides His disciples into the Garden, and then brings the inner circle further with Him. He tells these three to “keep watch” while He goes further to pray. He comes back and finds them sleeping. They couldn’t last “one hour.” “Keep watching and praying that you may not come into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” When we fail to “keep watch,” then we have already, in a sense, scattered. 

Judas approaches with a contingent of soldiers to arrest Jesus. They are armed, as though they are intending to storm a castle. They confront the group that has simply been praying, or sleeping. The arrest happens, and, “they all left Him and fled,” just as Jesus, and Scripture had said. 

During the trial before the high priest, Peter watches from a distance. He is not now Jesus’ right hand man. He is too far away for that. And he is seeking to conceal His identity, His relationship with Jesus:

• ⁶⁷ and seeing Peter warming himself, she looked at him and *said, “You also were with Jesus the Nazarene.” ⁶⁸ But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you are talking about.”
• ⁶⁹ The servant-girl saw him, and began once more to say to the bystanders, “This is one of them!” ⁷⁰ But again he denied it.
• And after a little while the bystanders were again saying to Peter, “Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean too.” ⁷¹ But he began to curse and swear, “I do not know this man you are talking about!” 

And then the rooster crowed. I wonder, what if a rooster crowed every time I didn’t put into practice my profession of faith; every time I failed to follow through and my statement of good intentions; every time I hid my relationship with Jesus?  It’s not that we shouldn’t be too hard on Peter. He should have done better. The point is that we should “be stricken” when we see the same behavior in our own selves. Instead, He was “stricken” for us.