Daily Bible Reading: Mark Chapter 8

 Mark 8: 1-8 HCSB
¹ In those days there was again a large crowd, and they had nothing to eat. He summoned the disciples and said to them, ² "I have compassion  on the crowd, because they've already stayed with Me three days and have nothing to eat. ³ If I send them home famished, they will collapse on the way, and some of them have come a long distance." ⁴ His disciples answered Him, "Where can anyone get enough bread here in this desolate place to fill  these people?" ⁵ "How many loaves do you have?" He asked them. "Seven," they said. ⁶ Then He commanded the crowd to sit down on the ground. Taking the seven loaves, He gave thanks, broke the [loaves], and kept on giving [them] to His disciples to set before [the people]. So they served the [loaves] to the crowd. ⁷ They also had a few small fish, and when He had blessed them, He said these were to be served as well. ⁸ They ate and were filled. Then they collected seven large baskets of leftover pieces. ⁹ About 4,000 [men] were there. He dismissed them ¹⁰ and immediately got into the boat with His disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.

     Some times the disciples seem so dense. Jesus has already fed thousands from little before, in Mark 6, and there were more people that time then their are here. It seems in verse 3 that his question is deigned to provoke them into suggesting another miracle, but that does not appear to occur to them. I have read a few bible commentators who think that this is another version of the same event in chapter 6, but with the details being different and this still being a part of the same narrative the seems to be a totally separate occasion. In verses 19 and 20 these are referred to as separate events as well.

Mark 8: 11-21 HCSB
¹¹ The Pharisees came out and began to argue with Him, demanding of Him a sign from heaven to test  Him. ¹² But sighing deeply in His spirit, He said, "Why does this generation demand a sign? I assure you: No sign will be given to this generation!" ¹³ Then He left them, got on board [the boat] again, and went to the other side.
    ¹⁴ They had forgotten to take bread and had only one loaf with them in the boat. ¹⁵ Then he commanded them: "Watch out! Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod." ¹⁶ They were discussing among themselves that they did not have any bread. ¹⁷ Aware of this, He said to them, "Why are you discussing that you do not have any bread? Do you not yet understand or comprehend? Is your heart hardened? ¹⁸ Do you have eyes, and not see, and do you have ears, and not hear? And do you not remember? ¹⁹ When I broke the five loaves for the 5,000, how many baskets full of pieces of bread did you collect?" "Twelve," they told Him. ²⁰ "When I broke the seven loaves for the 4,000, how many large baskets full of pieces of bread did you collect?" "Seven," they said. ²¹ And He said to them, "Don't you understand yet?"
 
     The Pharisees are already plotting Jesus death at this point, Blatant proof of who he was might have caused them to accelerated their plans. Jesus is also clearly frustrated by their attitude after so much proof as already been given. The yeast of Herod and the pharisees is the seductive danger of their practices and influences, which could corrupt from with the way that small amounts of yeast can leaven a whole loaf. Once again, the disciples miss the spiritual application of Jesus words.
 
Mark: 8 22-26 HCSB
²² Then they came to Bethsaida. They brought a blind man to Him and begged Him to touch him. ²³ He took the blind man by the hand and brought him out of the village. Spitting on his eyes and laying His hands on him, He asked him, "Do you see anything?" ²⁴ He looked up and said, "I see people—they look to me like trees walking."²⁵ Again Jesus placed His hands on the man's eyes, and he saw distinctly. He was cured and could see everything clearly. ²⁶ Then He sent him home, saying, "Don't even go into the village."
 
 It is unclear why Jesus does this Healing in stages, though it is perhaps to shore up the mans faith in him as he works. The man did not come to Jesus on his own, after all, but was brought to Jesus by others.
 
Mark 8:27-33
²⁷ Jesus went out with His disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the road He asked His disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" ²⁸ They answered Him, "John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, one of the prophets."²⁹ "But you," He asked them again, "who do you say that I am?" Peter answered Him, "You are the Messiah!" ³⁰ And He strictly warned them to tell no one about Him. ³¹ The He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, be killed, and rise after three days.³² He was openly talking about this. So Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. ³³ But turning around and looking at His disciples, He rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind Me, Satan, because you're not thinking about God's concerns, but man's!"
 
     Peter finally gains understanding, and then looses it in the same passage. It is interesting to me that Peter had the courage to take Jesus to task on an issue, especially right after his revelation of Jesus true nature.
     It is clear by Jesus response he was trying to comfort Jesus as a friend, and put his own mind at ease as well, This also represents A temptation to Jesus, for we know that he was not looking forward to what he knew had to happen.
 
 Mark 8: 34-38 HCSB
³⁴ Summoning the crowd along with His disciples, He said to them, "If anyone wants to be My follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me. ³⁵ For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me and the gospel will save it. ³⁶ For what does it benefit a man to gain the whole world yet lose his life?³⁷ What can a man give in exchange for his life? ³⁸ For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels." 
 
      Here we have the first reference in Mark to the cross and Jesus imminent method of death. The greek word Crucifixio, where we get our terms crucify and crucifixion is not used in the New Testament. two different words are used for the cross, stauros, which means an upright stake or scaffolding, and xylon, which  means a suspended beam of wood, the wooden stocks used to hold prisoners, or a tree depending on context.  This has caused some to believe that Jesus was crucified on an upright stake and the cross imagery was added later. Upon a closer look at the text, this does not seem to be the case, for an upright stake does not seem to fit the xylon uses. Most likely these are references to separate parts of the cross, both an upright stake and a suspended beam. Luke and The apostle Paul use both word in different places, which further supports this argument.