Mark 11:27 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him,

NIV: They arrived again in Jerusalem, and while Jesus was walking in the temple courts, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders came to him.

NASB: And they *came again to Jerusalem. And as He was walking in the temple area, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders *came to Him,

CSB: They came again to Jerusalem. As he was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came

NLT: Again they entered Jerusalem. As Jesus was walking through the Temple area, the leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders came up to him.

KJV: And they come again to Jerusalem: and as he was walking in the temple, there come to him the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders,

NKJV: Then they came again to Jerusalem. And as He was walking in the temple, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders came to Him.

Since Jesus and the disciples reached the area around Jerusalem, they have spent nights on the Mount of Olives, east of the Temple Mount (Luke 21:37–38). Their friends Mary, Martha, and Lazarus live on the southeastern slope, in Bethany. From Bethany, it is a short walk northwest to Bethphage, and about as far down the mountain, across the Kidron Valley, and up to the East Gate of the temple. In fact, the most direct route from the east to Jerusalem is through the temple courtyard.

The three groups mentioned are all leaders in Jerusalem. The chief priests are descended from Moses' brother Aaron. At this time, they consist of former high priests and those priests who serve in the temple regularly.

Scribes are experts in the Mosaic law. It was the scribes who came up with the "Oral Law." They felt the written law of Moses was too vague in some areas, such as exactly what constitutes "work" on the Sabbath. To ensure nobody broke the written laws, the scribes derived additional regulations and claimed God gave these to Moses on Mt. Sinai, but that Moses didn't write them down. Their manmade traditions had the opposite effect they'd intended: the extra rules often nullify the actual intent of the laws as given by (Mark 7:13).

We're not told exactly who the elders are. Generally, they are adult men who help make decisions in a local community. They may be patriarchs of significant families (Exodus 3:16) or specially chosen judges (Exodus 24). Ezra and Nehemiah were elders who led the Jews in returning to Israel from Babylon. Most likely, the elders who confront Jesus are the wealthy aristocracy of Jerusalem.

Mark 11:27–33 is the first of four stories of religious leaders challenging Jesus. The others are found through verse 27 of chapter 12. First is a confrontation with the chief priests, scribes, and elders. Next, Jesus' parable about farmland tenants solidifies the authorities' desire to kill Him (Mark 12:1–12). The Pharisees and Herodians try to trap Jesus with a question about taxes (Mark 12:13–17). And, finally, the Sadducees challenge Jesus with a question about the resurrection (Mark 12:18–27). Eventually, Jesus can have a friendly conversation about the greatest commandment with a scribe (Mark 12:28–34). This first story is also in Matthew 21:23–27 and Luke 20:1–8.

Jesus and the disciples arrive in Jerusalem a week before the crucifixion, and Jesus begins the last days of His public ministry. They spend their nights on the Mount of Olives and their days in Jerusalem (Luke 21:37). Jesus accepts the accolades designed for a king (Mark 11:1–11), attacks materialistic tradition that keeps people from worshiping God (Mark 11:15–19), gives an object lesson about the fate of fruitless Jerusalem (Mark 11:12–14, 20–25), and reveals the Jewish religious leaders' hypocrisy (Mark 11:27–33). Despite the support of the crowd, Jesus is pushing the leaders toward the crucifixion.

The preceding passages included several miracles and lessons from Jesus. These set the stage for the last, dramatic days of His earthly ministry. In this chapter, Jesus enters Jerusalem to great fanfare and openly confronts local religious leaders for their hypocrisy. Over the next few chapters, Mark will continue to record controversial teachings, leading up to Jesus' arrest and early sham trials, recorded in chapter 14.

The Gospel of Mark emphasizes both Jesus' servanthood and His role as the promised Messiah: the Son of God. This is done through a concise, action-packed style. Mark provides relatively few details, instead focusing on actions and simple statements. This relates to the Gospel's authorship, which is believed to be based on the memories of the apostle Peter. These include many of Jesus' miracles, in contrast to other Gospels which include many more of Jesus' teachings and parables. Mark also makes frequent mention of Jesus' ministry being misunderstood by others.