Jesus' disciples were:

1.) Simon (whom He named Peter)

2.) Andrew

3.) James

4.) John

5.) Philip

6.) Bartholomew

7.) Matthew

8.) Thomas

9.) James son of Alphaeus

10.) Simon who was called the Zealot

11.) Judas son of James

12.) Judas Iscariot- later replaced with faithful Matthias.

Note:

• Several disciples had their names changed, or were given additional descriptive names or titles to distinguish one from another; for example, John and his brother James were often called the "sons of Zebedee," or the "sons of thunder."
• There were many disciples but only 12 apostles(Mark 3:14) at any one time.
• The listing of Judas Iscariot as number 12 is not accurate; After his betrayal of Jesus and subsequent suicide, he was replaced with a disciple named Matthias (Acts 1:15-26).

Peter, Andrew, James and John,

fishermen of Caperneum.

Thomas and Matthew too,

Phillip and Bartholemew,

James his brother Thadeus,

Simon and the one called Judas,

twelve disciples here in all,

following the Master's call.

The book of Acts chapter 1 verse 13 gives the names of the eleven that met to pick a replacement for Judas Iscariat who betrayed Jesus. They picked Matthias as a replacement making their number 12 again.

There were 12 disciples Jesus called to help him. Simon Peter, Andrew, James, his brother John. Phillip and Thomas, Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddeus and Simon, Judas and Bartholomew.

One view:

You will find it in the same place where it says that "man has a soul" -- nowhere. The Bible reveals that man... and animals... are souls -- they don't have one.

"...and man became a living soul."

It doesn't say that God put a soul into man.

"Soul" is translated from the Hebrew "nephesh," which merely means "mortal creature." The first place God inspired "nephesh" in the Bible is before "man became a living soul." Only the English translators didn't translate "nephesh" as "soul" in that passage. They translated it as "creature."

"And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth..." (Gen.1:21).

The KJV Bible translates "nephesh" in a variety of different ways other than "soul":

"any, appetite, beast, body, breath, creature, lust, man, me, mind, mortally, one, own, person, pleasure, them, they, thing."

It says: "...that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts [animals]; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they all have one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above the beast... all go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again." (Eccle.3:19-20)

The "spirit," of course, is another matter. Men and animals have a "spirit" within them:

The spirit returns to God at death... but our "soul" [the mortal creature that we are] returns to the dust of the earth that it is.

"Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it." (Eccle.12:7)

Also:

The word soul appears in the NKJ bible 322 times.

From this verse it appears that people havesouls

Gen 35:18 And so it was, as her soul was departing (for she died), that she called his name Ben-Oni; but his father called him Benjamin.

Deu 6:5 You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

And the soul lives on after death:

1Ki 17:21 And he stretched himself out on the child three times, and cried out to the LORD and said, "O LORD my God, I pray, let this child's soul come back to him."

1Ki 17:22 Then the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child

came back to him, and he revived.

The soul can be saved

Job 33:28 He will redeem his soul from going down to the Pit, And his life shall see the light.

Heb 10:39 But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul.

The soul is distinct from the spirit:

Heb 4:12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

But nowhere does the Bible mention the soul of an animal.

"Body and soul are the constituents of the man according to Mat_6:25; Mat_10:28; Luke 12:20; Act_20:10; body and spirit according to Luke 8:55; 1Co_5:3; 1Co_7:34; Jam_2:26. In Mat_26:38 the emotions are associated with the soul, in John 13:21 with the spirit; cf. also Psa_42:11 with 1Ki_21:5. In Psa_35:9 the soul rejoices in God, in Luk_1:47 the spirit.

"Apparently, then, the relationships may be thus summed up 'Soma, body, and pneuma, spirit, may be separated, pneuma and psuche, soul, can only be distinguished' (Cremer)."

* From Notes on Thessalonians, by Hogg and Vine pp. 205-207.

Another view

Let us look at Genesis Ch.2 v7 shall we and see what we can deduce from these words. Quote:- And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." End of Quote. If I interpret this correctly it means that both the body and the spirit of man are his soul. Man's spirit is not his soul, according to the bible.

We now have to ask ourselves were the animals organised in the same way? The bible makes no mention of it, we then have to ask ourselves were they organised as man was? Though the bible does not say so, they never the less are living creatures with bodies and spirits, making them also living souls. I have given this answer for your consideration.

And God created the great sea monsters, and every living creature that crawls, with which the waters swarmed, according to their kind, and every winged fowl, according to its kind, and God saw that it was good. - Bereishis(Genesis) 1:21

כָּל - All, Every

All living creatures are refered to as נֶפֶשׁ

וּלְכָל חַיַּת הָאָרֶץ וּלְכָל עוֹף הַשָּׁמַיִם וּלְכֹל | רוֹמֵשׂ עַל הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר בּוֹ נֶפֶשׁ חַיָּה אֶת כָּל יֶרֶק עֵשֶׂב לְאָכְלָה וַיְהִי כֵן

And to all the beasts of the earth and to all the fowl of the heavens, and to everything that moves upon the earth, in which there is a living spirit, every green herb to eat," and it was so. - Bereishis(Genesis) 1:29-30

נֶפֶשׁ - living spririt, soul.

וַיִּיצֶר יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהִים אֶת הָאָדָם עָפָר מִן הָאֲדָמָה וַיִּפַּח בְּאַפָּיו נִשְׁמַת חַיִּים וַיְהִי הָאָדָם לְנֶפֶשׁ חַיָּה:

And the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground, and He breathed into his nostrils the soul of life, and man became a living soul. - Bereishis(Genesis) 2:7

נִשְׁמַת - Soul of life, higher level of the soul.

נֶפֶשׁ - living soul, lowest level of the soul.

Everything has a soul at the level of נֶפֶשׁ. People has a higher soul נִשְׁמַת. Animals are driven by there emotions. People are (should be? / can be) driven by there Intellect.

Corban (Qorban-Hebrew)(Korban'-Greek) means an 'offering' or a 'gift dedicated to God', and was used in the Hebrew scriptures at: Leviticus 1:2, 3; 2:1; Numbers 5:15; 6:14, 21, Ezekiel 20:28 and 40:43.

In Jesus time, the word was used in the paralell accounts at: Mark 7:9-13 and Matthew 15:3-6.

A bad practice had developed among the Jews, ignoring the obligation of 'honoring one's parents'(Exodus 20:12)(Deuteronomy 5:16)(Ephesians 6:2), and caring for their needs as they aged.

The religious leaders, had come up with the idea that if a person didn't want to share necessities with his parents, he simply had to say that these necessities were 'corban' or 'offerings dedicated to God' and he wouldn't have to share anything, though he could still use these on himself until his own death. As usual, the religious leaders of the day professed to honor God, but their hearts were far away from Him, consequently, hypocritical teachings such as this, were condemned by Jesus.-(Matthew 15:7-9)

The theological answer is this:

• Jesus was 33 1/2 years old when he was crucified
• Jesus was born around 3 A.D. His birth was 2009 years ago though nobody knows the exact date. But Jesus is of the Trinity and is technically eternal. He has not always been man, but in the incarnation "became man" at birth.

The historical answer is somewhat different, however. Historians have not found enough objective information to definitively say how old Jesus was when died; however, it is perhaps safe to suggest that he was in his thirties at the time of his death. The only major primary source on the life of the Historical Jesus, ie: the "New" Testament, provides too many inaccuracies and inconsistencies to be considered a reliable source on his time and place of birth; also, as scholars have noted, Jesus left no writings, and the New Testament was compiled between 40 and 100 years after the events that it describes.

As we know, from extra-biblical sources, Pilate was the Prefect of Judea from 26- 36 CE. Within these ten years, on Passover Eve, Jesus must have died; however, it is down to guesswork (and belief) after that.

Taking all this into consideration, he is almost as old as your mom.

And then there is the accurate biblical answer

If you believe the biblical text, then you must be aware that Christ was observed by others prior to his time on earth in the flesh. Yes he was supposed to be about 33 years of age when he was crucified in the flesh after being born of the virgin Mary of the tribe of Levi. However there are other accounts of Christ in the Old Testament which go all the way back to the garden of eden and another in the book of John which takes Christ all the way back to the beginning of all time.

1) There is the account of Christ in the garden of eden in the book of Genesis as the tree of life (Genesis 2:9)

2) Christ is Melchisedec/Melchizedek (King of the Just) who met with Abraham, explained by the Apostle Paul and documented in Genesis and the book of Psalms: Hebrews 5:6-10, 6:20, 7:1-21, Genesis 14:18, Psalms 110:4

3) Christ was observed by Nebuchadnezzar in the fiery furnace, during the captivity of Babylon, He is referred to as the Son of God. Daniel 3:25

4) In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God, The same was in the beginning with God... And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father) full of grace and truth. John 1:1-2 and 14. Christ was since the beginning with our Father. How long ago was that? The answer to that time is not given however 2nd Peter chapter 3 identifies 3 earth eons or ages. One that passed hundreds prior to this one which we know is hundreds of thousands if not billions of years old.

These are biblical answers to the question how old was Christ. In order to be accurate all accounts must be disclosed; not simply those which account for his flesh life. Many people stumble at the word because they do not understand both bodies as Paul identified in 1st Corinthians ch 15. There is a heavenly body and and earthly body. Further 2nd Peter ch 3 proclaims all three earth eons (ages), The 1st prior to this one which ended in a flood and an ice age, The 2nd which is this current age, and the last or 3rd which is often referred to as the eternity. In that same 2nd Peter ch 3, you will discover that a day with the Lord is a as 1000 years.

Histrocial biblical reference =

1) Christ's time on this earth in the flesh was about 33 years.

2) His existence prior to his flesh life can not be measured using mankind's current knowledge (its guessed that the earth is hundreds of billions of years old).

3) His existence after his flesh life has been about 2000 years (two days).

4) Documented in the book of Genesis chapter 1 are the first 7 days where our Father setup this earth age (the 2nd). Knowning from 2nd Peter Ch3 that a day with the Lord is 1000 years, the total of the first week was 7000 years or 7 days (one week).

5) Documented in the first chapter of Genesis are the first 5 days (5000 years) where all of the items needed for flesh man to exist were created.

6) Documented in the first chapter of Genesis was the creation of flesh man on the 6th day (6000 years after our Father began rejuvenating his earth for flesh mans existence)

7) Our Father rests on the 7th day (a period of 1000 of flesh mans years). The first week has ended with a day of rest and the second week begans.

8) The Second Week:

8a. Documented in the second chapter of Genesis is the forming of the man to till the soil (Adam or More specific in the Hebrew eth-ha-adam) on the 8th day (or the 1st day of the second week). Adam is directly traceable to the birth of Christ (Luke ch 3), as Mary is from the tribe of Levi (Adam, Noah, Shem, Terah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Levi). Adam is mentioned in the Genealogy of Joseph (Matthew ch 1), Mary's husband. Christ is born in the flesh of Mary, a discendent of Adam (eth-ha-adam).

8b. From Adam to Christ are about 4000 years (4days) and from Christ until now are about 2000 years (2 days). We are near the end of 6000 years (6 days) and very close to the start of the day of rest (7th day).

8d. Christ will reign for a period of 1000 years prior to the end of this earth age (eon) (Revelation ch 20), and just after the 5 month reign of Anti-Christ (Satan as the fake Jesus). Christ's reign of 1000 years (one day) will conclude the second week (second set of 7days, each day being 1000 years). After Christ's 1000 year (one day) reign, Judgement occurs (Revelation 20). Each individual is then judged according to their works.

9) To summerize How old is Christ

9a. He was with our Father in the beginning (John 1:1-2,14)

9b. He was in the garden with Adam (Genesis 2:9) "Tree of Life"

9c. He walked with Abraham as Melchisedec (Genesis 14:18)

9d. He was observed in the fire by Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 3:25)

9e. He was born in the flesh of the Virgin Mary of Levi (Luke 3)

9f. He was observed by many of the Disciples and Mary after his flesh death and during his resurection (Matthew 28, Mark 16, Luke 24, John 21)

9g. His soul continues even until today.

This is a study for the bible student durived from biblical text, Please do not erase this truth in order to profess a your own self will concerning Christ. There is a warning from Christ in the last chapter of the book of Revelation (22:19) for all those who do not allow the accurate information from biblical text to be presented, but instead choose to erase this text reference and present altered or inaccurate information.

A Watchman of the House of Israel

End of these comments

try 2009

Finding Christ By Following His Star

Here is another way to look at it. It is speculative, but based on hard evidence. I think it is true.

The magi saw "His star" and used it to know the birth of Christ. It had a very exact time of its appearing, as they told Herod. Astronomy tells us of an interesting series of conjunctions of Jupiter (the king planet as understood by eastern astrologers...the magi were astrologers from the east) with Regulus (the king star). That triple conjunction series began September of 3 BC. Nine months later, a very rare and very bright conjunction of Venus and Jupiter occurred. These are the two brightest "stars" in heaven (they are actually planets). This may be the Bethlehem star. It was brightest on June 17, 2 BC. I think the September conjunction marked His conception. Nine months later He was born. That star, which would have been seen as one bright point, would have been the brightest star the magi had ever seen, was His birthday. Several months later, after a long journey, the appeared in Jerusalem to worship Him. He was no longer in the manger (that was birthday), but in the house.

Luke says clearly that John the Baptist appeared in the 15th year of Tiberius Caesar. Tiberius began his rule on August 19, 14 AD. This means the year 29-30 AD John appeared, and Jesus was baptized by John, being about 30 years old. This would put His birth between 1 and 2 BC, which fits the star data. As mentioned already, Jesus ministered about 3 and 1/2 years. He was crucified on a Friday Passover during the reign of Pilate. The should place the date of His death to April 3, 33 AD, when Jesus was 33 years and 10 months old.

The prophecy of Daniel's 70 weeks also confirm this. The details show that Daniel prophesied the exact date of Christ's appearance in Jerusalem (Palm Sunday), to the VERY DAY! If you count the days of his prophecy carefully, which begin with the decree to rebuild Jerusalem (which would be the month of Nisan in the 20th year of Artaxerxes), and count 69 weeks (483 Jewish years of 360 days each=173, 880 days), you end up with March 30, 33 AD. This is five days before Passover, when Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey to the praise of His followers. He had to be inspected 5 days as the spotless lamb of God. Perfect timing!

One must realize who Jesus is to answer correctly. The Gospel of John 1:1-4 explains that before Jesus assumed the role of a man to become our Savior, He was the Eternal Word of God. Hence He always was and will be as He called Himself the 'alpha and omega' Greek letters of the first and last positions.

Jesus was born a human being in circa 5-4 BC. He died in circa 31 AD and was resurrected as the firstborn of many three days after His death. He is the first of the firstfruits of God and lives again in Heaven (see John 3:13) sitting at the right hand of the Father, now as His Son also. Jesus is both 100% Man and 100% God.

Jesus lived as a human being for "about 33 years", but Jesus is also God the Creator and the Lord of the Old Testament !

Col 1:16-18 ISV For by him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether they are kings, lords, rulers, or powers. All things have been created through him and for him. (v.17) He himself existed before all things, and by him all things hold together. (v.18) He is also the head of the body, which is the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he himself might have first place in everything.

Jesus as God was never born but has always existed since eternity past, and will live eternally and never die.

He died when he was 33. He always was, is, and is to come. Spiritually, he has no age.
Please kindly note Jesus is ageless, as he was there with god before the foundation of the earth.

Lucifer comes from the Latin words, lucem ferre, which mean "light-bearer", a name for the dawn appearance of the planet Venus which was to be seen as daylight approached. The origin of the name can be found in Isaiah chapter 14, which talks of the pomp and splendour of the king of Babylon, who had ruled the nations in anger, and his fate after his overthrow by the king of Persia. He had compared himself to the morning star (and was thus derisorily called 'Lucifer') and had thought that he would ascend into heaven and sit among the stars, but was now himself persecuted. He has become weak and like one of us; he will go to hell. This passage was misunderstood by Christian translators, resulting in the widespread Christian view that Lucifer and the devil are one.

The Latin word for devil is diabolus.

In the King James version

the word - follow - appears 86 times

the phrase - follow me - appears 25 times

1. Gen 24:5 And the servant said unto him, Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land: must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest?
2. Gen 24:39 And I said unto my master, Peradventure the woman will not follow me.
3. Jud 8:5 And he said unto the men of Succoth, Give, I pray you, loaves of bread unto the people that follow me; for they be faint, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, kings of Midian.
4. 1 Kin 20:10 And Benhadad sent unto him, and said, The gods do so unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me.
5. 2 Kin 6:19 And Elisha said unto them, This is not the way, neither is this the city: follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek. But he led them to Samaria.
6. Psa 23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.
7. Mat 4:19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.
8. Mat 8:22 But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.
9. Mat 9:9 And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.
10. Mat 16:24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
11. Mat 19:21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.
12. Mar 2:14 And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the receipt of custom, and said unto him, Follow me. And he arose and followed him.
13. Mar 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
14. Mar 10:21 Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.
15. Luk 5:27 And after these things he went forth, and saw a publican, named Levi, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he said unto him, Follow me.
16. Luk 9:23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
17. Luk 9:59 And he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.
18. Luk 18:22 Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
19. Joh 1:43 The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow me.
20. Joh 10:27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
21. Joh 12:26 If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.
22. Joh 13:36 Simon Peter said unto him, Lord, whither goest thou? Jesus answered him, Whither I go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt follow me afterwards.
23. Joh 21:19 This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me.
24. Act 12:8 And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me.

and there are also these, which are close

1. Joh 21:22 Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou me.
2. Jud 3:28 And he said unto them, Follow after me: for the LORD hath delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand. And they went down after him, and took the fords of Jordan toward Moab, and suffered not a man to pass over.

the word - followers - appears 8 times

1. 1 Cor 4:16 Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me.
2. 1 Cor 11:1 Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.

the word - followeth - appears 15 times

1. Joh 8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

the word - following - appears 43 times

1. Deu 7:4 For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly.
2. 1 Sam 15:11 It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night.
3. 2 Sam 2:22 And Abner said again to Asahel, Turn thee aside from following me: wherefore should I smite thee to the ground? How then should I hold up my face to Joab thy brother?
4. 1 Kin 9:6 But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them:

In the King James version

the word - redeem - appears 56 times

the word - redeemed - appears 62 times

the word - redeemedst - appears once

the word - redeemer - appears 18 times

the word - redeemeth - appears twice

the word - redeeming - appears 3 times

the word - redemption - appears 20 times

There are too many verses with the word - redeemed - to be listed here.

Some of them - one from each of the books the word appears in - are listed here

• Gen 48:16 The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.
• Exo 15:13 Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed: thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation.
• Lev 19:20 And whosoever lieth carnally with a woman, that is a bondmaid, betrothed to an husband, and not at all redeemed, nor freedom given her; she shall be scourged; they shall not be put to death, because she was not free.
• Num 3:46 And for those that are to be redeemed of the two hundred and threescore and thirteen of the firstborn of the children of Israel, which are more than the Levites;
• Deu 7:8 But because the LORD loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath the LORD brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.
• 2 Sam 4:9 And David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said unto them, As the LORD liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity,
• 1 Kin 1:29 And the king sware, and said, As the LORD liveth, that hath redeemed my soul out of all distress,
• 1 Chr 17:21 And what one nation in the earth is like thy people Israel, whom God went to redeem to be his own people, to make thee a name of greatness and terribleness, by driving out nations from before thy people whom thou hast redeemed out of Egypt?
• Neh 1:10 Now these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power, and by thy strong hand.
• Psa 31:5 Into thine hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O LORD God of truth.
• Isa 1:27 Zion shall be redeemed with judgment, and her converts with righteousness.
• Jer 31:11 For the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger than he.
• Lam 3:58 O LORD, thou hast pleaded the causes of my soul; thou hast redeemed my life.
• Hos 7:13 Woe unto them! for they have fled from me: destruction unto them! because they have transgressed against me: though I have redeemed them, yet they have spoken lies against me.
• Mic 6:4 For I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed thee out of the house of servants; and I sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.
• Zec 10:8 I will hiss for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them: and they shall increase as they have increased.
• Luk 1:68 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people,
• Gal 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
• 1 Pet 1:18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;
• Rev 5:9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;

Mark's Gospel is an excellent example in the use of chiastic structures and parallel structures, demonstrating an impressive literary ability on the part of its author.

A chiastic structure is a literary sequence in which an opening set of events is contrasted with another set of events that mirrors the first, with the order reversed. A parallel structure is a literary sequence in which an opening set of events is contrasted with another set of events that parallels the first.The purpose of these structures is to link, by association, the two events of each pair in the minds of the readers, in order to create emphasis or develop a theme that would otherwise not be apparent.

This answer will deal with the following examples:

• Framework structure
  • This is a substantially updated look at the structure of Mark's Gospel as a whole. It also shows how the author uses nested structures to emphasise events in the main structure or subtly change their meaning.
  • An alternative framework structure using a more traditional chiastic structure is also reviewed and compared to the first example.
• Passion structure
  • Mark divides the last twenty four hours in the life of Jesus into 8 periods of just 3 hours each, bounded by an elegant chiastic structure.
• Minor structures
  • Two well-known minor chiastic structures are critically examined.

B .The baptism of Jesus (1:9)

C . The voice of God from heaven, "Thou art my beloved son" (1:11)

D . The forty days in the wilderness as an allusion to Elijah and Moses (1:13)

E . The people were astonished at what Jesus taught (1:22)

F . Jesus casts out an unclean spirit (1:23-26)

G . Pharisees took counsel with the Herodians how they might destroy Jesus (3:6)

H . Demons, whenever they see Jesus, fall down and say that he is the Son of God.

-- Jesus commands that they tell no one of this (3:11-12)

I .. Jesus calls the 12 disciples (3:13-19)

J .. Jesus rejects his own family: he has a new family, his followers (3:31-35)

K . Jesus rebukes the wind (4:36-41)

L . The demoniac, wearing no clothes (5:15), cries out that Jesus not torment him and Jesus sends out the demons (5:1-20)

M . Jesus comes into his own country (6:1)
-- Where he was brought up

N . The people misunderstand Jesus and he can do no mighty work (6:2-6)

O . Jesus sends out the disciples and curses those who will not receive them (6:7-11)
-- in sending the disciples with authority and expecting all to receive them, Jesus is asserting his own authority

P . Herod thinks that Jesus is John the Baptist risen from the dead (6:14)

Q . Herodias and her daughter conspire to kill John the Baptist (6:16-29)

R . Feeding the thousands, and related miracles and discourses (6:33-8:21)

S . Who do people say that I am (8:27)

T . Peter affirms faith in Jesus as the Christ (8:29)

U . Whosoever shall be ashamed of me: of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed (8:38)

V . The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and scribes (8:31a)

W . Be killed and after three days rise again (8:31b)

X . Prophecy of second coming (9:1)- Jesus tells the disciples that some of them would not taste death until they saw the kingdom of God coming with power.

B' .The Transfiguration of Jesus (9:2-3)

C' .The voice of God from heaven, "This is my beloved son" (9:7)

D' . Jesus talks to Elijah and Moses then to the disciples about Elijah (9:4-13)

E' .A great multitude was amazed at Jesus (9:15)

F' .Jesus cast out a dumb spirit (9:17-27)

G' .They shall kill the Son of man and he shall rise on the third day (9:31)

H' .Jesus clarifies his divine status, saying that he is not God: "Why call me good? There is none good but God" (10:18)

I' . Peter says the disciples have left all and followed Jesus (10:28)

J' . Those who have left their family for Jesus have a new family: all Jesus' followers (10:29-30)

K'. Jesus rebukes the 'sons of thunder', James and John (10:35-45 - cf 3:17)

L' .Blind Bartimaeus cries out for mercy and casts off his clothes, then Jesus heals him (10:46-52)

M' .Jesus comes into Jerusalem (11:1-10)
-- Where he will die

N' .Jesus misunderstands the fig tree that can provide no fruit (11:13-14)

O' .Jesus casts out them that sold and bought in the Temple and curses them for making the Temple a den of thieves (11:15-17)
-- Jesus is asserting his authority

P' .Jesus asks whether the baptism of John is from heaven or of men, and the priests, scribes and elders can not answer (11:30-33)

Q' .Parable of husbandmen who conspire to kill the vineyard owner's son (12:1-9)

X' .Prophecy of second coming (chapter 13)

-- on clouds of glory, within the lifetimes of some of those to whom he was speaking

R' .The Last Supper (14:17-25)

S' .Art thou the Christ, Son of God (14:61)

T' .Peter denies Jesus three times (14:66-72a)

U' .And when he thought thereon, Peter wept (14:72b)

V' .The chief priests, elders and scribes delivered Jesus to Pontius Pilate (15:1)

-- Delivering Jesus is a similar concept to rejecting him.
-- Both parts of the pair involve chief priests, elders and scribes

W' .Jesus dies and on the third day rises again (15:37, 16:6)

A' .The young man explains the departure of Jesus(16:6-8)

Pair A
Note that Mark originally ended at 16:8, with the young man telling the women that Jesus was risen and they fled, telling no one, with no resurrection appearance of Jesus. Verses 16:9-25 form what is now known as the "Long Ending" (there was also, at one stage, a "Short Ending") and were added to the Gospel at a later stage, to provide resurrection appearances and to more or less harmonise it with the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. Therefore, verses 16:8-25 do not form part of the chiastic structure of Mark's Gospel, and this chiastic structure encompasses the entire gospel, as defined by pair A.

Pair D
In Mark 1:13, the story of Jesus going into the wilderness, where he was ministered by angels is an allusion to Elijah (1 Kings 19:5-7) who was ministered by an angel and in the wilderness forty days. There is no actual suggestion that Jesus fasted for this time, but those familiar with the story of Elijah are likely to have assumed he did do so, and this is made explicit in Matthew and Luke. This brings into play another allusion, to Moses when (Exodus 34:28) he fasted for 40 days while he wrote the words of the Ten Commandments on tablets. The author of Mark seems to have been adept at hidden messages, and this easily overlooked allusion neatly mirrors the Transfiguration in the second set.

Events E and F
In Mark's Gospel, some events not only form pairs across the chiasm, but also interact with each other. Mark repeatedly sandwiches one narrative that stands on its own within another narrative that would seem entirely coherent without it, in the form A1-B-A2. This is an advanced literary technique known to scholars as Markan intercalation, or simply Markan sandwich, by which Mark could emphasise important theological themes. Here we begin with Jesus teaching in the synagogue and the people were astonished at what Jesus taught (Mark 1:21-21) - this is A1 (but also event E in the framework structure). A man with an unclean spirit was in the synagogue and Jesus drove the spirit out of him - this is event B in the intercalation (also event F in the framework structure). In verse 1:27, we return as A2 to the theme of the people amazed, with parallel usage of "teaching with authority" (KJV translates teaching as its synonym 'doctrine'). The effect of this intercalation is to greatly magnify the amazement of the people compared to verse 22 alone. Sandwiched between the two verses in which the people in the synagogue were amazed, the impact of the miracle of the exorcism is also enhanced. The reader can not fail to be aware that what Jesus taught was almost beyond human understanding.

Pair G
It is impossible for the author of Mark to have known that event G occurred, but it opens an excellent chiastic pair: Pharisees took counsel with the Herodians how they might destroy Jesus ... They shall kill the Son of man and he shall rise on the third day. They will kill Jesus but they will not destroy him.

Pair H
In Mark's Gospel, only outsiders call Jesus the Son of God*. Jesus refers to himself as the Son of Man, while Peter calls him the Christ (anointed one). In 3:11-12, the demons fall down and call Jesus the Son of God, but Jesus is quick to instruct them to tell no one, thus no more than an implied admission. The demons would know Jesus' divine status, but if this was a blasphemy then they were outsiders and brought no disrepute upon the Christian community. In the matching event of the pair (10:18), Jesus once again clarifies his status, saying that he is not God yet not denying that he is the Son of God.
*Verse 1:1 does have the author call Jesus the Son of God. This is not present in some early manuscripts and it is possible that it was not original.

Pair J
Pair J uses the example of Jesus in the first passage to comfort those Christians of the author's own time who had been rejected by their families, or who had left their families to become wandering preachers or commune members. However, in verses 3:31-35, Event J, Mark risks portraying Jesus as callous or out of his mind when he sends his brothers and his mother away, proclaiming that he has a new family. This is negated because the passage is part of a local chiastic structure in which Jesus' friends, the scribes and perhaps his family are concerned about the mental state of Jesus, but Jesus proves that he is not possessed by the devil: JaThe multitude is so thick that they could not so much as eat bread (3:20)JbJesus' friends say he is beside himself (3:21)JcScribes say Jesus is possessed and by the devil casts out devils (3:22)JdHow can Satan cast out Satan? (3:23)JeIf a kingdom be divided the kingdom can not stand (3:24)Je'If a house be divided the house can not stand (3:25)Jd'If Satan is divided he can not winJc'Because they said he has an unclean spirit (3:30)Jb'Jesus' family comes to him. Jesus says his followers are his family (3:31-35)Ja'The multitude is so thick that Jesus enters a boat (4:1)

Pair J also risks portraying Jesus as opposed to the traditional concept of family, by encouraging his followers to leave their families. Right on cue, Jesus is given several opportunities to show his commitment to family:

• 10:2-9 Pharisees tempt Jesus to say that it is lawful for a man to put away his wife, but Jesus says let no man put them asunder.
• 10:10-12 The disciples again ask the same thing. Jesus says that if a man puts away his wife to marry another, or if a woman puts away her husband to marry another, then he or she is guilty of adultery.
• 10:13-16 Jesus shows his love of children. Children must not be cast aside.
• 10:17-21 Jesus lectures the rich man on moral principles, including adultery and honouring his father and mother. However, Jesus still says that this is consistent with leaving all and following him.
• 10:28 Peter says the disciples have left all and followed Jesus.
• 10:29-30 Jesus says those who have left all, home and family, have a new family a hundredfold. This is, of course, event J'

• In both cases when we expect to be told the character's name, he is left nameless.
• The demoniac in the first story calls out to Jesus not to torment him.
  Blind Bartimaeus cries out for mercy, rather like asking not to be tormented, rather than beg to be allowed to see, as we would expect.
• The demoniac is naked. Bartimaeus casts off his garment (although possibly retaining other clothing).
• Both stories have close parallels in the Greek classics

• Jesus and the disciples had no leisure so much as to eat , so they went into a desert place
• Feeding the 5000
• When Jesus walked on water the disciples were amazed, for they considered not the miracle of the loaves
• Pharisees complain about the disciples eating with unwashed hands
• Discourse - what goes into a man goes into his belly and does not defile
• Greek woman metaphorically begs for crumbs from the table
• Feeding the 4000
• Disciples are hungry and have only one loaf of bread
• Jesus warns the disciples about the leaven of the Pharisees and they reason, "It is because we have no bread," showing they do not understand
• Summary by Jesus of the two feasts

A.

The celebration of the Passover Feast, which becomes the Last Supper, beginning "when it was evening" (Mark 14:17), or when the sun went down: approximately 6 pm and the beginning of the day of the Passover by Jewish reckoning. Jesus says, "This is my body," a metaphor that will be reflected in his burial.
-- Mark knew that the duration of the Passover meal was three hours and that it concluded with the singing of a hymn.
B
When was about 9 p.m. Mark then has Jesus and the disciples go to the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus went to pray. He suffered alone and in agony, asking God that, if possible, he take this cup (his destiny to be crucified) away from Jesus.
-- Meanwhile his disciples, Peter, James and John, were not able to remain awake.
-- "Could you not watch one hour?" Jesus asked. The process was repeated two more times. The disciples could not watch one, two or three hours. It was now midnight.
C
The betrayal of Jesus, the darkest deed in human history, came next, occurring at the stroke of midnight.

This will be reflected by the darkness at midday.
D
At 3:00 a.m., Jesus was led away for a trial before the high priest and other senior priests and elders.
-- We know the time of the first trial because Peter's threefold denial of Jesus followed, once each hour until the cock crowed, marking the watch between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m., known as cockcrow.

E
When it was 6 o'clock, "As soon as it was morning", Jesus was led by the chief priests, scribes and elders for trial by Pontius Pilate.

At the trial, Pontius Pilate sentences Jesus to be crucified.

D'
At 9 o'clock: "It was the third hour when they crucified him."

C'

When "the sixth hour had come" (12 noon), darkness covered the whole earth, reflecting the betrayal at 12 midnight.
B'
The three hours of darkness, until 3 p.m. mirror the agony in the Garden of Gethsemene. Jesus last words, "My God. My God, why hast thou forsaken me?" reflect the recognition that his prayer in the Garden has not been answered. At 3 o'clock Jesus cried out and gave up the ghost.
A'
Joseph of Arimathea then asked Pilate for the body of Jesus, so that he could be buried before the Sabbath began at 6 p.m., when the sun went down.

The presence of 8 time periods of three hours means that there must be an odd number of events around them. I believe that Mark intended the trial before Pontius Pilate to be a 'crossover' event (shown as Dx) that is not really in either set, both mirroring the trial before the Sanhedrin (the last event of the first set) but also, by sentencing Jesus to be crucified, mirroring Jesus being crucified (thus the first event of the second set).

Minor Structures

Several minor structures have been found in Mark's Gospel. In some cases the structures are undeniable, but in other cases the challenge is to ensure that the structure is real - did Mark intend a chiastic structure to exist or is it only evident in hindsight.

The story of the fig tree is an example of a well known chiastic structure used by Mark (11:12-21):

A Jesus takes authority over a fig tree by cursing it (11:12-14)
B Jesus takes authority over merchandisers at temple (11:15,16)
C My house will be a house of prayer for all nations (11:17a)
C' You have made my house into a den of robbers (11:17b)
B' Jewish leaders are losing their authority (11:18,19)
A' Disciples recognize Jesus' authority in the withered fig tree (11:20,21)

An example I would question is Mark 1:21-28, with its strained or over-generalised comparison of some pairs:

A. Location They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he the synagogue and taught. (1:21)

B. Teaching with Authority They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. (1:22)

C. Unclean Spirit Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit (1:23)

D. Dialog And he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God." (1:24)

D'. Dialog But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!" (1:25)

C'. Unclean Spirit And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him. (1:26)

B'. Teaching with Authority They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, "What is this? A new teaching-with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him." (1:27)

A'. Location At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee. (1:28)