What do you want me to do for you appears in two different stories, from the mouth of Jesus, back to back in Mark 10… must mean something, eh?
Talking faith, life, ministry, church, rural & multisite
Talking faith, life, ministry, church, rural & multisite
What do you want me to do for you appears in two different stories, from the mouth of Jesus, back to back in Mark 10… must mean something, eh?
As I was listening, it struck me that the passage in Mark 10: 35 – 45 seemed familiar but yet different. I found a similar verse in Matthew 20: 20 – 27 yet it is the mother making the request. Is this the same event and if so why such a difference in view points. Curious to hear your response.
That’s a great question and one that falls in the realm of textual criticism. Always keep in mind that the gospels are reporting the same events just from different viewpoints. So, for there to be an actual contradiction it would have to say the opposite. In this case, it’s not saying and the mother was not there, she’s just not mentioned. For instance, you may say that someone came and said do you, “Yada Yada,” but not include the fact that someone else was with them. Someone else may tell the same story to you but also include the fact that the other person was with you. It doesn’t make them different/wrong, just one is more complete. Unfortunately, in the biblical era, women were often overlooked as we know that in the accounts of the feeding of the masses it even says that they numbered the men, ignoring the women and children.
Let me include another resource that also affirms this:
“It is clear that both the mother and her sons came to Jesus to make the request, since the text declares “the mother … came to Him with her sons” (v. 20). It is possible that the mother spoke first with the two sons closely following to reiterate the request. This is supported by Matthew’s account because when Jesus responds “are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” the Bible says “they said to Him, `we are able’ ” (v.22). So, there is no unsolvable conflict here. The two accounts are harmonious.”
This above excerpt is from When Critics Ask: A Popular Handbook on Bible Difficulties (Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books, 1992). © 2014 Norman Geisler and Thomas Howe. All rights reserved.