Mark Jennings, «The Fourth Gospel’s Reversal of Mark in John 13,31‒14,3», Vol. 94 (2013) 210-236
I argue that the author/s of the Fourth Gospel knew Mark, based on the reversal of certain Markan themes found in John. No attempt is made here to suggest the kind of literary dependence which is the basis of the Synoptic problem. Rather, my thesis is that the author/s of John may have used Mark from memory, writing deliberately to reverse the apocalyptic tendencies found in the Second Gospel. Isolated incidents of this possible reversal demonstrate little, but this paper proposes that the cumulative force of many such reversals supports the thesis of John's possible knowledge of Mark.
222 MARK JENNINGS
Also, the instruction to love “one another†in John may be a more
exclusive idea then the Markan reiteration of the command to love
“your neighbour†51. Finally, Jesus’ reply to the scribe in Mark is a re-
statement of commands contained in the OT. John in contrast has
Jesus stating a “new commandmentâ€, not based on anything but Jesus’
own authority as the one who has come from the Father.
However, it is clear from the scribe’s reply and Jesus’ affirma-
tion of him that Mark understood the teaching of Jesus and the new
community inaugurated by him to represent the beginning of a new
order. The system of sacrifice and the temple establishment were
of no further importance. They were superseded by the simple com-
mand to love God and others, restated by Jesus here. Further, the
theme of love is clearly central to both teachings. The significance
of these similarities will be assessed in the next major section, but
now we turn to the motif of following Jesus.
b) “Go before you†and “Follow meâ€
Mark states that Jesus will “go before†his disciples into Galilee.
This is clearly a reference to post-resurrection meetings with the dis-
ciples, after which the ministry of Jesus is to continue. Galilee is a key
location in Mark: “the promise of a post-resurrectional meeting in
Galilee is the promise of a new mission†52.
In John, the motif of following Jesus, introduced at 13,33, is pur-
sued and expanded throughout the Final Discourse. The language of
13,33 is Johannine, as it provides a structure of thought for the evan-
gelist to place other material within the discourse. Whatever John’s
source may have been, it seems likely that the prediction of Peter’s
denial has been cleverly edited to expound this theme. The following
motif is not a reference here to a physical meeting after the resurrec-
tion, but to the spiritual process of walking the same path as Jesus
did, making God known and revealing the love of God for the world
by being willing to die in order to reveal this love. The journey is
complete when Jesus and his followers are reunited in heaven.
KEENER, John, 925-926. Keener notes that John does not contradict the
51
Synoptic tradition here, but is more focused. He rejects the claim that John is
“violently†exclusionary, but simply expressing the need for internal cohesion
in the Johannine community.
DONAHUE – HARRINGTON, Mark, 402.
52
© Gregorian Biblical Press 2013 - Tutti i diritti riservati