Mark 8

Mc 8.1In diēbus illīs iterum cum turba multa esset, nec habērent quod mandūcārent, convocātīs discipulīs, ait illīs:

In those days again, when the crowd was great, and they did not have what they might eat, his disciples having been called together, he says to them:

Note. cum turba multa esset: cum + subjunctive, 'when there was'. quod mandūcārent: relative clause of characteristic, 'anything to eat'. convocātīs discipulīs: ablative absolute, 'his disciples having been called together'.

Mc 8.2Misereor super turbam: quia ecce iam trīduō sustinent mē, nec habent quod mandūcent:

I pity the crowd: because, look, already for three days they stay with me, and they do not have what they may eat:

Note. Misereor super turbam: Classical misereor takes the genitive; the Vulgate often uses super + accusative. ecce: 'look!', marking something vivid. trīduō: 'for three days', ablative used for duration (Classical Latin prefers the accusative).

Mc 8.3et sī dīmīserō eōs iēiūnōs in domum suam, dēficient in viā: quīdam enim ex eīs dē longē vēnērunt.

and if I shall have sent them away fasting to their home, they will fail on the road: for certain of them have come from far.

Note. dīmīserō … dēficient: future perfect and future in a future condition, 'if I send them away, they will faint'. iēiūnōs: 'fasting', i.e. without food. dē longē: Late Latin 'from far off', preposition with an adverb.

Mc 8.4Et respondērunt eī discipulī suī: Unde illōs quis poterit saturāre pānibus in sōlitūdine?

And his disciples answered him: From where will anyone be able to fill them with loaves in the wilderness?

Note. Unde: 'from where?' saturāre pānibus: 'fill with loaves', ablative of means.

Mc 8.5Et interrogāvit eōs: Quot pānēs habētis? Quī dīxērunt: Septem.

And he asked them: How many loaves do you have? They said: Seven.

Mc 8.6Et praecēpit turbae discumbere super terram. Et accipiēns septem pānēs, grātiās agēns frēgit, et dabat discipulīs suīs ut appōnerent, et apposuērunt turbae.

And he ordered the crowd to lie down on the ground. And taking the seven loaves, giving thanks he broke them, and was giving them to his disciples that they should set them out, and they set them before the crowd.

Note. discumbere: 'lie down' to eat, as people reclined at meals. grātiās agēns: 'giving thanks'. ut appōnerent: purpose, 'to set before (the people)'. This is the second feeding; the first, of five thousand, is in chapter 6.

Mc 8.7Et habēbant pisciculōs paucōs: et ipsōs benedīxit, et iussit appōnī.

And they had a few little fishes: and he blessed them too, and ordered them to be set out.

Note. ipsōs benedīxit: Classical benedīcere takes the dative ('speak well of'); the Vulgate uses it with the accusative in the sense 'bless'.

Mc 8.8Et mandūcāvērunt, et saturātī sunt, et sustulērunt quod superāverat dē fragmentīs, septem sportās.

And they ate, and were filled, and they took up what had been left over from the fragments, seven baskets.

Note. quod superāverat dē fragmentīs: 'what was left over of the pieces', dē for the partitive genitive.

Mc 8.9Erant autem quī mandūcāvērunt, quasi quatuor mīllia: et dīmīsit eōs.

And those who ate were about four thousand: and he sent them away.

Note. quasi: 'about, roughly', with numbers. quatuor = quattuor, the Clementine spelling. mīllia: plural noun mīlia (here spelled with ll), 'thousands', with no genitive needed after it.

Mc 8.10Et statim ascendēns nāvim cum discipulīs suīs, vēnit in partēs Dalmanūtha.

And at once going up into the ship with his disciples, he came into the parts of Dalmanutha.

Note. ascendēns nāvim: ascendere + accusative, 'go up into (the boat)'. Dalmanūtha: an unknown place by the lake; Matthew has Magadan.

Mc 8.11Et exiērunt pharisaeī, et coepērunt conquīrere cum eō, quaerentēs ab illō signum dē caelō, tentantēs eum.

And the Pharisees went out, and began to dispute with him, seeking from him a sign from the sky, testing him.

Note. conquīrere cum eō: 'to dispute with him'. signum dē caelō: a sign from heaven, i.e. a miracle proving his authority. tentantēs = temptantēs, 'testing'.

Mc 8.12Et ingemīscēns spīritū, ait: Quid generātiō ista signum quaerit? Āmēn dīcō vōbīs, sī dabitur generātiōnī istī signum.

And groaning in spirit, he says: Why does this generation seek a sign? Amen I say to you, if a sign shall be given to this generation.

Note. Quid: 'why?', accusative used adverbially. sī dabitur: a Hebrew oath formula with the conclusion left out ('may God punish me if a sign is given'); it means 'a sign will certainly not be given'. Āmēn: Hebrew 'truly', placed by Jesus at the start of solemn sayings.

Mc 8.13Et dīmittēns eōs, ascendit iterum nāvim et abiit trāns fretum.

And sending them away, he went up again into the ship and went away across the strait.

Note. trāns fretum: 'across the strait', i.e. to the other side of the lake.

Mc 8.14Et oblītī sunt pānēs sūmere: et nisi ūnum pānem nōn habēbant sēcum in nāvī.

And they forgot to take loaves: and except one loaf they did not have with them in the ship.

Note. nisi ūnum pānem nōn habēbant: 'they did not have except one loaf', i.e. only one loaf.

Mc 8.15Et praecipiēbat eīs, dīcēns: Vidēte, et cavēte ā fermentō pharisaeōrum, et fermentō Hērōdis.

And he was ordering them, saying: See, and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod.

Note. Vidēte et cavēte ā: 'see and beware of'. fermentum: yeast or leaven, which spreads through dough; here a picture of hidden influence. Hērōdis: Herod Antipas, ruler of Galilee.

Mc 8.16Et cōgitābant ad alterutrum, dīcentēs: quia pānēs nōn habēmus.

And they were reasoning with one another, saying: Because we do not have loaves.

Note. ad alterutrum: 'to one another', a Late Latin phrase. quia pānēs nōn habēmus: recitative quia, introducing their words directly, like quotation marks.

Mc 8.17Quō cognitō, ait illīs Iēsus: Quid cōgitātis, quia pānēs nōn habētis? nōndum cognōscētis nec intelligitis? adhūc caecātum habētis cor vestrum?

And this having been recognised, Jesus says to them: Why do you reason that you do not have loaves? Will you not yet know nor understand? Do you still have your heart blinded?

Note. Quō cognitō: ablative absolute, 'this having been known'. Quid cōgitātis, quia …: 'why are you reasoning that …'. caecātum habētis cor: perfect participle with habēre, 'you have your heart blinded', a construction that later becomes the perfect tense of the Romance languages. The printed cognōscētis (future) may be a slip for cognōscitis.

Mc 8.18oculōs habentēs nōn vidētis? et aurēs habentēs nōn audītis? nec recordāminī,

Having eyes, do you not see? and having ears, do you not hear? nor do you remember,

Note. oculōs habentēs nōn vidētis: an echo of Jeremiah 5:21 and Ezekiel 12:2.

Mc 8.19quandō quīnque pānēs frēgī in quīnque mīllia: quot cophinōs fragmentōrum plēnōs sustulistis? Dīcunt eī: Duodecim.

when I broke five loaves among five thousand: how many baskets full of fragments you took up? They say to him: Twelve.

Note. frēgī in quīnque mīllia: in + accusative, 'for (the) five thousand'. cophinōs: a cophinus is a wicker basket; the second feeding uses sporta, another word for basket.

Mc 8.20Quandō et septem pānēs in quatuor mīllia: quot sportās fragmentōrum tulistis? Et dīcunt eī: Septem.

When also the seven loaves among four thousand: how many baskets of fragments did you take? And they say to him: Seven.

Mc 8.21Et dīcēbat eīs: Quōmodo nōndum intelligitis?

And he was saying to them: How do you not yet understand?

Note. Quōmodo: 'how is it that …?'

Mc 8.22Et veniunt Bēthsaidam, et addūcunt eī caecum, et rogābant eum ut illum tangeret.

And they come to Bethsaida, and they bring to him a blind man, and they were asking him that he should touch him.

Note. Bēthsaidam: accusative of place to which without a preposition, as with towns.

Mc 8.23Et apprehēnsa manū caecī, ēdūxit eum extrā vīcum: et exspuēns in oculōs eius impositīs manibus suīs, interrogāvit eum sī quid vidēret.

And the blind man's hand having been taken, he led him out outside the village: and spitting into his eyes, his hands having been placed on him, he asked him whether he saw anything.

Note. Et apprehēnsā manū caecī: ablative absolute, 'the blind man's hand having been taken'. sī quid vidēret: indirect question with sī, 'whether he saw anything'; quid is indefinite after sī.

Mc 8.24Et aspiciēns, ait: Videō hominēs velut arborēs ambulantēs.

And looking up, he says: I see men like trees walking.

Note. velut arborēs ambulantēs: his sight is only half restored; the healing comes in two stages, unusually.

Mc 8.25Deinde iterum imposuit manūs super oculōs eius: et coepit vidēre: et restitūtus est ita ut clārē vidēret omnia.

Then again he placed his hands upon his eyes: and he began to see: and he was restored, so that he saw all things clearly.

Note. restitūtus est: 'he was restored'. ut clārē vidēret: result clause, 'so that he saw clearly'.

Mc 8.26Et mīsit illum in domum suam, dīcēns: Vāde in domum tuam: et sī in vīcum introierīs, nēminī dīxerīs.

And he sent him into his house, saying: Go into your house: and if you enter into the village, say it to no one.

Note. nēminī dīxerīs: nē/nēmō + perfect subjunctive is the regular form of a negative command, 'tell no one'.

Mc 8.27Et ēgressus est Iēsus, et discipulī eius in castella Caesarēae Philippī: et in viā interrogābat discipulōs suōs, dīcēns eīs: Quem mē dīcunt esse hominēs?

And Jesus went out, and his disciples, into the forts of Caesarea of Philip: and on the road he was asking his disciples, saying to them: Whom do men say that I am?

Note. castella: 'villages, settlements' (Classical: 'forts'). Caesarēae Philippī: Caesarea Philippi, near the sources of the Jordan, named after Caesar and the tetrarch Philip. Quem mē dīcunt esse: accusative and infinitive, 'whom do men say that I am?'

Mc 8.28Quī respondērunt illī, dīcentēs: Iōannem Baptistam, aliī Ēliam, aliī vērō quasi ūnum dē prophētīs.

They answered him, saying: John the Baptist, others Elias, but others as it were one of the prophets.

Note. Iōannem Baptistam: accusative, continuing 'they say (you are)'. Ēliam: Elijah, who according to Malachi 4:5 would return before the Day of the Lord.

Mc 8.29Tunc dīcit illīs: Vōs vērō quem mē esse dīcitis? Respondēns Petrus, ait eī: Tū es Chrīstus.

Then he says to them: But you, whom do you say that I am? Answering, Peter says to him: You are the Christ.

Note. Chrīstus: Greek 'anointed', translating Hebrew Messiah, the expected king.

Mc 8.30Et comminātus est eīs, nē cui dīcerent dē illō.

And he warned them sternly that they should speak to no one about him.

Note. comminātus est eīs: comminārī, 'threaten', here 'warn sternly', with the dative.

Mc 8.31Et coepit docēre eōs quoniam oportet Fīlium hominis patī multa, et reprobārī ā seniōribus, et ā summīs sacerdōtibus et scrībīs, et occīdī: et post trēs diēs resurgere.

And he began to teach them that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders, and by the highest priests and scribes, and be killed: and after three days rise again.

Note. Fīlium hominis: 'the Son of Man', Jesus' usual way of speaking of himself (from Daniel 7:13). oportet … patī … reprobārī … occīdī … resurgere: a chain of infinitives after oportet, with Fīlium as subject accusative. summīs sacerdōtibus: 'the chief priests'.

Mc 8.32Et palam verbum loquēbātur. Et apprehendēns eum Petrus, coepit increpāre eum.

And openly he was speaking the word. And taking hold of him, Peter began to scold him.

Note. palam: 'openly'. verbum loquēbātur: 'he was speaking the word', i.e. this saying.

Mc 8.33Quī conversus, et vidēns discipulōs suōs, comminātus est Petrō, dīcēns: Vāde retrō mē Satana, quoniam nōn sapis quae Deī sunt, sed quae sunt hominum.

He, turning round, and seeing his disciples, warned Peter sternly, saying: Go back behind me, Satan, since you do not have a taste for the things which are of God, but the things which are of men.

Note. Vāde retrō mē: retrō used as a preposition with the accusative, a Late Latin use. Satana: vocative of Satanās, Hebrew 'adversary'. sapis quae Deī sunt: sapere, 'have a taste for, think the thoughts of'.

Mc 8.34Et convocātā turbā cum discipulīs suīs, dīxit eīs: Sī quis vult mē sequī, dēneget sēmetipsum: et tollat crucem suam, et sequātur mē.

And the crowd having been called together with his disciples, he said to them: If anyone wishes to follow me, let him deny his own self: and let him lift his cross, and let him follow me.

Note. Et convocātā turbā: ablative absolute. dēneget sēmetipsum … tollat … sequātur: jussive subjunctives, 'let him deny … take up … follow'. sēmetipsum: emphatic reflexive, sē + -met + ipse.

Mc 8.35Quī enim voluerit animam suam salvam facere, perdet eam: quī autem perdiderit animam suam propter mē, et Evangelium, salvam faciet eam.

For whoever shall have wished to make his soul safe, will lose it: but whoever shall have lost his soul because of me, and the Gospel, will make it safe.

Note. voluerit … perdiderit: future perfects in general relative clauses, 'whoever shall have wished …'. anima here means 'life' and 'soul' at once; salvam facere, 'make safe, save'.

Mc 8.36Quid enim prōderit hominī, sī lucrētur mundum tōtum et dētrīmentum animae suae faciat?

For what will it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and makes a loss of his soul?

Note. Quid … prōderit: 'what will it profit?' sī lucrētur … faciat: present subjunctives in a 'should-would' condition. dētrīmentum animae facere: 'suffer the loss of one's soul'.

Mc 8.37Aut quid dabit homō commūtātiōnis prō animā suā?

Or what will a man give of exchange for his soul?

Note. quid … commūtātiōnis: partitive genitive, 'what (by way) of exchange'.

Mc 8.38Quī enim mē cōnfūsus fuerit, et verba mea in generātiōne istā adulterā et peccātrīce, et Fīlius hominis cōnfundētur eum, cum vēnerit in glōriā Patris suī cum angelīs sānctīs.

For whoever shall have been ashamed of me, and of my words, in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of man also will be ashamed of him, when he shall have come in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

Note. cōnfūsus fuerit mē: cōnfundī, 'be put to shame', here used with a direct object, 'be ashamed of me'; the same with cōnfundētur eum. adulterā: in the Prophets, Israel's unfaithfulness to God is called adultery.

Mc 8.39Et dīcēbat illīs: Āmēn dīcō vōbīs, quia sunt quīdam dē hīc stantibus, quī nōn gustābunt mortem dōnec videant regnum Deī veniēns in virtūte.

And he was saying to them: Amen I say to you, that there are certain of those standing here, who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God coming in power.

Note. quia sunt quīdam: recitative quia after dīcō. dē hīc stantibus: 'of those standing here'; hīc is the adverb. dōnec videant: dōnec + subjunctive, 'until they see'. veniēns agrees with regnum.