Beware the Yeast of the Pharisees and Herod
Mark 8:14-21
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Mark.8.14 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- Και: CONJ
- επελαθοντο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,pl
- λαβειν: VERB,aor,act,inf
- αρτους: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- και: CONJ
- ει: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,sg
- μη: PART
- ενα: NUM,acc,sg,m
- αρτον: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- ουκ: PART,neg
- ειχον: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,pl
- μεθ᾽εαυτων: PREP+PRON,gen,pl,3
- εν: PREP
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- πλοιω: NOUN,dat,sg,n
Parallels
- Matthew 16:5-12 (verbal): Parallel account of the disciples’ failure to bring bread and Jesus’ subsequent warning about the ‘leaven’—same dialogue/context as Mark 8:14–21.
- Mark 8:19-20 (verbal): Immediate Markan parallel where Jesus recalls the two feedings (five loaves/feeding the 5,000 and seven loaves/feeding the 4,000) to rebuke the disciples’ lack of understanding about the loaves.
- Mark 6:38 (thematic): In the feeding of the 5,000 Jesus asks the disciples ‘How many loaves have ye?’—a recurring motif of Jesus questioning the disciples about available bread/loaves.
- Matthew 15:32-38 (structural): The feeding of the 4,000 in Matthew parallels the narrative background to Mark 8:14 (the earlier miracle that explains why the disciples had so little bread afterward).
Alternative generated candidates
- Now the disciples had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat.
- And they had forgotten to bring bread, and they had with them only one loaf in the boat.
Mark.8.15 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- διεστελλετο: VERB,impf,mid,ind,3,sg
- αυτοις: PRO,dat,pl,3
- λεγων·Ορατε: VERB,pres,act,ptc,nom,sg,m
- βλεπετε: VERB,pres,act,imp,2,pl
- απο: PREP
- της: ART,gen,sg,f
- ζυμης: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- Φαρισαιων: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- και: CONJ
- της: ART,gen,sg,f
- ζυμης: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- Ηρωδου: NOUN,gen,sg,m
Parallels
- Matthew 16:6 (verbal): Nearly identical warning—'Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees'—same leaven imagery and admonition to beware of corrupting influence.
- Matthew 16:11-12 (thematic): Jesus explains that 'leaven' here refers to the teaching/doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees rather than literal bread, clarifying the meaning behind Mark's warning.
- Luke 12:1 (verbal): Contains the explicit warning 'Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees,' and in context equates that leaven with hypocrisy—verbal and semantic parallel.
- Matthew 23:27-28 (thematic): Jesus' denunciation of Pharisaic hypocrisy ('whitewashed tombs') develops the same critique implicit in the 'leaven' imagery—external appearance vs. corrupt inner disposition.
- 1 Corinthians 5:6-8 (verbal): Paul uses the leaven metaphor ('a little leaven leavens the whole lump') to warn against corrupting influence within the community, echoing the metaphorical force of Jesus' warning.
Alternative generated candidates
- And he charged them, saying, "Watch—beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod."
- And he charged them, saying, "Be on your guard; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod."
Mark.8.16 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- διελογιζοντο: VERB,impf,mid,ind,3,pl
- προς: PREP
- αλληλους: PRON,acc,pl,m
- οτι: CONJ
- αρτους: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- ουκ: PART,neg
- εχουσιν: VERB,pres,act,ind,3,pl
Parallels
- Matthew 16:7-8 (verbal): Matthew records the same exchange about ‘why do you reason because you have no bread?’, paralleling the disciples’ concern about bread and Jesus’ rebuke.
- Mark 8:17 (verbal): Immediate parallel in Mark’s own narrative where Jesus asks them why they reason about having no bread—direct continuation of 8:16.
- Mark 6:35-44 (thematic): The feeding of the 5,000: earlier miracle about providing bread, which frames the disciples’ recurring preoccupation and failure to grasp Jesus’ point about provision.
- John 6:5-12 (thematic): John’s account of the feeding of the 5,000 likewise links Jesus, the crowd’s need for bread, and miraculous provision—background for the disciples’ concern in Mark 8:16.
Alternative generated candidates
- And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."
- And they began to discuss it among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."
Mark.8.17 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- γνους: VERB,aor,act,ptc,nom,sg,m
- λεγει: VERB,pres,act,ind,3,sg
- αυτοις·Τι: PRON,dat,pl,m
- διαλογιζεσθε: VERB,pres,mid,ind,2,pl
- οτι: CONJ
- αρτους: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- ουκ: PART,neg
- εχετε: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,pl
- ουπω: ADV
- νοειτε: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,pl
- ουδε: CONJ,neg
- συνιετε: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,pl
- πεπωρωμενην: VERB,perf,pas,ptc,acc,sg,f
- εχετε: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,pl
- την: ART,acc,sg,f
- καρδιαν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- υμων: PRON,gen,pl,2
Parallels
- Mark 8:18 (structural): Immediate continuation of the same rebuke — Jesus follows with parallel rhetorical questions ('having eyes, do you not see?') amplifying the charge of lack of perception and hardening of heart.
- Matthew 16:9–10 (verbal): Parallel pericope and similar wording (Jesus rebukes the disciples for not understanding the lesson of the loaves), reflecting the same diagnostic question about perception and understanding.
- Mark 6:52 (verbal): After the feeding and Jesus walking on the sea the disciples 'did not understand' and 'their heart was hardened' — nearly identical language and theme of failure to comprehend the meaning of the miracles.
- Isaiah 6:9–10 (quotation): OT source for the motif of spiritual hardening and refusal to perceive/understand; Jesus and the Gospel writers invoke this passage to explain persistent unbelief and dullness of heart.
- John 12:40 (allusion): John cites Isaiah's language about blinded eyes and a hardened heart to explain unbelief — thematically parallel to Mark’s charge that the disciples' hearts are 'hardened' and they fail to perceive.
Alternative generated candidates
- And Jesus, perceiving it, said to them, "Why do you reason that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened?
- And Jesus, perceiving it, said to them, "Why do you discuss that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Have you a heart? Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear?"
Mark.8.18 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- οφθαλμους: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- εχοντες: VERB,pres,act,part,nom,pl,m
- ου: PART,neg
- βλεπετε: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,pl
- και: CONJ
- ωτα: NOUN,acc,pl,n
- εχοντες: VERB,pres,act,part,nom,pl,m
- ουκ: PART,neg
- ακουετε: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,pl
- και: CONJ
- ου: PART,neg
- μνημονευετε: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,pl
Parallels
- Isaiah 6:9-10 (quotation): Direct source for the formula: 'keep on hearing but do not understand; keep on seeing but do not perceive'—Mark echoes Isaiah's language about eyes/ears without understanding.
- Mark 4:12 (verbal): Same Gospel uses nearly identical wording about seeing without perceiving and hearing without understanding in Jesus' explanation of the parables.
- Matthew 13:13-15 (quotation): Matthew quotes Isaiah's language in Jesus' teaching on parables: 'seeing they do not see, hearing they do not hear,' paralleling Mark's rebuke.
- John 12:40 (quotation): John applies Isaiah 6:10 to unbelief—'He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart'—echoing the theme of eyes/ears failing to perceive.
- Romans 11:8 (quotation): Paul cites Isaiah's phrasing about a 'spirit of stupor' so that 'eyes they should not see, and ears they should not hear,' reflecting the same motif of spiritual insensitivity.
Alternative generated candidates
- Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? Do you not remember?
- "And do you not remember?" he said. "When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"
Mark.8.19 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- οτε: CONJ
- τους: ART,acc,pl,m
- πεντε: NUM,acc,pl,m
- αρτους: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- εκλασα: VERB,aor,act,ind,1,sg
- εις: PREP
- τους: ART,acc,pl,m
- πεντακισχιλιους: NUM,card,acc,pl,m
- ποσους: PRON,interrog,acc,pl,m
- κοφινους: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- κλασματων: NOUN,gen,pl,n
- πληρεις: ADJ,acc,pl,m
- ηρατε: VERB,aor,act,ind,2,pl
- λεγουσιν: VERB,pres,act,ind,3,pl
- αυτω·Δωδεκα: PRON,dat,sg,m; NUM,card
Parallels
- Mark 6:43 (verbal): Same Gospel's earlier account of the feeding of the 5,000; identical detail that twelve baskets of fragments were gathered, which Mark 8:19 explicitly recalls.
- Matthew 14:20 (verbal): Parallel Synoptic account of the feeding of the 5,000; likewise records that the disciples gathered twelve baskets of leftover pieces.
- Luke 9:17 (verbal): Luke's parallel to the feeding of the 5,000; mentions the disciples collecting twelve baskets of fragments, matching the detail cited in Mark 8:19.
- John 6:13 (verbal): Johannine account of the feeding of the 5,000; explicitly notes that the gathered fragments filled twelve baskets, paralleling the detail recalled in Mark 8:19.
- Mark 8:8 (structural): Immediate literary parallel within Mark: the feeding of the 4,000 (just prior) resulted in seven baskets of leftovers, creating a deliberate contrast with the twelve baskets from the 5,000 recalled in 8:19.
Alternative generated candidates
- When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?" They answered him, "Twelve."
- They said to him, "Twelve."
Mark.8.20 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- οτε: CONJ
- και: CONJ
- τους: ART,acc,pl,m
- επτα: NUM,acc,pl,neut
- εις: PREP
- τους: ART,acc,pl,m
- τετρακισχιλιους: NUM,acc,pl,m
- ποσων: ADJ,gen,pl,m
- σπυριδων: NOUN,gen,pl,f
- πληρωματα: NOUN,acc,pl,n
- κλασματων: NOUN,gen,pl,n
- ηρατε: VERB,aor,act,ind,2,pl
- και: CONJ
- λεγουσιν: VERB,pres,act,ind,3,pl
- αυτω·Επτα: PRON,dat,sg,m + NUM,nom,pl,m
Parallels
- Matthew 15:37 (verbal): Parallel account of the feeding of the four thousand: the disciples gather seven basketfuls of fragments (same number 'seven' and baskets collected).
- Mark 6:43 (thematic): Parallel feeding-miracle narrative (the feeding of the five thousand) where the disciples collect leftover baskets—serves as a thematic contrast in numbers (twelve vs. seven) and in the disciples' understanding.
- John 6:12-13 (thematic): John's account of the feeding of the five thousand; the gathering of twelve baskets of fragments parallels Mark's motif of collecting leftovers after a miraculous multiplication.
- Mark 6:30-44 (structural): Internal structural parallel within Mark: the earlier feeding of the five thousand (Mark 6) is paired with the feeding of the four thousand (Mark 8) to highlight recurring themes (miracle, distribution, collection of fragments, and the disciples' comprehension).
Alternative generated candidates
- "And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?" And they answered him, "Seven."
- And when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?" And they said, "Seven."
Mark.8.21 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- ελεγεν: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- αυτοις·Ουπω: PRON,dat,pl,m+ADV
- συνιετε: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,pl
Parallels
- Mark 8:17-18 (structural): Immediate context in the same pericope: Jesus rebukes the disciples for not perceiving or remembering the loaves («Do you not yet perceive?... Having eyes, do you not see?»), directly linked to v.21's question about their lack of understanding.
- Matthew 16:5-12 (verbal): The Matthean parallel to Mark 8:14–21; Jesus similarly asks the disciples why they fail to understand after the feedings and warns about the 'leaven' of the Pharisees and Sadducees—includes the same rebuke about not understanding.
- Mark 6:50-52 (verbal): Earlier Markan comment on the disciples' failure to grasp the significance of the loaves and Jesus' actions («for they did not understand about the loaves»), echoing the theme of lack of understanding in 8:21.
- Luke 24:25 (thematic): After the resurrection, Jesus rebukes the disciples as 'foolish' and 'slow of heart to believe'—a thematic parallel emphasizing the disciples' failure to comprehend Jesus' words and works.
- John 12:16 (thematic): John observes that the disciples did not understand the meaning of Jesus' actions at the time (they understood only later), paralleling Mark's motif of initial incomprehension.
Alternative generated candidates
- And he said to them, "Do you not yet understand?"
- And he said to them, "Do you still not understand?"
And they had forgotten to bring bread; they had with them only one loaf in the boat. And he charged them, saying, "Watch—beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod." And they began to discuss with one another that they had no bread. And Jesus, perceiving it, said to them, "Why are you discussing that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Is your heart hardened?"
"Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember?"
"When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets of fragments did you take up?" They answered him, "Twelve."
"And the seven for the four thousand—how many baskets of fragments did you take up?" And they answered him, "Seven." And he said to them, "Do you not yet understand?"