week 5 part 2
arnita
Exegenesispaperpart1.docxLIBERTY UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF DIVINITY
Exegesis Research Paper Part 1: Mark 4:26-29
Submitted to Doctor Stephen D. Lowe, in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the completion of the course, RTCH 500
RTCH 500 D-01
Research, Writing, and Ministry Preparation
by
Arnita Norman
May 28, 2019
Introduction
Mark 4:26-29 is the only unique passage in the Gospel of Mark. As the passage dictates:
He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come (NIV)[footnoteRef:1]. [1: NIV Bible. Mark 4:26-29.]
Generally referred to as the parable of the sower, the passage extends to the teachings of Jesus on how the good soil receives the seed. The soil here represents the heart of an individual and the seed represents the word of God[footnoteRef:2]. As it appears, the setting of this parable is the same occasion in which Jesus the son of God told the parable of the Mustard seed (Mark 4:30-32) which marked His start of the ministry to publicly teach in parables. This paper seeks to explain how God mysteriously uses his Word in the heart of his people and calls for Christians to remain faithful in sowing the seed, keep praying for a harvest and then leave the results to God. [2: Boyce, James, Commentary on Mark 4:26-34. Working Preacher.]
Context of the Passage
In Mark 4:26-29, Jesus recounts a man who dissipates seed on the ground and after that gives nature the chance to follow through to its logical end. As the man who sowed the seed continues on ahead step by step, the seed starts to have an impact. In the first place, the seed grows; at that point it delivers a stalk and leaves, what follows is a head of grain, and, at long last, completely developed kernels in the head. Jesus stresses that the majority of this occurs without the help of the farmer who scattered the seeds. The man who dispersed the seed cannot even completely see how they grew because nature took its course. The parable ends with a harvest that happens after the grain is ready[footnoteRef:3]. [3: Ringe, Sharon, H, Commentary on Mark 4:26-34, 2009.]
For the individuals who might want to bring things into their very own hands, the parable of the sower is an update that the s God is the real farmer, who the starts the procedure and brings in the harvest as the result of planting. All things considered, the farmer in this parable seems ignorant regarding how the whole process of the growing grain happens[footnoteRef:4]. This may be an ethical story through which Christ's disciples figure out how to be ranchers and get about the matter of sowing the seeds of God's rein, then trust God that the procedure will unfurl in God's time and in God's desired manner. In other form, the farmer maybe Jesus, who get everything under way and will return toward the end to get the harvest. [4: MacAskill, Grant, Mark and Work: Bible Commentary.]
Literary Genre
The literary genre of Mark 4:26-29 is parables, a genre that utilizes expansive paint strokes to craft pictures of the real world and, all things considered, few out of every odd detail is dependably intended to be dissected or interpreted. That being stated, the figure of the farmer in the 27th and 29th verses just as the existence cycle of the seed in verse 28 do not lend themselves to translation. They are unimportant literally tools to push the plot ahead [footnoteRef:5]. Today’s world is so secret and indiscernibility and e may be pardoned in the event that we are slightly uncomfortable. As Hare comments, both Matthew and Luke are not also that much into discussing this world as they exclude this parable and in truth the majority of the mystery language from their version of this parable material[footnoteRef:6]. This ought to in any event be a sign of warning that the book of Mark should be read keenly and be careful not to literary interpret everything. [5: Grant, Bible Commentary.] [6: Hare, Douglas R. A., Westminster Bible Companion: Mark (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996). ]
Relevance of The Passage
Theologically, Mark 4:26-29 presents use with nothing easy to take home. The parable asks that we draw in our creative impulses to pursue the conceivable outcomes and disjointed qualities that we differentiate between a world where everything is arranged, straight, and coherent, to a world loaded up with riddles and astonishment into which a sovereign God welcomes us. Although the parable is set in the workplace of agriculture, the job of the farmer is intentionally limited[footnoteRef:7]. Rather, the accentuation is on how the kingdom's development is achieved by the baffling power of God. It is great that the passage leaves us with resources. We have the message of the kingdom and the guarantee of Jesus that alongside the call to repent and trust the uplifting news, God in Jesus keeps on equipping and shaping us as listeners who have all we need as God hears our supplication and the kingdom keeps on coming to fruition among us and in our reality. [7: Hultgren, Arland J., The Parables of Jesus: A Commentary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2000) ]
Bibliography
Boyce, James, Commentary on Mark 4:26-34. Working Preacher. Retrieved from https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=2469
Hare, Douglas R. A., Westminster Bible Companion: Mark (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996).
Hultgren, Arland J., The Parables of Jesus: A Commentary (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2000)
MacAskill, Grant, Mark and Work: Bible Commentary. Retrieved from https://www.theologyofwork.org/new-testament/mark#parables-at-work-mark-426-29-and-1332-37
Ringe, Sharon, H, Commentary on Mark 4:26-34, 2009. Retrieved from https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=275
NIV Bible. Mark 4:26-29.
