Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Mark 13:31
Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.
31. but my words shall not pass away ] Never did the Speaker seem to stand more utterly alone than when He uttered this majestic utterance. Never did it seem more improbable that it should be fulfilled. But as we look across the centuries we see how it has been realised. His words have passed into laws, they have passed into doctrines, they have passed into proverbs, they have passed into consolations, but they have never “passed away.” What human teacher ever dared to claim an eternity for his words?
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Mar 13:31
But My words shall not pass away.
The perpetuity of Christs words
Contrast the apparent transitoriness of words with the solid earth and the eternal heavens. Yet when these shall have faded away the words of Christ will still endure.
I. In a literal sense the text reminds us that the words which Jesus spake while on earth are permanently associated with our whole life.
II. All our literature is enriched by these words.
III. That which is spiritual must always be more permanent than the material.
IV. Yet the material prepares the way for the spiritual application.
1. A lesson of warning, since we are in danger of attaching too much importance to the form, and too little to the truth, which the form embodies.
2. A lesson of encouragement; opinions may change and interpretations differ; but the truth remains always the same. (F. Wagstaff.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
31. Heaven and earth shall passaway; but my words shall not pass awaythe strongest possibleexpression of the divine authority by which He spake; not as Moses orPaul might have said of their own inspiration, for such languagewould be unsuitable in any merely human mouth.
Warnings to Prepare for theComing of Christ Suggested by the Foregoing Prophecy (Mr13:32-37).
It will be observed that, in theforegoing prophecy, as our Lord approaches the crisis of the day ofvengeance on Jerusalem and redemption for the Churchat which stagethe analogy between that and the day of final vengeance andredemption waxes more strikingHis language rises and swells beyondall temporal and partial vengeance, beyond all earthly deliverancesand enlargements, and ushers us resistlessly into the scenes of thefinal day. Accordingly, in these six concluding verses it is manifestthat preparation for “THATDAY” is what our Lord designs to inculcate.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Heaven and earth shall pass away,…. Which may be understood either affirmatively, as what will be at the second coming of Christ; or comparatively, rather than any thing said by Christ should; and so shows the certainty and irreversibleness of his predictions, as it follows:
but my words shall not pass away; which is true of all the words of Christ he ever spake, and here particularly relates to those he had just delivered, concerning the calamities that should come upon the Jewish nation; [See comments on Mt 24:35].
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
1) “Heaven and earth shall pass away:- (ho ouranos kai he ge pareleusontai) “The heaven and the earth (now existing) will pass away,” though they now seem fixed and stable, come to be no more, become extant, go out of existence, be purged by fire, 2Pe 3:10.
2) “But my word shall not pass away.” (hoi de logou mou ou pareleusontai) ”Yet my word will not pass away, go out of existence, or become extant,” Mat 24:25, affirmatively declares, “The word of our God shall stand forever,” Luk 21:33; Isa 40:8; Isa 51:6; Heb 1:11;
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”
Once again we are pulled up with a jolt by what seems a simple statement. Who is this Who can claim that His words are so important that they are longer lasting than creation? That indeed they are more important than creation? By this we know that He is the Lord of glory. And what He was stressing was that what had just been outlined to them was more certain than the continuation of the world, because His words are eternal.
‘Heaven and earth will pass away.’ Once the Lord has returned eternity will take over from time. There will be a new Heaven and a new earth (see Rev 21:1 and compare 2Pe 3:7 ; 2Pe 3:10; 2Pe 3:12). This was in essence declared by Isa 65:17 although in his day he was unable to understand the full significance of what he was saying, for they had then no conception of anything beyond this life. Contrast Isa 51:6 where it is His salvation and righteousness that will not pass away (see also Isa 54:10), and Isa 40:7-8 where it is ‘the word of our God’ which stands for ever. But here it is what Jesus has said that will endure for ever.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Heaven = the heaven. Singular. See note on Mat 6:9, Mat 6:10.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
CHAPTER 61
No One Knows
Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is. For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch. Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.
(Mar 13:31-37)
Soon you and I must meet the thrice holy God face to face in judgment. Soon we will cross over that river that will carry us out of this changing, temporal world of time and sense into that world in which all things are unchanging and eternal. Soon you and I are going to meet God.
Like Amos the prophet, I urge you, Prepare to meet thy God! When Paul knew that the time of his departure was at hand, he said, I am now ready. Are you? Are you ready? Are you prepared to meet God?
Soon we must meet God in judgment, but no one knows when. Therefore, our Lord gives us a word of constant, pressing urgency as he concludes his discourse in Mark 13. He calls us to watchfulness. We should always be on the lookout for Christs second coming. Every redeemed soul, in whom God the Holy Spirit has performed the saving operations of his grace, is always ready for his Lords return and ready to meet God. Yet, it is most blessed to be, as Robert Hawker put it, in an actual state of waiting, looking, longing for and hastening to the Lords corningThink what a blessed privilege this is, and beg of the Lord Jesus to be so found at his coming (2Pe 3:12).
A Promise
Our Savior makes a promise we would be wise to lay to heart. Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. All creation and all things connected with this present creation, all things involved in the curse, all things affected by and infected with sin shall pass away. This present heaven and earth shall soon be dissolved, burnt up with the fire of Gods holy wrath (Mar 13:24-25; 2Pe 3:10-14; 2Co 4:18).
We live in a world in which everything is temporal and passing away. We are all going to a world in which everything is permanent and eternal. The bliss of heaven is eternal. The torments of the damned in hell are everlasting. Our state in that unseen world of eternity depends entirely upon our relationship to the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, in this world of time.
If you are washed in Christs blood and robed in his righteousness now, you will be clean and holy forever. If you trust Christ as your Savior now, he will be your Savior forever. If you are one with Christ now, you shall be one with Christ in eternity. If you love Christ and are loved of Christ now, you shall love Christ and be loved of Christ forever.
If you meet Christ in judgment as an unbeliever, you will be an unbeliever forever. If you are unclean when you leave this world, you will be an unclean forever. If you are a rebel when you draw your last breath, you will be a rebel forever. If you are cursed and damned when you go out to meet God in judgment, you will be cursed of God, hated by God, and damned by God forever!
Our only hope for eternal life is the free, sovereign, saving grace of God in Christ, the sinners Substitute.
There is a fountain filled with blood
Drawn from Immanuels veins;
And sinners plunged beneath that flood
Lose all their guilty stains.
The dying thief rejoiced to see
That fountain in his day;
And there may I, though vile as he,
Wash all my sins away.
Eer since by faith I saw the stream
Christs flowing wounds supply,
Redeeming love has been my theme
And shall be til I die!
Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. Gods Word is immutable, absolute, certain and unalterable. That statement applies to Gods written Word of Inspiration, the Holy Scriptures, and to every word of decree, doctrine, grace, promise and judgment revealed in Holy Scripture (Isa 40:8; Isa 46:9-11; Isa 55:11; Psa 119:89). He who is the omniscient, holy, perfect, omnipotent, unchangeable God never needs to alter his word. Gods word is never yea and nay, but always yea and amen.
A Problem
In Mar 13:32 the Lord Jesus makes a declaration, which presents a problem to many. But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.
Here is the problem: If the Lord Jesus Christ is himself God the Son, equal in all things and one with the Father and the Spirit, as the Scriptures universally assert that he is and the doctrine of the Trinity demands, if he is God all-wise, all-knowing, omniscient, before whom darkness is light, from whom nothing can be hid, How can he be ignorant of the day and hour of his second advent?
The answer is both simple and obvious, when we compare Scripture with Scripture. In fact, the imagined problem is no problem at all, but merely a demonstration of the fact that our Lord Jesus Christ is exactly who and what he claims to be both God and man as truly and completely God as if he were not man, and as truly and completely man as if he were not God.
As a man, our Savior was no more omniscient than he was omnipotent or omnipresent. When he hungered, it was not God who hungered, but man. When he thirsted, it was not God who thirsted, but man.
In the four gospels he sometimes speaks of himself as a man (as here), and sometimes he speaks of himself as God, in order to show us that he is fully both. As God, he said to his disciples, Our friend, Lazarus, sleepeth, though no one had informed him of Lazarus death. Yet, when he came to Bethany, he asked as a man, Where have ye laid him?
The same thing is true in Mar 13:32. Obviously, as the Son of God, he knew and always has known the precise second of his second advent. But as the Son of man, he was altogether ignorant of it. He who is our Redeemer must be both God and man in one glorious person.
No One
In this day of prophecy mania our Lords words here need to be emphasized and remembered. He tells us in the plainest terms possible that no one knows when the Lord Jesus Christ shall appear in his glorious Second Advent. The language of Scripture in this regard is crystal clear (Act 1:4-11).
No one knows, or even has a hint of an idea, when the Lord Jesus will come again to this world. The event is certain; but no one knows the time. Not only do the Scriptures tell us this emphatically, we have a glaring proof of the fact in our Saviors own words. If the perfect, holy man Christ Jesus, that man who knew the Book of God like no other man, did not know it, if he did not figure out the day or hour of his appearing, no other man is about to do so!
And no one knows when Christ is coming to take him out of this world to meet God in judgment. I find it utterly amazing that we so blatantly ignore this fact. David said, There is but a step between me and death. We all say we realize that; but very few people seem to live like they realize it. There is but a step between me and death! God has, from eternity, fixed the moment and the means by which he will take each of us out of this world. When our number is up, we shall be taken. And as soon as God takes us out of this world, we are going to stand before him in judgment.
I know there is a Day of Judgment at the end of time. Following the general resurrection, there will be a general judgment (Joh 5:28-29; Rev 20:11-15). But the Scriptures plainly speak of us meeting God in judgment as soon as we draw our last breath (2Co 5:10-11; Heb 9:27). How wilt thou do in the swelling of Jordan? (Jer 12:5).
A Parable
In Mar 13:34-35 our Master puts forth a parable, in which he explains our present position and responsibility as his servants in this world.
For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch. Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning.
There are several things in this parable which we ought to lay to heart. The church of Christ is his house: he alone is the Master of his house. The Lord Jesus left his church, his house, under the care, authority and rule of his servants. His servants are men counted worthy by him to preach the gospel and to rule his house with the authority of his Word (Act 20:28; Heb 13:7; Heb 13:17; 1Pe 5:1-3; 1Th 5:12-13).
The Lord Jesus has appointed to each of his own a specific work to do. He gave to every man his work. Our Master has not abandoned his house: he is coming back to it; and his coming will be sudden, without warning. Let us live in the blessed anticipation of his arrival, watching for his appearance, praying for his grace and working in his house for the good of his house and the glory of his great name.
The Post
The Master has assigned a post to each of his own in this world.
Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time isWatch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch (Mar 13:33; Mar 13:35-37).
Ever be watchful of your own soul. Ever stir yourself up to renewed consecration to Christ. When the Master comes, I pray that he will not find me sleeping at my post. One of the old, old writers said, Be doing something, that the devil may always find you engaged. When John Calvins health was failing him and his friends urged him to rest more and do less work to preserve his health, he responded Would you want my Master to find me idle? Let us not be found sleeping at our post, but watching, praying and working.
Fuente: Discovering Christ In Selected Books of the Bible
Heaven: Psa 102:25-27, Isa 51:6, Mat 5:18, Mat 24:35, Heb 1:10-12, 2Pe 3:10-12, Rev 20:11
my: Num 23:19, Jos 23:14, Jos 23:15, Psa 19:7, Isa 40:8, Zec 1:6, Luk 21:33, 2Ti 2:13, Tit 1:2
Reciprocal: 2Ki 10:10 – fall unto the earth 2Ki 15:12 – And so Psa 91:4 – his truth Eze 12:25 – in your Eze 22:14 – I the Mat 23:36 – General Mat 24:34 – This Heb 1:11 – shall perish
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1
It was intended that the universe was to pass away,. but the sayings of Christ were to hold firm until they had been fulfilled.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
31 Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. 32 But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father. 33 Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is. 34 For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch. 35 Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: 36 Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. 37 And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.
Eternality of the Word
This was a simple phrase, maybe even an off-handed phrase in the context “Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.” He has just been speaking of the coming end of all things, but contrasts that to the fact that His words to them will not pass away; they will not pass from history, they will not pass from memory, nor will they pass from eternity future.
In short He seems to be saying, mark my words, I have spoken to you and these things will come to pass. Actually more words of encouragement – there is a certainty to what He has been telling them. Have no doubt, just be ready and watch for them to come to pass.
Unknowableness of his coming
No man, no angel and not even the Son of God know of the time of the coming, only the Father knows. Now some raise the obvious question of why the Father would know the time and not the Son. One might note the Spirit is not mentioned as knowing or not knowing, thus it might be inferred He also knows though that would be an assumption. The text does say “but the father” indicating that He alone is the one that knows.
So, why would the Son not know, He is totally God thus if the Father knows, why would not the Son, do they keep secrets? No, secrets in the Godhead are not possible.
The obvious answer is that the Son while on earth is limited in some manner as to His relation to his Godly attributes. It has been covered numerous times in my studies that I believe that Christ limited some of His attributes, limited the use of some of His attributes, or was in some way limited in some of His attributes by the Father. There is no indication other than the passage that mentions (Php 2:6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”) the humbling of the Lord but this is the logical conclusion after viewing the Scriptures. It would seem that the Son, while on earth did not have that knowledge, but there is no indication that before or after the incarnation that He did notknow the time of His coming.
Whether the time had been set prior to the incarnation is not known either. It might be assumed that the time was set amongst the decree/decrees before the foundation of the world and this would probably be a safe assumption.
Our command to watch:
The Lord gave a very clear illustration of His command to watch. The illustration puts it in a very clear understandable manner – watch lest you be sleeping when He comes. Our command is not to rest till He comes; it is not take a break till He comes, but watch and why are we to watch?
We are to watch so that we will be sure that we are active when He returns.
Now if I could just schedule His return for early in the morning when I am busy in Bible study over coffee I would be in good shape, but I just know He is going to come when I am napping in the mid-day. No, I doubt this is speaking of our literal sleeping, but certainly speaks to our activity or non-activity for Him and His work. We are to be about our heavenly father’s business not enjoying this life with all the leisure that we can find and buy.
A little further application:
As the apostles, we often focus on the future rather than upon the day that God has given us. We all too often focus on what we will one day do for Christ, but as the days go by we do little or nothing and one day we awake to the fact that we have done nothing and the future is here.
My father-in-law became terminally ill – one day a vibrant hard worker and in a day or two flat on his back for the majority of his last days. Cancer tends to wake people up to what they have not done.
His regret was all the people that he had not witnessed to through his life, but that was immediately corrected. Every person who came into his room was confronted in one way or another with Christ. Even in his funeral several came to the Lord through the service.
Do not put off doing for God today, for you probably will tomorrow as well – even the next day and the next and – correct that error in your life now, before it is the future.
It is our individual responsibility to wait while watching. It is not up to the pastor to tell us when, what and where to watch, it is up to us as believers. It is our Lord that is coming back, it is our Savior that died for our sins, and it is our Christ that will judge us as individuals. We will have no excuse when He returns if we are not active and serving Him.
I can just envision the finger pointing and the stream of excuses as the Lord calls each of us before the court and asks us why we were so lax, so lazy, and so intentionally cool toward His service. Last evening I happened upon Judge Judy and was caught by her high level of animation toward the pair before her. I stopped (not a usual habit) to watch for a few moments. The couple had lived together for a couple of years and had split up leaving them with some financial difficulties between them. Judge Judy was attempting to get to the facts but she in her short stature was having trouble wading through all the excuses, discrepancies and finger pointing.
Had Judge Judy had a two hour show it would be doubtful that she would have dug through the mess that this pair was weaving before her very eyes. Oh that we as believers would just step to the Lord’s judgment in honesty and forthrightness admitting to our many failings.
May we be waiting while laboring with a watchful eye to the heavens. It truly could be that His coming could be at any time but we know not when.
Fuente: Mr. D’s Notes on Selected New Testament Books by Stanley Derickson
"Heaven and earth" is a figure of speech (merism) for all creation (cf. Gen 1:1). The universe as we know it will end one day (Rev 21:1), but Jesus’ word will remain. Jesus was referring specifically to His predictions in this chapter, but His statement was general and includes all His words. By saying this about His Word Jesus was implying that He was God (cf. Psa 102:25-27; Isa 40:6-8; Isa 51:6). The fulfillment of this prophecy is certain.