Commentary - Mark 3:13-19

Bird's-eye view

In this brief but foundational passage, Mark shows us the formal establishment of Jesus' new government. This is a constitutional moment for the Kingdom. Having demonstrated His authority over the demonic realm, disease, and the Sabbath, Jesus now formally constitutes the leadership of the New Israel. He goes up a mountain, a place of divine revelation, and sovereignly selects twelve men. The number is not accidental; it signifies the formation of a new covenant people to replace the apostate leadership of old covenant Israel. He calls them for a dual purpose: fellowship with Him and mission for Him. They are to be with Him, and they are to be sent out. Their mission is defined by preaching and power, proclaiming the kingdom and demonstrating its reality by casting out demons. The list of names reveals the radical nature of this new community, bringing together men from opposite ends of the political and social spectrum. And the inclusion of Judas from the very beginning is a stark reminder of divine sovereignty, even over the treachery of men, and a permanent warning against mere external affiliation with Christ.

Outline

Mark 3:13

And He went up on the mountain... The location is the first thing we must notice. In Scripture, mountains are places of divine encounter and covenantal administration. Moses went up Mount Sinai to receive the law. Elijah went to Horeb to meet with God. Jesus here is acting as a new and greater Moses. He is not going to receive a law, but to constitute the leadership of the people of that law. This is a formal, authoritative act. He is establishing His government.

and summoned those whom He Himself wanted... This is the doctrine of election in its pure and unadulterated form. The basis for their selection was not in them. It was not their resume, their piety, their education, or their eagerness. The text is plain: He called those whom He wanted. The initiative is entirely and exclusively divine. This is God's sovereign grace from beginning to end. He did not hold auditions; He issued a summons.

and they came to Him. And here we have the effectual call. When the sovereign Lord wants someone, they come. His call is not a hopeful suggestion or a polite invitation that can be refused. His call creates the response it demands. The same power that said "Let there be light" is the same power that says "Follow me." And when He says it, men get up and follow.

Mark 3:14-15

And He appointed twelve... The number is deliberate and freighted with meaning. There were twelve tribes of Israel, and Jesus is here constituting the leadership of the renewed, true Israel. This is a foundational, governmental act. These twelve men are to be the patriarchs of the new covenant people. The old leadership in Jerusalem was corrupt and failing, so Jesus is replacing the entire structure.

(whom He also named apostles)... To appoint is one thing, to name is another. An apostle is a "sent one," an emissary, a delegate who carries the full authority of the one who sent him. He is not just giving them a job; He is conferring a status and an office. They are to be His authorized representatives.

to be with Him... This is the first part of their commission, and the order is crucial. Before they could be sent out for Him, they had to be with Him. Proximity precedes proclamation. All true ministry flows from a living relationship with Jesus Christ. They had to learn His voice, His doctrine, His manner of life. They were to be steeped in Him before they could represent Him.

and to send them out to preach, and to have authority to cast out the demons. This is the second part of their commission. The fellowship they had with Him was not for its own sake, but for the sake of the mission. And the mission had two prongs: word and deed. They were to preach the gospel of the kingdom, and they were to have authority, a delegated authority from Christ Himself, to wage war against the kingdom of darkness. Preaching and power encounter go together. The gospel is not just a set of ideas; it is the power of God for salvation, a power that demolishes strongholds.

Mark 3:16-19

And He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom He gave the name Peter)... The list begins with the man Jesus is remaking. Simon was his name, which could mean something like a reed, shifting and unstable. But Jesus renames him Peter, the Rock. This is a prophetic declaration. Jesus is not describing what Simon is, but what He will make him by grace. He calls things that are not as though they were.

and James, the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James (to them He gave the name Boanerges, which means, “Sons of Thunder”)... Here we have two brothers, part of the inner circle with Peter. Their nickname, Sons of Thunder, suggests they were men of intense, fiery, and perhaps misdirected passion. Remember them wanting to call down fire on a Samaritan village. Jesus does not extinguish their fire; He takes their thunder and aims it at the gates of Hell. He consecrates their zeal for His purposes.

and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot... The list is a beautiful mess. We have fishermen, common laborers. We have Matthew, a tax collector, which means he was a government man, a collaborator with the pagan Roman occupiers, and despised by his countrymen. And in the same group, we have Simon the Zealot, a man who likely belonged to a party of revolutionaries dedicated to the violent overthrow of those same Roman occupiers. In any other setting, Simon would have considered it a religious duty to put a knife in Matthew. But here, in the company of Jesus, the tax collector and the zealot are made brothers. The gospel creates a new humanity where the world's enmities are crucified.

and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. Mark ends the list with this jarring, tragic note. He includes the traitor without comment or explanation. Judas was chosen. Judas was appointed. Judas was given authority. He was there from the beginning. This is a permanent and sobering warning. Proximity to Christ, inclusion in the visible church, and even participation in ministry are no guarantees of salvation. And it is a profound display of God's sovereignty. God was not taken by surprise. The betrayal of Jesus was not a tragic accident that derailed the plan; it was the plan. God uses even the most wicked acts of sinful men to accomplish His perfect and holy purposes.

Application

First, all authority in the church flows from Jesus Christ. He is the one who calls, appoints, and sends. Church leadership is not a matter of corporate maneuvering or democratic election in the worldly sense; it is a matter of discerning the Lord's sovereign appointment. He still calls those whom He wants.

Second, the pattern for all Christian life and ministry is established here: be with Him, and then be sent. Our public witness must flow from our private fellowship with the Lord. Without the first, the second is nothing but empty gongs and clanging cymbals. Our activity for God must be fueled by our intimacy with God.

Third, the church is meant to be a place of radical reconciliation. The gospel that reconciles sinners to a holy God is the same gospel that reconciles sinners to one another. The church should be the one place on earth where tax collectors and zealots, where people from every tribe, tongue, and political party, can be made one new man in Christ Jesus. If our churches are not displaying this supernatural unity, we have lost a key aspect of our witness.

Finally, the presence of Judas in the Twelve is a call to sober self examination. We must not mistake our position in the church for a position in Christ. We are called to make our calling and election sure, not by looking at our name on a church roll, but by looking to Christ in faith and repentance. The Lord knows who are His, and He will accomplish all His purposes, even through the opposition of His enemies.