Text:

autois ‘to them’ is omitted by Westcott and Hort, and Taylor, but retained by all other editions of the Greek text.

Exegesis:

gegraptai (cf. 1.2) ‘it is written,’ ‘Scripture says’: the quotation, from Isa. 56.7, represents Yahweh speaking, so that ‘My house’ of the quotation is ‘God’s house’ (not as though Jesus were claiming the Temple was his own house).

proseuchēs (cf. 9.29) ‘of prayer.’

klēthēsetai ‘shall be called’: a Hebraism for ‘shall be.’

pasin tois ethnesin (cf. 10.33) ‘for all peoples,’ ‘for all nations.’

spēlaion lēstōn ‘a den of robbers,’ ‘a cave of bandits’: the phrase is a reference to another O.T. passage, Jer. 7.11.

spēlaion (only here in Mark) ‘cave,’ ‘den.’

lēstēs (14.48; 15.27) ‘robber,’ ‘highwayman,’ ‘bandit.’

Translation:

Taught may require an object, as it does in so many languages, in which case one may have ‘taught the people.’

Is it not written anticipates a positive answer, but the form may be quite varied, e.g. (1) ‘Is it written…; it surely is so written’; (2) ‘it is written, is it not, of course, …’ and (3) ‘is it not written, no…’ or ‘is it not written, yes….’ It should be noted that in some languages agreement with a sentence introduced by a negative must also be a negative, while in other languages agreement is introduced by a positive – forms which are anticipated in some languages in the very form of the question.

Is it … written involves an awkward passive which because of the anticipatory it, referring to the following direct discourse, must be altered in many languages, e.g. ‘the writings contain, do they not, My house shall….’

House of prayer may be rendered as ‘house where they talk to God’ (Copainalá Zoque, Guerrero Amuzgo). In some instances, however, ‘all the nations’ must be made the subject of the praying, for the prayers are not to be uttered on behalf of all the nations, but the temple is a place where all people may pray, e.g. ‘a house in which people of all the nations may pray.’

Den is a cave, but one with a special purpose, namely, to hide in. In order for the full meaning to be conveyed, in Shipibo-Conibo this added feature must be introduced, e.g. ‘cave … to hide in,’ otherwise one might assume that this was only a providential provision for travelers caught in a rainstorm.

Robbers are not thieves, but those who take away possessions by force.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on the Gospel of Mark. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1961. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .