Text:

After limoi ‘famines’ Textus Receptus adds kai tarachai ‘and tumults’ which is omitted by all modern editions of the Greek text.

Exegesis:

The first sentence of this verse recalls the language of Isa. 19.2, but is not a quotation of that passage.

egerthēsetai (cf. 1.31) ‘shall be raised,’ ‘shall arise’ in war or hostility.

ethnos (cf. 10.33) ‘people,’ ‘nation.’

basileia (cf. 3.29) ‘kingdom’ In both clauses epi ‘upon’ has a hostile sense, ‘against.’

seismoi (only here in Mark) ‘earthquakes.’

kata topous ‘in various regions,’ ‘in different places.’

limoi (only here in Mark) ‘famines.’

archē ōdinōn ‘a beginning of birth-pangs,’ ‘the beginning of travail.’

archē (cf. 1.1) ‘beginning,’ ‘start.’

ōdin (only here in Mark; cf. //Mt. 24.8; cf. Acts 2.24, 1 Thess. 5.3) ‘birthpang,’ ‘pain (the mother suffers) in childbirth.’ As a technical phrase in apocalyptic literature, ‘the beginning of birth-pangs’ are the terrors and torments that precede the coming of the Messianic age.

Translation:

Nation is translatable as ‘tribe’ or ‘people,’ the largest group which is recognized by the people as an in-group, that is, as having mutual bonds of responsibility; the size of such groups will differ greatly in different areas.

Kingdom may be rendered as ‘government’ in some languages, or as ‘rulers’ in others, since an abstract entity such as a ‘kingdom’ or ‘government’ cannot be spoken of as participating in such a process as ‘rising up against.’ On the other hand, people can be so described.

Rise against means ‘to make war against’ or ‘to fight against.’

In most places there are quite adequate terms for earthquakes. Where necessary, however, one can always describe such an event as ‘the earth shakes’ or ‘the ground moves violently.’

Famines are of frequent enough occurrence in most parts of the world, but the term can always be rendered as a phrase, e.g. ‘people will not have food to eat.’

This must be translated as ‘these’ in some languages or the reader will understand that only the last event, namely, the famines, is involved. Hence, one may render this phrase ‘these are just the beginning….’

In some languages beginning cannot be treated as a noun (cf. 1.1), and hence the entire sentence may require recasting, e.g. ‘these sufferings are just the first.’

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 .