Metaphysical Bible Interpretation of Mark Chapter 15
Metaphysically Interpreting Mark 15:1-5
15:1And straightway in the morning the chief priests with the elders and scribes, and the whole council, held a consultation, and bound Jesus, and carried him away, and delivered him up to Pilate. 15:2And Pilate asked him, Art thou the King of the Jews? And he answering saith unto him, Thou sayest. 15:3And the chief priests accused him of many things. 15:4And Pilate again asked him, saying, Answerest thou nothing? behold how many things they accuse thee of. 15:5But Jesus no more answered anything; insomuch that Pilate marvelled.
May 31, 1942: Mark 15:1-5
What do the “chief priests with the elders and scribes” represent? What does Pilate represent? The former represent the conservative religious thoughts or instincts of man, while Pilate represents the sense will or ruling faculty of the personal man.
When Pilate asked Jesus, “Art thou the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Thou sayest.” Why was this true? Jesus fully expressed the Christ, and the Christ is the supreme head or king of the religious nature (the Jews). [But] before, Jesus answered truthfully that He was the King of the Jews.
Why was Pilate forced to pass judgment on Jesus in a matter pertaining to religion? Because the will (Pilate) exerts authority over the religious convictions (Jews) as well as over man's inmost self.
Why did Jesus make no reply to the accusations of the priests? Because it was Pilate's duty to see that justice was done under the Roman law. This meant that the first charge should be disposed of before other charges could be preferred. After admitting that He was the king of the Jews, Jesus rightly awaited Pilate's findings before replying to new and different accusations.
Metaphysically Interpreting Mark 15:6-15
15:6Now at the feast he used to release unto them one prisoner, whom they asked of him.15:7And there was one called Barabbas, lying bound with them that had made insurrection, men who in the insurrection had committed murder. 15:8And the multitude went up and began to ask him to do as he was wont to do unto them. 15:9And Pilate answered them, saying, Will ye that I release unto you the King of the Jews? 15:10For he perceived that for envy the chief priests had delivered him up. 15:11But the chief priests stirred up the multitude, that he should rather release Barabbas unto them. 15:12And Pilate again answered and said unto them, What then shall I do unto him whom ye call the King of the Jews? 15:13And they cried out again, Crucify him. 15:14And Pilate said unto them, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out exceedingly, Crucify him. 15:15And Pilate, wishing to content the multitude, released unto them Barabbas, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified.
June 10, 1928: Mark 15:1-15
In today's lesson what character represents the executive power of the mind? Pilate, the governor, represents the will, the executive faculty of the mind.
Does the will (Pilate) have spiritual understanding? No, spiritual understanding must be quickened before the will can act wisely.
What does Jesus represent? Jesus represents man's spiritual identity.
What is represented by the custom of releasing a prisoner to the multitude at the feast? A feast represents a notable event that men celebrate by eating and drinking to the glory of God, that is, spiritually partaking of divine substance. When we affirm spiritually, we release or deny error and materiality, represented here by the robber, Barabbas.
Why did the Jewish rabble choose to release Barabbas instead of Jesus? The Jewish rabble represents people who are wedded to external forms of religion. Such people resent new presentations of Truth that revolutionize their creeds and dogmas, as the teachings of Jesus did.
What did Pilate mean when he asked Jesus if He was King of the Jews? Pilate desired to know if Jesus claimed that He was ruler of the Jewish religion, and Jesus admitted He was by His reply, “Thou sayest.” But the Jews repudiated His leadership because they did not understand the difference between a temporal and a spiritual kingdom. The Jews are members of God's spiritual kingdom, in which Jesus is king, but they know it not.
Why did Pilate, who found no evil in Jesus, consent to and order His crucifixion? Pilate represents the will, the executive power of the mind. When the religious thoughts, represented by the Pharisees, demand that certain spiritual ideas shall be killed out of consciousness, the will is bound to carry out the edict. This is a law of mind that is always fulfilled when divine intervention is not invoked.
When man chooses to retain the adverse consciousness and is filled with rebellion and hatred against Truth, what results? The spiritual part of his consciousness, represented by Jesus, is crucified; and the people, or outer thoughts, are left to go on in their materiality.
March 11, 1944: Mark 15:12-15
Why did Pilate wish to please the multitude? Pilate represents the human will, which occupies itself with the random thoughts that swarm through the mind of sense, undertaking to satisfy each in its turn.
Why was Barabbas released instead of Jesus? Barabbas represents the adverse consciousness, rebellion and hatred. The personal will gives way to such expressions as a matter of course, making little if any effort to discipline them. Truth is abandoned as of no consequence.
Why was Jesus scourged before being delivered to the Jews? The outer ruling power (Pilate) flouts the spiritual power of Truth and subjects it to the extreme of abuse in order to remove any suggestion of blame attaching to the personal will.
Metaphysically Interpreting Mark 15:16-20
15:16And the soldiers led him away within the court, which is the Praetorium; and they call together the whole band. 15:17And they clothe him with purple, and platting a crown of thorns, they put it on him; 15:18and they began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews! 15:19And they smote his head with a reed, and spat upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him. 15:20And when they had mocked him, they took off from him the purple, and put on him his garments. And they lead him out to crucify him.
Metaphysically Interpreting Mark 15:21-32
15:21And they compel one passing by, Simon of Cyrene, coming from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to go with them, that he might bear his cross. 15:22And they bring him unto the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull. 15:23And they offered him wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not. 15:24And they crucify him, and part his garments among them, casting lots upon them, what each should take.
15:25And it was the third hour, and they crucified him. 15:26And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS. 15:27And with him they crucify two robbers; one on his right hand, and one on his left.15:28And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith, And he was reckoned with transgressors.15:29And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ha! Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, 15:30save thyself, and come down from the cross. 15:31In like manner also the chief priests mocking him among themselves with the scribes said, He saved others; himself he cannot save. 15:32Let the Christ, the King of Israel, now come down from the cross, that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reproached him.
June 17, 1928: Mark 15:22-26
What is the lesson of the crucifixion to every real Christian? The lesson of the crucifixion is a prophecy of a change in the real Christian's aspect toward life. The material concept of life which he has been living, must be killed and the new life in Spirit must be substituted.
Where does this change take place? The change takes place in Golgotha, the “place of a skull,” which means the place where the conscious mind manifests, the head.
What does the “wine mingled with myrrh” represent? Wine means life, and myrrh means bitterness. Jesus would not drink this bitterness of life; He merely tasted it, which means that He did not allow Himself to be swallowed up by the bitterness of death.
What does the casting of lots for His garments represent? Garments represent the most external thought realm; casting lots for them means that those in the outer sense consciousness, in their ignorance, overlook spiritual things and gamble for the transitory things of externality.
Metaphysically Interpreting Mark 15:33-41
15:33And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. 15:34And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? 15:35And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Elijah. 15:36And one ran, and filling a sponge full of vinegar, put it on a reed, and gave him to drink, saying, Let be; let us see whether Elijah cometh to take him down. 15:37And Jesus uttered a loud voice, and gave up the ghost. 15:38And the veil of the temple was rent in two from the top to the bottom. 15:39And when the centurion, who stood by over against him, saw that he so gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God.
15:40And there were also women beholding from afar: among whom were both Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome;15:41who, when he was in Galilee, followed him, and ministered unto him; and many other women that came up with him unto Jerusalem.
June 17, 1928: Mark 15:33-39
Why did Jesus cry with a loud voice, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” The cry, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” was the cry of the personal consciousness that believes in a personal God, who fails in the hour of trial. The “loud voice” represents the outer consciousness which is losing its hold on physical life.
What is the meaning of the sentence, “Let us see whether Elijah cometh to take him down”? The meaning of the sentence, “Let us see whether Elijah cometh to take him down,” is that those on the natural plane of thought look for salvation through Elijah, or the highest expression of the natural man. Elijah does not save man. Man is saved through Christ; Jesus gave himself up to Spirit.
What is the meaning of the rending of the veil of the temple from top to bottom? The temple represents the body, which loses its physical cohesion, when the tension of the mortal will relinquishes its hold on the invisible thought substance (veil).
June 11, 1933: Mark 15:22-39
What does the death of Jesus on the cross represent to mankind? This event has a twofold significance for mankind: first, it represents the separation of personality from that in man which is eternal and changeless, and secondly, it represents the victory of the spiritual life over materiality by way of nonresistance.
What is the meaning of “Golgotha”? Golgotha means “place of the skull.” The skull is the center of the intellect, which must be given over to the eternal ascendancy of Spirit. Jesus (the intellectual) was crucified at “the place of a skull” that Christ (Truth) might become all in all.
Where is the seat of the conscious mind located? The seat of the conscious mind is the front brain, and there the will has established its dominion. There all things affecting the body are either admitted or rejected.
Does spiritual truth have to be admitted through this “door”? Yes, before it can become part of the consciousness, spiritual truth must enter through the door of the conscious mind. It is there that the human will must be given up, to allow the divine will free expression.
What is personality's greatest test? To pray truly the prayer “Not as I will, but as thou wilt,” is the test of man's ability to surrender personality. No one need fear, however, to make full surrender of his will to the higher will, and to trust it fully, as did Jesus. The divine will is more solicitous of man's welfare than he himself can possibly be.
Is there proof that Jesus was the type man for the whole race? Yes. This proof lies in the fact that He fulfilled all Messianic prophecy. Even the apparently small details of the crucifixion (the parting of His garments by lot among the soldiers; His being placed between thieves on the cross) fulfilled predictions of the Jewish prophets.
How did Jesus (the type man) make “himself the Son of God?” “He made himself the Son of God” by making Himself one with the heart and soul of the race, for which he claimed the same high heritage as He proved was His own.
June 19, 1938: Mark 15:22-39
What is the symbolism of Golgotha? Golgotha (the place of a skull) symbolizes the place where intellect is “crossed out” in order that Spirit may have first place in man's life and thought.
Why did Jesus refuse the proffered wine mingled with myrrh? This drink had a stupefying effect on the faculties. Jesus willed to keep His mind clear through the ordeal of crucifixion.
Of what is the Crucifixion a symbol? It symbolizes the separation made between personality and spiritual consciousness in the life of man.
The soldiers cast lots for the garments of Jesus; what does this indicate? Roman soldiers represent the forces of the intellect in man. The sense nature is alien to Truth, and if any vestige of Truth is clothed in sense it is the result of so-called lot or chance.
What is signified by the fact that it was the third hour, when Jesus was crucified? The third hour represents the three-fold nature of man, spirit, soul, and body. On the cross these three departments of Jesus' being were subjected to the supreme test to determine whether they were essentially one or were divisible.
What do the two robbers crucified with Jesus represent? They represent the past and the future, which rob man of peace and the power to realize his highest good, when he turns back to relive the past in his thought, or throws the force of his imagination into the future in anticipation of what is to come, to the detriment of his present efforts.
What prompted the cry of Jesus “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” As sense consciousness dies it seems as though all is lost, and the soul cries out in despair. But man is never forsaken by the Father, although his consciousness of the divine presence may be lost for a time.
What symbolism is contained in the statement that the “veil of the temple was rent in two from the top to the bottom”? The veil of sense thought that conceals the spiritual body is rent, and man becomes conscious of the spiritual body, which is imperishable and eternal.
June 7, 1942: Mark 15:33-34
The three hours of darkness represent the doubts that attack the soul, when it is surrendering the self for the higher good. Doubt invades mind, soul, and body (the whole land) at such a time, so that one cannot be sure of the right course (the sun's light failing).
When personality is completely wiped out, the soul enters into glory. Man entrusts his spirit only to the universal life consciousness (the hands of the Father), recognizing in Spirit the one power and the one presence.
June 12, 1949: Mark 15:34
What did the cry “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” signify? The cry of the soul at the darkest hour of crucifixion signifies the passing of the sensual, when nothing seems to be left. For the time being God is shut out of the consciousness of the person who is offering himself up. The reaction is temporary, for God does not desert those who believe in Him. “Christ ... having been once offered to bear the sins of many, shall appear a second time, apart from sin ... unto salvation.”
March 25, 1951: Mark 15:33-37
What does the crucifixion symbolize? It symbolizes the separation between the personal consciousness and spiritual consciousness in the life of man.
Where does this separation of consciousness take place? Golgotha, “the place of a skull.” Golgotha symbolizes the place where intellect is “crossed out” so that Spirit may have first place in man's life and thought.
What does “darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour” signify? It signifies the feeling of desolation that the soul experiences, when in time of extreme crisis it temporarily loses its awareness of God.
What is signified by the cry of Jesus “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me”? As the sense consciousness “dies,” that is surrenders its domination of the individual, the soul nature, which is not yet fully awakened to Spirit, feels that all is lost and cries out in despair.
Metaphysically Interpreting Mark 15:42-47
15:42And when even was now come, because it was the Preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath, 15:43there came Joseph of Arimathaea, a councillor of honorable estate, who also himself was looking for the kingdom of God; and he boldly went in unto Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus. 15:44And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead. 15:45And when he learned it of the centurion, he granted the corpse to Joseph. 15:46And he bought a linen cloth, and taking him down, wound him in the linen cloth, and laid him in a tomb which had been hewn out of a rock; and he rolled a stone against the door of the tomb. 15:47And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid.
Transcribed by Lloyd Kinder on 01-22-2014
