Tim Maas Retired Quality Assurance Specialist with the U.S. Army

Yes, the Mark (whose first name was John) mentioned in Colossians was the same individual who had earlier caused the disagreement and separation between Paul and Barnabas (who was Mark's relative) noted by Luke in Acts 15 (because of Mark's prior action recorded in Acts 13:13), as well as the author of the gospel of Mark (in which he included an anonymous mention of himself in the third person in Mark 14:51-52). (Paul and Mark apparently were reconciled subsequent to Mark's departure and Paul's later disagreement with Barnabas, as indicated by Paul mentioning Mark favorably in his later epistles (as in Colossians 4:10 and 2 Timothy 4:11).) 

Mark's father was the owner of the so-called Upper Room in which the Last Supper was held, and which served as the congregating point for the apostles in the book of Acts (as in Acts 1:13). Mark's mother was named Mary, as noted in Acts 12:12, in connection with the account of Peter's miraculous escape from prison.

Mark later served as a companion and interpreter for Peter in his missionary travels, with Peter being the source for much of the information that Mark included in his gospel. (Peter even referred to Mark as his (figurative) "son" in 1 Peter 5:13.)

(I have always found it interesting that Mark did not mention Peter by name (as John did in John 18:10-11) in his account (in Mark 14:47) of the ear of the servant of the high priest being cut off at the time of Jesus' arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, for which Jesus rebuked Peter in John's account, and which (it seemed to me) Mark might have omitted out of deference to Peter.)

October 13 2020 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report