GREAT THINGS ENTERPRISE
CLAUDE BLACK
Mark 8:17
In the Same Boat
A few years ago, while traveling in a different part of the country before the ubiquitous GPS, I went into a service station to ask for directions to a business. The man gave me the directions. I wanted to be sure I understood, so I said, “Let me see if I have this correct,” and I started to repeat the directions. He cut me off with, “What did I tell you?” I suppose he thought that if I didn’t understand the first time, repeating it wouldn’t help. Or maybe he was just having a tough day. I thought of that incident as I worked on a translation of Mark’s description of Jesus and his disciples’ voyage across the Sea of Galilee.
Peter, who was present for the voyage, likely described this event to Mark and recalled the admonition Jesus gave to them. According to Mark, the disciples forgot to secure bread for the voyage, and when they realized the mistake, in an abrupt segue, Jesus cautioned them about the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod. They wondered if Jesus’ caution came from their forgetfulness. “And knowing this, he said to them, ‘Why are you discussing that you do not have bread? Do you not yet perceive or understand? Do you have hardened hearts?’” (Mark 8:17)
The word Mark used for “hardened” (πωρόω, poroō,, to petrify, to indurate—render stupid or callous) refers to a kind of stone. In this instance, the question could be understood to ask: “Do you have a rock for a heart?” or, “Is your mind like a rock?” Today, one might ask, “Are you hardheaded?” There are some words that I have trouble remembering, so I often find myself going back to the dictionary to form an understanding of the word. I think my brain is hard as a rock. Teachers often hear students say, “I don’t understand,” so they repeat the lesson—sometimes more than once.
When I have trouble grasping some of the Father’s lessons, I remember the disciples and feel myself in the boat with them—yeah, in the same boat. It was Peter, after all, who later wrote, “The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some people understand slowness, but is being patient with you. He does not want anyone to perish, but wants everyone to repent.” (2 Peter 3:9) When I’m in that boat, I remember what Peter said.
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