Read carefully the whole of chapter 13, remembering that in Mark’s Gospel the events and teachings of Jesus in his last week in Jerusalem (chapters 11-13) are concerned with the fulfillment of the kingdom — the complete restoration of God’s order in humankind. The conviction of the early Church, reflected in the Gospels, was that the "last days" had already arrived with the death and resurrection of Jesus, and that God’s definitive judgment upon the old order and his affirmation of the new and final age of humanity was demonstrated in the destruction of the Jerusalem temple in 70 C.E. This chapter needs to be understood with the memory of this event very much alive in the mind of the writer, as well as the first readers — this Gospel was compiled nearly at the same time.

The persecution faced by the early Church was seen as the means by which Christ’s triumph would be manifested (vv 24-25). The coming on the clouds of the Son of Man in power (v 26) echoes Dn 7:13, and actually referred to the enthronement of Jesus as Lord of the world in the ascension to the Father. The angels (= messengers) who assemble all the chosen (v 27) refer to the mission of the Church throughout the world. Mark’s message, then, to his readers is not to look merely to some future cataclysmic event, but to see the triumphant Christ already operating within the Church as it presently exists, even as it is persecuted and in constant danger. Jesus’ words about the nearness of the events of those "last days" (vv 28-30) pose no problem if we can raise our understanding above a narrow literal interpretation of vv 24-27, and refrain from seeing shooting stars, comets, or eclipses as omens. The signs mentioned are images of both ongoing persecution and the enduring power of the risen Christ among his people.

Finally, Jesus’ words warn us not to interpret Biblical prophecy as predicting events of our own day (v 32). Fidelity to Christ demands that we not be concerned with the timetable of the end of the world, but make each day count fully as servants of the kingdom of God.

These verses are the conclusion of the description of the so-called Hellenistic wars between the Seleucid dynasty in Syria (king of the north) and the Ptolemaic dynasty in Egypt (king of the south) during the third and second centuries B.C.E., described in chapters 10 and 11. Of course, the Jews were in the middle of this — both geographically and politically. Some remained faithful to their heritage, often at the cost of persecution and death. Many others compromised for protection or profit. The fate of these unfaithful ones is the subject of this reading. Michael is seen as the particular protector of the Jewish people in later apocalyptic books like Daniel. This passage gives us the most definite reference to the resurrection of the dead to be found in the Jewish Scriptures.

Much of the book of Daniel is written in an apocalyptic style, similar to the Christian scriptural book of Revelation. This type of writing usually comes from an oppressed and persecuted people, and graphically depicts the horrors of destruction awaiting their enemies as well as the sweet triumphs and blissful rewards prepared for the faithful. In the light of the origin and nature of apocalyptic writing, we should be careful not to read into them a prediction of events to be fulfilled in a future age — or in our own day.

God’s protection of those who are his own is the confident hope of this quiet and trusting psalm. Response: "Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope."

These verses recall the points already made about the priesthood and sacrifice of Christ. Note that vv 5-10 are read on the Fourth Sunday of Advent, Year C. Of significance for us is the simple statement of v 18: forgiveness of sin is assured by Christ’s sacrifice as an already present reality, not something to be hoped for or earned in the future. The concluding chapters appear in Year C, on the Nineteenth through Twenty-Second Sundays.

1. What does Mark 13 say to us today?

2. What does "resurrection of the body" mean to you?