The Ending of Mark’s Gospel

Modern editions and translations of the New Testament take note of several important variations at the end of the Gospel of Mark. The manuscripts agree up to the point where the three women who received the announcement of Jesus’ resurrection left the tomb but said nothing to anyone because they were afraid (Mark 16:8). The two oldest surviving Greek manuscripts of the Gospel of Mark both end at this point. There is wide agreement that this conclusion represents the oldest recoverable form of the Gospel of Mark.

The majority of medieval manuscripts continue with Mark 16:9–20, now known as “the longer ending.” These verses report three resurrection appearances, Jesus’ instructions to preach the gospel, and a promise that spiritual signs will accompany faith. It seems that the longer ending originated in the first half of the second century, probably as a summary of gospel traditions. The author was apparently familiar with the other New Testament Gospels and the book of Acts. Adding these verses to the Gospel of Mark provided the book with a conclusion closer to those of the other Gospels.

The best evidence that the Gospel of Mark circulated from an early time without any additional ending is to be found in the New Testament itself. The Gospels of Matthew and Luke, whose authors are thought to have relied on Mark, diverge after Mark 16:8. The secondary nature of the longer ending is further confirmed by its distinctive vocabulary compared to the rest of the Gospel of Mark. Both Eusebius in the early fourth century and Jerome in the early fifth century recognized the problem of the varied endings in copies of the Gospel of Mark. Both church fathers accepted Mark 16:8 as the original conclusion of the Gospel based on the oldest manuscripts they could find. Many of the medieval manuscripts mark the longer ending with signs or marginal notes to indicate the verses were not present in other copies of Mark.

It has been argued that it is impossible that the Gospel was meant to end at Mark 16:8, on a note of fear and silence. There is speculation that the author failed to finish the text or that the final pages of the original were somehow lost before it was widely copied. However, recent studies of literary patterns in Mark’s Gospel suggest that Mark 16:8 is an appropriate ending for a book about the beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ (Mark 1:1). The Gospel of Mark ends just at the point when it becomes possible to fully understand the assertion that Jesus is the Messiah who suffered, died, was raised from the dead, and will return as the Son of Man. Jesus privately gave the disciples this gospel message in the central section of Mark (Mark 8:29–31; 9:31; 10:32–33)—this message resembles Paul’s summary of the gospel in 1 Cor 15:3–7). After the figure in white at the tomb announces this “good news” (Mark 16:6–7), no further narrative is needed.

The Gospel of Mark was probably written at a time when many of the original followers of Jesus had died. Given this context, it appears Mark’s Gospel seeks to establish its interpretation of the traditions of Jesus through a narrative that stands on its own authority. In other words, it does not rely on the testimony of the first witnesses to Jesus’ resurrection; rather, it looks forward. The abrupt conclusion of Mark at Mark 16:8 locates the audience within a larger narrative that will only find its conclusion when the Son of Man returns to gather His own (Mark 13:26–27). Until that time, those who read or hear Mark’s Gospel know everything necessary to understand and preach the gospel of Jesus.

The longer ending of Mark was included in the text established by Erasmus and other Renaissance scholars, often referred to as “the received text.” This version served as the basis for translations into modern European languages during the Reformation, including the Authorized Version or King James Bible. The Council of Trent affirmed the canonical status of the longer ending in the Roman Catholic Church.

Further Reading

Mark, Gospel of CLBD

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Mark, Gospel of AYBD

Robert F. Stoops, Jr.